You Don't Have to be an Idiot

One of my all-time favorite TV shows was “Country Fried Home Videos,” hosted by Bill Engvall. In each episode, people would do things that were unthinkable to a normal person. The most bizarre behavior was rewarded with the “Here’s Your Sign” award. Past winners included a man who got bit as he stuck his hand into the mouth of an alligator, another man who rolled a large piece of slate down a mountainside and right into his vehicle, and another man hanging a large pincher crab on his nipple – ouch! In my opinion, the winners of these awards were idiots!

According to dictionary.com, an idiot is “an utterly foolish or senseless person.” Well, I have come across a few idiots in my day, and so have you. Consider the person who sees a “wet paint” sign and touches it to see if it is really wet. Think about the person who blames a ladder as defective after falling from the top section that clearly states, “Danger: Not a Step.” The worst, I ever heard was the man who ignored the warning labels and tried to trim his hedge by picking up his push lawnmower – he lost fingers on both hands!

Idiots are not only revealed by their bizarre behavior, but also by their bizarre thought processes. Consider the man who gets angry when the woman he had a one-night stand with asks for child support. Consider the person dying with lung cancer or Emphysema who continues to smoke. What about the ninety-year-old man, who refuses to believe that his twenty-year-old girlfriend is only after his money and not his wrinkly old body. These are only a few examples of foolish or idiotic thinking; but there are many, many more.

Foolish behavior is nothing new. Consider Adam & Eve, who lost everything because they believed a serpent and ate the fruit. Consider the people who mocked Noah as he built the ark, and ultimately drowned. Uzzah touched the Ark of the Covenant, after God told him not to, and fell dead. King David had many wives and concubines, but just had to have Bathsheba. Judas saw Jesus’ perform miracles, but chose to betray Him. The crowds chose to crucify Jesus, even though Pilate proclaimed Him to be innocent. People have been making utterly foolish or senseless decisions since the beginning.

Foolish behavior and beliefs continue today. People deny Jesus’ existence, even though His life is documented by historians. People now argue that America was never founded as a Christian nation, although the proof is stamped all over Washington D.C. People refuse to believe the Bible, even though it has been proven by history, science, prophecy and archaeology. People know what God expects, but they choose to live otherwise. Proverbs 14:12 NIV states, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.”

It is easy to prove that people make utterly foolish and senseless decisions every day; but the point is that we do not have to. John 3:16 states, "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Realizing this truth, do not be foolish. The Bible states that “it is appointed unto men once to die and after that is the judgment.” So, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved. That is the wisest choice you can ever make!