Introduction
When “More” Is Never Enough
It was the six-year-old boy’s first day of school. His one life ambition? Have as much fun as humanly possible. He marched through the gate with the bold confidence that only a child possesses, ready to squeeze joy out of every moment.
But at noon there was a knock at the front door.
There stood the boy—backpack dangling, brow furrowed, eyes blazing with indignation.
“Why are you home?” his mother asked.
“I quit,” he declared. “It’s too hard, too long, and too boring.”
His mother smiled with the wisdom of years.
“Well, son, you’re going back to school—because you’ve just described life.”
>> Another story.
A lonely man longed for companionship without responsibility. He wanted something warm to welcome him home after work—no drama, no noise, no emotional complexity.
“I have just the thing,” the pet shop owner said.
“A canary. Sings all evening.”
The man brought it home, thrilled. The music was heavenly—soft, bright, wonderful.
But when he opened the cage to feed the bird, he froze.
The canary had only one leg.
Furious, he marched back to the store.
“You sold me a defective bird!”
The owner didn’t flinch.
“Sir… what did you want—a singer or a dancer?”
---
We laugh, but those vignettes expose something in all of us:
We are rarely satisfied.
God gives us a singer, and we wish for a dancer.
He gives us a child with a unique personality—and we try to mold her into someone else.
He gives us a healthy body—and we push it to exhaustion or dull it with indulgence.
He gives us a beautiful world—and we scar it with greed.
He gives us unique gifts—tailor-made for us—and we covet the gifts of others.
Underneath it all lies the ache of the human heart:
There must be more.
I can’t get no satisfaction.
And that phrase isn’t new.
In 1965, Keith Richards woke up with a hangover and a guitar riff in his head. Mick Jagger added the words, and “Satisfaction” exploded across the airwaves:
> “I can’t get no satisfaction,
’Cause I try and I try and I try and I try…”
The world said it was rock-and-roll rebellion.
But three thousand years earlier, another voice—older, wiser, richer—was already singing that tune.
His name was Solomon.
The wisest man of his generation.
The wealthiest king of his age.
The most accomplished builder, poet, philosopher, and ruler Israel ever had.
But when he looked back over his life, he wrote a refrain that could have been the prelude to a Rolling Stones song:
> “Vanity of vanities… all is vanity.” (Ecclesiastes 1:2)
Solomon had lived the experiment. And the results are in his journal called Ecclesiastes—a book that still speaks with stunning relevance.
He invites us into his journey down three major roads:
1. Wisdom
2. Work
3. Wealth
He pursued each one with unmatched passion.
And every road led to the same dead end.
Let’s walk with him.
---
I. THE PURSUIT OF SATISFACTION
A. Satisfaction Pursued in Wisdom
Solomon begins with the life of the mind:
> “I gave my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all things that are done under heaven… I have gotten great wisdom more than all they that have been before me… yet I perceived that this also is vexation of spirit.”
(Ecclesiastes 1:12–17)
This is not a freshman philosophy student dabbling in ideas.
This is Solomon—the man who authored Proverbs, who lectured diplomats, who built academic guilds, who studied botany, biology, engineering, leadership, economics, psychology, theology, and the human condition.
If anyone could find meaning through knowledge, it was this man.
But listen to him:
> “For in much wisdom is much grief, and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow.” (Ecclesiastes 1:18)
Knowledge expanded his mind… and multiplied his sorrow.
We see the same today.
Human knowledge now doubles every few months.
We carry supercomputers in our pockets.
We can probe galaxies, decode DNA, and livestream from the ocean floor.
But along with our increased knowledge comes increased anxiety.
We know more
—but we trust less.
We discover more
—but we fear more.
We communicate more
—but feel more isolated than ever before.
Solomon shakes his head across the centuries:
“I mastered wisdom.
And it did not satisfy.”
---
B. Satisfaction Pursued in Work
If wisdom couldn’t fill the emptiness, maybe accomplishment could.
> “I built houses… planted vineyards… made myself gardens and parks… pools to water the forest… I made great works…”. (Ecclesiastes 2:1–6)
The scale was breathtaking.
He built the temple.
He developed cities.
He created irrigation systems.
He designed orchards and gardens still discussed in archaeological circles.
He constructed a kingdom that attracted queens from distant lands.
By earthly standards, he succeeded at everything he touched.
Yet at the end of the road, he says:
> “I looked on all the works… and behold, all was vanity and a chasing after wind.”. (Ecclesiastes 2:11)
Not because work is bad.
Not because success is sinful.
But because achievement cannot fill the God-shaped space inside us.
One writer said:
> “What spoils the pleasures of life is our hunger to get out of them more than they can ever deliver.”
Some hide in their careers—hoping busyness will drown the ache.
Others build empires—and call it purpose.
