Transcription downloaded from https://yetanothersermon.host/_/church4u/sermons/86147/foolishness/. Disclaimer: this is an automatically generated machine transcription - there may be small errors or mistranscriptions. Please refer to the original audio if you are in any doubt. [0:00] I'm wanting to look at the subject of foolishness. Foolishness. Some fools in the Bible.! There is no God. [0:32] The first fool is a man or woman who has no faith. A man or woman who has no faith. One who says in their heart, there is no God. [0:46] And Romans 1 talks about them in a way too. It says from Romans 1 verse 21, it says, Now there's lots of fools around in our world today in high places. [1:15] There's fools in government. There's fools governing our country. Often. There's fools running our universities. There's fools teaching our children. [1:27] Not all of them, of course, but many who say there is no God. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools. It says in Romans 1. We know the context there is of morality and of a decline in truth, in a decline in turning away from God. [1:47] They glorified Him not as God. And professing themselves to be wise, they became fools. Foolishness. Foolishness. There's a lot of it around in our world today. [1:59] Foolishness. It's really living a life living as if there is no God. What a foolish way to live. When everything around us points to a creator. [2:09] It points to a designer. It points to your designer. It points to your creator. It points to your maker. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools. [2:21] You know, some have got degrees in teaching and promoting the theory of evolution, for example. They might have wonderful qualifications and various letters behind their name that says they're wise and says they're smart. [2:36] But professing themselves to be wise, they became fools. One evening there was a minister going along a walk with an acquaintance. He went along a beach with this man, a rather well-known atheist. [2:51] And they came across some sandcastles in the sand, intricately made and very picturesque, very lovely looking sandcastles that were on the beach. [3:06] And the atheist said, I wonder who made these? And the Christian's masterful reply, silence the atheist's godless talk. My dear man, no one made them. [3:18] They simply happened. Because that's the answer for an atheist, isn't it? When they should think that the world and the creation about us just came about by some freakish accident or by some chance happening, we know that that is foolish talk. [3:38] Someone once said, the best reply to an atheist is to give him a good dinner and ask him if he believes there is a chef who prepared it. Or whether it just made itself. [3:50] Of course we know the answer, don't we? And here's another story about another atheist, an infidel, someone who denied the faith, that denied the Bible, a notorious atheist. [4:00] And his wife was a pious woman. And his wife was a pious woman. His wife was a woman who had some faith. Whilst his wife was a pious woman, he was an infidel. [4:12] He hated anything to do with God and the truth of the Bible. The wife taught their daughter the gospel, the truth about salvation. And this daughter, she grew sick. [4:23] Very sick. Deathly sick. And it was really the end, sadly, of this little girl's life. And her father was sent for to hear her dying words. And she said to her father, father, she said, I'm about to die. [4:39] Shall I believe the principles which you have taught me? Or shall I believe what my mother has taught me? And after waiting a few moments to come, his extreme agitation, he answered, believe what your mother has taught you. [4:55] It's when you get to your dying breath, you need to be right with God. You need to be right with the Savior. You need to know Him. You need to trust Him. And foolishness is to have no faith. [5:07] No faith. The fool has said, in his heart, there is no God. It's a foolish way to live and to die. It's a hopeless life. A hopeless end. And another example is the one that we've just been singing about in Matthew 7. [5:24] The story that our Lord Jesus told. In Matthew 7, verse 24, it says, The Lord Jesus talks to the folk and He says, Therefore, whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock. [5:41] And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house. And it fell not, and it fell not, for it was founded upon a rock. [5:53] And everyone that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand. [6:06] And the rains descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house. And it fell, and great was the fall of it. [6:16] Now, in that example, that story that our Lord gave as an illustration, both