Everything in the Old Creation under the Sun is Vanity of Vanities, only Christ is Reality

The theme of the book of Ecclesiastes is vanity of vanities; human history, from its beginning to the present, is vanity and not reality, but when we have God, He in us is our reality and satisfaction.

This week we come to the last crystal in our crystallization-study of Job, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes, and we will focus mainly on the book of Ecclesiastes.

Our topic in this book – in the light of the whole Bible – is Vanity of Vanities, the Reality in Jesus, and the Revelation of the Sons of God.

There is a particular burden related to this matter, and there is much resistance to this from the enemy, his cohorts in the air, and from the self, the natural life, and the culture in all of us.

But praise the Lord, by His mercy and grace, we want to be those whose consecration is fresh and in whom the love for the Lord is developing, for we seek life and truth and Christ Himself more than ever before.

The subject of the book of Ecclesiastes is vanity of vanities; Solomon, known for his wisdom, experienced in the human life every material blessing and pleasure, but eventually, he realized that it’s all vanity – it’s like breath, meaningless, pointless.

He said that all things are absurd, ridiculous; everything under the sun, everything in the old creation, everything in the fallen human life in the sight of God is vanity and chasing of the wind.

We may get married and be so excited about this new beginning, but in fifteen years we will realize that it’s all vanity.

We may get a job and start a career that seems so promising, but eventually, we realize it is all vanity.

We may achieve the highest height and get the greatest accolades and awards, but inwardly we realize that nothing under the sun is eternal but rather, it is all vanity of vanities.

When we will all come before the judgment seat of Christ we will realize that, no matter what we have achieved, what we have built up, and what we have accumulated, it is all vanity of vanities unless we have God in Christ as the Spirit as the reality and satisfaction in our being.

If a man refuses to believe into the Son of God so that he becomes a child of God, judgment will be his portion, and his whole life is vanity of vanities.

We believe that, according to the Bible, the Son of Man will have to say even to many believers at the judgment seat, Vanity.

The way you lived, the way you behaved, your work, everything was vanity.

Some believers do read the Bible, do attend the meetings of the church, and do claim that they are Christians, but do they live one with Christ as the meaning of their human life? Do they gain Christ as reality and do they live in Christ, with Christ, by Christ, and one with Christ? Oh, Lord Jesus!

May we all realize under the Lord’s light and by His wisdom that everything under the sun in the old creation is vanity of vanities, for only God is reality.

May there be a deep longing developing in us for the revelation, the manifestation of the sons of God and the release of the entire creation from anguish and corruption and vanity, so that the age would be turned to the age of the kingdom.

May we seek reality, know reality, live in the reality, and may our daily life and living be in the reality, which is the reality in Jesus becoming our reality.

We need to Receive Wisdom from God to realize that Everything in the old creation is Vanity of Vanities in the sight of God

Solomon set his heart to seek and to search out all that is done under the heavens, and he observed that, according to the natural phenomena, all the things done in the world under the sun are in a cycle, they remain the same, and nothing is new.

The contents of the book of Ecclesiastes are a description by Solomon concerning the human life of fallen mankind under the sun, which is in the corrupted world.

Everything in the world under the sun, everything done by man in the old creation in the world, is wearisome, nothing new, the same in generation after generation; it is all vanity of vanities and chasing after the wind.

Such a conclusion by Solomon, a wise king, may be considered a history of the vain life of a fallen man; his conclusion in Ecclesiastes is like a dirge to a man whose end is in misery.

Solomon had outstanding and unequalled wisdom, even wisdom that comes from God, for he asked God for wisdom in his youth and God gave it to him.

He had the supreme position in the country, he owned an unsurpassed wealth (silver in his time was like the stones in the street), and he had hundreds of wives and concubines, thus falling in the indulgence of his lust to an unparalleled extent.

He had positive and negative experiences of human life under the sun, and his thought was deeply impressed and occupied with the fact that everything in the old creation is vanity of vanities (Eccl. 1:2).

Everything lived in the old creation by the fallen human life in the sight of God is vanity.

The theme of the book of Ecclesiastes is vanity of vanities; the central thought of this book is the vanity of vanities of human life under the sun in its falling away from God.

The teachings of Solomon in this book show that the human life in the corrupted world is vanity, a chasing after the wind (1:14).

According to Ecclesiastes, human history – from its beginning to the present – is vanity (Eccl. 12:8).

We may think that something may be good, excellent, marvellous, or wonderful, and we may seem to enjoy it for a while; but as long as such a thing is of the old creation, it is part of the vanity of vanities under the sun (Eccl. 1:9; 2:11, 17, 22).

It is a terrible mistake to pursue something glorious for us in the old creation, because sooner or later we will realize that our life in vain.

We need to receive wisdom from God to realize that in the old creation everything is vanity of vanities; apart from God as reality, everything else is vanity and a chasing after the wind.

We may think that a career will give us meaning and cause us to be happy, but the more we develop and work on our career, the more we realize how meaningless it is, for it is vanity and chasing after the wind.

We may think that our family is the most important thing and we may invest all we have to have a good marriage life, a good house, a good income, and we may work to have educated and good children who achieve success in society.

Eventually, we will realize that it is all vanity; the career will be over, our job may even not exist anymore, our children will go do their own thing and we are left alone.

May we receive wisdom from God to realize that, apart from God, everything under the sun in the old creation is vanity of vanities and chasing after the wind.

Only the new creation, which is in the heavens and not “under the sun” (Eccl. 1:9), is not vanity but is reality (2 Cor. 5:17; Gal. 6:15; Eph. 4:24).

As believers in Christ, whenever we do not focus on Christ in us, on the mingled spirit, on God in Christ as the Spirit living in our spirit, we chase the wind and the result is vanity.

