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Source: https://www.sermonindex.net/speakers/isaiah-frazier/wise-and-foolish/
Psalm 14, just the first verse, verse 1, this is of course the psalm of David, Psalm 14, verse 1, says, The fool has said in his heart, there is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.
Now this evening I'd like to speak to you briefly about being wise or being foolish. And we're not here to offend anyone, but I trust that if the word of God pricks your heart, then you will listen. The psalmist says this, the fool has said in his heart, there is no God.
It's interesting because there are people who as far as this world is concerned would be very smart. As we've already heard, there are people who would even be college professors with their diplomas and titles.
But as far as God is concerned, they are fools. Anyone who would deny the existence of God is a fool. Anyone who would say that there is no God for me is a fool. Or anyone that would ignore the fact that they are going to meet God when life is over, the Bible calls him a fool.
I trust that you will be wise, that you will recognize that there is a God. Now, I don't know who built this auditorium here. I've never seen the man, but I know there was one because the building is here as an evidence of his work.
There are people who will say, I cannot see God and therefore I do not believe that there is a God. Now, that's not really rational thinking because all you have to do is look around and understand somebody made everything that we see.
You see, as we consider Earth and all its greatness and even beyond the moon and the stars, the Bible says this, that they declare the glory of God. The heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament his handiwork.
So you see, the evidence of God is everywhere. And only a fool would try and say there is no God because his handiwork, his finger, the work of his finger is everywhere you look. And whether you realize it or not, it is God, the God who made this universe is a God that has given you your life.
You are not here by chance. And as someone has said, thinking of creation and all the orderliness of not only Earth, but the universe that we live in, that if there is a design, there was a designer. And if there was a plan, there was a planner.
And we do not live in utter chaos. We live in an orderly universe. Why is that is because an orderly God made it. And only a fool would say there is no God. Why is it that people would deny the existence of God?
We've already considered because they do not want to face God. You see, people don't want to be held responsible for their actions. But friend, the Bible makes it very clear there is a God with whom we have to do.
The Bible says that all things are open, they're naked before the eyes of him with whom we have to do. There's not a created being that is not plainly seen by the eye of God that includes you and me. And we are ultimately responsible to him for our lives, for our words, our actions, our thoughts and our deeds.
And those who would deny the existence of God is. It's really such a foolish thing. But the very motive is this, they do not want to be held accountable for their actions. The Bible says the fool has said in his heart there is no God and really for those who say, if I cannot see God, then I will not believe, you know, seeing isn't believing.
We see many things that aren't true just because we see them doesn't make them true. You know that because you see in books and magazines and on the TV and movies so many things that are just the imagination of man.
We see them, but they're not real. We hear things that are not true. But friend, there is a real God in heaven. And the word of God would say it like this, that as far as Israel is concerned, it says they saw his works for 40 years and yet they did not believe.
So seeing isn't believing because they saw a God who could rescue them from awful cruelty in Egypt. They saw his mighty hand working and dividing the Red Sea. They saw the food that God provided every morning.
They saw the water that flowed out from the rock. And yet they still did not believe. We believe God because the Bible tells us there is a God. And besides that, we believe it because we look around and we see the creation that he made.
The book of Romans would say his eternal power and God had there clearly seen from the beginning of creation. So a fool is a person who would deny the existence of God. And maybe you're here and you wouldn't go so far as to say, I don't believe in God, I don't believe that there is a God to meet.
But, you know, there are people with their very lives and it would seem that they do not believe that there is a God that they will have to meet someday. And a very plain example of that is found in Luke chapter 12.
There is a man there who was no slouch as far as this world is concerned. You see, he was a very thoughtful man when it came to business, when it came to farming, when it came to planning. He was a thoughtful man as far as life is concerned and all the things that God had blessed him with.
He had an idea of where to put them and then what to do with them and then how to enjoy them. But listen to what the Bible says, God spoke and said, thou fool, this night thy soul be required of thee.
Why did God call him a fool? Because he lived his life without taking God into account. Not that he would deny that there was a God, but with his life and his actions, he didn't think about God and he didn't think about eternity.