of those sets of people, both of those different types of people, they both heard the word. [6:28] They both heard it. They both heard the message, the gospel, the truth. But one acted upon it, the wise man, and one did not, the foolish man. [6:39] And the Lord Jesus compared it to someone who would build a house. Now, I'd imagine, if you're building a house, it's probably, in a way, when you think about it, a lot easier probably building it on a flat piece of sand. [6:54] You know, where it's all flat, you don't have to do any site preparation, as against building it on a rock, where you might have to do a bit of levelling out, or you'd have to likely climb up upon it. [7:07] You'd have to prepare the surface a lot more. There might be some more structural work to do to make it sit on that rocky piece of ground. Whereas the easy way would be to put it on a flat piece of sand. [7:20] But then, of course, when the rain comes, the floods come, the wind, it'll fall flat. And it's like that with some people. They live their lives at a carefree pace, without any thought for eternity, without any consideration for their eternal destiny, for the health of their soul. [7:37] And then they realise their foolishness when it's too lame. When their lives fall like a pack of cards. When they realise that they're not right with God. When they face their maker. [7:49] And they face eternity. And they're not right with God. It's a foolish way to live. The second kind of fool has no foundation. No foundation. The word of God isn't the foundation. [8:01] It isn't the solid rock of Christ. The faith in Christ. The assurance that he can give to you. As he said to Peter that upon this rock, he's going to build his church. [8:15] Upon faith. Upon the truth of his word. He says, He that heareth my words and doeth them, he is a wise man. He's a wise one. Who takes the word and puts it into action, into their lives. [8:28] And the one who is foolish just heard it. But there was no application. There was no doing of it. There was no obedience to it. So we see the one full, no faith. [8:39] The fool has said in his heart, there is no God. The second fool, no foundation. They didn't put the word as the basis of the grounding of their lives. It wasn't grounded upon God's truth for living. [8:51] And the third one we see had no future preparation. For their eternal future. No future. We see in Luke 12. And this is one that is dear to my darling wife. [9:02] Luke 12. 16. This other fool. Because a preacher spoke on this very passage. And challenged Julie to put her trust in the Lord. [9:13] And Luke 12. 16. It talks about another parable that our Lord told. And he spoke a parable unto them saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully. [9:23] Him as a farmer had abundant crops. Brought forth lots of crops. And he thought with himself saying, What shall I do? Because I have no room where to bestow my fruits. [9:35] He'd run out of storage space. He'd run out of storeroom capacity to put all these crops that he so prospered with. And verse 18 of Luke 12 it says, And he said, Here was this farmer. [10:26] This rich farmer. Made all these preparations. All these big ideas. All these big plans. For his earthly wealth and well being. But he forgot about his eternal soul. [10:36] He forgot about the condition of his eternal being. Of his soul. Of his standing before God. And we can make that mistake. Of living a helter-skelter, hectic-paced life. [10:49] Just building up our own earthly goods. And making a life for ourselves. But missing out on the real point of life. [11:00] Of why we're here. Of our eternal destiny. This man had no preparations for his eternal future. For heaven. For his soul. He missed out. [11:11] A fool. A fool. He had it all. But he was not rich toward God. He spared no thought. For the kingdom of God. For the eternal values. [11:23] For the eternal treasures. For the eternal life that he could have had. If he had put his trust in Christ. There was no preparation. Made for his eternal future. What are you going to invest your life in? [11:36] Will you make that same mistake? I pray not. I pray not. I pray that you'll take your eternal soul. And the welfare of your eternal soul. Seriously. [11:47] Take stock. It's so critical. It's so vital. Every one of us. Young and old. Consider our standing. Our state. Before him. And get right with God. Just a fourth kind of fool. [11:59] We see in Proverbs 1. Proverbs 1 verse 7. