Love the Fool

Proverbs 26:3

A whip for the horse, a halter for the donkey, and a rod for the backs of fools!

There are two other verses that I think will help really clarify this particular lesson from Solomon:

Psalm 32:9

Do not be like the horse or the mule, which have no understanding but must be controlled by bit and bridle or they will not come to you.

Proverbs 10:13

Wisdom is found on the lips of the discerning, but the rod is for the back of him who lacks judgment.

The horse, the donkey, and the fool.  They all need constant negative reinforcement.  Notice here that the negative reinforcement involves physical pain.  The whip stings and smarts.  Sometimes even tearing the skin.  The halter chokes.  The bit is a piece of metal that digs into the gums.  The rod causes great pain and internal damage (think caning that is still done in the Middle East and Eastern countries to punish criminals for certain crimes).

The problem for all three is that the lesson is never learned.  Each has to be constantly reminded to follow instruction through the use of physical pain.  You can understand the horse and the mule, they have no understanding.  But the fool has no excuse.  This is the problem in Western society today.  Fools are rewarded instead of disciplined.  Can you imagine the drastic reduction in crime if criminals were given x number of lashes for misdemeanors instead of just a stern scolding?  What if our govenments would actually execute murderers and rapists instead of housing and feeding them for the rest of their lives?  

Answer:  We would have fewer murderers and rapists!

The point of the two proverbs above is that when fools are disciplined for their foolishness they will eventually learn the lesson.  When they are coddled and mothered by the state, or society, they continue in their foolishness.  The end result is that they will be punished for their foolishness.  They will be condemned to hell for all eternity!  That doesn't sound very loving to me.  

This lesson is first and foremost for God's people.  It's  not just for governments.  It is the responsibility of Christians to use the figurative rod with fools- those who lack judgment.  That rod is God's Law.  God places certain fools in the lives of all of us because He wants us to rebuke them with His Law so that we can eventually share the Gospel with them.  This is usually uncomfortable, but it is the only way to truly love a fool.  

Ezekiel 33:7-9, 11

"Son of man, I have made you a watchmen for the house of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from Me.  When I say to the wicked, 'O wicked man, you will surely die,'  and you do not speak out to dissuade him from his ways, that wicked man will die for his sin, and I will hold you accountable for his blood.  But if you do warn the wicked man to turn from his ways and he does not do so, he will die for his sin, but you will have saved yourself."

"As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign LORD, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live.  Turn!  Turn from your evil ways!  Why will you die, O house of Israel?"

How can the fool turn from his ways if we do not rebuke him and dissuade him with God's Word?

All Christians have been given the Great Commision.  It is not just for a handful of church leaders, missionaries and evangelists.  It is for all of God's people.  It is the responsibility of all Christians to learn how to handle God's Word- how to properly use Law and Gospel.  

The beautiful reality is that Jesus died for all people.  This includes all of the fools you know, or have ever known.  Like any of us, the only chance they have is if they are rebuked and instructed with the wisdom of God's Word.

The temptation that always exists for Christians is to sit in arrogant judgment of the fool.  Just remember this when that temptation comes:  You had nothing to do with your faith in Jesus.  All that you have is a gift from God.  For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith- and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God- not by works, so that no man can boast.-  Ephesians 2:8-9

So if God has given us this gift of faith, why are we so scared to give it to someone else?  Obviously, we can not give the fool faith and wisdom; but we can give him God's Word.  That is how the Holy Spirit works faith in the hearts of people.  It is not up to us to decide who will come to faith.  It is our job to share God's Word and let the Holy Spirit work as He will.  God's Word will not return to Him empty (Isaiah 55:11).

As we are reminded in Ezekiel 33:11, God does not want anyone to perish.  That is why He has commissioned each of us to make disciples of  all nations through the use of baptism and His Word.  This week being Holy Week is the perfect opportunity for every one of us to do this.  What better time to share the good news of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection than this week?  This week may be the easiest time of year to explain sin, the wages of sin, and  how Jesus laid down His life to be the atoning sacrifice for all people.  But don't forget the best part:

CHRIST HAS RISEN!

HE HAS RISEN INDEED!

ALLELUIAH!

Have a Blessed Easter

Jason Fredrick

God's Word: The Rock Foundation

Proverbs 18:3

When wickedness comes, so does contempt, and with shame comes disgrace.

