WISE LIVING: THE FOOLISH BLIND SPOT
Ecclesiastes 10:1-20
#wiseliving2022
READ ECCLESIASTES CHAPTER 10:1-20 [person from the congregation]
INTRODUCTION…Donkey in Lion’s Skin (fablesofaesop.com/the-ass-in-the-lions-skin.html)
There is an old story about how a donkey found a lion’s skin left in the forest by a hunter. He dressed himself in it and amused himself by hiding in a thicket and rushing out suddenly at the animals who passed that way. All the animals ran away the moment they saw him. The donkey was so pleased to see the animals running away from him, just as if he were King Lion himself, that he could not keep from expressing his delight by a loud, harsh bray. A fox, who ran away with the rest, stopped short as soon as he heard the voice. Approaching the donkey, he said with a laugh: “If you had kept your mouth shut you might have frightened me, too. But you gave yourself away by opening your mouth.”
That fable, told by Aesop in the 500s BC has a great message.
ILLUSTRATION…goodreads.com/quotes/409209-it-s-better-to-keep-your-mouth-shut-and-appear-stupid
It is the same message said by famous American author Mark Twain: “It's better to keep your mouth shut and appear stupid than open it and remove all doubt”
Our topic today is foolishness as it is presented in Ecclesiastes 10, but foolishness is mentioned often in Ecclesiastes. The topic of foolishness is mentioned often by King Solomon in his writings: 93x in the Book of Proverbs and 32x in the Book of Ecclesiastes. King Solomon had wisdom given to him by God (1 Kings 3) and he wrote down wise ways of living in many areas and encourages all of us still to push away from foolishness.
King Solomon has mentioned foolishness many times as we have read through the Book of Ecclesiastes. We are in our 10th week of Ecclesiastes and foolishness appears in several chapters. Ecclesiastes is not like Proverbs where there are self-contained sayings verse by verse, but Ecclesiastes still has some of those nuggets of wisdom.
For example:
READ ECCLESIASTES 2:14a (ESV)
“The wise person has his eyes in his head, but the fool walks in darkness.”
As he thinks about fools, Solomon notes that foolish people do not tend to pay attention to the world around them. Wise people watch and learn. Wise people know how the world works because they see what happens around them, but a foolish person is the opposite. A foolish person walks through life not watching and not learning and not using light that is available to them.
READ ECCLESIASTES 4:5 (ESV)
“The fool folds his hands and eats his own flesh.”
Well that’s not a pretty sight! Foolish people are lazy and destroy themselves and bring ruin on their lives. That is not a hard verse to figure out even if the word picture is a bit repulsive.
King Solomon also notes further down in Ecclesiastes 4 after this verse in verse 13 that a foolish person does not know how to listen to advice. Listening to others is wise. Listening to others and acting on wise words they give us and tossing out unwise words they give us is wiser still.
READ ECCLESIASTES 4:13 (ESV)
“Better was a poor and wise youth than an old and foolish king who no longer knew how to take advice.”
Then as we read through Ecclesiastes we come to Ecclesiastes 5 which absolutely echoes the truth written down by Aesop and humorously mentioned by Mark Twain. Foolishness often comes out of our mouths.
READ Ecclesiastes 5:1-2 (ESV)
“Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. To draw near to listen is better than to offer the sacrifice of fools, for they do not know that they are doing evil. 2 Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few.”
He says later in verse 6 to not let your mouth lead you into sin. I don’t know about you, but I think probably 50% of my sin comes from my words. Foolish folks just say what they want and don’t care or hope for the best. Foolish folks often have to add, “just sayin’” or “no offense” to their words because they are foolish through and through with words.
We are taking some time to review a bit of Ecclesiastes this morning because, first, these are some verses that we did not cover in previous weeks and all God’s Word is profitable for us and worth digging into. Secondly, these verses earlier in Ecclesiastes about foolishness are all part of the thought about foolishness in chapter 10. It is about context. King Solomon goes on in chapter 7:
READ ECCLESIASTES 7:4-6 (ESV)
“The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.
5 It is better for a man to hear the rebuke of the wise than to hear the song of fools. 6 For as the crackling of thorns under a pot, so is the laughter of the fools; this also is vanity.”
These verses are a little difficult to understand. Basically, a foolish person takes nothing serious and laughs at everything to their detriment. The foolish laugh loud and short about everything and ignores everything wise anyone tells them. Laughter isn’t foolish, but there is a time and place for everything and every attitude.
Even in the rest of Ecclesiastes 7 (verses 17, 25) and then again in Ecclesiastes 9 (verse 17) foolishness is not something we should aspire to be… foolishness is the opposite of wise living. Foolishness is the opposite of good thinking or keeping our mouth shut or accepting wise advice.
