Jesus wants you to be like the devil. What? Really? Yes. In a surprising turn of phrase, Jesus directs us to be shrewd as serpents and harmless as doves. From where I sit, the Church has been more serpent-like than dove-like in recent years – and I’m part of the problem. Let me explain.
Why did Jesus encourage us to be like snakes? Isn’t that a symbol of the devil? Yes, it is. It gets even more puzzling. Jesus intended us to make a connection between his urging us to be shrewd as serpents and the shrewd serpent in the Garden of Eden in Genesis 3:1. This connection is clinched when the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament) uses the same Greek word used in Matthew 10:16 to describe the serpent – shrewd. Yes, our attention is drawn to the devil as an example of how we are to conduct ourselves in certain situations. Jesus sends us out as sheep amid wolves and tells us to be shrewd as serpents and harmless as doves.
Being shrewd means using your head, being persuasive, convince others of your point of view. This is certainly what the devil did in Genesis 3 when he talked Eve into eating the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. No, we aren’t to be malicious, deceitful, manipulative, or coercive as that serpent was – but we are to be skillful in using our heads. Yet, at the same time, we are to be harmless as doves. This means that no matter how sharp our minds are, regardless of how convincing our arguments are, no one is to walk away belittled, feeling cut down and put in their place.
This is where we have failed. This is where I have failed. If you dare disagree with me, you’re going to pay a price for it! I will seek to belittle you and cut you down with my words. I won’t leave you unscathed. And I’m not the only one who does this – you do it, too! Not only are we shrewd as serpents, but we are also as malicious and biting and venomous as serpents. So much for being harmless. The Church has caused great harm these last two years. And the overwhelming harm has been to us.
If you don’t agree with me about churches opening or closing, wearing a mask, getting a vaccination, government-mandated vaccinations, Black Lives Matter, Critical Race Theory, climate change, Presidential politics, reparations, tearing down statues, LGBT+ issues, transgenderism, nationalism, blah, blah, blah…then I will do verbal harm to you. I will make you feel stupid and seek to cut you down. Read any blog, listen to any newscast or podcast, follow all the various threads of all the issues above and you will find Christians sharpening their tongues and letting them loose. We have cut and belittled one another; we have bruised and bloodied one another; we have driven each other away with our hurtful words, our caustic tones, and our holier-than-thou attitude. We think that the truth we speak will purify the Church when the venom we spew has only defiled the Church. God forgive us. We have divided the Body of Christ. We have wounded His Little Ones. We have trampled the Bride.
I am deeply grieved by my behavior in all this. I wince when I think of those who have walked away from an interaction with me feeling belittled and cut down. I am saddened by this perverse desire I have to display how clever I am at your expense. And, of course, I’ve walked away from many an interaction feeling belittled and cut down, too. And so, I plan my comeback – but not by myself. The Shrewd Serpent in the Garden is now the Shrewd Serpent in the metropolis. Here’s what the Shrewd Serpent has reduced me to – attacking and wounding the Body of Christ.
When Jesus instructed His followers to be shrewd as serpents, He was sending them out among the wolves. The shrewdness of a serpent was never meant to be a strategy when we’re among the sheep when we’re with our brothers and sisters in Christ. Our speech is to be seasoned with salt so that we may give grace to those who hear us. There’s been a lot more condemnation than grace in our speech these last two years. Again, if you don’t align with my politics, philosophy, and positions – you will suffer for it. And the Church has suffered.
The Holy Spirit has revealed to me my ugliness when it comes to belittling and cutting others down if they dare to disagree with me. I’ve been more in partnership with the Serpent than with the Spirit. When I partner with the Spirit – grace pours forth. When I partner with the Serpent – scorn and condemnation pour forth. God forgive me. I want to purpose in my soul, with the Holy Spirit helping me, that no one is belittled or cut-down-to-size in any interaction with me. And this applies to my marriage, too. How many times have I stung and belittled my wife? Though I am in sharp disagreement with you, may my tongue not be sharp. The Proverbs give the best wisdom here – a soft tongue breaks the bone, and a gentle answer turns away wrath. May my hard tongue soften, and my harsh answer take on a Christlike gentleness. May belittling and wounding words cease within me and within the Body of Christ. May we be harmless as doves in our speech – not leaving bruises and wounds. May we be persuasive without being scathing and dismissive of others. Jesus, help me. Jesus, help us.
Amen!
Thanks for the very important reminder
You put a sharp pebble in my shoe