What A Fool Believes
In 1979 the Doobie Brothers had a #1 hit with a song titled “What A Fool Believes”. What made this come to my mind? The message this past Sunday talked about the parable of the 10 Virgins where 5 were wise and 5 were foolish. It is recorded in the Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 25, verses 1:13
1"At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish and five were wise. 3 The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. 4 The wise, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. 5 The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.
6 "At midnight the cry rang out: 'Here's the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!'
7 "Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. 8 The foolish ones said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.'
9 " 'No,' they replied, 'there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.'
10 "But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.
11 "Later the others also came. 'Sir! Sir!' they said. 'Open the door for us!'
12 "But he replied, 'I tell you the truth, I don't know you.'
13 "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.”
Upon first appearances, I thought the 5 virgins who did not have their oil ready were called foolish because they did not have their oil ready. However, God revealed to me that the reason they did not have their oil ready was because they were foolish. So I decided to search the scriptures for references to foolish people and this is what I discovered.
The idea of foolish in Biblical terms can be found at its core in Psalm 14:1
The fool says in his heart,
"There is no God."
They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good.
So Point #1 foolish people do not believe there is a God.
The next scriptural reference comes from Proverbs 1:7
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”
Fear of the Lord is not being afraid of God. It is giving honor, respect, and worship to God. When people do this, they qualify themselves to receive wisdom and understanding from God speaking to them. Conversely, a foolish person thinks they are wise in their own eyes and they despise it when someone tries to correct and instruct them in the wisdom of God. They are like the alcoholic that does not think they have a drinking problem.
So Point #2 foolish people do not even know they are foolish. This is why I believe that in order to get someone saved, we must first clearly show them that they are lost.
The next reference I found was in Luke 11:39-41
39 Then the Lord said to him, "Now then, you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness. 40 You foolish people! Did not the one who made the outside make the inside also? 41 But give what is inside the dish to the poor, and everything will be clean for you.”
Jesus is talking to the Pharisees. The Pharisees were the strict, religious people who thought their own self righteousness was sufficient to get them to Heaven. They knew there was a God, but they were too foolish to recognize Jesus (as God) when they saw Him in the flesh.
So, Point #3 foolish people do not believe that Jesus was God incarnate.
The next scriptural reference comes from 1 Corinthians 1:18-25
“18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. 19 For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. 20 Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? 21 For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.
22 For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: 23 But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumbling block, and unto the Greeks foolishness; 24 But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. 25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
To the unsaved world (in Biblical times they were called Greeks or Gentiles) the preaching of salvation only coming from belief (total trust) in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus is foolish. This reinforces point #3. If they do not believe that Jesus was God incarnate, it follows that they will think that the preaching of such a message is foolish. But God takes pleasure in turning man’s so called wisdom into something foolish.
So Point #4 is that foolish people who think they are wise in their own eyes will not hear the preaching of the Gospel that will be able to save them.
There are two scriptures that are closely tied together that speak of reproof and stubbornness of the fool. The first is Proverbs29:1
“He, that being often reproved hardens his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy.”
The other is Romans 1:21-25
“21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,
23 And changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and four footed beasts, and creeping things. 24 Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonor their own bodies between themselves: 25 Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen. 26 For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:
27 And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was fitting. 28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not proper.”
These two verses speak of people who are acutely aware that there is a God, they are even spoke to about it many times by others who want them to come to Christ, but after all of that they ignore the warnings. Once that happens, God turns them over to their own devices and let’s them destroy themselves.
So Point #5 only a fool ignores steady, Godly reproof and in doing so seals their own fate to eternal damnation.
I decided to make 5 points since there were 5 foolish virgins. Remember, they were not foolish just because they did not have their oil ready. They did not have their oil ready because they were foolish to begin with.
Let's look back at the initial scripture in Matthew. Near the end Jesus says "I never knew you." He did not say that He knew them at one time but now He no longer did. This is important. Remember, the first point? A fool doesn't believe there is a God. Since these virgins were foolish, it meant that they did not truly believe that the bridegroom (Jesus) was God. If they had, they certainly would have had the oil of the Holy Spirit in them and in their lamps.
So to recap the 5 points:
1) Foolish people do not believe there is a God
2) Foolish people do not even realize they are foolish
3) Foolish people do not believe that Jesus was God incarnate
4) Foolish people who think they are wise, will not hear the numerous calls for them to come to Jesus
5) Foolish people who willingly, constantly ignore the reproof from Godly people become so hard-hearted that they seal their own fate of destruction and eternal damnation.
We need to pray for the fools we know in our lives that they will have a repentant spirit, open their ears, open their hearts and receive the message that they are given over and over again before it is too late and they cross God's deadline where they will be turned over to their reprobate minds.
