Foolishness Stinks!!!

"As dead flies give perfume a bad smell, so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor." Ecclesiastes 10:1

Sometimes we need to just have it told to us simple and straight. No beating around the bush or trying to soften the impact that the truth often has on us. So in the title of this devotional I have cut to the chase and gotten to the bottom line. Foolishness stinks!!! It stinks up everything and ruins everything. A little leaven, leavens the whole lump. One bad apple, well, you know all of the sayings that used to be such a strong part of our culture. Ever notice that a lot of those sayings have their roots in the Word of God? Also, notice that they are disappearing from our society because they sound moralistic. Of course they do, they are about morals. Fools forget their morals.

I have not been wearing cologne for several months. For one, it is not in my budget right now. And, the type of cologne I like to wear is not easily found. Not terribly expensive, just not that popular I guess. Anyway, there are some odors that cologne cannot mask. Evidently, dead flies is one of them too. Sometimes perfume is used to cover up other odors, like deodorant is used. When we are rotten, we smell bad and attract flies and no matter how we try to make ourselves smell better, it really doesn't work. Often too much cologne or perfume is a clue to there being another problem.

Now that we have talked about the illustrative part of this verse, let's talk about the meaning. The crucial teaching is in the second half of the verse. Wisdom and honor are very strong. A person who demonstrates both is usually spiritually maturing. Wisdom comes from much experience and understanding, a fair share of study and more than a little focus on God. Honor comes from doing what is wise in such a way that people see the character of Christ in you. This being said, let's get back to the illustration and bring our devotional to a convicting nexus. When we are foolish it makes no difference what you think, do or say, the foolishness outweighs everything. One foolish mistake can set us up for years and years of a lingering bad smell. Not only for us but also for others.

Unfortunately, our foolishness can only be remedied by heaps and heaps of wise living and honorable actions. If our reputation gets sullied by a disobedient or rebellious choice or mistake, it may take years for that to change. Thanks be to God for grace and mercy. Invariably we are just gonna do some stinky things, goes with our nature. When we do, we should not try to mask the smell of that, but own it, show remorse for it, apologize for it, remedy the injuries from it and move on. We can't avoid our humanness, but we can be forthright and also try to avoid foolishness. As the ecclesiastical advice suggests in the converse... wisdom and honor are the preventatives for foolishness. I think Solomon in writing us just gets our attention with the dead flies so he can remind us about being wise and honorable. I got the message and I hope you did too. Let us try harder to not be fools, because it really stinks. I would also suggest that each of us smell ourselves first before trying to sniff out others. Let our lives be a fragrant offering, pleasing to Him.

Pastor Fred

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