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"All things are full of labour"

Text: Ecclesiastes 1:8

IN THE WORLD OF MAN

Man is part of nature. Yet, he is unlike the sun, the wind or the sea. Man’s lot in life is different in so many ways.

“All things are full of labour;
Man cannot express it.
The eye is not satisfied with seeing,
Nor the ear filled with hearing.”
Ecclesiastes 1:8

1. “All things are full of labour”

a) Every aspect of life is characterised by labour.

b) There is nothing that does not require much labour.

2. “Man cannot express it”

a) Man struggles with understanding life.

b) No matter how he tries to express his understanding of life, he cannot do it perfectly.

3. The faculties of man

a) He has eyes.

b) He has ears.

4. Application of these faculties to comprehend life

a) The eyes cannot see enough.

i) They are not fully satisfied.

ii) He finds that there are always more things to see.

b) The ears cannot hear enough.

i) The ears are not filled no matter what they have heard.

ii) There will always be more things to hear and discover.

5. Man versus Nature

a) Nature, represented by the sun, the wind and the sea:

i) These things do not think about what they do.

ii) They will do what they are designed to do with no sense of “labouring”.

iii) Nature does not need to comprehend what life is all about.

b) Man, on the other hand:

i) He is restless.

ii) He needs to know.

iii) He uses all his faculties to comprehend life.

But he is not satisfied no matter what he has seen or heard! He continues to search for the meaning of his existence in life.