ECCLESIASTES 10
We are in Ecclesiastes 10 this morning, which we read a few minutes ago, where the chapter begins talking about foolishness and continues to talk about being a fool and ends talking all about foolishness. It feels like an exhaustive list of what foolishness is like:
* Foolish people give into foolish living and their life stinks (verse 1)
* A foolish person’s heart leans towards the wrong direction (verse 2)
* A fool is a fool and knows but doesn’t care (verse 3)
* Anyone can be a fool from the lowest person to the highest person (verses 4-7)
* A fool digs a hole they can’t get out of (verse 8)
* A fool breaks boundaries and gets hurt because the boundary was there for a reason (verse 8)
* A fool isn’t careful or smart when doing dangerous things (verse 9-11)
* Foolish people let their words get the best of them (verses 12-14, 20)
* It is foolish to work with no direction in mind (verse 15)
* A fool is childish and parties when there is work to be done (verses 16-17)
* A foolish person is lazy (verse 18)
* A foolish person thinks money is the answer everything (verse 19)
I don’t know about you, but I think that chapter summarizes foolishness, folly, and foolish people pretty well. We may not be able to define foolishness exactly, but we sure know it when we see it and Ecclesiastes 10 explains it over and over with lots of examples.
What do we do with all this foolish talk? Here again, Ecclesiastes 12:13 comes into play with answers and an anchor for us as we think through these truths.
WISE LIVING: ECCLESIASTES 12:13
At the end of Solomon’s deliberations about life in the Book of Ecclesiastes, he arrives in chapter 12 with a thought to end all thoughts.
READ Ecclesiastes 12:13 (ESV)
The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.
You see life is absolutely meaningless, pointless, futility, fleeting, a brief breath and a quick vapor and absolutely completely unjust and terrible unless you and I have a God-given perspective about life. Foolishness is probably the inevitable result if we keep God outside of our lives instead of in our heart. The meaning and identity that God gives us in our relationship with Him pushes through foolishness and brings wisdom into our lives.
The end of the matter for the wisest person who ever lived was that the whole duty of a human being is to live in a proper right relationship with God which is the wisest relationship we can have. God must be in the middle of our lives or we are lost to foolishness.
It is the right relationship with God that brings meaning.
It is in following the commands of God that we find purpose.
It is when we seek after God and His Kingdom that all the pieces of life fit together.
ADAPTED FROM KEVIN HALLORAN
https://unlockingthebible.org/2015/10/three-telltale-signs-of-a-foolish-christian/
When you read how Scripture defines a fool, who first comes to mind? For me, it’s always someone else. I’m not going to point any fingers, but some of you come to mind. I don’t consider myself a fool, at least not very high up there on the ‘foolishness index’ Scripture provides in the book of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. I am many things… a fool isn’t one of them.
When I read Ecclesiastes 10 I do not see myself. I don’t use the word ‘fool’ when I think about myself. I am willing to bet that you don’t think of that word when you think of yourself either. We just don’t see the foolish ways we act, the foolish things we say, and the foolish decisions we make. We are blind to it. Foolishness is in our blind spot. I think we all have a ‘foolish blind spot’ when it comes to ourselves and because we don’t see it, we think we are not foolish.
The Apostle Paul in Ephesians 5 tells us something different. He tells me something different. He tells you something different.
READ EPHESIANS 5:15-18 (ESV)
“Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit,”
These verses warn me that without intentionally walking in wisdom, I can quickly drift toward foolish living. Paul’s commands in that passage are challenging. They tell me I’m not wise by default like I think I am. They tell me that I can look wise and accomplished to the world and the church; but to God I’m a fool at times.
I don’t know if there is an exhaustive description of foolishness anywhere, but Ecclesiastes 10 does a good job. While Paul doesn’t provide an exhaustive description of what foolishness looks like, he does share three key elements of what it looks like to live wisely. Wise believers are to make “the best use of time” (verse 16), “understand what the will of the Lord is” (verse 17), and “be filled with the Spirit” (verse 18).
WISE BELIEVERS MAKE THE BEST USE OF TIME WHILE FOOLISH BELIEVERS DON’T CARE ABOUT WASTING TIME
It is foolish to not care about wasting time.
If you surf the internet without aim for hours on end, constantly browse your Facebook or Twitter or Instagram feed, or watch TV like the average American, you might be a foolish Christian. The average amount of screen time in 2021 for Americans is 7 hours and 11 minutes (comparitech.com/tv-streaming/screen-time-statistics/).
