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On April 1, the law takes into effect in Singapore that alcohol cannot be consumed in public places between 10.30 pm and 7 am every day, and take-away alcohol can only be sold up till 10.30 pm. This was not meant to be an April Fools’ Day joke. April Fools’ Day is a day when people play practical jokes and hoaxes on one another. It was thought that the event was first observed in sixteenth century France. One can find an archive of the hoaxes that were played since the 1900s at a particular internet website.
In Ecclesiastes chapter 10, the words “fool” and “folly” are mentioned 9 times. In the Bible, “fool” is a specially used term and refers to someone who does not believe in the existence of God – “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God’” (Psalm 14:1). It is not intelligence, or a lack of it, that leads a person to reject belief in God or in His existence (atheists). Many people do not object to the idea of a Creator, as long as that Creator minds His own business and leaves them alone (agnostics). What people reject is the idea of a Creator who expects and demands morality from the people He created. “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’” (Luke 12:20). In this parable Jesus spoke of a farmer whose business had been expanding. His fields yielded a plentiful harvest and he decided to build more barns without consulting God. God called the man a fool. That very night he died, and all his wealth went to another. The rich farmer took no account of God in his life even though all his life he had lived and moved and had his being in God. His breath was in God’s hands but he chose to ignore God and His purposes.
In the book of James, we are taught that we should not be foolish but to be wise. “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you” (James 1:5). James further goes on to say that in all our dealings in life we should recognize our own frailty and humbly acknowledge God as the source of all knowledge and blessings. “Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that” (James 4:13-15). Let us always take the wise way and live the life of wisdom by fearing God, heeding His commandments and following His ways.
