Fools
Psalms 14:1 The fool has said in his heart,"There is no God."
Psalms 53:1 The fool has said in his heart,"There is no God."
Luke 12:20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’
Saturday was April Fool’s day. You didn’t want to depend on anything you heard and on only half of what you saw on Saturday. We needed to wait until Sunday to get any sensible news because on April Fool’s day the news one read may just have been part of an April fool’s prank. No one seems to know what the origin of April Fool’s day was, but some seem to think that it stems from a change in the calendars that we use today. Whatever the case, one can be extremely foolish on April Fool’s day and most people will just think you are having fun. While good fools are considered to be entertaining on this day, this is a good day to consider the foolishness of thinking that there is no God and of preparing for time and not for eternity.
The Foolishness of saying there is No God!
King David says that a person is a fool who says that there is no God. This is repeated twice because of its importance. A person may question whether they can know God. A person may question which god is God. But to take the position that there is no creator God is just as foolish as saying that my car was not designed by an engineer and made by the Kia company.
Some have translated David’s Psalms this way, “No God for me.” That may or may not be the meaning but it makes more rational sense than saying that there is no God at all. Rebellion against authority is something that is inbred in each one of us. From the time we are born, we want to call the shots and do things our way. But if there is a God, we need to know who He is and what He wants. Some people think that they can rebel against God and get by with it. This is the attitude of Satan who continually says, “I will” in Isaiah 14:13 and 14, rather than wanting to know God’s will.
Others have translated the Psalms this way, “No to God!” This is very similar to saying, “No God for me.” However, these people know the word of God. They know that the Lord Jesus is the Son of God, and they know that they need to be saved. However, they simply rebel against the idea that God has final authority over them. Some argue that God is cruel and they want no part of Him. Others argue that God is unfair and they want no part of Him. But even if these accusations were true which they are not, God is God. I wouldn’t want to get on His bad side if I thought he was cruel and unfair.
The Foolishness of Planning for Time and Not for Eternity
In Luke 12 the Lord tells the story of a man much like most of the people I meet today. This man had worked hard and had his retirement plans all made. He thought he had enough. But he had not planned on dying before he had a chance to use his retirement funds. He apparently had made good plans for his time on earth and had made no plans for eternity. The Bible tells us to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and the Lord will take care of the retirement plan (Matthew 6:33). Who really has enough confidence in the Lord to test him on this important point? Many of us say we trust Him for eternity but we still plan for time as though there were no God in heaven Who loves us enough to take care of us. But even if our faith is small, that is, if we have trouble putting our faith in all of God’s promises; there is one promise that we had better believe and test. That is the promise that is found in Acts 13:38-39, “Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through this Man is preached to you the forgiveness of sins; and by Him everyone who believes is justified from all things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses.”
The story is told of a king who held auditions for a “fool” or court jester. He wanted the best one in the land and the person who got the position was to be given the King’s staff. One man finally was given the position and the staff and he entertained the king for many years. Finally, the king fell ill and was on his death bed. The “fool” came to visit and asked the King if he had made preparations for the journey he was about to take. The King said that he had not. The “fool” then handed him his staff back. He said, “Your Majesty, you are a bigger fool than I.”
Today I am looking at the news and see that an avalanche of water from three overflowing rivers swept through a small city in Colombia while people slept, destroying homes and killing around 250 unsuspecting residents. I wonder how many of them were wise and how many were fools.
Lord help us all to remember that we are designed by you for your glory. Help us to trust you not only for eternity but also for time.
Bruce Collins
Meditation for the week of April 2, 2017