Wise as Serpents, but harmless as doves!

Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.    Matthew 10:16

What an interesting directive Christ gives His disciples as He sends them out to minister.  The second part of the verse, to be harmless as doves is to be expected, right?  We are all called to be loving, peaceable, patient, kind, blah blah blah.  

I know what you are thinking.  Blah blah blah isn't good writing...haha.  Sorry, I felt I had to catch your attention for a minute, because Christ never called any of us to be a bunch of wimps. But we are called to be consistent with His character.  So, let's break this down, and see what we see!

Wise in this verse connotes a sense of skill or expertise.  It comes from the Greek word sophos and is synominous with words like
"intelligent", or one who can put things together, who has insight and comprehension, and "prudent", or primarily one who has quick and correct perceptions, hence, "discreet or being circumspect.

But, Jesus felt it important to give them an example of the "wise" He was referring to.  Jesus said to be wise as "serpents".  But, He didn't use any word.  He used the greek word "ophis" a masculine noun that is also used in Genesis chapter 3, the serpent that beguiled Eve.

But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. 2Corintheans 11:3
 
This is also the same word Jesus used in Matthew against the Pharisees;

[Ye] serpents, [ye] generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell? Matthew 23:33

The Serpent:

So, here's a question.  Why were the disciples being told to be like serpents, like the pharisees, like the devil?  Jesus did not want the disciples to be "like" those unrighteous individuals, but to be "wise" or well thought out, cunning, careful, and mostly "deliberate" as the devil and the pharisees.  We can say alot of nasty things about both parties, and it would all be true.  But you can't say that they weren't tenacious, aggressive, relentless and used all their extensive knowledge to their advantage.

The Devil, Satan, that old dragon were all names given to him by the scriptures. But he was also named Lucifer (Isaiah 14:12), son of the morning, shining one, angel of light (2 Corintheans 11:14). Some would even argue that the devil was referred to as the King of Tyrus in Ezekial 28.

Son of man, take up a lamentation upon the king of Tyrus, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty.  Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone [was] thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created. Thou [art] the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee [so]: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. Thou [wast] perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee.  Ezekiel 28:12-15

Lucifer was perfect, wise, and beautiful.  He knew God's laws and was an example for all other angels to follow.  That is, until he tried to make himself god and was cast off the Holy Mountain(Heaven).  Jesus is encouraging us to be well thought out, articulate, spiritually beautiful (Romans 10:15), perfect (Matthew 5:48), and wise (Proverbs 4:5,7)!  

The Devil was persistent.  He entered into the presence of the Lord  often.  If we read Job, it says he presented himself with the sons of God many times(Job 1).  Consider the temptation of  Christ (Matthew 4).  The Devil used wise words to twist the truth.  He quoted scripture.  But, Christ quoted scripture also, but in the proper context.  

What's this say to us?  We should approach the Lord often.  We should learn the Word, and learn it well.  We should pursue spiritual perfection, meaning becoming spiritually complete, mature .  In other words, we should seek wisdom, understanding, and all the other characteristics of the Holy Spirit!  Satan was perfect before he was cast out of Heaven.  I promise you, he knows God's word, and how to twist it, and he knows how to "look" kind, merciful, loving and all the rest.  We need to know the true God, so we can catch the counterfeit!  This is the meaning of being wise as a serpent!

The Dove

Yes, we are to be every bit as wise as a serpent...but harmless as doves as well. We are to not be a stumbling block.  We are not to live a sinful life.  We are to bring life to those that need it by sharing the gospel of Christ.


Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, [see that ye] love one another with a pure heart fervently: 1Peter 1:22

Let's consider the dove for a moment. of the 10 times that "dove" is mentioned in the New Testament, 5 of the times they were mentioned as a fowl of sacrifice, and 4 times it is mentioned as a form of the Holy Spirit.  This tells me one thing in a loud and clear way.  The dove pictures service to God Almighty, and one that pleases Him.  We are to be the same way, to have a servant's heart, and to be willing to sacrifice ourselves for God's sake.  Paul wrote:

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, [which is] your reasonable service. Romans 12:1 

Servants, be obedient to them that are [your] masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ;  Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart;  With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men: Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether [he be] bond or free. Ephesians 6:5-8

Practical Application of being Wise:

We get tangled up in all sorts of  issues in our daily lives.  We are bombarded with stuff that knock us down, if we let it.  The purpose of the Holy Spirit characteristic of wisdom is to have the ability to make the right choices.  As we face spiritual battles, we will have Godly guidance. We can win these battles with some wisdom.  How do we respond when someone gets in our face?  What do we do when we are judged unfairly?  What is the appropriate response when our teen points a finger at us, and makes demands, or says hurtful things?  Do we take that new job?

There are so many scenarios we could consider, but the main point is Godly wisdom can help here.  Wisdom will tell us to be calm, stay firm, ask forgiveness, or seek counsel.  Wisdom will give us direction, help with what to say, and when to say it.  Sometimes the wisest thing to do is nothing at all.  But, be careful, lest we believe we came to these answers on our own, thinking we are all that!  

We always need to give God the credit when we make that Godly wise choice.  Also, remember, sometimes that Godly choice is not always the easy choice to make.  As a close friend of mine says, "always choose the hard right over the easy wrong"!  Let us pray for wisdom again this week.  Write in your journals those times you needed wisdom, and how you responded to the situation.  Here are some verses to consider for our personal quiet time this week.

Who [is] a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? let him shew out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom. But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth. This wisdom descendeth not from above, but [is] earthly, sensual, devilish. For where envying and strife [is], there [is] confusion and every evil work. 

But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, [and] easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.  And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace of them that make peace.  James 3:13-18

Isaiah 11:2                    Romans 11:3
1Corinthians 1:30        1Corintians 2:6,7
1Corintians 2:12-16     Colossians 1:9
Colossians 3:16