Walking with the Wise #476: No Favoring Fools

“Like snow in summer or rain in harvest,


so honor is not fitting for a fool.”

—Proverbs 26:1

In April of 2000, pornographer Hugh Hefner was honored by the city of Chicago. Hailing from Chicagoland, and making it ground zero for his pornographic empire, he has single-handedly engineered the single greatest war on morality ever seen in history. Vainly and foolishly believing they should honor Hefner for his feat, the city fathers named a street after him.

Honoring Hugh Hefner is the exemplification of this proverb. Just like snow coming in summer or rain during the harvest time, honor isn’t fitting for him. He is a fool—a godless fool who will be proven in eternity to have led thousands if not millions to their doom. Believing himself to be the pied piper of sexuality who has "freed" society from the constraints of a restrictive puritanism, he has instead led countless multitudes of cultural lemmings into the most diabolical form of tyrannical slavery ever to stain the history books. The carnage of his quest has left unmistakable and unremitting scars upon the lives of men and women who were duped by his offer of sexual freedom. Foolishly believing that they had found wisdom and freedom, like Eve before them they soon discovered themselves naked, shamed and alienated from the Creator God who authored the very pleasures Hefner has perverted.

Honor those for whom honor is due (Romans 13:7), but do not honor those for accomplishments that God has deemed wicked. At the end of time, man will be proven to be a liar while God will be vindicated (Romans 3:4). Knowing that all will be judged at the end of time for what they have done should give us solace. Nevertheless, we must remind ourselves that while Hefner has done greater evil than he could ever imagine, Christ's death was sufficient for him as well. God doesn’t delight in his eventual death, but desires his repentance (Ezekiel 18:23; 33:11).

May we remember that Christ’s death was so great in the sight of God that even the most foul and horrid sinner can be saved. And while we remain on this earth, may we speak the truth in love, standing for that which is true, proclaiming Jesus’ lordship over all creation. And may we, with eyes toward the heavens, make sure that we are looking to God so that we might not only stand for what is true, but might live the truth for which we stand, knowing that what this world honors, God abhors. And may He find us faithful for it, doing that which he delights in, and shunning that which He despises—for His glory and our joy. Amen.