DEALING WITH PROBLEM PEOPLE
Matthew 10:14-17 NKJV
14 And whoever will not receive you nor hear your words, when you depart from that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet. 15 Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!
16 "Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. 17 But beware of men, for they will deliver you up to councils and scourge you in their synagogues.
I have to admit I get both amused and annoyed at people who have no idea what Christianity is about yet want to tell Christians how to act. I think one of the only verses they know is - turn the other cheek, which is highly convenient for people who do wrong things.
Today, we see Jesus prepping His disciples as they prepare to go out and proclaim that the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Jesus instructs them to only go to the lost sheep of Israel and then shifts to a more prophetic warning because He includes governors, kings, and Gentiles.
Shake off the dust from your feet. These instructions were for the people who would not receive the disciples or hear their words. In other words, these are the people who would reject them. Notice that Jesus did not encourage His disciples to fight back, argue, or defend their position. Those are the most common responses to rejection. When the disciples were proclaiming the good news of God's kingdom, healing the sick, and were still rejected, that could have been a hard pill to swallow. And the twelve disciples were not known for being passive. These were the guys arguing about who was the greatest. And when a Samaritan village rejected Jesus, James, and John, wanted to call down fire and torch the whole group. No, Jesus said, shake it off and move on.
Jesus also warned the twelve that they were going out as sheep among wolves. Calling some people wolves is not a positive comparison. But Jesus was not foolish even though He was compassionate. That's another error that the secular world makes about Jesus. They think He was passive and just accepted everyone despite how they acted. Nope, Jesus is warning His disciples to not be foolish. Be as wise as a snake. Snakes are known for being wary of their environment. Be wise as a snake, but don't bite like a snake. Jesus said, be harmless as doves. A better word is innocent as doves. Doves are not aggressively looking to hurt. Doves are not trying to take advantage. So be aware, like a snake, and innocent like a dove.
And beware of men. Jesus is warning the disciples not to be trusting of everyone. Some men are looking to hurt them. And men will deliver them to be scourged. That was a bad beating. Jesus never told them to be afraid of men, just beware, be alert, be on guard. Jesus never advocated being afraid and isolated from people. He advocated for using wisdom.
APPLICATION
We can always learn from Jesus' words. We may not be in situations where we are subject to physical beatings, especially in America, but rejection and verbal scourging are still taking place.
So how do we handle those who reject us and our words? Shaking it off is still the best wisdom. Not defend, lash out, or try to get someone to accept us. Some people will reject us simply because we identify with Christ. Friends and family may no longer hear us or want to be around us. Not fun, but it happens. Reading the rest of chapter ten, Jesus tells us that He is the dividing line. Accepting Him can mean rejection from others. Shake it off and move on. I know that's easier said than done, but we can do it.
Don't trust everyone. This sounds rather harsh, but we need to accept the fact that wolves are still out there. There are people who would take advantage of or hurt us if given the chance. We don't need to be afraid, but we do need to be wise without harming.
Thank God we have been given the Holy Spirit to help us, lead us and warn us about the wolves. We can walk in wisdom without being afraid.
PRAYER
Thank You, Lord, for Your wisdom and protection. Help me to handle rejection better and walk in a wise way with people.