1. SEEKING HAPPINESS IN WINE (Eph 5:18-20; Eccles 2:1-5)

When the wise king embarked on his experiment "to give himself to wine yet acquainting his heart with wisdom," he was literally venturing on to the edge of a precipice or "skating on thin ice." Had Solomon forgotten his own wise counsel: wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging (Prov 20:1)? And whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise!

Alcohol dulls the perception, blunts the judgment and removes inhibitions. Hence the aftermath of reckless speech and action, dangerous "drunken driving" and indulgence in the flesh. For the unwary and foolish, a night's adventurism may be a lifetime's regret. Habitual drinkers be warned! Permanent brain and liver damage are too high a price to pay!

SAFEGUARD GOD'S TEMPLE!

The question is often asked: should a Christian drink? Our answer: consider the risks and irreversible ill effects. Our bodies must be kept holy and healthy for the Master's use. "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are" (1 Cor 3:16-17).

If the temptation to drink comes to you, resist the devil and he will flee from you. The first drink may be the start of an irreversible habit. Many top executives and high officials get on at social functions with tomato or orange juice. Social drinking is not unavoidable. It all depends on you — your will power, and your prior commitment. Go to a function prepared to say No, and ask for a soft drink.

Let not our weak intentions betray the cause of the Master. Let not our Christian liberty be abused. To refuse folly and keep our bodies pure for the Master's use may not be easy. But it is worth it!

QUIZ: Do you know the long-term effects of alcoholism?

THOUGHT: "Thus far and no further" is easier said than done.

2. IN THIS WORLD NO GAIN! (Luke 12:13-15; Eccles 2:4-11)

God used Solomon to prove from experience the utter emptiness and futility of earthly possessions and material abundance. Solomon's metropolis was unsurpassed for brilliance and magnificence. Its fame was noised abroad. The Queen of Sheba heard with unbelieving ears, but what she saw far exceeded what she had heard. Thus she exclaimed, "Behold, the half was not told me!"

But Solomon's verdict as he sat back and reflected on his vast wealth and magnificent establishment was a sad disappointment. Ponder again his words:

Solomon derived no lasting happiness and satisfaction from all his wonderful works: houses, vineyards, wharfs, gardens, lakes and waterways, teams of servants, vast herds and flocks, immense collections of priceless treasures and works of art, an orchestra for vocal and instrumental music. He left nothing to the imagination. Everything that might add to his pleasure and enjoyment, he did not deny himself. All that royal wealth could procure, human heart could desire and wisdom could contrive, were his — just for the asking! You name it, he had it!

And yet when Solomon looked back, it was all so frustrating. It was like the chasing of shadows. Pleasure there was, but it soon faded with the novelty. The appetite and desire were filled, but still unsatisfied. A sad vacuum remained at the end, as at the beginning. Only a wearisome annoyance of spirit, as if he had been abundantly filled with wind or feeding on ashes.

IN CHRIST NO LOSS!

Solomon's message is to turn men to Christ. In Him the lowliest believer is far happier and safer than the highest prince or tycoon. In Christ, you may be poor, yet able to make many rich! You may own nothing of this world's goods, yet possessing all things (2 Cor 6:10)!

Christian reader, let us enjoy our earthly blessings as God prospers us, but let us not find our rest in them. Rejoice, as though we rejoiced not! Worldly goods give but momentary pleasure to tide us on our way to the Celestial City. So, fix not your heart on them!

QUIZ: Can pursuit of wealth and pursuit of God be compatible?

KEYNOTE: What things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ.

3. WISDOM BETTER THAN FOLLY (Prov 8:10-12; Eccles 2:12-15)

"Solomon had tried wisdom and folly — both separately and jointly — as independent sources of happiness. He had pronounced judgement upon them as vanity and vexation. But might not he have passed over some matters of weight in that decision? A second review might discover some error. He turns himself, therefore, as he had done before to behold the two things, and compare together his contrary experiments of wisdom and folly." (C. Bridges)

How do you regard wisdom, my friend? Without a doubt, every civilized society gives it highest priority in its educational programme and institutions of learning. Take away knowledge and wisdom and we fall back into the Dark Ages. So, in all our seeking, seek wisdom! Pursue it relentlessly, you young students especially. Hear what Solomon has to say: "Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding … She is more precious than rubies: and all things thou canst desire are not to be compared unto her" (Prov 3:13, 15).

Wisdom excelleth folly, as light excelleth darkness. By wisdom man circumnavigates the ocean of space, sails beneath the polar ice, makes a million calculations a minute, man and machine doing more work than a thousand. The marvels of modern science, the product of wisdom, are truly unsearchable. But brought down to earth, it means hard work, daily grind, relentless discipline and burning the midnight oil. Two boys go through school, reading the same books, running the same race. Thirty years later one sits as judge, the other stands before him, an offending fool. "Wisdom excelleth

folly as far as light excelleth darkness" (Eccles 2:13).

WISDOM NO BETTER THAN VANITY

In worldly matters there is no comparison: wisdom is everything! But the matters that matter go beyond this world. Solomon saw it. In things of another world, this world's wisdom mattered little. The king was no better than the pauper, the judge than the fool. One final event laid them low together. It lays us all on a level, no difference. "Why then was I more wise? What is the use of my wisdom, if at the last I die like the fool?"

Yet, there is a difference. In the last call, the wisdom of God, the saving knowledge of Christ raises him who believes!

QUIZ: Quote a verse of Scripture which speaks of the wisdom which saves. THOUGHT: The foolishness of God is wiser than men.

God bless you dear readers.