Ecclesiastes 3

Main Point: God is working out his sovereign purposes in our lives in a beautiful yet mysterious way

A Time for Everything (3:1-8)

Every matter under heaven has a proper time and fitting place, but we have no control over when that time and place is

Everything Beautiful in Its Time (3:9-15)

“He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man's heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.” Ecclesiastes 3:11

In downtown Desden, Germany, there is a mural, several blocks long, depicting every king of Germany throughout its history in this great parade (“The Wall of Kings” or “Procession of Princes”). The only problem is that there is a building right across the street, so there is no way to stand far enough back to take the whole thing in. You can only see one section at a time. You can tell that what you’re looking at is part of a bigger story, but you can only make out a small part of it from where you stand. 

That’s us, living under the sun. God has placed eternity in our hearts; we know there is a bigger story being told, a grand plan and vision

There is joy even in the vapor, if there is a sovereign and good God at work in and behind every matter

Trust the sovereign God who has both the authority and the power to bring his plan to completion

Talk It Over

Use the content in our Discussion Guide below to help you dig deeper into the lessons covered in the sermons

CONTEXT: “How does this passage fit within the history behind it and verses around it?”
Place the passage within its literary surroundings or historical background as well as consider the circumstances in which it was written (see above for more context questions).

OBSERVATION: “What do I see in this passage?”
Examine the passage by making notes, asking questions, and considering the structure, tone, and wording of the passage (see above for more observation questions).

MEANING: “What does this passage mean?”
Consider the main point or idea that the original human author wanted his original audience to understand in a particular text from our study of context and observation thus far (see above for more meaning questions).

APPLICATION: “How should this passage affect me today?”
Define shared principles between the original audience and us today and make a plan to put those principles into practice (see above for more application questions).