The More Conceited, the More Foolish

Good day to all! Let us delve into Proverbs, Chapter 26. I am particularly wary of presenting this poorly, and there is a clear reason for this: the content feels profoundly deep. Our paramount task isn't to merely hear me, but to discern the intended message of the brilliant mind that penned Proverbs. My rendition holds little significance; I am merely echoing what has been said, and even then, my comprehension may fall short. However, I am struck by the particularly destructive nature of conceit.

In my shepherding and ministry, I have observed many individuals undermining themselves. It is truly uncanny; why would one self-sabotage? My research over the years has allowed me to outline a general approach: serving or edifying someone is exceedingly difficult, especially those who are conceited. I've concluded that to minister to the conceited, one must first eradicate their habit of self-importance. If one considers oneself wise, they cannot be truly served. If I eliminate another’s conceit only to adopt it myself, that would be disastrous.

Some have accused me of being too self-assured, which left me stuck for a time. But then I discovered something remarkable: the world's true luminaries possess little conceit. Consider great scientists and leaders in various fields—how did they ascend to the top? Because they are not self-important. My most significant breakthrough in recent years has been recognizing conceit, though I previously lacked a foundation for this.

In the past, reading the Bible, I did not fully grasp that this chapter speaks to conceit; I seemed to know it, yet I didn’t really. When I read it this time, I realised how closely it aligns with my experiences and conclusions about conceit over the years. Thus, the theme of Proverbs 26: the corruption that comes from thinking oneself wise. A careful reading reveals that the entire chapter focuses on this self-perceived wisdom, which I would summarise in a simple term: conceit.

Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes. (Prov. 26:5)

Do you see a man wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him. (Prov. 26:12)

The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes than seven men who can answer sensibly. (Prov. 26:16)

One becomes foolish through conceit; shedding conceit leads to wisdom. Once one becomes conceited and self-perceived as wise, they can no longer accept anything else. That is why I say conceit is unhelpful; one must recognise their own conceit for change to occur. With experience, one finds that everyone has their own theories. Even the most foolish do not see themselves as such. It is my hope that we may learn together to become wiser. Please, do not immediately rebut: What? Are you the only one who is capable? Is everyone else inferior to you? Don’t head in that direction; wouldn’t that be self-defeating?

Like snow in summer or rain in harvest, so honor is not fitting for a fool. (Prov. 26:1)

What does this have to do with conceit? There is something wondrous in this world: fools sometimes sit in high places, and some are born into wealth. After fools receive honor, many think it is due to their own intelligence, that it is all earned through their wisdom.

Some time ago, someone contracted cancer, and I wanted to lead her in prayer. Although her body was weak, she gained strength after prayer, and the severe side effects of chemotherapy lessened. Her business was slightly delayed due to the cancer, but even so, her business remained prosperous. She is skilled in earning money, but she is also skilled at contracting cancer. Earning money has confused her; she believes that if she earns money, she should be spiritual, wise, and close to God. However, earning money has little bearing on one’s spirituality.

Years ago, I visited a city where a colleague drove me past a company then prominent in China; its tall buildings were impressive. He remarked that the entire street was occupied by this powerful company, the leaders of the industry! But in a few years, the company collapsed, owing not billions, but trillions. Frankly, if I were given one million, I wouldn’t know what to do with it. I can only manage small amounts, so I haven’t the chance to count billions. These tycoons thought themselves wise. We don’t know about such people, but we do know about small shopkeepers.

A boss opened a noodle shop that was popular, leading him to believe that his noodles and soup base were excellent. In truth, there was nothing special, but business was good. Because he thought his noodles were great, he moved when the landlord raised the rent, continuing with the same flour, recipe, suppliers, and cooking methods. But no one came to eat. He thought the good business was because of the delicious noodles, but that had little to do with it; doing business is a spiritual affair. Many do not know where their money comes from, nor why it disappears.

Like a sparrow in its flitting, like a swallow in its flying, so a curse that is causeless does not alight. (Prov. 26:2)

I prayed with the cancer patient, hoping for deeper release and to correct her flaws, because I had ministered to cancer patients before and understood some of the spiritual aspects of the disease. During the session, the cancer patient said she didn’t think cancer was a curse, and then she cited the above verse. But I said it was a curse. Although she was more successful than me in earning money, she was less educated. Because this verse means that curses do not come upon one without cause, but she felt that a causeless curse would not come upon her, and affirmed that there was nothing wrong with her life. We argued over this; she was so conceited that we could not minister to her.

