Searching For Satisfaction 

Scripture Reading: Ecclesiastes 2:1-26.

Memory Verse: "Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy" (1 Timothy 6:17).

INTRODUCTION: A philosopher said: "I was walking in a garden when I saw a tree whose branches were so loaded with fruit that they bowed down to the earth. Some of them broke under the heavy weight. 'Poor tree!' I thought. 'Here's one who was destroyed by the overabundance of his success.' "
  He continued his walk and saw a shepherd at whose feet lay a dead sheep. A wild dog had killed it. All the other sheep had run into the fold and were safe. They had managed to get through a hole in the fence. But the sheep that was killed couldn't get through because it was too fat, and the dog jumped on it. And the philosopher thought, "Another life destroyed by an overabundance of blessings."
  The philosopher went on until he met a man hobbling along on two wooden legs with the aid of two canes. "Tell me, sir, how did you lose your legs?" asked the philosopher. "I'll tell you. In my youth I served in the army. Some of my fellow soldiers and I attacked the enemy and put them to flight. Then we began helping ourselves to the loot. My comrades just grabbed a few things and left quickly. But I wanted to take as much as I could carry. Meanwhile the enemy overtook us. My friends escaped, but I was so heavily loaded down I couldn't run fast, and I was wounded. I escaped with my life, but I lost my legs." "Indeed," said the philosopher, "success, riches and greed can all equally destroy."

LESSON QUESTIONS:

1. What was the Preacher's analysis of searching for happiness in worldly pleasures? Eccl. 2:1-3.

2. What are the devastating effects of looking for satisfaction in worldly things? Proverbs 21:17; Isaiah 47:8,9; Amos 6:3-8; Luke 8:14; 12:16-21; 2 Peter 2:9-13; Rev. 18:7.

3. To what lengths did the King go to find pleasure in buildings and gardens? Eccl. 2:4-6.

4. Was there lasting satisfaction in great wealth and possessions? Eccl. 2:7-11; James 5:1-6; Deut. 8:13,14; Psalm 62:10; 1 Timothy 6:9; Job 31:24,25,28; Psalm 52:6-9; Rev. 3:16-19.

5. How much better is wisdom than folly? Eccl. 2:12,13; Job 28:12-19; Proverbs 3:13,14; 8:11; Eccl. 7:19; Proverbs 19:8.

6. What observation does the Preacher make about how the wise and the foolish experience life in the same way? Eccl. 2:14,15; Matthew 5:44,45.

7. Will the righteous or the wicked be remembered very long after they die? Eccl. 2:16.

8. Why did the Preacher end up hating his life and all his labor? Eccl. 2:17-23; Job 7:11-15.

9. What does the Preacher state is the best life for men to live? Eccl. 2:24-26.