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. But fools despise wisdom and instruction. I know it says elsewhere. [12:10] The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Here it says the beginning of knowledge. So. If you're wanting to be a smart person. If you're wanting to be a bright button. And make wise choices in your life. [12:23] The first point. The starting point. Is the fear of the Lord. That's. That's the first base. That's the first point. That's the first step. If there was a staircase. [12:34] A staircase. To wisdom. Then the first step. The first point. The beginning of it all. Is the fear of the Lord. It's knowing the Lord. It's loving him. It's fearing him. It's revering and honouring. [12:46] And esteeming him. As our God. As the one to know. It's the beginning of knowledge. To know him. And to know his life eternal. To know him. And to be found in him. [12:57] And of fools. It says. That fools despise wisdom and instruction. Now I'm blessed here tonight. That there's some young people here. They could have been home. Watching telly. [13:08] Or eating something. Or playing games. But you're here tonight. Now that says something. I don't know. How much of this is. Is meaningful. Helpful to you. [13:19] I hope that it is. But in. Every way. We care about. Every one of you. Young people here tonight. And we're glad that you're here. Because it's the first point. Or the first step. Is to fear the Lord. [13:31] Now that means to appreciate him. And to regard him as high and holy. And ourselves as low and humble. And lowly. In contrast with him. [13:42] Isn't it? That we realise how high and lofty. And great. God almighty is. And how needy. And how weak. And sinful. And inadequate. We are. And when you get that in context. [13:55] It makes you appreciate him. It makes you love him. And honour him. And yet for some it says. In Romans 3 verse 18. Talking of sinners. It says. There is no fear of God. [14:07] Before their eyes. And we see that. We that might witness in different ways. And especially. Down on the streets of Adelaide. You see. There is no fear of God. [14:18] Before their eyes. They need to be woken up. They need to be shaken up. And woken up. Because they are doomed. And damned. For a Christless eternity. And it is serious stuff. [14:29] The opposite of foolishness. Is seriousness. Isn't it? I suppose. And you know. As much as. In church. We like to smile. And enjoy. Our fellowship. And enjoy God together. [14:40] There is a serious side to it. Isn't there? And I think. At times. There is a levity. There is a lightness. And there is a carelessness. There is a foolishness. Like this man. [14:50] Who said. Oh soul. Take thine ease. Take it easy. You know. Just. Life is just cool. And everything is casual. And fine. And dandy. But he didn't realize. [15:01] The serious state. Of his dire need. Of salvation. And yet. Some are like that man too. There is no fear of God. Before their eyes. They don't take a thought. [15:12] They don't take a moment. To consider. Their destiny. Now we talked about. These various fools. And friends. It's a serious business. It's serious. [15:23] You know. I take it very seriously. I know some preachers say. They preach as a dying man. To dying men. And we should take it very seriously. Anyone who does anything for the Lord. [15:34] That this could be our last opportunity. To speak to you. To those here today. About your eternal destiny. About your soul's salvation. Salvation. [15:45] And that's critical. It's essential. There's nothing more important. Than this. Than this message. And it says in the word of God. In Hebrews 12. For our God. Is a consuming fire. [15:57] It talks in the word of God. About the wrath of God. The wrath of God. God is angry at the wicked. Every day. God has got anger. You know. Some people paint God. [16:08] As some. Warm and fuzzy. Fluffy. Fuzzy kind of thing. That warm and cuddly. And cozy. And the gospel. Is some kind of. [16:18] Fairy flossy. Sugar coated. Candy kind of. Take it or leave it. Kind of thing. But friends. It's serious stuff. It's serious. It's serious. [16:29] Because. Not everyone. Is going to be in heaven. The vast bulk of humanity. Is not going to be there. As we know. The word God. Tells us through. Our Lord Jesus. That broad. [16:39] Is the way. That leadeth. To destruction. And many there be. That go in. There at. That go in. There at. In that. Broad. Way. [16:50] That wide. That super highway. To hell. That's where. Most are going. And yet. He says. But narrow is the way. That leadeth unto life. And few there be. [17:01] That find it. It's a narrow. Narrow way. Very narrow. Now. People call us. Christians. As Bible believing. Churches. As narrow minded. You're too narrow. [17:12] You're too narrow. But. Jesus is narrow. It's only one way. There's. There's not many ways. There's not manifold ways. There's not manifold faiths. Or. Ideas. [17:23] Or. Philosophies. There's one way. One person. One. Saviour. Who is the