Shrewd As Serpents
“Behold, I am sending you like sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and simple as doves. But beware of people, for they will hand you over to courts and scourge you in their synagogues, and you will be led before governors and kings for my sake as a witness before them and the pagans. When they hand you over, do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say. You will be given at that moment what you are to say. For it will not be you who speak but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.” Matthew 10: 16-20
As we read this scripture it’s apparent that Jesus doesn’t promise us that as His disciples it will be easy. Jesus is quite prophetic when speaking that He is sending us out as “sheep in the midst of wolves”. He warns us that when we go out into the world to proclaim the gospel, we are to be shrewd and simple. He wants us to be aware of those we speak to and understand that not all will openly receive the message of salvation. He tells the Apostles that they will be rejected and persecuted but to go anyway. Interesting that Jesus doesn’t say, it’s too dangerous, just stay here together and preach the gospel where you will be safe and protected. Jesus knew that the only way His church would grow, and His gospel spread was if the Apostles went out into all the world and evangelized.
Jesus also tells them (and us) not to worry about what they are to say, “You will be given at that moment what you are to say. For it will not be you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.” We are to follow in the Apostle’s footsteps. We must be brave and willing to spread the gospel of the Kingdom of God. Jesus tells us not to get hung up on the words we are to speak as the Holy Spirit will provide the words. We are to be shrewd (or wise) as serpents.
What does it mean to be shrewd or wise as serpents?
It’s clear that people fear snakes to some degree just by watching how we react when we see one and so we have respect for snakes. If one crosses our path we do our best to avoid it. Even though many may dislike or hate them, snakes are amazing creatures in that they are superb at surviving and multiplying in spite of the overall hatred that exists towards them.
Jesus wants us to have wisdom that would make us flourish more than those around us when we spread His message. That wisdom makes us successful in the face of strong opposition and sometimes even hatred. Like snakes that adapt to all environments, land, water, and air, Jesus wants us to be aware of our surroundings and the people around us. We are to watch what they say and do so that we too can adapt.
Jesus also instructs His Apostles (and us) to be simple as doves. My bible translation says “innocent” as doves which I find easier to understand. We are to live our lives out as examples of Jesus’ disciples because people will watch what we do more than they will hear what we say. My grandmother use to say, “Your actions speak so loudly, I can’t hear what you are saying.” This reminds me of another quote from Brennan Manning used as an intro in the song What If I Stumble by the Christian band DC Talk. "The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips, then walk out the door and deny him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable."
If our lives do not reflect Jesus, then our words will be nullified and meaningless to those we speak to. Jesus knows we are not perfect, but He does expect us to strive for perfection. If our actions don’t match our words, then we do more harm to His Kingdom than if we never spoke at all. This is what He means when He said to be “innocent” or “simple as doves”.
As Christians, we go out into the mission field, every day. Let us place our trust in Jesus that no matter what opposition we may encounter, He will give us the strength to endure and adapt. Let us have hope in Jesus to send the Holy Spirit to provide us with the words and wisdom needed when the time arises. Let us pray as we receive wisdom, we will preach the gospel with our actions and share the gospel with our words.
© 2023 Kendall Berry Lasseigne
