When I was little, I remember my teacher in Religion class narrate to us the story of the boy who cried Wolf.
For those who do not know this story or who have forgotten it, here goes.
A little shepherd boy was put in charge of a flock of sheep. He was warned that unless he was vigilant and keep a sharp eye out for the sheep's natural predator, the wolf, he could well stand to lose a few of his priceless possessions. The villagers, kind hearted and concerned about the sheep and the shepherd boy, promised to come to his rescue if he ever needed help.
Now, this boy was a wicked lad, full of pranks and always up to mischief. He thought of a way to entertain himself at the expense of these villagers.
So, on day one, he shouted at the top of his voice, "WOLF! WOLF!
The villagers came running to his rescue only to find the shepherd boy ROFLing at his great joke. They were infuriated. They reprimanded him but he just shrugged their scoldings off, NO REMORSE.
This happened three days in a row and the villagers got fed up and they decided that if the boy called once more, none of them would go.
The next day, as usual, the shepherd boy brought his flock to graze. Just as he was about to shout WOLF what did he see but a real 🐺, crouching nearby, ready to attack. Gripped with fear, the boy climbed the nearest tree he could find and shouted as loudly as he could.
HELP! HELP!
THE WOLF IS HERE! HELP ME!
No one came. The boy watched helplessly as the wolf attacked and carried away a wee lamb, one of his favourite playmates. He wept with sorrow. With REMORSE!
But, it was no use. The lamb, his friend, was dead.
And, this, friends, is the story we were told. Of course, I have embellished it a bit. (sheepish look).
The phrase 'like sheep among wolves' is a simile that means that danger is expected ahead and one should be careful. The phrase is seen in the Gospel of Matthew.
Jesus was saying these words to his disciples BEFORE sending them out on their mission to preach the good news of the coming of the Kingdom.
This verse is so rich with word pictures. Sheep, Wolves, Serpents, Doves.
🐑🐺. 🐍🕊️
How does one remain innocent whilst being wise, or as some translations put it, shrewd?
What is innocence? I think one word that can best explain it would be trusting. A child is innocent because it trusts everyone. He/she will go to any person, something that could be dangerous in this age of child molesters and kidnappers.
Jesus is asking perhaps for his disciples to use wisdom in trusting people they will encounter. But nevertheless to love everyone like He does.
Shrewdness or wise discernment of a person's intent is a quality that you and I can certainly cultivate in our walk with Jesus. To test the waters before jumping in, to run every friendship by Jesus before we commit, to look before we leap into a new venture, no matter how lucrative or beneficial it may look from the world's point of view.
Jesus should be our benchmark for the way we treat others. Gentleness was his outstanding virtue. Do we have this virtue within us? The imagery of the dove has been used by the gospel writers to describe the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Holy Trinity. Are we as gentle as a dove?
The serpent unfortunately has got a bad name thanks to the garden of Eden episode. The way it cunningly convinces Eve is laudable though. It would have made a very good lawyer! To be wise as a serpent could therefore mean you are ready for any pitfalls. One step ahead of your attackers, like Jesus was. Always ready with an answer - or a question to question the question. (Sheepish smile)
So, in the final analysis, how should a disciple, how should you and I behave on our mission?
1) We should obey God the Father, remaining faithful to Him alone.
2) We should rely on the Spirit to teach us all things and speak through us.
3) We should wait on the Lord Jesus Christ to tell us whom to meet and then and where we should go on our mission.
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