Lord Jesus Christ. One way. No man coeth unto the Father. But by me. One way. [17:35] And so. Our God. Is a consuming fire. And. In Deuteronomy 4. Verse 24. It's got that light. Statement. And it. Ties it with. God is jealous. [17:46] God is jealous. Now. Jealousy means. That. God cares about. Your love for him. He doesn't want. Your love for him. To be mixed with. [17:56] Loves for other things. Our God is jealous. And he gets jealous. When you follow idols. When you follow. Other gods. When you. Get off the track. And when you have. [18:07] Your life consumed. With other things. Other than him. Our God is a consuming fire. He's jealous. He wants your love. He wants your devotion. He says. That. Thou shalt love the Lord. [18:17] Thy God. With all. Thy heart. With all. Thy soul. With all. Thy mind. With all. Thy strength. Friends. That's. The kind of love. God wants you to give to him. [18:29] That cares about. Eternity. Cares about the truth. That's serious. Serious. And these are days. That call for extreme fame. Extreme fame. We need to be radical. [18:40] We need to be willing. To stand out from the crowd. There's a. Street preacher. Who walked around. With a vest on. And it said. I am a fool. For Christ. [18:51] And that was based on. 1 Corinthians 4. Verse 10. Where it says. Paul said. We are fools. For Christ's sake. But ye are wise. In Christ. We are weak. But ye are strong. [19:02] Ye are honorable. But ye are despised. He says. We are fools. For Christ's sake. We are. Elsewhere. It talks about. We're a gazing stock. We're a laughing stock. You know. We're. [19:12] We're a spectacle. Because we stand up. For the truth. Against the trends. Against the crowd. And this preacher. He had this statement. [19:23] As I say. I am a fool for Christ. And people would laugh. And mock. And scorn. And then. As they turned. As he turned around. They saw what was written. [19:33] On the back. Of his shirt. And it said. Whose fool are you? Whose fool are you? Friends. We don't want to make the mistake. Of being like those fools. That we talked about. But just to look at. [19:45] In a different aspect. Whether you are a fool for Christ. And I want to encourage you. To be a fool for Christ. Be willing. To be. In his army. [19:57] To stand up. And be counted. It's a desperate days. A desperate days. And we see. All the trends around about. We've got in the newsletter there. As you can read. The state of Great Britain. [20:08] As I talked about. The church. Church. Going is on its knee. In Great Britain. Because the. In times to come. Christians are going to be outnumbered. Well they already are. [20:19] Real Christians are outnumbered. By far. But even the church going population. Is going to be outnumbered. By multitudes of other religions. In not the too distant future. Because the trend is away from the truth. [20:31] We talked about some Bible fools. We talked about number one. The Bible fool with no faith. The atheist. The fool has said there is no God. We talked about the Bible fool. [20:41] Who has no foundation. They hear the word. But they don't act on it. They don't do. What God tells them. They don't obey the word of God. You see the fool. Has no future. [20:52] Eternal preparation. In Luke 12. He had it all going for him. Wanted to put it all in the bank. In the storehouse. He had no thought for God. And the kingdom of God. And God said. [21:03] Thou fool. This night. Thy soul is required of thee. We see the fool. Who has no fear of God. There is no fear of God before their eyes. They don't even start to have knowledge. Or wisdom. [21:13] Because the beginning of it. Is the fear of the Lord. In 1 Corinthians 1. We see Christian fools. This is what we need to be. This is what we are to be as a church. [21:24] That we are called to be. In 1 Corinthians 1 verse 18. It talks about. For the preaching of the cross. Is to them that perish foolishness. But unto us that are same. [21:36] It is the power of God. For it is written. I will destroy the wisdom of the wise. And will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? [21:48] Where is the disputer of this world? Hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For after that in the wisdom of God. The world by wisdom. Knew not God. [21:59] It pleased God. By the foolishness of preaching. To save them that believe. Now there's times that I feel foolish. I often feel foolish. [22:09] In comparison with other people. Especially in comparison with my dear wife. With all her wisdom. I feel humbled and inadequate. And especially when some folk of us. [22:22] Have been doing some declaring of the message. In the public space. And it's embarrassing. It's embarrassing. [22:33] It goes against the grain. And it goes against