When I think of what defines wickedness I immediately think of the Ten Commandments.  Any word or phrase that you could use to define wickedness would be a product of  breaking one, or more, of the Commandments.  This is why contempt follows wickedness.  Everyone knows in their heart (conscience) what wickedness is.  So when it comes they become contemptible to themselves and to others.  This is why wicked people hate wicked people.  

Think about it this way:  murderers don't trust other murderers, adulterers don't trust other adulterers, thieves don't trust other thieves.  These people may work and scheme together for a while, but eventually they will turn on each other.  The wicked person knows that he can't be trusted so there is no way he is going to trust someone who is exactly like himself.  This is why wickedness and contempt go hand-in-hand.  This is why you have to be very cautious when it comes to trusting anyone who is not a Christian.  If some one's foundation is not built on the Bible then everything becomes relative.  Without the Bible there are no absolutes, everything becomes subject to individual interpretation and feelings.

The person who rejects the authority of God's Word, the Bible, is like a balloon at a child's birthday party.  They are batted here and there, incapable of standing firm on any issue, or for any issue.  Every time some new fad research report comes out that person is floating in that direction, until the next one bats them in a different direction.  Exhaustingly, these people can change their "beliefs" as often, and as much, as that balloon at the birthday party changes direction.  Few things in life change more than the core values of the person who has built their life on a foundation of sand- usually quicksand.

Wickedness is shameful.  So when it comes to light it brings disgrace:  on the individual, his family, and all of his affiliations.  This is the problem with building your foundation on sand:  it will collapse eventually.  And when it does there will be collateral damage.  

Another thing that seems to hold true is the more public the life of the individual, the greater the disgrace.  It becomes public for the whole world to see- literally.

I will end with Jesus' teaching on this matter of building your life on the foundation of God's Word.

Matthew 7:24-27

"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.  The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall because it had its foundation on the rock.

But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.  The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash."

God bless

Jason Fredrick

Living With Integrity Every Day

Proverbs 11:3

The integrity of the upright guides them, but the unfaithful are destroyed by their duplicity.

What is integrity?  What are some of the characteristics of a person of integrity?  Let's start there.  They are:

• Honest/ Trustworthy
• They do what they say.
• They don't partake in gossip and slander.
• Honorable
• Patient
• Understanding

That's a good place to get started, but let's look at how Solomon defines integrity in the verse above:

Integrity means to keep and honor God's commands.

If we look at any list like the one above to describe someone with integrity I think this definition would sum up every one of them.  Have you ever known an atheist or a humanist that you would describe as having integrity?  Or would you generally say that they most often display duplicity- meaning that they are inconsistent in what they say, and how they apply what they say to themselves and others?

Using Solomon's definition of integrity explains why so many Christians struggle with living their faith; and also understanding their purpose/calling/mission in life.  Solomon is saying that the upright person is guided by God's Word.  How often do we let God's Word and the Ten Commandments guide us?  We run into problems when we are unfaithful, trying to guide ourselves.  

Psalm 119:105-112

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.  

I have taken an oath and confirmed it, that I will follow your righteous laws.  

I have suffered much; preserve my life, O LORD, according to your word.  

Accept, O LORD, the willing praise of my mouth, and teach me your laws.  

Though I constantly take my life in my hands, I will not forget your law.  

The wicked set a snare for me, but I have not strayed from your precepts.

Your statutes are my heritage forever; they are the joy of my heart.

My heart is set on keeping your decrees to the very end.

This Psalmist clearly understood what Solomon was saying above.  Clearly he was an upright man.  How many times in the eight verses here does he reference God's Word or God's laws.  This is what it means to be upright and guided by integrity.  Every time we have a question for God we need to search the Scriptures for God's answer to that question.  This is why prayer needs to be accompanied by studying God's Word daily.  Why would you talk to God and then not let Him speak back?  The Bible is how He speaks to us today.  He doesn't talk to us like He did with the apostles and the prophets of the Old Testament.  His response to our prayers is in His Word, the Bible.

One of the biggest problems people face is wanting God's will to line up with their desires.  They want what they want; so instead of letting God's Word be "a lamp to their feet and a light for their path" they try to make God's Word say what they want it to say.  They take verses out of context, they change the wording of verses, they liberally interpret Scripture to mean whatever they need it to mean.  These are dangerous practices.  These people are the unfaithful who are destroyed by their duplicity.  God warns:

Revelation 22:18-19

I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book:  

If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book.