But when we exercise our spirit, live in spirit, and contact the Lord, we live a life of reality, even a life of eternity, for the new creation is what matters.

Lord Jesus, grant us to have wisdom from God to realize that everything under the sun in the old creation is vanity of vanities and a chasing after the wind. Save us from living a life of vanity by pursuing things in the old creation. Expose the vanity of this world to us. Show us how vain and futile are things under the sun and how real and worthy are the things of the new creation. Amen, Lord, we turn to You; You are reality. Nothing apart from You is real or worth chasing after. May we not make the terrible mistake of pursuing something glorious for us in the old creation, which is all vanity of vanities. Amen, Lord, save us from living a life of vanity and bring us into living a life of reality and satisfaction in You!

Not Pursuing a Carrer or Something for ourselves in this world but Enjoying Christ as Reality

As believers in Christ, we may look at the things and the people in this world and realize, by the wisdom that comes from God, that everything is vanity of vanities.

However, what about ourselves? We as Christians may also live a life of vanity by having one foot in the church and the other in the world, by having our heart and spirit in the church but our mind and body in the world.

Especially with this demanding world around us, technology and social media, it is so easy to put aside the things of God and pursue something for ourselves in the world.

We may pursue a career or something for ourselves while limiting our contact with the Lord and our meeting with the saints.

But it is all vanity of vanities. Look at Daniel in the Old Testament; he had a career, even a great career, but he did not live for his career.

He was brought to Babylon, was educated to be a brilliant and wise man who served under many kings, but he did not live for his career.

He surpassed the others in wisdom and did things that startled kings, being placed in very high positions under kings, but he didn’t enjoy a life of joy, wealth, reputation, and satisfaction in Babylon but rather lived for God’s purpose.

He was there in Babylon, he did the things he was supposed to do, but his heart was for the interest of God and the people of God, praying three times a day even at the risk of his life, having his windows open toward Jerusalem.

Daniel was a godly person, highly educated, very diligent and reliable in his work, and he lived for God’s interest on earth.

What about us? Will we choose to have a career as the goal of our life or will we live for God’s purpose?

Look at Luke, a doctor who left everything to travel with Paul and serve with the minister of the age; he was very skilled and his terminology is very elevated in the gospel he wrote, but he was not here for a career.

A career is a pursuit of consecutive progressive achievements especially in public or professional and business life.

Some may even reject the thought of serving God full time or setting time aside to be trained because they are for their career to attain something in this age.

A career is a person’s course or progress through life, which he aims for; it is not just a profession but something you live for. Oh, Lord!

A career is a profession that involves special training and is considered to be one’s lifework.

May the Lord search our heart and our inward parts so that we would realize that our pursuing a career in the world or seeking to gain something for ourselves is vanity of vanities.

We do need to work and earn our daily bread, but we do not need to make a career.

May we realize that in the fallen, old creation under the sun, everything is vanity.

Why would we devote ourselves to pursue vanity of vanities to get some kind of recognition or medal – what would be the benefit of having a medal when we simply chase after wind?

All the things under the sun are vanity, but the things in the heavens are reality; if we contact God and receive wisdom from God, we will see that everything under the sun is a vanity and a chasing of the wind.

May we be saved from living a life of vanity under the sun to living a life of satisfaction of satisfactions by enjoying God in Christ as the Spirit with our spirit, who is the unique reality.

Christ, the embodiment of God is the unique satisfaction not only to man but also to the entire universe, which has been made subject to vanity (Rom. 8:20).

We are created not for temporary things but to be filled with God, saturated with Him, and permeated with Him so that we may express God in the resemblance of Him in His life, nature, and expression.

God is working to bring forth the new creation out from within the old creation; outwardly, physically, we continue to live and work and do things in the old creation, but inwardly we allow the Lord as the Spirit to saturate our soul and eventually transfigure our mortal body.

We live on earth, but we do not live for a career; we live here in a reasonable and practical way, but our attention is on the new creation increasing from our spirit to saturate and permeate our soul, and we eagerly await the transfiguration of the sons of God!

Lord Jesus, we give ourselves to You to live a proper, practical, reasonable human life on earth with the focus not on our career but on the new creation! Amen, Lord, we want to take care of the things related to work, business, family life, and our human existence, but our focus is on Christ in our spirit spreading to saturate and permeate our soul! We refuse to live a life of vanity and chasing after the wind by pursuing a career or something to gain for ourselves. Hallelujah, we are created in the image of God to be filled with God so that our spirit, soul, and body would be saturated with the divine life! Amen, Lord, we love to contact You as the indwelling One who is our real satisfaction and meaning! Spread in our being to saturate our soul with Your element! Amen, we eagerly await for transfiguration, the glorification of the sons of God!

References and Hymns on this Topic

• Sources of inspiration: the Word of God, my enjoyment in the ministry, the message by Ron Kangas for this week, and portions from, Life-study of Ecclesiastes, msgs. 1-2 (by Witness Lee), as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Crystallization-study of Job, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes (2020 winter training), week 12, Vanity of Vanities, the Reality in Jesus, and the Revelation of the Sons of God.
• Hymns on this topic:
  – All things are vanity of vanities, / Christ, the reality all things to fill; / Though everything we may enjoy and own, / If we’re devoid of Christ we’re empty still. (Hymns #496)
  – Man’s life is full of grief and pain: / Much wisdom bringeth misery! / Increasing knowledge addeth woe! / It’s all vanity! / What good our pleasure and our wealth? / Though joys we have and family, / We’ll have our worries just the same! / It’s all vanity! (Hymns #1080)
  – All creation groans together, / Subject now to vanity, / Looking for their full deliv’rance / From corruption’s slavery. (Hymns #970)