the flesh. Because there's a whole lot of other things you could do. That could be a whole lot easier. Especially when people are deriving and mocking. And laughing and scorning. [22:44] And yet it's the foolishness of preaching. That God has chosen. It's the preaching of the cross. That to them that perish is foolishness. So you can understand them. [22:56] Having a laugh. They think it's funny. They think it's a laugh. They think it's a big joke. That God cares about their soul. And that these preachers care about their eternal destiny. [23:07] And that a God should send in the person of his son. That message of love. Of the cross. Of a man outstretched on a piece of wood. [23:21] Bleeding and dying for lost and sinful humanity. That God would want to reconcile his very enemies to himself. By his act of love. Of his ultimate sacrifice. [23:33] That it's a foolish message to the world. They can't comprehend it. It doesn't click. It doesn't gel with them. Because they think this is crazy. This is strange. And yet it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching. [23:46] To save them that believe. You would hope that amongst those. The many who would scorn that one or two. Might think hey. Maybe there's some truth to this. Maybe these people are taking it seriously enough. [23:58] That it means something to them. To take the effort and the pains to declare it. And God says. I will destroy the wisdom of the wise. He talks about the wisdom of this world. [24:11] That. The world by wisdom knew not God. And. Many who call themselves wise. They miss out. But the cross of Christ. [24:21] And what Christ did on the cross. It saves those who believe. It says here too in 1 Corinthians. That God chooses the weak. To shame the strong. So that no man can boast before God. [24:33] There's none of us. As you as a believer. As you. As a witness. As each of us might witness in our own different ways. We all feel inadequate. We feel unworthy. We're an unworthy messenger. [24:44] Aren't we? None of us is worthy to carry this message. And we ourselves are frail. And weak. And sinful. By nature. And our heart is deceitful. [24:55] And desperately wicked. And yet God chooses the weak. If you're feeling weak today. God has chosen you. You. If you're feeling that you're poor. [25:06] You're feeling that you are inadequate. It says that God has not chosen many strong. He's not chosen many powerful. Many mighty. Many smart. [25:18] You know. By the world's reckoning. But he's chosen the weak things of the world. The foolish things of the world. To confound those that are wise. And so. Be encouraged today. [25:30] God has chosen you. If you're a believer. And you love him. You're his vessel. And he's chosen the weak. To shame the strong. And so. When you're serving. When you're witnessing. [25:41] Be encouraged. There's many scriptures you could take to heart. Just to quote a number. Briefly. 1 Peter 4 verse 16. It says. Yet if any man suffer. [25:53] As a Christian. Let him not be ashamed. But let him glorify God. On this behalf. If you suffer as a Christian. Maybe you will. In the workplace. [26:03] I know. I've encountered it. You know. Someone was having a go at me lately. But we're not ashamed of the message. And as you stand. And do things in the public place. [26:14] That people will no doubt. See you there. And you'll. They'll recognize you. Yet we're not to be ashamed. Are we? We're not to be ashamed. As it says. [26:24] The Lord Jesus says. Whosoever therefore. Shall be ashamed of me. And of my words. In this sinful and adulterous generation. Of him also. [26:35] Shall the son of man be ashamed. When he cometh. In the glory. Of his father. With the holy angels. Don't be ashamed. Don't be ashamed. Of the gospel. [26:46] Don't be ashamed. Of Christ. Your saviour. It says. Romans 10 verse 11. For the scripture sayeth. Whosoever believeth on him. Shall not be ashamed. [26:59] I think sometimes. I know. I. I can be guilty. But. You know. It's just easy to keep quiet. And to. To blend in. And to. To not. [27:10] Share your faith. That's the easy way. To live. It's your natural. Fleshly. Way to be. But. Let's be like Paul. He says. Romans 1. 16. For I am not ashamed. [27:21] Of the gospel. Of Christ. For it is the power of God. Unto salvation. To everyone that believeth. To the Jew first. And also to the Greek. I am not ashamed. [27:32] Of the gospel. Now friends. We all can be naturally reserved. And. We all can be naturally. Reticent. And. Wary about. [27:43] Stepping out. And. Standing. Out. And standing up. And speaking out. But there's opportunities. That every one of you. [27:54] And I can. Be a witness for Christ. There's tracks. There's opportunities. To. Drop a note. In someone's letter box. To. [28:05] Say a word. Of cheer. Of encouragement. Of challenge. To those about you. You can be. His voice piece. You can be. His. [28:17] His mouthpiece. To your world. Because if you don't speak. Who will? If you don't. Give the gospel. Who's going to give it to them? And if you're going to suffer. [28:29] As a Christian. 