Life is a vapor (James 4:14). Each hour wasted is an hour that we can never get back. Wise Christians pray for God to teach them to number their days to gain a heart of wisdom.
READ PSALM 90:12 (ESV)
So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.
Numbering our days involves paying attention to our days, hours, and minutes in how we spend our time. We can easily be lost without intentionality and setting the right priorities and boundaries.
Why are we to make the best use of time? Why? The Apostle Paul says we live in evil days (Ephesians 5:16). Our enemy is on the prowl and wants us to waste our lives and effectiveness for Christ.
WISE CHRISTIAN… make it your aim in life to make the most of your time in these evil days. You’re a part of a spiritual war and can advance the cause of Christ by stewarding your God-given time on earth wisely. Don’t be a fool.
WISE BELIEVERS SEEK TO UNDERSTAND GOD WHILE FOOLISH BELIEVERS DO NOT SEEK TO UNDERSTAND THE WILL OF GOD
God’s will is not some magical lock-box we only unlock by luck, incantation, or owning a certain number of Lauren Daigle songs. God wants us to know His will for us; that’s why He has given us specific revelation. In our Hebrews study on Tuesday night, we discussed how in Hebrews 1, the verses share with us that God communicates specifically about Himself through the prophets and His Word and also specifically in the Person of Jesus Christ. If you read the Bible, you know God. If you know Jesus Christ, you know God.
I’d like to focus on the fact that God reveals Himself to us in the Scriptures. We know what to believe, how to live, and what our part is in God’s mission on earth through the Scriptures. The Bible contains everything we need for righteous living and for bearing fruit in Him. Through wise prayerful obedience to the Word and a faithful pursuit of a relationship with Jesus Christ, we can know and follow God’s will for our lives and grow in His wisdom.
READ ROMANS 12:1-2 (ESV)
“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”
Foolishness comes to us in heaps by neglecting Scripture and prayer, avoiding commitment to a local church, or simply by making no effort to discern how to live a life that pleases the Lord. We do not want to be fools. We must seek to understand the will of the Lord and live accordingly.
WISE BELIEVERS LIVE BY THE SPIRIT WHILE FOOLISH BELIEVERS DON’T LIVE BY THE SPIRIT
Believers in Jesus Christ are powerless to live the way God wants us to and to accomplish what He has for us if we don’t let God live through us by His Spirit. Most of the time we live life under our own power and we manage our lives and direct our own steps. Foolish Christians may be living by their own power either because of ignorance or by choice.
The Spirit-controlled Christian is characterized by a natural flow of Scriptural truths and deep thankfulness to others and to the Lord from our mouths and in our actions. Not living by the Spirit may mean Christians feel far from God, have trouble getting into the Scriptures, struggle with assurance of salvation, lack guidance when making decisions, and live defeated by sin… and that’s a short list. Not living by the Spirit means we are living for something else and most of the time that is ourselves and our flesh.
READ GALATIANS 5:16 (ESV)
“But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.”
We as believers must live and walk by the Spirit. Make melody in our hearts toward God through singing worship songs. Make our hearts joyful in God as we read Scripture and remember His faithfulness to us in the past, His provision for us in the present, and the future grace we will receive when Christ returns.
ILLUSTRATION… kidsworldfun.com/shortstories_fools.php [adapted]
I like the story I read this past week about a group of monkeys.
It was a cold and silent night. The weather was freezing cold. A group of monkeys were on a tree. They were clinging to its branches. One of the monkeys said, “I wish we could find some fire. It will help us to keep warm.” Suddenly they noticed a flock of fireflies. One of the young monkeys thought it was fire. He caught a firefly. He put it under a dry leaf and started blowing at it. Some other monkeys also joined in his efforts.
In the meantime, a sparrow came flying to its nest which was on the same tree the monkeys were sitting on. She noticed what they were doing. The sparrow laughed. She said, “Hey silly monkeys, that is a firefly, not real fire. I think all of you should take shelter in a cave.”
The monkeys did not listen to the sparrow. They continued to blow at the poor firefly.
After some time, the monkeys became very tired. Now they realized that what the sparrow had said was correct, but by then, they were frozen to the branch.
CHALLENGE
The challenge before us today is to stop being foolish. That same challenge is presented to us in Ecclesiastes and also in other passages of Scripture like Ephesians 5. May we commit ourselves to not living unwisely, but to walk in step with the Holy Spirit.
It is the right relationship with God that brings meaning and wisdom.
It is in following the commands of God that we find purpose and wise decision-making.
It is when we seek after God’s Kingdom that all the pieces of life fit together as they should.
We must must must consider our lives honestly and prayerfully and see if there be any foolish way in us. We’d be fools not to.
PRAYER
INVITATION