Conceit is thinking oneself wise, and the corruption that comes from conceit is profound. Nothing and no one can change your destiny except yourself. Some hold a strong hand and play it poorly, while others hold a weak hand and win! The Old Testament shows such examples: King Saul was tall and handsome, with a shining head of hair, and was the first king of Israel. He had the best priest, Samuel, a great prophet alongside Moses; the best son, Jonathan; and the best son-in-law, David. Yet he played his hand poorly, self-destructing. So your parents don’t matter, the curse of your ancestors doesn’t matter, and the hand you were dealt, no matter how good or bad, doesn’t matter.

How to Treat Fools

Bear in mind that cancer is a curse, and family disasters are closely related to curses, so the most important thing is your inner choices. Be sure to escape from self-perceived wisdom and conceit. Please, forgive me, as you may find that in ministering to you, I seem conceited when challenging your self-importance. But know that my intentions are earnest, and I want to pull you out of conceit.

What your ancestors worshiped is not important. Many overemphasize curses but do not know they come from God. Therefore, we must learn to fear God. If you aren't clear that curses come from God, I recommend listening to the expository preaching of Deuteronomy on our Mingding Destiny website. I have written thirty-four books with twenty-four thousand words, and the theme is Blessings and Curses. You will discover curses are God cursing people; as seen in Genesis 3, God cursed Adam and Eve for eating the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Curses come from God, and those who do not keep and follow his words are cursed. If you love your God and love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind, God will not curse you; He will keep his covenant and love you to a thousand generations. Those who hate God, God will punish their sin to the third and fourth generation. This is God’s word, from the Ten Commandments.

Cancer sufferers are deeply mired in conceit, and serving them requires patience. Sufficient patience means persisting until they revive, not until they die, because I do not know when they can emerge from self-importance and self-perceived wisdom. Besides cancer sufferers, so are those who might potentially have cancer. If you so much as say a word to them, they provide all sorts of defence, defending their condition. I find that so perplexing. My words will not be popular. Conceit is awful. Some ask, “Teacher, why are you so clever?” It’s not that I’m clever; it’s that I am less conceited. When I was conceited, I suffered, then I quickly changed.

A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the backs of fools. (Prov. 26:3)

This means it is not easy to become wise, and what hinders our wisdom is ourselves. I sometimes point out to our pastors where their shepherding is lacking. They reply, “Teacher, I thought I knew how to shepherd, but now I don’t?” This is self-importance. He thought he knew how to shepherd, but it was all meaningless.

Recently, when mentioning this, I poked at some brothers and sisters who hold high positions in corporations. I made some remarks, which seemed self-important, but I wasn’t. Many aren’t capable but have stumbled into a role, as there aren’t many talented people. Our brothers and sisters must know where foolishness comes from: from self-perceived wisdom and conceit, including myself. Be certain not to be conceited, and do not think yourselves wise.

Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest you be like him yourself. Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes. (Prov. 26:4-5)

Should you answer a fool according to his folly, or not? This passage describes how butting into other people’s affairs is like grabbing a dog by the ears. Don’t meddle with matters that do not concern you. Suppose two people are arguing about what 3 times 8 equals. One says 24, the other says 23. They argue face-to-face, then went to the court. The one who said 24 was punished, and he felt he was wronged. The official said, “You actually argued over such a matter for so many days and came to this court with him. Who would I punish if not you?” So look at what relation it is to you. If the person is not one I shepherd, I generally won’t bother with it. However, if you come among us and ask such a question, I will correct you, to stop you from thinking yourself wise.

How to Measure a Person's Wisdom

Many people think they are wise, and the ones who think they are the wisest are often those in multi-level marketing (MLM). Taiwan and Malaysia are where MLM schemes thrive. These people would offer me eye drops, claiming, These eye drops can make the blind see! I would respond, Great! Why don't you apply for the Nobel Prize? These MLM participants think they are particularly wise, peddling small medicines and creams, saying, Lupus? No problem, a guaranteed cure; Urticaria? No problem, a guaranteed cure. In the end, it turns out to be a bottle of aloe vera gel, which they claim can cure all diseases, making hospitals unnecessary.

He who sends a message by the hand of a fool cuts off his own feet and drinks violence. Like the legs of a lame man that hang down, so is a proverb in the mouth of fools. (Proverbs 26:6-7)

Fools often take out the Book of Proverbs and start preaching, without knowing if they are right, just talking nonsense.