But inside, there is a quiet whisper:
Is this all there is?
Solomon whispers back:
“I’ve walked that road.
It does not satisfy.”
---
C. Satisfaction Pursued in Wealth
Finally Solomon chased wealth.
And he caught it.
> “I gathered silver and gold… the treasure of kings… I had singers… and many concubines… I became great and surpassed all who were before me…
and whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them.” (Eccl. 2:7–10)
If Amazon had existed then, he would have owned Amazon.
If Wall Street existed then, he would have controlled Wall Street.
His estimated wealth in modern currency?
Over two trillion dollars.
He had what most people crave:
Wealth
Pleasure
Power
Entertainment
Luxury
Fame
Options
But at the height of luxury, he uttered the same refrain:
> “All was vanity and a striving after wind.” (Eccl. 2:11)
Rockefeller understood this.
The richest man in his generation once lived on a diet so restricted “a pauper would have hated it.”
He could buy anything… but not joy.
Solomon nods:
“I bought the world—and I still felt empty.”
---
II. THE PRETENSE OF SATISFACTION
Solomon tried everything wisdom, work, and wealth could offer.
But after each pursuit, he discovered something unsettling:
Some things look like they can satisfy…
but they can’t.
They glitter for a moment.
They impress our friends.
They pad our resume.
They decorate our life.
But they cannot bear the weight of the human soul.
Solomon now pulls back the curtain and shows us why.
---
A. That Which Does Not Fulfill Us
He writes:
> “Then I looked on all the works that my hands had wrought… and behold, all was vanity and vexation of spirit.”
(Ecclesiastes 2:11)
Solomon wasn’t depressed or burned out.
He wasn’t having a midlife crisis.
He wasn’t comparing himself to others.
He simply told the truth:
“I reached the top.
I touched everything the world promises.
And it still wasn’t enough.”
We hear this same confession today from:
CEOs
celebrities
athletes
influencers
tech founders
millionaires
entertainers
even pastors
The world says,
“More will fix it.”
More achievement.
More money.
More likes.
More travel.
More pleasure.
More experiences.
More success.
But “more” never fixes emptiness.
It only numbs it.
A U.S. News & World Report survey once found:
People are working more, earning more, buying more—
and feeling less fulfilled than ever.
Technology has made life faster but not fuller.
Smartphones have blurred the line between home and work.
Home used to be a refuge—now it’s a satellite office.
We know more…
but trust less.
We have more connection points…
but fewer real friends.
We enjoy more entertainment…
but carry more anxiety.
Depression and loneliness rise.
Marriage rates fall.
Attention spans shrink.
Stress becomes normal.
People sleep with background noise because silence feels dangerous.
Solomon, without a smartphone, understood perfectly:
We can fill our life with everything—
and still feel nothing.
He says it again:
> “The wise man’s eyes are in his head; but the fool walks in darkness: and yet I perceived also that one event happens to them all.” (Eccl. 2:14)
Whether you learn a lot…
or earn a lot…
or build a lot…
death levels the field.
He continues:
> “As it happens to the fool, so it happens even to me… this also is vanity.”. (Eccl. 2:15)
Dr. H. A. Ironside summarized it:
> “Death is the great leveler of all men.
Whether rich or poor, wise or foolish, powerful or weak—
no one can rise above it, cheat it, or escape its claim.”
Solomon’s point?
If something can’t outlive you—
it can’t fulfill you.
---
B. That Which Will Not Follow Us
Solomon takes it further:
> “I hated all my labor… because I must leave it to the man who will come after me. And who knows whether he will be wise or a fool?”. (Ecclesiastes 2:18–19)
This is sobering.
“You can build an empire,” he says,
“but when you breathe your last—you let go of everything.”
Money stays.
Property stays.
Reputation stays.
Collections stay.
Trophies stay.
Homes stay.
Everything you cling to—
clings to someone else the day after you die.
He continues:
> “This also is vanity.”. (Eccl. 2:19)
Solomon perfectly describes the tragedy of modern life:
Most people spend their whole life chasing things
they won’t care about ten minutes after entering eternity.
He illustrates it with almost painful clarity.
Dennis Barnhart, founder of Eagle Computer, became a multimillionaire the day his company went public.
Stock soared.
Investors cheered.
His future looked limitless.
That same afternoon he took his Ferrari for a drive.
He left the road and died instantly.
His stock…
his company…
his millions…
his reputation…
All stayed behind.
All sat on the hill.
None followed him.
Solomon’s conclusion?
If your life depends on things that stay here—
your hope is too small.
He isn’t condemning success.
He isn’t warning against hard work.
He isn’t telling you to sell everything and live in a tent.
He’s simply telling the truth:
Nothing under the sun can fill a heart made for eternity.
And then he adds a second truth:
Nothing under the sun will follow you beyond the grave.
