Purpose If Life Has No Meaning, Leadership Has No Meaning
Ecclesiastes 1:3-11
“Life is vanity,” writes Solomon. Imagine the wisest, richest most powerful man in his time, proclaiming everything worthless! Solomon’s name means “peace,” but he enjoyed none of it while writing most of this book. He grew deflated, depressed, and disillusioned about life “under the sun.” Here we see a leader who lost the air in his sails because he abandoned his true mission. He teaches us…
1. There is no profit (vv. 3, 4) – Life without God is an exercise in futility. Generations come and go; all we do is more things around.
2. There is no purpose (vv. 5-7) – The sun rises only to set again, endlessly repeating a meaningless cycle. Wind blows, river flows, all in monotony.
3. There is no progress (vv. 8-11) – There is no satisfaction; there’s nothing new under the sun, nor pleasant remembrance of earlier life.
Leadership without an eternal perspective falls into the trap of meaninglessness. Leadership must work toward significant, meaningful goals. We are forced to conclude that:
1. If nothing worthwhile exists under the sun, our only hope must lie about it.
2. If the man with everything investigated every visible delight and still wound up unsatisfied, then what satisfies must be invisible.
3. If the wisest man on earth finds no answers under heaven, then we must look to heaven itself for those answers.
Purpose
Sunday Morning
21 Christian Growth Issues in the Bible
Ephesians 2:1-10
I. You Were Created for A Reason
a. Eph. 2:10
II. God’s Purpose Is Fulfilled Through His Power
a. Psalm 33:1-22
III. God’s Call Is Bigger Than Jeremiah Can Imagine
a. Jeremiah 1:1-19
IV. Saul’s Passion, Transformed by God’s Power, Fulfills God’s Purpose
a. Acts 9:1-22
Sunday Evening
If I Were A Teenager Again
Psa. 119:9-16
I. I Would Form Good Habits
a. Luke 4:16
b. Matt. 7:13-14
II. I Would Learn to Get Along
a. Luke 2:52
b. Prov. 18:24
III. I Would Seek good Health
IV. I Would Be More Spiritually Minded
a. John 4:24
Purpose Your Work and Your Job
Ecclesiastes 9:7-18
Everyone on earth has a work to do, and it may be different from one’s job. A job may be the task we get paid for at the moment, but a work is the task God give us for our lives. Jobs come and go but the work remains. Your present job may be preparation for your ultimate work. This passage gives us direction for leaving the right legacy to those who come behind us.
Work joyfully, since approval comes from God (vv. 7-9).
Work energetically, even if the results seem uncertain (vv. 10-12).
Work wisely, with the benefit of God’s perspective (vv. 13-18).
Purpose
Great Leaders See the Big Picture and the Little Process
Ezekiel 40:1-44:31
God, the Ultimate Leader, never loses sight of the whole, but never ignores details, either. What does God communicate in these chapters?
1. I care about the details.
2. No one is unimportant.
3. We have a bigger purpose for what we do.
4. The labor of each individual has meaning.