Like a thorn that goes into the hand of a drunkard, so is a proverb in the mouth of fools. (Proverbs 26:9)

Brothers and sisters, when you listen to my Bible study, you'll notice that I have a characteristic: I like to contemplate and convey the most important concepts that people are trying to express. As for whether what I say is correct, you must examine it carefully. But some people do Bible study by explaining one thing from verses 1 to 5, another from verses 6 to 10, and yet another from verses 11 to 15. The things they talk about are entirely unrelated, can that work? It's all just their own interpretation. Brothers and sisters, whatever you do, you must know what you are doing.

Like one who binds the stone in the sling, so is he who gives honor to a fool. (Proverbs 26:8)

Isn't this harmful? Giving honor to fools only makes them more self-righteous and foolish, creating more trouble.

Like a thorn that goes into the hand of a drunkard, so is a proverb in the mouth of fools. (Proverbs 26:9)

Even fools can quote Proverbs. I hope I'm not one. I might be, or I might not be. I hope everyone will give me guidance.

Like an archer who wounds everyone who passes by, so is he who hires a passing fool or drunkard. (Proverbs 26:10)

Brothers and sisters, do not hire fools. Once hired, they become self-righteous. I used to hire Christians, but I stopped doing so. I don't know how Christians become like this. Perhaps they didn't read the Book of Proverbs well, or they read it according to their own interpretation. Hiring fools often results in many people getting hurt. I used to hire a Christian who was from the same church as me. After he came, the people around him were not satisfied.

His immediate supervisor came to me and said, Boss, this employee you hired doesn't follow regulations. I asked, In what ways doesn't he follow regulations? They said, We really don't want to bother you, but he really doesn't follow our entire operational process. I asked his immediate supervisor to call him over. When he came, I asked him why he didn't follow the operational process step by step. He said something that left me speechless. He said, Why should I follow this process? Good heavens! That's what you're being paid for, don't you know that? Sometimes I often say, What's this person's brain made of?

Don't find it strange. I just couldn't understand it. What kind of brain is that? Did God create it? It probably wasn't evolved from a gorilla, was it? I was speechless for a long time. My subordinates, his immediate supervisors, everyone looked at each other and laughed, and I laughed too. People hire you to do a job, you just follow what they say, isn't that right? You have to come up with your own set of rules. He was a group leader in the church and was later highly regarded by a pastor, but he almost ruined the church. So hiring fools is like an archer who wounds everyone who passes by. Everyone must be careful when hiring people.

As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his folly. (Proverbs 26:11)

Fools are the same everywhere. Although we think, What's with this brain? they still think their brains work very well, that they are very smart. Fools repeat foolish things over and over again, everywhere they go. Others think they are so foolish, but they still think they are very smart.

Do you see a man wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him. (Proverbs 26:12)

The corruption of self-righteousness is very deep; it is better to be a fool than to be self-righteous. We must all ask ourselves, how much of what we do is self-righteous? Recently, when you search for the term Mingding Destiny online, any content, whether related to Mingding Destiny or not, appears. It seems that Mingding Destiny is very famous now, but when you click on the links, it's all kinds of talk about Mingding Destiny. Is that really the Mingding Destiny God speaks of? But they speak with great confidence.

Coming out of Self-Righteousness

Thinking oneself wise is especially handy for lazy people. I have studied laziness for a long time and have always been puzzled. Later, I discovered that lazy people never say they are lazy. They all think they do a lot of work and that the things they do are very clever, having nothing to do with laziness. That's how lazy people all respond. A while ago, I served someone like this. The boss felt that he didn't do much work, but he thought he did a lot. Who can really say for sure? It's easy to judge when it comes to me. He was doing accounting, which is data entry, recording invoices into the software. I asked him to calculate how many invoices he entered in a day. He said that some invoices were written very messily, making entry difficult.

But that couldn't fool me. I said, It doesn't matter. There must be easy ones and difficult ones, so there will be an average. Tell me how many you entered in total? Then I took all the invoices entered in a period of time and we entered them together to see how much this work was really worth. His boss said that he didn't even earn back the salary the boss paid him. It takes ten or twenty minutes to enter one invoice, which is easy to calculate. I know this job very well. He thought he was creating great value for the company, but when you calculate it, it's not at all the case.

The sluggard says, “There is a lion in the road! There is a fierce lion in the streets!” As a door turns on its hinges, so does a sluggard on his bed. The sluggard buries his hand in the dish; it wears him out to bring it back to his mouth. (Proverbs 26:13-15)

Lazy people always feel that they have done a lot of work, even eating every day is difficult. Don't think it's easy to put food from the plate into your mouth, it's so heavy!