Wisdom doesn’t fulfill.
Work doesn’t follow.
Wealth doesn’t satisfy.
Everything under the sun is passing away.
So where does satisfaction live?
Not below the sun…
but above it.
---
The Turning Point
At this stage the book could feel depressing.
Solomon has dismantled our idols one by one:
wisdom
work
wealth
pleasure
productivity
possessions
But Ecclesiastes is not a book of despair.
It is a book of awakening.
Solomon has tried everything “under the sun.”
Now he lifts his gaze above the sun.
And the entire tone of the book changes.
He moves from emptiness to fulfillment,
from vanity to meaning,
from chasing the wind to receiving the gift.
This brings us to the heart of the message:
III. THE PRESENCE OF SATISFACTION
This is where Solomon finally finds it:
Not in gold but in God.
Not in creation but in the Creator.
Not in gifts but in the Giver.
Everything else can entertain the soul—
but only one can satisfy it.
---
A. God’s Gift of Enjoyment
Solomon writes:
> “There is nothing better for a person than that he should eat and drink and find enjoyment in his toil.
This also, I saw, is from the hand of God; for apart from Him who can eat or who can have enjoyment?”
(Ecclesiastes 2:24–25)
This is revolutionary.
Solomon is not saying:
“Pleasure is bad.”
“Food is sinful.”
“Work is meaningless.”
“Enjoyment is unspiritual.”
He is saying the opposite:
Pleasure is sweet
—but its sweetness comes from God.
Food is good
—but gratitude makes it worship.
Work is meaningful
—but God’s presence gives it purpose.
Enjoyment is beautiful
—but God’s presence makes it eternal.
James 1:17 echoes it:
> “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above,
and comes down from the Father of lights…”
The key is not the gift—
but the Giver.
If you enjoy the gift but ignore the Giver,
the gift loses meaning.
If you embrace the Giver,
even small gifts become joy.
This is the turning point of Ecclesiastes:
Life is empty when we try to live it apart from God.
Life is joyful when we receive it from His hand.
Solomon says:
“I tried to enjoy life without God.
It didn’t work.
But now I enjoy life with God.
And everything tastes different.”
This is more than sentiment.
It is spiritual reality.
When God is at the center:
Meals become worship.
Work becomes ministry.
Relationships become sacrament.
Sunsets become sermons.
Money becomes mission.
Life becomes a gift.
You can sit at a simple table,
eat soup and bread,
and feel rich.
You can have a modest home
and feel full.
You can be unknown on Earth
and fully known in Heaven.
Satisfaction flows not from what you HAVE—
but from who HOLDS you.
---
B. God’s Gift of Enlightenment
Solomon adds:
> “To the one who pleases Him God gives wisdom and knowledge and joy…”
(Ecclesiastes 2:26)
This is not intellectual knowledge.
Solomon already had that.
This is spiritual discernment:
the ability
to see through illusions
the ability
to treasure eternal things
the ability
to live with perspective
the ability
to recognize what matters and what doesn’t
the ability
to smell the counterfeit and cling to the real
the ability
to let go of what cannot satisfy
This is the miracle of the presence of God:
He changes what you enjoy.
He changes what you treasure.
He changes where your heart finds rest.
I have been in homes with marble floors, imported rugs, million-dollar kitchens, and panoramic views—yet the air felt cold. Beautiful architecture. Empty souls.
I have also walked into simple homes—
humble, tidy, small—
and felt the atmosphere nearly glow.
Why?
Not architecture—
Presence.
Not wealth—
Worship.
When the Giver fills the home,
even a shack becomes a sanctuary.
Illustration – Clara Tear Williams
More than a century ago, a young woman named Clara Tear Williams lived in a shack far from luxury.
A dirt floor.
A thin roof.
A day’s supply of food.
No prospects.
No wealth.
No comfort.
By Solomon’s standards, she had nothing.
But she possessed something Solomon spent years searching for—
the presence of God.
And in that little shack, with no audience and no applause, she wrote words that would echo across generations:
All my life I had a longing
For a drink from some clear spring,
That I hoped would quench the burning
Of the thirst I felt within.
And then the discovery:
Hallelujah! I have found Him
Whom my soul so long has craved!
Jesus satisfies my longings,
Through His blood I now am saved.
Solomon would say,
“Yes. That’s it. That is exactly it.”
Because the only thing that finally satisfied the wisest and richest man in Scripture—
was the same thing that satisfied the poorest woman in that little shack:
The presence of God.
Everything else—wisdom, work, wealth—can create moments of pleasure, flashes of excitement, and seasons of achievement.
But only God gives the deep, durable joy the soul craves.
---
Conclusion – From Emptiness to Fulfillment
By the end of Ecclesiastes 2, Solomon stands before us like a man who has returned from three long roads—
the road of wisdom,
the road of work,
the road of wealth.
