The Meaning of Life

“’Meaningless! Meaningless!’ says the Teacher. ‘Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.’ What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun?” - Ecclesiastes 1:2-3

A king named Solomon wrote the book of Ecclesiastes. He is described in the Bible as the wisest man who ever lived. He wrote Ecclesiastes late in his life, and it looks back on a time in his life when he tried to live life apart from God. King Solomon doesn’t beat around the bush in describing what life without God amounts to…”Meaningless! Meaningless! Everything is meaningless.”

He began the book of Ecclesiastes with this phrase, and he ended it with the same phrase in Ecclesiastes 12:8. Whenever Hebrews wanted to emphasize something they did it by repetition. The word “meaningless” is repeated 38 times in Ecclesiastes. In effect, Solomon is saying, “Life without God is a big, fat zero.” After a lifetime of exhaustive research and personal experience, Solomon writes this book to reveal the single most important lesson anyone of any age will learn about life: Everything is nothing if everything is all there is. Only God can make your life matter.

Over and over throughout my ministry I have heard the question, “Is there a God?” However, research shows that around 96% of all Americans believe in some type of God or a supreme being. So I think the real question people have about God is a deeper one. The question is, “If God exists, what difference does it make?”

Whether you live in a close, personal relationship with God, only attend church on Easter Sunday, or haven’t ever even spoken His name, God is the One who makes your life matter. The Bible says that God’s eyes saw your unformed body. He created you intricately and intentionally, knitting you together in your mother’s womb. All the days of your precious life were written in God’s book before you were even born (Psalm 139:13, 16). Why would God care to number the hairs on your head (Luke 12:7) if He intended to leave your life up to luck, chance, or fate? Your Creator is not some far-off force of nature; He is in the details.

If you are struggling to understand the meaning of your life, you need to look no further than the One who created you, loves you, and sent His only Son to die for your sins.

Father, Thank You for creating me with value and purpose. Because of You, I can know that no matter what happens on this earth, my life matters. In Jesus’ name, amen.