1 Peter 4. 16. Let him not be ashamed. Don't be ashamed. We've seen the Bible fools. We've seen the fools. Who reject the gospel. [28:40] They're the fools. They might call themselves wise. They might profess to be wise. But they show that they're fools. By how they treat. The message of eternal salvation. And of praying. [28:50] I urge you. Take it seriously. There's many churches in our world today. Many Christians in our world. They don't take it seriously. It's all just one big happy clappy. [29:01] Airy fairy fuzzy wuzzy thing. But no. This is serious stuff. This is the word of God. We take it seriously. We declare it. Faithfully. And reverently. [29:12] And honestly. And forthrightly. We must. We must declare it. Loud and clear. Because we will be called to account. For what we say. For what we do. [29:22] For how we live. And be his witness in this world. Be his arm extended. Talking about Christians. About faithful men and women of God. But now they desire a better country. [29:33] That is a heavenly. Wherefore God is not ashamed. To be called their God. For he hath prepared for them a city. Isn't it wonderful to think. That God is not ashamed. [29:44] To be called your God. You know. Sometimes we think. You know. We are ashamed to. Stand up in a. Group of non-believers. And say we are a Christian. [29:55] Or to say something about the Lord. It is. Our natural feeling really. The fleshly. Carnal. Nature that we have. To be ashamed. To be naturally. [30:07] Wanting to keep quiet. But isn't it wonderful. That God is not ashamed. God is not ashamed. To call you his son. To call you his daughter. Isn't that an encouragement. I know this morning. [30:17] Just briefly. We had a preacher. Talk about. Those who honour. The Lord. He will honour. So. You know. It is those who value the Lord. He will value. [30:28] Those who. Appreciate. The Lord. He will appreciate. And that is what. God is saying to us. If you appreciate. The Lord. He is going to appreciate you. [30:39] But on the contrast. If you are ashamed of the Lord. He is going to be ashamed of you. Which would you rather? Would you rather appreciate him? Or would you rather be ashamed of him? And. Isn't it great to think. [30:51] That the almighty creator. The one who loved us. And cared enough for Christ. To die on the cross. For our sins. That. He who. While we were yet sinners. [31:01] While we were still his enemies. He died to reconcile us. To save us. That he. This great one. Would be. Willing to save us. [31:12] By his grace. So. In other words. By no. Reckoning of our. Of our doing. Of our. Deserving. That he. Would still. [31:22] Be not ashamed of you. That he would be willing to call you. His son. His daughter. It's wonderful. Isn't it? So how much the more. Shouldn't we appreciate him. And not be ashamed. [31:33] But honour him. And speak for him. And reverence him. And preach his truth to others. Friends. Let us just pray as we close. Lord. I pray. Tonight. That. Everyone here. [31:44] Will know what it means. To. To know. Life eternal. To know you. And to know his life eternal. To. Know what it means. To have. A heart cleansed. [31:56] Purified by faith. As we trust you. As we. Cry out. For your cleansing power. By the blood that you shed. To wash away our stain. And guilt. And shame. Lord. [32:07] That you can do that. Wonderful. Internal. Work in our heart. By faith. And save each soul. Lord. Not by any. Virtual work. Of our own. But by everything that you did. [32:18] At the cross. For our sin. As we receive that gift. You gave. On our behalf. Lord. We thank you. Help us Lord. To be faithful. As Christians. As people. As these young ones too. [32:30] Each one would know what it means. To love you. Follow you. To fear you. To revere. And respect. And bless you. In our lives. And with our lives. Help us Lord. [32:41] To be outspoken. To be. Zealous. And on fire. With the truth of your word. And want to give it to others. To not keep it to ourselves. And not to be ashamed of you. [32:52] And your gospel. For your word. But to declare it truthfully. To those about us. We praise you Lord. I pray for everybody here today. Lord. Lift each heart. [33:04] Lift each heart Lord. Help us to walk in your truth. And life. Help us to live. Strongly. And faithfully. Until you come again. As we wait. As we work. [33:15] As we look for your coming. We pray. In Jesus name. Amen. Thank you.