Ecclesiastes 2:24

"There is nothing better for. man than to eat and drink and tell himself that his labor is good. This also. have seen, that it is from the hand of God."

Points To Note:

1 Solomon isn't saying, "Eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we die". For he includes God in this statement. 2. The idea of telling yourself that your labor is good, is that of realizing that you did accomplish some meaningful things in this life. But this life is only meaningful if God exists! 3. Kidner notes, "for in themselves, and rightly used, the basic things of life are sweet and good…. What spoils them is our hunger to get out of them more than they can give " (p. 35). Going out to eat, having nice things, living in. comfortable house, and other pleasures of this life are great----as long as we understand that they aren't the source of our happiness and neither do they add any meaning to our lives. They are simply things, which we appreciate, but which we could also live without and still be completely happy. 4. The verse and context also point out that only God can really enable us to enjoy the things of this life. The Christian, while not being covetous, greedily or materialistic, truly enjoys the nice 'things' of this life more than the sinner.