July 24, 2014
I am a self-confessed news junkie. Even at my busiest moments, I usually have twenty-four hour news or some type of news discussion going in the background. Although it can annoy many around me at times, it did lead me to do a little research on a story I saw. I watched as several people on the street were interviewed, and asked questions about the world around us today. I watched the blank stare on their faces as they were asked the questions, then listened to answers that were more blank than their stares.
My first thought, this had to have been staged. There was no way people could not of at least heard of many of the events that make up our headlines. Events that terrorize and challenge the world around us today. I figured they had interviewed hundreds, and showed the few worst examples they could find from the ones they interviewed. With this in mind, I decided to do a little research, and take a look at a series of recent polls where the American public was asked about these issues. What I found troubled me more than the on the street interviews that had led me to the polls.
The majority of Americans knew little about what was occurring in Israel. They did not know why the conflict was presently ongoing, and many did not even know who Hamas was. Most did not know that Russia was once again looking to become the bear of days past, expanding its’ control of nations that fell under its’ authority during the days of the Cold War. Most were unaware that Iran was close to developing a nuclear weapon, and the danger every corner of this world will feel if this project is allowed to be completed. And most did not know and could not tell you who ISIS is. They did not know why ISIS was grabbing land through the Middle East, and sadly, many were not even aware that they were.
These numbers staggered me. In order for the numbers found in these polls to reach such high levels, it required more to be ignorant of the facts than just those who thought news only involved the names Kardashian and Bieber. For the numbers to reach so deep, it had to also include the everyday families of this nation, and those who fill the pews of our churches each Sunday. I asked myself the questions, how could people who read God’s Word, not see His Word coming to life in the events that make up our news each day? How could they not be excited to see God’s Word being fulfilled? How could what they are witnessing not cause them to look up, knowing that very soon Christ will return for His bride?
To answer these questions, I had to look no farther than a couple of other polls. Polls taken on the state on religion in America today. When asked about the Bible in recent polls, seven in ten do not believe the Word of God is literal and inerrant. Seventy percent do not believe the Bible holds the answers. Seven in ten do not believe that God holds the future in His hands. Seventy percent of those in America today, believe they have better answers to the problems this world now faces than God does Himself.
If the results of the first poll troubles us, then the results of the last poll should terrify us. We are watching as our society does not look to deny God, but to make God irrelevant. Before us has come a generation who believe there is a God, but have come to the conclusion they can live their lives better without God. A generation who has access to God’s Word, but chooses to ignore God’s Word. A nation of people who have looked into the face of God, and told God we do not need Him. We have become the Psalm 14 Generation.
The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they have committed abominable deeds; there is no one who does good.
The Lord has looked down from heaven upon the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God.
They have all turned aside, together they have become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one.
Do all the workers of wickedness not know who eat up my people as they eat bread, and do not call upon the Lord?
There they are in great dread, for God is with the righteous generation.
You would put to shame the counsel of the afflicted, but the Lord is his refuge.
Oh, that the salvation of Israel would come out of Zion! When the Lord restores His captive people, Jacob will rejoice, Israel will be glad.
As David wrote these words, one must wonder if the Lord was not showing him the people of this nation today. Did the Lord give David a glimpse into the heart of this generation? It is hard to read the power of these words, and not see the faces of this nation reflected in them. A people that has never been better described by seven short verses.
In the first line, we see David completely capture the mindset of our nation. “The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” When we hear the word “fool”, we think of someone who is acting unwisely, to do something stupid. Although those terms often apply, the Bible’s definition is completely different. The Hebrew word used here for “fool” refers to someone who knows God, but chooses to live their life as if God has no affect on it. This is someone who knows God’s Word, but chooses to ignore that Word. The Book of Proverbs paints us the perfect picture of a fool. It tells us that a fool disregards and hates knowledge(Proverbs 1:22). A fool is immoral(Proverbs 6:32). A fool finds pleasure in doing wicked things(Proverbs 10:23). A fool takes pride in proclaiming absurdities(Proverbs 12:23). A fool is boastful and prideful(Proverbs 14:3). A fool loves deceit(Proverbs 14:8). A fool mocks sin(Proverbs 14:9). And a fool does not seek understanding(Proverbs 18:2). We see as the picture of a fool, one whose immoral actions and lack of wisdom causes him to oppose the plan that the Lord has for each of our lives. In describing this person, Paul told us that they suppress the truth. They know God, but choose not to live for God(Romans 1:19).
The Bible makes it clear that a fool acts and thinks not just out of ignorance, but out of his own selfish desires. The fool not only chooses to ignore God’s plan and His desire for us, he also chooses to ignore the reality that evil plays in the world around us. To the fool, wicked is not just a mere choice, but a chosen path.
To best understand this, we need to look no farther than the words David uses after writing the word fool. David writes, “has said in his heart”. How do we say something in our heart? The Hebrew word used here is “leb”, and it means “inner parts, the place that causes man to deliberate and to reflect, our soul”. The place that forms our beliefs, is the place that God tells us defines a fool. If David knew this, then you can count on the fact that another knows this also. We may refer to Satan as many things, but ignorance of God’s Word, and the actions and tendency of man, is not two of them. Satan knows that what is found in the heart of man, the soul, will be reflected in the mind of man. What controls the heart, will fill the mind. Satan knows that the makeup of our soul will be seen in our actions, and will be heard in our words. Satan looks to influence the heart, because to do so, will play out in our thoughts. Satan knows too well, that in man you will find logic, but only through God can you find wisdom. The best friend of Satan is the logic of a fool.
David finishes the line of this verse in a very powerful way, “There is no God”. The Hebrew word for “There is no”, means “a lack of, without”. David is not describing one who does not know God, but one who does not seek God. He is identifying for us someone who has no use for God in their life. What greater picture could David paint for us of a fool?
A fool. Corrupt to the core without even realizing they are corrupt. Knowing God, but not wanting God. Needing God, but without a desire to seek God. Ignorant all the way to the core of their heart, but thinking they have more knowledge than God Himself. They make up the words that Paul used to describe a people who would know God, but would not honor God. A generation best described as, “Professing to be wise, they became fools”(Romans 1:22).
A generation that would fulfill the prophetic Word, but would be too foolish to realize that Word was describing them. A generation that chose to cut itself off from their very source of spiritual strength and moral inspiration. A generation that has drifted so far from the Lord’s guidance, that it no longer knows how to find its’ way out of the turbulent waves in the deep sea. A generation that no longer prays to be delivered from evil, because they do not wish to be led out of temptation.
We have watched as a generation has rose up in this country, a generation that was present on the tip of the tongue of every Old and New Testament prophet. A generation that God warned us about, and a generation that Satan has longed to see. A generation that has closed their heart to Christ and His Word, but a generation who will open their mind to one who will soon come. A generation whose minds will be led by the foolishness of their hearts. A generation of fools.
Praying God’s wisdom will return to the hearts of this generation.
