Series
Rev. Jerry Hamstra
The Book of Esther
The Book of Esther
Sermons
Rev. Jerry Hamstra
Introduction to Acts
Introduction to Acts

Ecclesiastes

The End of the Matter

“There is a profound trust and submission behind recognizing that since God is who he is, it is impossible that in the end it will not all be beautiful and God’s way with the world, what he did and what he allowed, will demonstrate “the depth of the riches and the wisdom and the knowledge of God!” (Romans 11:33) And so our job is to leave governing the universe to God and just focus on the only wise way of life in the light of who God is, “Fear God and keep his commandments.””
— Rev. Jerry Hamstra

Youth, Old Age, Judgment and Death

“The world is a wonderful place and the possibilities are endless and God has given us appetites and desires and Ecclesiastes is saying that you should follow them and see where they lead. There are, of course, sinful desires and appetites and Ecclesiastes is not encouraging you to follow those, but we are created with hearts that seek satisfaction and fulfillment and pleasure and joy. That belongs to our humanity. We have desires to learn things and experience things and accomplish things. There are things to do. Places to go. People to meet. Relationships to nurture. Experiences to try. Subjects to investigate. Skills to learn. Tastes to experience. God created the world and pronounced it good and there are ways to participate in life and its potentials that are in harmony with God’s intention and Ecclesiastes is saying that when you are young you should seize the day.”
— Rev. Jerry Hamstra

You Can be Too Careful

“We are saved so that we can invest our lives so that we can make something of them for the glory of God. That is a risky business because we may fail, or disaster may strike, but God does not want us to be so careful that we just exist, live as safely as we can, and making nothing of the opportunities and possibilities that God has given to us.”
— Rev. Jerry Hamstra

A Wisdom Sampler

“The overall insight is that words are very, very important. They can win us favor or they can consume us. So, we must be careful and thoughtful about our words. That means that we will use fewer of them and seek to have the words that we do use reflect biblical values and priorities. Our words should be used to glorify God and to be a blessing to other people.”
— Rev. Jerry Hamstra

The Under-Valuing of Wisdom

“The truth behind all of this is that how we live matters to God and not only the big things, but also how we deal with angry bosses or dull axes. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and one of the fruits of wisdom is that you sharpen your axe instead of hacking away with a dull axe. Sharpening your axe is pleasing to God. Acting like a fool is not even when it comes to cutting down trees.”
— Rev. Jerry Hamstra

Joy in Everyday Life

Read: Ecclesiastes 9:1-12
Text: verses 7-10

“There is a big difference between having questions and doubts and outright unbelief. Unbelief is a settled rejection of God – either a denial that God even exists or a settled pattern of living as if he does not exist. Doubt is not a rejection of God. It is struggling with questions about God and his way with us or with the world. God is still very much in the picture and with God still very much in the picture there is still hope – even if it is not unambiguous hope.”
— Rev. Jerry Hamstra

The Dark Night of the Soul

“This passage shows us that life can be very hard for the people of God. Sometimes it is easy and pleasant. But sometimes it is very hard. It can be hard for various reasons. But there will be times in our lives when we may have trouble believing a lot of what God says to us in his word about working everything together for good and being a just and a loving and a compassionate God. So that is one thing that this passage shows us. This is the word of God and the word of God is showing us that sometimes the people of God have a very hard time reconciling what the Bible says about God and what their experience of life or their observation of life seems to be saying about God. We can sometimes experience the dark night of the soul where we question God and his ways with us or with the world in general and see life as pointless and not worth living.”
— Rev. Jerry Hamstra

Faith Amid the Enigmas of Life

“This is the temptation that comes with the things about life in this world that do not seem to fit with a good God who is sovereign over everything that happens in the world. In our text passage, the author of Ecclesiastes is struggling with the fact that so often the wicked do not get what they deserve and the righteous often get what the wicked deserve. The question that raises is, “What kind of God allows that to happen?” and “How can I trust God if he says that those who serve him are blessed and those who defy him our cursed, when that does not seem to be the way it works out in real life?””
— Rev. Jerry Hamstra

Wisdom Is Not Provoking the King

“The great thing that Ecclesiastes is showing us that if you only look at life from the perspective of under the sun, life can be very dark and hopeless. There is a lot of pain. There is a lot of suffering. There is a lot of frustration. And there is always death on the horizon, our own death and the death of our loved ones. If that is all there is, life can have its short-term pleasures, but there is a lot of suffering and then there is death.”
— Rev. Jerry Hamstra

Advice from a Disillusioned Teacher

“But the author of Ecclesiastes does not take that route. He knows that God is sovereign. He knows that God is somehow involved in everything that happens. And this is a huge part of his problem. The great problem that he is struggling with is exactly the fact that he knows that God is somehow involved in every bad thing that happens. This is why he is so disillusioned with life in God’s world.”
— Rev. Jerry Hamstra