The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes than seven men who can answer sensibly. (Proverbs 26:16)

Lazy people all have their own reasons for being lazy, which makes people speechless. But take me for example, I not only do all the housework myself, but I also do all the repairs around the house without relying on others. At the same time, I don't neglect my work, and I do everything very well. Some full-time housewives feel very tired, which is really hard to understand. People are foolish for a reason, and lazy for a reason, which all boils down to self-righteousness. The key is that they are also slow to act. I support many of our colleagues with my own hands because I do things quickly.

The way I did things half a year ago is different from now because I have improved. What I used to do in an hour I can now do in half an hour, and what I can do in half an hour now I might be able to do in 10 minutes in the future. I used to teach a course for three months, then it became one month, and then a dozen hours, and I taught it better than before. You will find that my Bible study this time is better than the last time because I have improved. Next, I will lead everyone to re-study Genesis. Recently, I feel that the English version of Genesis is better than the Chinese version. After years of practice and accumulation, I have improved and grown.

The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes than seven men who can answer sensibly. (Proverbs 26:16)

This is how lazy people see themselves. Do you find it strange? So don't be self-righteous anymore. Many people often think they work a lot. I ask what they do? Teach piano. Teach people to take exams, grades eight, nine, and ten. I know those things. That can't fool me, just a few songs. Then I ask what they do, teach dance exams, also just a few dances. How much work is there? People are always meddling in other people's business, so how can they not be busy? But they can't really manage anything. A grandmother takes care of her child, and they start arguing as soon as the child gets out of school, busy all day long. She doesn't say she can't manage well, she blames the child for being hard to manage, so they are bound to argue. Brothers and sisters, you must know that the extent to which you are self-righteous, the extent to which you think you are wise, represents the extent of your foolishness.

The more self-righteous a person is, the more foolish they are. Do you still want to be a fool now? Don't give a lot of reasons, just look at what you have done. There was another time I went to someone's house, and the child was making a fuss. The adults would only say, Shut up, don't cry anymore! But it didn't help. The adults and children were both sweating. When I saw this level of child management, I gave them a demonstration. I took care of it, and the adults didn't have to sweat, and the children didn't have to cry. They were all very surprised because I have the solution.

The most fatal thing is that people clearly do these foolish things, do these things that harm themselves, and treat them all as clever and wise. Bullying neighbors, being competitive, starting disputes, and gossiping, not knowing who said it, maybe they made it all up themselves. Resenting people, and digging pits to harm people in order to cover up their resentment, are all things that harm themselves and others. When they do these things, they don't know they are harming themselves.

Brothers and sisters, think about it. When you come to me with illness, when I serve you, I will tell you, You are indulging in the flesh, so you have this illness; you are discerning good and evil, so you have this illness. But when you discern good and evil, when did you ever think that you would get sick? You didn't! When you indulge in the flesh, love the world, love money, love this and that, when did you ever think that one day you would pay the price for it? You didn't think about it. Did you think that people are not doing what is right? Later, I finally managed to change you all, and isn't that good? But we must get rid of the root, which is ignorance. Ignorance to the extreme becomes self-righteousness.

So when a fool accomplishes something, they feel honored and become extremely self-righteous and think they are extremely clever. Everyone reflect on this: If you really have wisdom and intelligence, what problems have you solved? Then you say, I solved this problem. When asked how you solved it, you don't know and can't explain it, then you didn't solve it. You didn't do anything.

Some people say, Teacher, I am very good at writing. I ask them to write something for me to see, but they can't write it. Then how can you say you can write? They say, I used to write well! What level of self-righteousness is this? Others say they are very good at investing and managing money. I ask them to write a course to teach everyone how to invest and manage money, but they can't write it either because they haven't done anything, just messed around. When people mess around and seem to have some results, they think they are good, and finally become self-righteous.

How to solve it? You must become a knowledgeable person! You solve the problem yourself, you know how you solved it; you don't solve the problem yourself, you know why you didn't solve it? As long as you can solve it, we can explain it clearly. If we can't solve it, we must also explain clearly why we can't solve it, what's going on. Don't just think you know, thinking can hurt people. Anything that can't be explained clearly is not clear. Some people may feel that they can actually do it, but when they explain it to me, they can't. Look at what level of self-righteousness this is? You will find that there are too many self-righteous people in the world.

May God bless everyone!