Maybe you wouldn't go so far as to say I don't believe in God. But are you prepared to meet God? Do you live your life for here and now and not think about eternity? If you're a person that lives for here and now and does not think about the future and after death, you're a fool.
The word of God says the fool has said in his heart there is no God. And if I could just take that just one step farther, thinking of that man there in Luke chapter 12. You know, we don't read of gross sins that that man in Luke chapter 12 committed.
We don't read that he was an immoral person. We don't read of any awful sins that he committed. But you know, just the very fact that he lived his life without God, he's called a fool. Because he was not prepared for eternity.
God called him a fool. Trust that you'll be wise, friend, because there is a God that you will have to meet when your little life here on earth is over. He is a holy God. He is a righteous God. He is a God who must punish sin.
And if you die in your sins, you will know the wrath of God. That is why you need to be prepared to meet him. That is why you need to be wise and understand there is a God that I must meet. We read in Proverbs chapter 14.
Just turn over there. Proverbs chapter 14, verse nine. Proverbs chapter 14 in verse nine says this fools make a mock at sin. The Bible calls men and women fools who think of sin as something light, as something that is of no consequence.
Fools make a mock at sin. I remind you this evening that sin is no small thing before God. You see, we live in a world and as far as this world is concerned, there are so many sins that people would even take pleasure in.
People don't think twice about things that are against God. In his holiness, people would laugh at sin. But the Bible says fools make a mock at sin. Sin is an offense against a holy God. And God does not laugh at sin, but sin will bring awful consequences.
And as we read in the word of God, hell in the lake of fire as a result of sins committed against God that have never been forgiven. So you see, when the gospel is priest, it's not a laughing matter because sin is taking men and women down to hell.
And boys and girls, though they might know the gospel, their sin is taking them down to hell because sin is an awful thing before the eyes of a holy God. It's not something to be made light of. It's not something to joke about.
It's not something to laugh about because fools make a mock at sin. Sin ruins the lives of men and women. Yes. Sin has caused such awful suffering in this world. Yes. But sin will take men and women and boys and girls to a lost eternity.
The Bible says fools make a mock at sin. Let's read in the New Testament, in the gospel of Matthew, please. In the gospel of Matthew, these are the last words of the Lord Jesus as he speaks upon the mount.
Matthew chapter seven, reading from verse 24. The Lord Jesus says, therefore, whosoever heareth these sayings of mine and doeth them not and doeth them, sorry, I will liken him unto a wise man which built his house upon a rock.
And the rain descended and the floods came and the winds blew and beat upon that house. And it fell not for it was founded upon a rock. But then he goes on to say, 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.
And the rain descended and the floods came and the winds blew and beat it upon that house. And it fell and great was the fall of it. And it came to pass when Jesus had ended these sayings of people were astonished at his doctrine, for he taught them as one having authority and not as the scribes.
Do you like to be wise in the eyes of God this evening? You're going to have to believe God. But sadly, there are those in this world who do not believe God. And the Lord Jesus, he says, it's so plain.
Those that hear these sayings of mine, these words of mine and do them not, they do not respond to them. They do not believe them and therefore do not act upon them. They are compared to foolish men who build their houses upon the sand.
And I just like to liken this very simply to the word of God. You see, there are people today who would despise the word of God and what it says. People do not like to hear about sin. So they would reject and ignore the word of God.
They don't like to hear that the wages of sin is death. They don't like to hear that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. But to deny the word of God, to reject it, to ignore it is a foolish thing.
It's to base your life on something that is subject to movement, something that is fleeting, something that is failing. There are men and women who would put their confidence in the words of men, even religious leaders of the day, and the preacher, and the pastor, and the priest.
They believe what they say, but they don't believe what God says. And that is tragic. I trust that you are not one who would say, I don't know whether I can believe the word of God or not. As you know, we have visited with a young man and though his mother is not saved, his father is in assembly fellowship.
And he told us as we sat in front of him on the couch with his Bible in his hand, I just don't know whether I can believe it or not. You see, when you can't believe God, you're in a dire straits. You see, God cannot lie.