And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.

God takes His word seriously and so should we.  We have a loving God who speaks to us daily.  He wants to have conversations with us.  That's why He has given us His Word.  You won't get this from any man-made and false god:  allah, Buddha, Brahma, self, nature, etc.  No false god loves.  Only the true God, God almighty creator of heaven and earth, God of the Bible loves.  It is only the true God who sent His Son to earth to pay the price for the sins of all people, of all time.  

1 John 4:9-10

This is how God showed His love among us:  He sent His one and only Son into the world that we might live through Him.

This is love:  not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

God bless

Jason Fredrick

Generational Fatherhood

Proverbs 4:3-4

When I was a boy in my father's house, still tender, and an only child of my mother, he taught me and said, "Lay hold of my words with all your heart; keep my commands and you will live."

This proverb was most likely written by King Solomon.  So who is the father that he is speaking about here?  King David.  Now, most of our fathers are/were not King David, but we can take some parenting lessons from both David and Solomon that are laid out for us here to bless our sons, as well as our fathers.

First, let's look at the generational inference here.  Proverbs 4 specifically, is King Solomon teaching his son the wisdom that he learned from his father.  How many of us can say that this is how we have gained any of the wisdom that we have?  I don't say this to be harsh.  The point is that this is an aspect of the ancient cultures that we are badly missing in America.  Americans do not think generationally.  How can we?  We are trained to think short-term, instant gratification.  That's not to say that we all haven't learned something from our fathers.  I am confident that most fathers try to pass on the life lessons that they have learned to their children, especially their sons.  The point is that King David was the king of the most powerful nation in the world in his day and he took the time to personally teach his son.  Then Solomon followed that example:  as the king of the most powerful nation in the world he took the time to teach his son the wisdom that was passed down to him from his father.  Author Olive Demille asks the question this way, "When is the last time you did something hard for the sake of your grandchildren, or great-grandchildren?"

As Christians, we need to model David and Solomon on this and start thinking generationally.  As fathers, we need to be passing on the wisdom of God's Word to our sons- even to our young sons.

Secondly, David and Solomon both passed on this wisdom to their sons personally.  They didn't rely on schools to take care of their fatherly duty.  This is another aspect of the rebellious American culture that turns my stomach.  We have been so dumbed down by conveyor-belt schooling that fathers don't even feel qualified to do this anymore.  And that's understandable:  they don't read, they're addicted to entertainment, and they haven't opened their Bible since their confirmation.  Why would they feel qualified to fulfill this duty of fatherhood?  I would contend that most Christian fathers don't even understand that they are supposed to be doing this.  Nobody has taught them what it means to be a Christian man, forget about what it means to be a Christian husband or father.  So where is the church in all of this?  Isn't this the main job of pastor teachers:  to teach Christians how to live as Christians?  Why is the church not falling all over itself to teach Christian men what it means to be a Christian man?  Why is the church not equipping Christian men with the skills to be men, husbands and fathers?  What are our pastors so busy with that is so much more important than this?  If the church would focus on this one thing much of the other business of the church would be taken care of.  Maybe the problem of learning this lesson from men like David and Solomon is that those men totally lacked the academic credentials to be taken seriously.  What could men who lack a bachelor's degree or a master's degree possibly have to teach us? Losers.

Can you even imagine what the church would look like if fathers actually took full responsibility for the education of their children?  That dream is one that gets my heart pumping!

I will finish with a story from today:

Driving home from church today my son and I somehow got on the subject of him getting married.  He's only 6.  I made the point that he would probably get married much younger than Heidi and I were when we married (we were in our mid-30's).  He didn't understand why that would be.  So I explained to him how he is going to be better equipped than I was at a young age to be married.

I explained to him how he won't have to worry about finding a pretty wife, his wife will be beautiful- just like my wife.  We talked about how when the time comes we will identify what characteristics he will need to look for in a wife.

His response, "A believer."

Men:  You cannot wait until your sons are 18 to start having these conversations!  How can your sons "lay hold of your words with all their heart" if you aren't giving them anything to lay hold of?  It is time to reestablish Biblical manhood in our churches, and then the culture.

God bless

Jason Fredrick