When my nephew was young, he had a game on his iPad called “Dumb Ways to Die.” I remember thinking, “This is a weird game for a child to play.”  It has a catchy little song and in the game, beans die from strange accidents. While reading through Ecclesiastes 10:10-13 and seeing all the weird ways one could die (falling into a pit, being bitten by a snake, chopping yourself with an ax), I couldn’t help but think of the little song that went with the game. So I decided to look up the game. Imagine my shock when I found out “Dumb Ways to Die” started as an actual public service announcement, a real way to warn people about real dangers.

Launched in 2012, Dumb Ways to Die (DWTD) was originally created as a rail safety campaign for Metro Trains Melbourne, before growing to become a hugely successful brand in its own right.

In DWTD, we follow the lives of beans that live with impulsive, gleeful naivety. Dumb, funny and clearly unsafe, it is designed to hold up a mirror to our own dumb behaviour, ultimately helping us be a little safer. (Taken from https://www.dumbwaystodie.com/psa. Underline is mine.)

I can’t help but think that if Metro Trains Melbourne realizes that we as humans need a mirror to expose our own dumb behavior, then we should not be shocked that we find the same within the words of Scripture. 

We are dumb. Sorry, but it’s true. You might think, “But I have a degree, or I am successful at my business, or I know dumb people and I am not like them.” The truth is, you are dumb. I am dumb. We as a people are dumb. As Agent Kay says in Men in Black, “People are dumb.” We all make foolish decisions; we all follow our own path; we all think we know best; and we all find ourselves in the middle of consequences for those decisions. It is inevitable, which is hard if you want to be perfect, or you, at least, want people to think you have it all together. It is also hard if you are too prideful to admit your dumb mistakes and learn from them. 

If you are feeling offended at this point, well, you should. But you should also take an inward look and come to acknowledge your inner fool. Only when we can admit that the fool lives within us can we actually see our need for Jesus. 

Jesus didn’t come for the righteous, but the unrighteous. He didn’t come to heal the whole, but the broken. He came because we are the embodiment of the fool within Ecclesiastes 10. 

You can identify fools

    just by the way they walk down the street! Vs. 3-NLT

 

Those around you know when you are acting like a fool. Those that live within my house see my fool come out more than anyone else. They can see it as if you or I were making an announcement, “Hello, my fool is showing.” Isn’t that funny since you often have no idea when you are acting like a fool? How is that possible? How are we so blind to our own foolishness? How are we able to ignore it and even defend it? And to what end does that get us? 

Wise words bring approval,
but fools are destroyed by their own words 

Fools base their thoughts on foolish assumptions,
so their conclusions will be wicked madness;  they chatter on and on. Vs. 12-14 NLT

When we cannot admit that we are the fool, we are destroyed by our own words and actions. Why? Because we base our foolish decisions on our own foolish assumptions. And instead of listening to wisdom, we just talk and talk and talk over the wise person giving wise words as if they aren’t even there trying to save our lives. The wise man is saying, “Hey, you just dug a big pit, don’t fall in it.” And we, as fools, are saying, “Don’t tell me what to do!” as we fall headlong into the pit. 

Sometimes I think Jesus got stuck with the biggest bunch of fools for His followers. And I am not just talking about the disciples. I am talking about every single one of us to whom He has ever extended grace. 

Without His direction and salvation, we would all be the person walking down the street in our finest attire thinking we are all high and mighty, but all the while, we are dragging a long piece of toilet paper stuck to our shoe. As we are parading down the street with no idea, people keep looking at us and we think, “Oh how fine I must look,” but actually they are thinking, “That fool doesn’t know they have toilet paper stuck to their shoe.” 

So what do we do? What hope do we have? This hope: Jesus and the Spirit’s gift of humility. Yes, humility is a gift. Humility to understand our need for Christ. Humility to understand our own foolishness. Humility to seek wisdom. Humility to seek forgiveness from those we have wronged, especially through our own foolishness. Humility to admit that we don’t have all the answers, we can’t control the future (Eccl. 10:14), and we are in need of correction and help. 

I believe we need to seek to embody the humility of our Savior the same way we seek success or accolades or that perfect vacation spot for those perfect social media posts. With determination and dedication, we need to seek humility with open hands and hearts, examining our actions and motivations. We must seek it with our whole heart and hold nothing back from our Lord Jesus Christ. He is faithful even though we don’t deserve it. He is kind, good, loving, and gracious. He is all we ever need and more than we ever could ask for. What will we do to place our inner fool aside and embrace the humility of Christ? For Christ is our salvation; He is our hope; He is our great sacrifice that brings us righteousness so that we are made children of God. 

 But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet.  For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.- Hebrews 10:12-14