His word is eternal. It is unchanging. It is infallible. And for men and women to deny the word of God, they're denying the only solid thing that they could ever grasp. And yet there are those who would doubt the word of God.
And I tell you this evening what the word of God says. It says that we have all sinned and come short of the glory of God. The Bible speaks of our sin, and I hope you don't doubt it. But you know, the Bible speaks of a Savior.
And this is what I appreciate. But the Bible says that there is but one Savior. The Bible, the word of God tells us, says that there is one God. And there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for all.
There are people who would deny it. There would be people who would doubt it in this world as to whether there is but one Savior. But from the word of God says that there is only one. The Bible says this in regards to the Lord Jesus.
I am the way, the truth and the life. No man cometh unto the father but by me. That is what the word of God says. I hope you don't doubt it. There is but one way to God's heaven. The Bible again says neither is there salvation in any other.
Speaking of the Lord Jesus, there is no other name under heaven given on men whereby we must be saved. And yet there are those who would doubt it was the work of the Lord Jesus Christ upon the cross enough to save me with all his sufferings and all the shame that he bore upon the cross.
And he just don't know whether they can believe it or not, friend, believe it, because if you are doubting it, you are rejecting what God says. And for those who do not believe the word of God, those who would deny it, the Lord Jesus says, I will compare him to a foolish man.
And you notice the end of this house, the Bible says, and great was the fall of it. I trust that you'll be wise this evening and listen, take heed to the word of God, that you will believe God this evening, that you will be wise.
I'd like to go to the Old Testament again. We'll just read here in the book of 1st Samuel chapter 25, please. 1st Samuel chapter 25. 1st Samuel chapter 25. We won't read too many verses here. But just begin here, reading 1st Samuel chapter 25.
Verse eight says, ask thy young men and they will show thee. Wherefore, let the young men find favor in thine eyes, for we come in a good day. Give, I pray thee, whatsoever cometh to thy hand unto thy servants and to thy son David.
And when David's young men came, they spake to Nabal according to all those words in the name of David and ceased. And Nabal answered David's servants and said, who is David? Who is the son of Jesse? Who is David and who is the son of Jesse?
There be many servants nowadays that break away every man from his master. Shall I then take my bread and my water and my flesh that I have killed for my shears and give it unto men whom I know not whence they be?
So David's young men turned their ways and went again and came and told him all those sayings. And verse 13 tells us how David responded and David said unto his men, gird ye on every man his sword. But we find that Nabal's wife Abigail intercedes.
Verse 23, David was going to kill all the men. Verse 23 says, when Abigail saw David, she hasted and lighted off her ass and fell before David on her face and bowed herself to the ground and fell at his feet and said, upon me, my Lord, upon me, let this iniquity be, let thine handmaids, I pray, they speak in thine audience and hear the words of thy handmaid.
Let not my Lord, I pray, they regard this man of Belial, even Nabal, for as his name is, so is he. Nabal is his name and folly is with him. Nabal, whose name means fool. As his name is, so is he. Sadly, there are people who would deny the existence of God, people who would deny the word of God.
I'd like to speak to you just briefly about those who would despise the Son of God. As we read here in the history of the Old Testament and of the nation of Israel, we find that David is being persecuted by Saul.
We find that he is living in the days of rejection, we say, but really he hasn't taken his rightful place, as we find. But we find that in his need with his men in the wilderness, they come and they do a service to Nabal in protecting the sheep and the shepherds, and David would desire something in return.
And of course, we read the response of Nabal, who is David, who is the son of Jesse. There are so many runaway servants nowadays. You see, he did not recognize David for who he was. He even despised him calling him a runaway servant.
And we read, of course, that David and his wrath was going to move, and Abigail interceded, and of course, God did move, and 10 days later, Nabal died. But I was thinking of the words of his wife. I don't know how this all happened, but she was wise and he was a fool.
She was one who was wiser than her husband. And she would come and she would intercede before David. But her words are these, as his name is, so is he. You see, he despised David, the king, in rejection.
He failed to recognize him for who he was. He would even despise him as just a runaway servant of his father. You know, it is great folly today because men and women fail to give the Lord Jesus Christ a place he deserves in their lives.
