Shrewd as Snakes, Innocent as Doves
Have you ever heard a sermon about snakes, or read a book entitled “The Pursuit of Shrewdness?” Both snakes and shrewdness seem foreign to our concept of what we are called to do, yet our Lord specifically told us that this is what we needed to be! When we think of the word shrewd, our minds turn to “cunning” or “craftiness.” The Greek word, translated as “shrewd,” is “phronimus,” and means “prudent,” “sensible,” and “using practical wisdom in relationships with others.” When Jesus sent the twelve out to unbelievers, He gave them these instructions. “I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.” (Matthew 10:16) To be as shrewd as snakes, (Their relationship with the lost), is persuasion of the Gospel. To be as innocent as doves, (Their relationship with the Lord), is the affirmation of the Gospel. Both of these are needed. Much thought and writing has gone into the “innocent as doves” part of His command. Comparatively little effort has been given to “using practical wisdom in relationships with others.” The wolves deride and accuse the lambs if they are not proved to be genuine in their relationship with the Lord. Likewise, the wolves will defend and barricade themselves against the truth if prudence and practical wisdom are not employed in our efforts to reach them with the Gospel.
Ephesians 4:15 tells us that we should be “speaking the truth in love.” I Peter 3:15 also directs us in our relationship with others as follows. “But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.” The lack of wisdom (Matthew 10:16), love (Ephesians 4:15), and gentleness and respect (I Peter 3:15), has helped produce a culture with the following views of the Evangelical Christian.
Phony Pushy Manipulative
Politically conservative Socially conservative Intolerant
Know-it-all Out of touch Out of date
No sense of humor
Not only are Christians viewed in this regard but the following societal attitudes themselves have become an obstacle to the Gospel.
Resistance to Persuasion High value on tolerance Deeply imbedded skepticism
Insistence on privacy Commitment to diversity Relativistic view of truth
(Tim Downs, Finding Common Ground, Moody Press, 1999, pg 115, 120)
If we are to penetrate these societal attitudes and antipathy toward Christians, it is critical that we learn to be prudent, sensible, and use practical wisdom in our relationships with others. The first place in which we find practical wisdom in relationship with others is found in the life of the Lord. We need to learn to see with His eyes, and have our hearts touched with His compassion for others. (Matthew 9:36) Lorne Sanny described this as “Freely accepting them and seeking their good.” The first individual in the state of Kansas with what was to be later known as AIDS was one of my patients. I needed to learn to see Him as the Lord saw him and respond with the compassion of the Lord in my relationship with him. The Lord desired that I freely accept him and seek his good. His ultimate good, in the eyes of the Lord, was to come to know Jesus as his Savior, which he did before the Lord took him home.
The book of James also counsels us on practical wisdom. “My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.” (James 1:19) I visited with a returning Navigator missionary to Japan several years ago. I asked him how he managed to gain a hearing in such a diverse culture. His answer was straight forward. “All I did was to listen.” He also used wisdom as he listened to people. It enabled him to know whether it was a time to sow, or a time to reap. In foreign cultures, as well as in our current culture in America, significant effort needs to be made in sowing before there is a harvest. In fact, the soil is not even ready for sowing in the lives of many people today. World views, a lack of a correct concept of truth and other cultural issues need to be changed before the seed can even be planted. The following list from Finding Common Ground describes the importance of sowing before we can expect a harvest.
The Harvester focuses on: While the sower focuses on:
The end result Preparing the way
Proclamation Persuasion
Immediate Results Gradual Change
Individual Effort Team Impact
Points of disagreement Common Ground
Answers Questions
Justice Love
Courage Wisdom
Innocence Shrewdness
To sow, the sower needs to cultivate, to plant, and to nurture. Tim Downs states that a sower’s first job is to cultivate the soil-“to work in the listener’s life to create an atmosphere where belief is at least possible.” Planting is best done by questions for four reasons.
1) Questions are non-threatening.
2) Questions communicate humility.
3) Questions allow listeners to discover truth for themselves.
4) Questions demand return questions.
Good Questions are as follows:
1) Questions about the listener’s background.
2) Questions asking the listener’s opinion or advice.
3) Questions that involve the listener’s imagination.
4) Questions that ask for the listener’s emotions.
Tim Downs, Finding Common Ground, Moody Press 1999, Pg 102, 129-132.
Nurturing involves watering the garden, pruning and caring for the vine and tending the soil This requires much prayer, perseverance and patience. Jesus tells his disciples the following in John 4:38. “I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.” Our culture is one in which hard work is necessary. The three hallmarks of this work include freely accepting them, listening, and asking questions. Although some reaping is present, it is growing less with each passing year. Unless we sow there will be no harvest for the future! It is my prayer that the Lord will enable you to be “prudent, sensible, and use practical wisdom with others” so that His harvest will continue!
In Christ, Richard Spann