I googled April Fools' Day, wondering if I could find some hidden insights. Wikipedia says its practices include, among other things, sending
someone on a ‘fool's errand,’ that is, trying to get people to believe ridiculous things.
You can imagine this description caught my attention. According to Paul, “the
preaching of the cross is foolishness [ridiculous to believe in] to those who are
perishing” (1 Cor. 1:18).
Paul was not afraid of appearing foolish. When he said, “We are fools for Christ,
but you are wise” (1 Cor. 4:10), he was scorning the Corinthians for priding themselves on their astute and eloquent preaching. (They were too smart to go on a ‘fool's errand!’)
I think April 1 should serve as a reminder to all cross-bearing believers that we are called to be “Fools for Christ.” And what better maxim for the day than Jim Elliot’s truly astute and eloquent declaration: “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to
gain what he cannot lose.”
Coming the day after what-we-call “April Fool’s Day” here in the US, I was reminded of this quote by Jim Elliot: “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.”
Jim Elliot was a missionary martyred by the Auca Indians of Ecuador. His quote is a perpetual reminder of the cost (and privilege) of discipleship. But his quote also reminds us that any Bible-believing, fundamental believer will be considered foolish by the world. “We are fools for Christ's sake… we are weak… we are despised (1 Cor. 4:10)… for the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God… (1 Cor. 1:18).
I am afraid that the further our culture (and even mainline denominations) declines into amorality and universalism, the more foolish Bible-believing Christians will appear. It is time for us to ask ourselves, 'are we willing to be fools for Christ?'
Last year I received a glossy brochure from an Evangelical Christian school raising funds through a silent auction. The grand prize was a weekend in Las Vegas! Last week I received a sleek brochure from an international radio ministry, announcing a Caribbean cruise. While the brochure, replete with children on water slides, young adults windsurfing, diners dressed in tuxedos, was aimed at those with discretionary income, it seemed oddly out of touch with the mood of the day.
Trips to Las Vegas? Caribbean cruises? Didn't Jesus become poor for our sake? (2 Co 8:9). Didn't He model austerity? I have no doubt these ministries mean well. But I keep thinking the words “You foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you?” (Gal. 3:1).
Might I be so bold to suggest that our ‘first-class’ lifestyles are uncomfortably close to those described of the church at Laodicea: “You say, 'I am rich. I have everything I want. I don't need a thing!' And you don't realize that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked” (Rev. 3:17). I know these are harsh words. But these are harsh times, as Thomas Paine said, “these are the times that test men’s souls.” Many believe a time of great testing is about to come upon the church.
The phrase right winger is a belittling term for political conservatives that seems to be interchangeable with born-again Christians. An editorial in this morning’s paper captures the essence of this anti-Christian sentiment: “right wing denial of evolution is a disastrous embrace of ignorance and superstition in the face of fact-based science.” Surprisingly, "evolution" has surfaced in this year’s presidential debates. The other day, I came across a blog posting titled, “Born Again Christians Have Smaller Brains.” It was a satire on creationist Christians' inability to comprehend college level science.
Well, quite frankly, maybe we do have smaller brains. Maybe as the human spirit takes on its greater capacity for comprehending the things of God, things that are hidden from the world’s brainiest, a part of our brain atrophies. Maybe that part of the brain that makes men proud and boastful actually shrinks. Maybe that part of the brain that Paul calls “foolish wisdom” recedes.
Paul calls the wisdom of this world “foolishness.” “God has revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God's deep secrets… But people who aren't spiritual can't receive these truths from God's Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can't understand it… But we understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ" (1 Cor. 1-2). Isn't that better than a big brain!?
“I believe in God. I believe the Bible is a good book. And then I believe whatever I want.” And this is how Christian pollster George Barna describes the American religious ethic in his latest book “Futurecast.” From 1991 to the present, the percentage of self-proclaimed, born-again Christians who are “unchurched” has gone from 24% to a whopping 37%. One woman who still calls herself a Christian tells how she drifted away from a mainline Protestant church and found peace in the Baha’i tradition along with Native American healing practices.
The bottom line is captured in Barna’s statement, “America is headed for 310 million people with 310 million religions”—customizing Christianity to fit our personal needs. It appears that the state of Christianity in America is not unlike that of Israel during the time of the judges. “In those days there was no king in Israel but every man did that which was right in his own eyes” (Judges 17:6). Or worse, like Israel’s response to Jeremiah’s cry for repentance: "Don't waste your breath. We will continue to live as we want to…" (18:12). Can such an attitude come from a true believer? Let the Bible speak for itself.
“Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn't worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused… Even though there is a path before each person that seems right [the way of a fool seems right to him], it ends in death” (Romans 1:21; Proverbs 12:15; 14:12).
As a male, I have been conditioned by my culture to be strong. When life gets out of my control, I get anxious and agitated. I feel weak; and I don’t like it. Paul tells us that “God has chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty, foolish, the base things and despised, that no flesh should glory in His presence” (1 Cor. 1:27-29, paraphrased).
Are these the words you like to hear about yourself—weak, foolish, despised, abased? Yet that is how God stocked the early church! Later, Paul explains how God puts the treasure of Jesus in earthen vessels (humans) so it will be quite evident the power is of Him and not us (2 Cor. 4:7). In a culture that promotes power and independence, it is not natural, or easy, to embrace weakness.
Nonetheless God says to Paul "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” And then Paul replies “most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me… I am well content with weaknesses… for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong… If I have to boast, I will boast of what pertains to my weakness (2 Cor. 12:9-10; 2 Cor. 11:30). OK—time for a reality check. When is the last time you honestly boasted about your weakness (and not in false modesty or feigned self-deprecation)?