He left no stone unturned.
No pleasure untested.
No opportunity unexplored.
No success unattained.
He conducted the most exhaustive experiment in human history.
And here are his final results:
1. The Road of Wisdom — did not satisfy.
He learned everything, mastered everything, understood everything…
and felt more burdened than ever.
2. The Road of Work — did not satisfy.
He built cities, orchards, reservoirs, palaces, institutions…
and found it to be “vanity.”
3. The Road of Wealth — did not satisfy.
He accumulated more than any king before or after him…
and still felt the ache.
The experiment ends where many modern biographies end:
“I gained everything—
and discovered it was nothing.”
But Ecclesiastes is not a hopeless book.
Solomon leaves us with a turning point, a “but God” moment:
> “There is nothing better for a person than that he should eat and drink and find enjoyment in his toil… for this is from the hand of God.”. (Ecclesiastes 2:24–25)
He shifts from striving to receiving,
from emptiness to gift,
from grasping to gratitude,
from vanity to victory.
This leads us to three final truths—timeless, urgent, personal.
---
1. The Timeless Lesson
Outside of a living relationship with God—
nothing satisfies.
Not wisdom.
Not work.
Not wealth.
Not success.
Not romance.
Not pleasure.
Not entertainment.
Not travel.
Not applause.
Not accomplishment.
Every earthly pursuit, no matter how thrilling, eventually loses its shine.
Jesus asked the ultimate diagnostic question:
> “What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his soul?”. (Mark 8:36)
Let’s paraphrase it:
What does it profit a student
to graduate with honors—
but feel hollow inside?
What does it profit a businessman
to build an empire—
but lose his peace?
What does it profit a woman
to achieve her dreams—
but suffocate under the pressure?
What does it profit a pastor
to preach powerfully—
but lose intimacy with the Shepherd?
What does it profit anyone
to gain everything—
and miss the only thing
that endures forever?
Outside of God—life is empty.
With God—life overflows.
---
2. The Only Place of Satisfaction
Solomon continues:
> “To the one who pleases Him God gives wisdom and knowledge and joy.”. (Ecclesiastes 2:26)
Notice the new tone.
No vanity.
No vexation.
No chasing the wind.
No disillusionment.
Just wisdom,
knowledge,
and joy.
Not the joy of entertainment.
Not the joy of accomplishments.
Not the joy of temporary thrills.
But the joy that flows from God Himself.
The joy of knowing:
You are forgiven.
You are loved.
You are redeemed.
You are chosen.
You are known.
You are held.
You are sealed for eternity.
This joy is not fragile.
It is not seasonal.
It is not superficial.
It is not dependent on circumstances.
It is anchored in the unchanging character of God.
And it comes through one Person:
Jesus Christ.
The true King.
The greater Solomon.
The Living Water.
The Bread of Life.
The Good Shepherd.
The Prince of Peace.
Solomon tried everything “under the sun.”
Jesus brings everything from above the sun.
Solomon chased satisfaction and found emptiness.
Jesus gives satisfaction freely and abundantly.
Solomon bought pleasures and lost joy.
Jesus offers joy without price.
The hymn writer captured it perfectly:
> “Hallelujah! I have found Him
whom my soul so long has craved!
Jesus satisfies my longings—
through His blood I now am saved.”
---
3. The Call Today
Now Solomon hands the microphone to you and me.
Where are you looking for satisfaction?
Are you chasing:
More knowledge?
More work?
More money?
More recognition?
More control?
More experiences?
More pleasure?
More success?
Are you telling yourself:
“One more achievement…”
“One more purchase…”
“One more promotion…”
“One more relationship…”
“One more trip…”
“One more thrill…”
And then I’ll be satisfied?
Solomon stands in your path and says:
“I’ve been where you’re headed.
It won’t be enough.”
The Holy Spirit whispers:
“There is a better way.”
Jesus offers:
> “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.”. (John 7:37)
He alone satisfies the mind’s search for truth,
the heart’s hunger for love,
and the spirit’s thirst for eternity.
You don’t need to live the Rolling Stones’ refrain:
“I can’t get no satisfaction.”
You can live Clara Tear Williams’ testimony:
“Jesus satisfies my longings…
Through His blood I now am saved.”
---
Appeal
Bring Him your wisdom—
and He will give you discernment.
Bring Him your work—
and He will give you purpose.
Bring Him your wealth—
and He will give you generosity.
Bring Him your wounds—
and He will give you healing.
Bring Him your emptiness—
and He will give you fullness.
Bring Him your restlessness—
and He will give you peace.
Bring Him your sins—
and He will give you salvation.
Lay everything at His feet—
because only the Giver
can turn life’s vanity into victory
and fill the human soul
with everlasting joy.
