Focus: Matthew 10:16 - KJV
16. Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.
Matthew 22:15-22
In ordinary terms, a sheep is a meal to the wolf. However, as many wolves as are hunting for sheep, somehow, the sheep have not gone into extinction because there is a way by which they are preserved from the fangs of the wolves. Using this critical aphorism, the Lord has prepared His followers for what to expect in the world and has suggested the way to survive it. Not only did He suggest it, He demonstrated it by His own lifestyle also. Many times, the teachers of the law sought to arrest Him for wrong doing. And since they had nothing against Him, they came with their twisted wisdom to entrap Him with questions whose answer could incriminate. Then, He gave answers that did not go in the way of the trap set for Him thereby escaping. In the same manner, a believer is expected to be wise as a serpent. The serpent is quite subtle and tricky. As terrible a being as it is, the believer is expected to also take some of its good qualities for use in order to survive the traps of the world. Also, the believer is to be gentle as the dove. The sheep that the believer is equated with is ordinarily gentle. But he is expected to combine the gentleness of the dove to his ordinarily gentle character. People will come from the devil with a view to infuriating the believer so as to make him show a trait that is ungodly. It is this gentle mien that will upturn their plan. When it is critical to respond to their intrigues, we must employ the serpentine tactics to prevail.
We are faced with many wolves on this side of eternity. Some of them come to us as if they are sheep. The way to go is to be quick to hear but slow to respond. When we process all things through the Holy Spirit, He teaches us all things and bring to our remembrance what the Lord had taught us. After all, Christ is the wisdom and power of God. So, don’t be hasty in any doing. Let your gentleness be known to all men. What they seek is to entrap and ensnare, but if you adopt the Lord’s strategy, they will fail.
SOLUTION: Never allow harsh words to proceed from your mouth no matter the provocation. Be gentle and let your response to enquiry always be seasoned with salt. There is no basis for a quarrel. Win the opposition over with meekness and love.
Father, the grace to be able to endure in the face of provocation please give unto us in Jesus’ name. We hide ourselves in you, let us never fall prey to the wolves of the world in Jesus’ name.
Комментарии