The Good, the Bad, and the Beautiful
March 22, 2026
CENTRAL TEXT: Ecclesiastes 6:10-7:8, 9:1-10
6:10 Whatever has come to be has already been named, and it is known what man is, and that he is not able to dispute with one stronger than he. 11 The more words, the more vanity, and what is the advantage to man? 12 For who knows what is good for man while he lives the few days of his vain life, which he passes like a shadow? For who can tell man what will be after him under the sun?
7:1 A good name is better than precious ointment,
and the day of death than the day of birth.
2 It is better to go to the house of mourning
than to go to the house of feasting,
for this is the end of all mankind,
and the living will lay it to heart.
3 Sorrow is better than laughter,
for by sadness of face the heart is made glad.
4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,
but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.
5 It is better for a man to hear the rebuke of the wise
than to hear the song of fools.
6 For as the crackling of thorns under a pot,
so is the laughter of the fools;
this also is vanity.
7 Surely oppression drives the wise into madness,
and a bribe corrupts the heart.
8 Better is the end of a thing than its beginning,
and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit…
Ecclesiastes 9:1 But all this I laid to heart, examining it all, how the righteous and the wise and their deeds are in the hand of God. Whether it is love or hate, man does not know; both are before him. 2 It is the same for all, since the same event happens to the righteous and the wicked, to the good and the evil, to the clean and the unclean, to him who sacrifices and him who does not sacrifice. As the good one is, so is the sinner, and he who swears is as he who shuns an oath. 3 This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that the same event happens to all. Also, the hearts of the children of man are full of evil, and madness is in their hearts while they live, and after that they go to the dead. 4 But he who is joined with all the living has hope, for a living dog is better than a dead lion. 5 For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing, and they have no more reward, for the memory of them is forgotten. 6 Their love and their hate and their envy have already perished, and forever they have no more share in all that is done under the sun.
7 Go, eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a merry heart, for God has already approved what you do. 8 Let your garments be always white. Let not oil be lacking on your head. 9 Enjoy life with the wife whom you love, all the days of your vain life that he has given you under the sun, because that is your portion in life and in your toil at which you toil under the sun. 10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might, for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going.
CALL TO WORSHIP: Psalm 100
LEADER: Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.
ALL: Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.
LEADER: Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us and we are his;
ALL: We are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
LEADER: Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise;
Give thanks to him and praise his name.
ALL: For the LORD is good and his love endures forever;
His faithfulness continues through all generations.
OT & NT READINGS: The Apostles’ Creed
LEADER: Christian, what do we believe?
ALL: We believe in God the Father Almighty
Maker of heaven and earth.
And in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord;
Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
Born of the Virgin Mary,
Suffered under Pontius Pilate,
Was crucified, died, and was buried;
He descended into hell;
The third day he rose again from the dead;
He ascended into heaven,
and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty;
From there he shall come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit;
the holy catholic Church;
the communion of saints;
the forgiveness of sins;
the resurrection of the body;
and the life everlasting. Amen.
Celebration of the Lord's Supper
CONFESSION OF SIN:
LEADER: Let us confess our sin to the Lord.
ALL: Surprising God, who would have thought that dying was good? Our instinct is to avoid it. But in Jesus, we see that dying is the way to life. Equip us to do what is so difficult—to die to our self-centered ways and to become more like Jesus who gave himself to redeem us. May we be genuinely sorry for our sin, to hate it more and more, and to run away from it and towards Christ as long as we live.
ASSURANCE OF PARDON: Romans 5:8-9
LEADER: God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.
ALL: Hallelujah!
BENEDICTION: Hebrews 13:20-21
LEADER: The God of peace,
who brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus,
the great shepherd of the sheep,
by the blood of the eternal covenant,
make you complete in everything good
so that you may do God’s will,
working among us that which is pleasing in God’s sight,
through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever!
Related Scriptures:
Psalm 23
Ecclesiastes 1:14
Romans 6:23
1 Peter 4:12-13
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
- Try to remember the last funeral you attended. Did the eulogies and words of remembrance focus more on the deceased’s accomplishments or their character? Why do you think that’s the case? How does that map onto Ecclesiastes 7:1-4?
- Author David Brooks says that suffering in and of itself, without a larger narrative of change and redemption, is not noble. It’s just meaningless pain. Read 1 Peter 4:12-13. How does the gospel story give meaning to our suffering?
- In the beginning of chapter 9 the preacher pivots to a different theme. What does he call evil and why?
- 9:7 is a command to basically “Go!” and enjoy God’s beautiful gifts. What are the gifts? Next, notice that the command is surrounded by a promise. What is it? Finally, take some time to thank God for the gifts we can enjoy today because of the gospel and our unmerited favor and approval in Christ.
Quotes:
Until we look [death] in the face, no wisdom is possible, no faith can exist.
- Jacques Ellul
The weakest believer is as fully and completely justified as the strongest.
- J.C. Ryle
You can only get happiness from marriage if you put into marriage the kind of thing that produces happiness, namely, what makes your spouse flourish. In short, practice continual self-giving love…The only way to ‘get’ from marriage is to constantly put giving ahead of getting.
- Bobby Jamieson
Books / Docs:
Bobby Jamieson, Everything is Never Enough
David Brooks, The Second Mountain: The Quest for a Moral Life
Instagram post by Steve Foster reworking Psalm 23 through the lens of the algorithm