Sermon Archive

Text : Ecclesiastes 8:16-9:12 It seems somehow fitting that my attempt to cover the entirety of Ecclesiastes during Lent would be in and of itself a vain pursuit. Well, maybe not entirely, but the reality is this. Next week is Palm/Passion Sunday, when we come back to walk with Jesus to the cross in readings and in music. It means that this week is my last part in the series of sermons on Ecclesiastes… Twelve Chapters, five Sundays… do the math… there is still a lot more in this book of Wisdom than I can possibly cover through a handful of sermons. That’s why any ambition to cover the entirety of the book through the season of Lent is really a vain one… if I took it that way. Really, this effort has been less about gaining an understanding of this particular book, as opposed to simply enjoy it for what it is. The depth of thought and wisdom that the Teacher offers contrasts with the often simple observations he makes… but that’s the idea. He moves back and forth between the great nuanc...

Text: Ecclesiastes 5:1-20 As we explore Ecclesiastes during Lent, the one thing that I am struck with is that as complex as the Teacher’s thinking is at times, it is often how simple his observations can be. Wisdom does not necessarily need to be complex, because while it may take a great deal of nuanced thinking, the end results are often surprisingly clear and simple… and yet at the same time have an incredible depth to them. While it might not be the part of last week’s sermon that you might remember, I did mention that the Teacher’s reflections can be downright agnostic at times. Something that perhaps we might find very frustrating. Yet just a few chapters later, we get a real sense of the incredible depth of Ecclesiastes’ reverence for God in life, and reverence for God in worship. He’s very reluctant to presume to speak for God… he’s very reluctant to make pronouncements on things that really are the province of God . Such practices, are indeed, an exercise in vanity....

Text : Ecclesiastes 3:9-22 If any of you took up the challenge to read Ecclesiastes all the way through, you may have found it to be a frustrating and maybe circular read. Appropriate for the season of Lent, its observations about life can certainly come across as being far more cynical and jaded than other parts of the Bible. That is deliberate. Ecclesiastes represents part of the wisdom tradition of scripture, which we’re not that familiar with already. Within Biblical wisdom itself, there are a few different streams of thought, and much of Ecclesiastes finds itself calling into question what is often accepted as “conventional” wisdom I said earlier that one of the reasons why Ecclesiastes has such an appeal for Lent is that it offers observations about our life and relationship with God while allowing room for doubt and uncertainty. I think many of us have been raised with the notion that doubt and uncertainty are not compatible with our faith in God… and yet throughout Ecclesiastes...

Text : Ecclesiastes 1:1-18 As I mentioned last week, my sermons during the season of Lent will be based on the book of Ecclesiastes. It’s a bit of a departure for me, as I am not relying on a particular set of suggested readings, but simply working my way through a book of the Bible that has one very well known passage in it, but the rest of it is a mystery. Ecclesiastes is a book of wisdom that offers some great insights into life and our relationship with God. Unlike many passages in the Bible, God is not shown as speaking to anybody at any point through this book. There are no peals of thunder, no stone tablets, no displays of fireworks. At no point does the Teacher, as the writer of Ecclesiastes calls himself, hear the voice of God speaking to him directly. If there ever was a book that we could relate to the most, it should be this one. More It has an unflinchingly realistic perspective on the value of life. There are no rose-coloured glasses… no sentimental sayings… and yet his o...