You Might Be a Fool If...
By: J. B. Hixson, Ph.D.
March 18, 2010

He who has knowledge spares his words, And a man of understanding is of a calm spirit. Even a fool is counted wise when he holds his peace; When he shuts his lips, he is considered perceptive. (Proverbs 17:27-28)

Jeff Foxworthy has developed quite a following with his patented You might be a redneck if... jokes.  It doesn't matter how many times I've heard them, he always makes me chuckle.  Now be honest....you laugh at them too.  For instance, you might be a redneck if:

• You have a complete set of salad bowls and they all say Cool Whip on the side.
• You met your wife at a family reunion.
• You've ever used your ironing board as a buffet table.
• You think a quarter horse is that ride in front of Wal-Mart.
• You've ever used a toilet brush as a back scratcher.
• You missed 5th grade graduation because you had jury duty.

Okay...I'll stop.  And by now you've no doubt noticed that Jeff's creativity has spawned numerous similar jokes.  You might be a liberal....  You might be a Republican.... You might be a Baptist.... You might be a legalist.... (Sorry.  Didn't mean to be redundant!) And on and on it goes.

Did you know that the Book of Proverbs takes a similar approach when it talks about the foolish and the wise?  The difference is, the principles in Proverbs are dead serious.  Throughout the book, we read over and over again that you might be a fool if: ___________.  For example, "You might be a fool if you hate knowledge (1:22)."   Or, "You might be a fool if you always think you're right (12:15)."  Or, "You might be a fool if you mock sin (14:9)."  But there is one that caught my eye today from Proverbs 17.

Do you remember the old adage: "Better to remain quiet and be thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt!"?  Proverbs 17:27-28 expresses a similar thought in Hebrew.  "Even a fool is thought to be wise when he keeps his mouth shut!"  It's true.  Fools almost always expose their folly through their words.  You never really know for sure that you're dealing with a fool until they open their mouths.  Sure, you may have suspicions.  Perhaps it's a bewildered look.  Or perhaps they didn't laugh at a joke that everyone else seemed to get just fine.  Or maybe they keep running into walls as they walk.  But in such cases there always could be plausible explanations that do not involve the summary declaration that you are dealing with a fool.

But let a fool start talking, and yep!  There's no doubt.  That's because what comes out of the mouth reveals the true nature of what's in the heart.  Jesus said, "Out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks (Matt 12:34)."  A fool can coast along just fine for years as long as he doesn't have to engage in any meaningful, substantive conversation.  But to the discerning ear, it doesn't take long to identify a fool if you simply listen to what he says.

A "fool" in the book of Proverbs refers to someone whose worldview is self-centered and omits God and His Word.  It usually represents an unbeliever-at the macro level.   But it also can apply to believers who are walking out of fellowship with God.  In either case, you might be a fool if the words you say betray a worldview that fails to take God into account in every aspect of your life. 

There are two lessons we can learn from this.  First, if God is not a central part of your life, please do everyone else a favor and stop talking.  At least then we might mistakenly assume that you are something other than a fool.  Second, learn to evaluate the wisdom of others by listening carefully to what they say and running it through the grid of Scripture.   Be careful not to dismiss others too hastily based upon what they look like or how they act.  It's what they say that really matters.  And always be leery of fools in mime's clothing.