This study was prepared for inmates
at Polk County in October of '07. It was prepared for one inmate in particular (I’m
going to call him Charles from here on) that was awaiting transfer to prison.
He had been to prison in His twenties and now going back. He was was fifty-eight at the time.
This man made no excuses for his
actions – wanted pity from no one. He had been convicted of a felony in the
past and it was illegal for him to own or be in control of a firearm. That
means in his home. He was arrested and subsequently convicted when a family
member was arrested and a gun found in that family member’s bed room.
Charles was a regular attendee of
our weakly Bible study sessions and I knew him quite well. I knew him through almost every stage of his case. He was convinced, as
was everyone else that he would not go to prison – he did. He was sentenced to
thirty years.
A requirement of federal time is that at least 2/3 of the time be
served. Because of his diabetes and his age, this could very well be a life
sentence.
He was a very strong believer and
had been for twenty years or so. He had made up his mind that he was going to
use the life he had left to be used of God to change lives in prison. He was
totally convinced that going to prison was a good thing – that way he could
work to spread the Gospel.
The last time I talked to Charles was three years ago. He was going blind
because of diabetes. He was preaching The Gospel as well as leading a separate Bible
study group. His one and ONLY concern was for his family.
He was concerned for his wife, kids
and particularly concerned that he would not be able to influence his grand-kid's lives.
With his attitude of TOTAL responsibility
and his total commitment to the Gospel, I’ll bet he already has influenced them.
I know he has influenced mine!
Although this study has application
if you’re going to a physical prison, without Jesus in our lives, we are all in
a spiritual prison of our own. No one would attest to this more than Charles.
_______________________________________________________________
Text
verse -
Matt 10:16
Behold,
I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as
serpents, and harmless as doves.
Read
Matt :11–17
Referenced
today – Bible, Sparking Gems From The Greek
Jesus
getting ready to send disciples out to witness – preach the Gospel – prepare them for ministry, to start the
church as we know it. The same universal church we are part of, Think of that … us as a vital part of God re-establishing
His Kingdom
- No punctuation early Greek. I have to believe Jesus Knew this would be written down for you and me to take instruction from. So He said verily, verily.
- He was telling them and us to LISTEN UP! - WHAT I’M ABOUT TO SAY IS IMPORTANT.
- Whenever we see verily, verily or in some versions, truly truly listen carefully to what He is going to say, it’s important!
- Jesus gave at least 6 instructions and some consequences for the
disciples and the
people for listening or not listening to them.
- Get to vs 16 and tells them to be “wise as serpents”
In this verse,
Jesus instructs His disciples (and us) to be “wise as serpents.” The word
“wise”
is the Greek
word pronimos, which means prudent, careful, cunning, discerning,
thoughtful, intelligent,
or sensible.
This word perfectly depicts the behavior and actions of snakes. They are very careful,
discerning, intelligent, and prudent in how they act. The Greek word
for “serpent” is the word ophis,
which is the
normal Greek word that refers to a snake.
It is a fact
that Jesus told us that we need to be “wise as serpents”! The Greek literally
means we
need to be as
prudent, discerning, intelligent, thoughtful, and careful as snakes! There
is obviously something
Jesus wanted us to learn from the behavior of snakes, so I took the time to
think about this subject. Finally, I understood exactly why Jesus used this
example and how it applies to all of us regarding
our families,
businesses, ministries, or any opportunity God places before us in life.
- · Snakes blend in with their surroundings
- They are in any particular place for one reason, that reason is survival.
First,
when serpents move into a new territory, they don’t announce their presence.
Instead, they lay low, stay quiet, and blend into the environment. In fact, you
can walk right past a snake and not even realize it! Snakes have the ability to
be nearly invisible. They are designed to be camouflaged. This camouflage
serves as a protective covering. The vilest aggressor can walk right past, but
the serpent is not noticed because it has blended so well into the landscape.
That camouflage gives the serpent latitude to move about freely as it finds its
way around new territory. As snakes evaluate a new situation, they see what
kind of opportunities are in the area. They identify places of shelter. They
find “hiding places” to protect themselves from attack. They observe to see
where they can find the easiest prey. When all these facts are assimilated, the
serpent is ready to act. But this “settling-in” period is a key time for a
serpent.
And Jesus said there is wisdom in a
serpent’s behavior from which we need to learn! When God calls you or me to
do something new — to move to new territory or to seize a divine opportunity —
it is wisdom for us to move carefully and slowly into that new phase of our
lives.
A
common mistake is to act too fast. Acting hastily before all the facts are
gathered and assimilated can lead us to bad decisions based on incomplete, or
even worse - false information. In fact, one serious mistake can cause us to
lose an opportunity altogether. I can testify to you about his firsthand.
It is
better to lay low, stay quiet, and blend into the environment for a while,
learning from the sights and the facts we observe.
We need to apply this to every phase
of our lives – we have to be sensitive to The Spirit so we can gather facts and
information : Most serious mistakes are avoidable
when moving to a new situation or environment. I strongly advise you to take
your time and be sure of the actions you take before you ever act.
I
would suggest that you first:
- Learn the landscape of your new environment.
- Locate places of spiritual shelter for you and your family.
- See what kind of attacks could potentially come against you.
- Take time to really understand the opportunities around you.
- Take advantage of your preparation time before you announce great and glorious
plans, making sure that you are completely
informed of all the facts.
Once we have gathered all the facts
and know who and what the dangers are we must act and seize the moment!
·
Don’t
let fear or conventional “wisdom” rule (lean not your own understanding -
Proverbs)
·
Be
sensitive to The Holy Spirit’s leading
·
New
ventures God springs on us are always scary – remember: you must rely on Him “where God
guides, He provides”. (Pastor Dan)
·
But,
how do I know it’s God? –
1. listen – spend as much time listening
in quiet time as talking when praying. Do you - like someone who talks all the time? Do we
learn more by listening or talking?
2. get to know Him – thru His Word /
Renew your mind (Rom 12:1&2, Josh 1:8)
3. When we act. we must act in faith – “without faith it
is impossible to please Him” Heb 11:6
4. diligently seek Him
What if I miss it?
·
Everyone
misses God from time to time
·
Rom
8:28 – don’t miss God on purpose, because you think He is going to bail out of
your recklessness, but know that by doing something, it is easier to change
course and make adjustments than miss an opportunity altogether because of
being afraid to act. (example of stationary car harder to turn steering wheel
than one moving). Take this in context.
·
Diligently
seek Him
Diligently
seeking Him is always the answer, whether we are in good circumstances or bad.
