Portion

Passage

Ecclesiastes 9:1-11

‍Sermon Summary

Death is the great leveler of all people, regardless of faith or piety, wisdom or righteousness. The Preacher of Ecclesiastes leans hard into this grim reality, offering a true but incomplete hope: You're not dead yet! And if you're still alive, you have a "portion" (elsewhere translated "share" or "lot") that is worth enjoying now. So, he challenges us: eat and drink, clean yourself up and dress expectantly. If you're married, enjoy your spouse, and learn to find delight in your work, however mundane it may be. All these gifts come from the hand of our generous God. Christians today can heed this advice while taking it further, celebrating how Jesus' grace makes us humble, his redemption makes us hopeful, and his presence makes us resilient. Ultimately, every pleasure we receive in this life is just a foretaste of greater, lasting joys when Jesus returns.

‍Discussion Questions (choose any—you don't have to answer them all!)

1. [Optional starter question] What stood out or stuck with you from the sermon?
2. To what extent have you tended to assume that "If I do the right things, God will always reward me"? How did you come to see life differently? 
3. If we're all going to die anyway, why be good? How do your non-believing friends answer this question? What is a weakness of their answer?
4. How can you tell the difference between "carpe diem" (seize the day) and "recipio donum" (receive the gift)?  What habits or attitudes characterize each?
5. The Preacher commends several specific enjoyments: food, wine, celebratory apparel, marriage and work. Which of these are easiest—and hardest—for you to see as gifts of God?
6. How does Jesus transform the way we steward the lot or portion that he has given us? 
7. Bonus: Read WH Auden's poem, As I Walked Out One Evening. Discuss.

Prayer Prompts

• Thank you, Father, for these good gifts that are part of the lot you have given me:____________
• Forgive me, Jesus, for only wanting these gifts you haven't (yet) given me:__________
• Help me, Holy Spirit, to enjoy my lot, especially:__________

Resources Consulted

Reccommended for laypeople:

• Everything is Never Enough, Bobby Jamieson
• A Table in the Mist, Jeffrey Meyers
• Rcovering Eden: The Gospel According to Ecclesiastes, Zack Eswine
• Living Life Backward, David Gibson
• The Message of Ecclesiastes, Derek Kidner
• The Bible Project videos on Ecclesiastes

Other resources consulted

• Africa Bible Commentary, ed. Tokunboh Adeyemo
• NICOT Commentary on Ecclesiastes, Tremper Longman
• Reason for Being, Jacques Ellul
• A Time to Tear Down & a Time to Build Up, Michael V. Fox
• Ecclesiastes for Everyone, John Goldingay
• NIV Application Commentary on Proverbs, Ecclesiastes & Song of Songs, Ian Provan
• The Wisdom Books translation and commentary, Robert Alter

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