Men and women today fail to recognize him for who he is. And a person who would despise the Lord Jesus Christ, he really is a fool. As we have already said, he is God's only means of salvation. He is the one that came down from the heights of heaven and suffered shame.
He is the one who, from the very beginning of John's gospel, it was written, he came unto his own and his own received him not. And John ends his gospel with those words, the cries of the crowd, away with him, away with him.
We will not have him to reign over us. They would not give him his rightful place. And it was only a sign of mockery that they would write upon his head, Jesus of Nazarene, the king of the Jews. You see, it was all a mock show.
This man, this lowly man from Nazareth, they did not believe he was a king. That's why they crowned him with thorns. They did not believe he was a king. That is why they put on a robe upon him and a scepter in his hand only to take it afterwards and beat him upon the head.
That is why they balked the knee in mockery and said, hail, king of the Jews, only to rise and spit in his face. You see, they weren't willing to give him the place that was his. They weren't willing to recognize him for who he was.
And they cried away with him, away with him. Sadly, there are people today who despise him. They do not recognize him as their only hope for eternity. They fail to appreciate the reason that he suffered upon the cross was to take their sin away.
They fail to understand that the son of man came to seek and to save that which was lost. A lost sinner like me. They have not believed the message that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.
It's just the story of a man who lived so many years ago. And there are those who there are those who are here today and their parents love and worship the son of God. And sadly, there are children who fail to recognize him for who he is as their savior.
We read the words of Abigail as his name is. So is he. He is a fool. He would not give David his rightful place. There are those in this world who refuse to recognize the Lord Jesus Christ as the only savior of their soul.
They are fools. And if you do not trust him as your savior, you are fools. We've already quoted because there is no other hope. There is no other savior. As his name is, so is he. And I won't take the time, but we could just mention in the next chapter, there's another man who is called a fool.
He calls himself a fool. It's all. And speaking of Saul, David had the opportunity again to take his life. And from across the valley with Saul's spear in his water bottle, David would cry. He was so very near while Saul slept in the trench that he could have taken his life so easily.
But he awakens him. It is then that Saul reflects and says, I have sinned. Return my son, David, for I will do before thee no harm because my soul was precious in thine eyes this day. Behold, I have played the fool.
I have erred exceedingly. And I won't say any more about this, but friend, let me tell you, there's a God in heaven who desires your eternal well-being. And yet for those who would deny the word of God and doubt it and despise his son, it's really an act of enmity.
There are those who are living their lives rebelling against God, a God who would desire their well-being and blessing. There are people who would actually despise God himself. And I tell you that your life is in God's hand.
Don't be a fool. Don't despise the one who desires to bless you, the one who has preserved your life even till now, especially if you are in your sins. Don't be a fool. But there's one more thing I would like you to notice back in the Gospel of Matthew.
And with this, I'm finished. Matthew chapter 25,. Matthew chapter 25, verse one, then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps and went forth to meet the bridegroom.
But notice what the Lord Jesus says, five of them were wise and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, but they that were wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.
I think it's very easy to understand people who are not awaiting the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ for his church. They're foolish. People who are not prepared for the imminent return of the Lord Jesus Christ are foolish.
It might be easy for you to sit in your sin. Might be easy for you to think that you have many years to be saved. You do not have a guarantee of tomorrow that you will ever see tomorrow's sunrise. But if you sit in your sins this evening, if you have not trusted the Lord Jesus Christ as your savior, you are not prepared for his return and you are foolish.
We have already heard those words quoted, I come quickly. If you're not saved and you know the gospel, you do not believe God. You are not ready for the one who is coming. Friend, I trust that you will be wise this evening, that you will recognize there is a God that you have to meet.
I hope that you will understand that the word that he has given you is true. Hope you will understand that sin is not something to be mocked at. I hope you will despise and reject the Lord Jesus Christ no longer if you have not recognized him as your only hope of ever being saved.
Because if you die without Christ, you're a fool. The Lord Jesus Christ comes and you're not ready. You will be the fool. Let's pray.