In the Word eVotion                           July 1, 2008

Rising Above the Sun
By Pastor Jason Van Divier

“…there is nothing new under the sun."
                                                     Ecclesiastes 1:9 (NKJV)

Ecclesiastes is the journal of a backslidden Solomon struggling to find meaning in life apart from God.  He finds himself completely bored and frustrated as he tries to find fulfillment in various pursuits.  Ecclesiastes is included in scripture not as a model of how to live, but as a reminder that someone else has already tried and failed to find purpose and hope apart from the Lord.  Solomon repeatedly uses the phrase “under the sun”, and there we discover the problem.

The key to finding the meaning of life is to rise above the sun.  So many confine their wisdom and search to this world.  The problem is that what you are capable of discovering and experiencing under the sun can never be big enough to fill the space in your heart.  There isn’t really anything new under the sun, but there is hope and fulfillment in the Son.  Eternal hope and satisfaction in this life are found when we stop searching this world, and find ourselves completely immersed in a relationship with Jesus Christ.