"Meaningless! Meaningless!"
says the Teacher.
"Utterly meaningless!
Everything is meaningless."
What does man gain from all his labor at which he toils under the sun? Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever.
I said to myself, “Come on, let’s try pleasure. Let’s look for the ‘good things’ in life.” But I found that this, too, was meaningless. So I said, “Laughter is silly. What good does it do to seek pleasure?” After much thought, I decided to cheer myself with wine. And while still seeking wisdom, I clutched at foolishness. In this way, I tried to experience the only happiness most people find during their brief life in this world. That’s the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty.
Everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins, for the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord. God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.
Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. Know that a person is made right with God by faith in Jesus Christ, not by obeying the law. We have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we might be made right with God because of our faith in Christ, not because we have obeyed the law. For no one will ever be made right with God by obeying the law.
But what good is it if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? Suppose you see someone who has no food or clothing, and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do? Faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless. Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
Then who can be saved?
What is impossible with men is possible with God.
“Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’” John 14:6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.
Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
