Casting Pearls Before Swine
Posted: Friday, June 12, 2009
by Mark Parsec
Wordcasters
The Swine flu. It's been all over the news for the last couple of months. Swine flu cases have now been confirmed in 74 countries throughout Europe, the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific region and the Americas - and experts believe the actual spread of this influenza is much wider than the numbers suggest.
A Pandemic is like an epidemic only worse. Instead of being confined to just one geographical area a pandemic crosses all international boundaries and continents. Wherever humans live the virus will follow.
The thing that has health professionals concerned is that the Swine Flu is a descendant of the Spanish Flu which is reported to have taken as many as 50 to 100 million lives during 1918 and 1919. This was towards the end of World War I in fact more soldiers were dying from the flu than from enemy fire. Subsequently, many historians have suggested that the influenza brought about the end of World War I.
The Swine Flu derives its name from the fact that this tenacious virus originated with a strain that is commonly associated with pigs just as the avian flu is associated with birds. And this should not surprise us because pigs have historically been associated with disease. Just some of the diseases that pork carry include:
Trichinosis
Staphylococcus
Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome
The Nipah virus
Hepatitis E
Porcine Endogenous Retrovirus
Menangle Virus
Historically, from the time of Moses the Israelites regarded pigs as unclean animals in the Jewish faith. They were not to be eaten nor used for sacrifice Even coming in contact with a pig, or its excrement, made an individual unclean and unable to enter into a sanctuary without first going through ritualistic cleansing.
So, it should not surprise us when Jesus referred to these unclean creatures during his Sermon on the Mount when he said:
Matthew 7:6 " Do not give dogs what is holy; and do not throw your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their foot, and turn and attack you."
Jesus provides a dramatic picture of an individual trapped and threatened by a ravenous pack of snarling dogs and ferocious wild boars. In terror the person casts their most precious belongings into the sludge in front of the wild creatures. The beasts angrily charge forward hoping for food only to discover the inedible, hard, tasteless pearls. In a fury, the wild creatures attack the person and haul him into the mire and muck where they proceed to tear him to pieces.
Unfortunately, many Christians don't understand this commonly quoted passage about casting pearls before swine. And some even use it as an excuse to refrain from sharing the blessings that they have received from the Lord to bless others whom they deem to be unworthy. It is a spiritual Swine Flu.
Beloved, the reason I bring this up is because there is a pandemic of this spiritual virus that is claiming so many Christians around the world that it puts the Spanish Flu to shame.
Like so many others verses out of the Bible this verse is often quoted out of context. So, in order to shed some light on this subject let's take a look at the verse in context by reading what Jesus was talking about when he said it.
Matthew 7:1-6 1 " Judge not, that you be not judged. 2 For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged; and the measure you give will be the measure you get. 3 Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 4 Or how can you say to your brother, Let me take the speck out of your eye, when there is the log in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite! First take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye.
6 "Do not give dogs what is holy; and do not throw your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their foot, and turn and attack you."
What Jesus is saying here is, do not point fingers and accuse others of things that you are guilty of. Do not pass false judgment on others, because when you do that you are throwing your Christianity right out of the window and into the mud. Only God is holy, only God can judge. When you judge others with your pearls of wisdom you're setting yourself up to be attacked by those who could care less about your religion.
Someone once said, "Fools rush in where angels fear to tread." And such is often the case with many Christians when they get into the habit of passing judgment on others. The Word of God calls us to refrain from passing judgment on others or even giving advice to those who don't ask for it.
Another person once said that it is sometimes best to remain silent and be thought a fool than to open one's mouth and remove all doubt.
Sharing Pearls
So, how are we to share the Gospel with others when the world if filled with wild animals just looking for an opportunity to eat us alive?
In Matthew 10:16 Jesus said, " Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves ." If we are to speak words of life to others then we must be wise and harmless.
It is a sad fact of life but there are individuals that act like ferocious junkyard dogs and beastly boars in their rejection of things pertaining to the Kingdom of God. Jesus dealt with such individuals often. And the history of the church is filled with persecutions from those who had no respect for God or His Word. That being true, we need to remember that there are those among us in the world that who despise Christians for proclaiming the Gospel of Christ. Jesus warns about such individuals and teaches that we should be discriminating in our teaching and preaching less we fall victim to them.
Solomon explained why one must be discriminating in whom he entrusts precious pearls of instruction and wisdom. He taught that "fools despise wisdom and instruction" ( Prov. 1:7 ) and a "scoffer does not love one who reproves him" ( Prov. 15:12 ). Therefore, "Do not speak in the hearing of a fool, for he will despise the wisdom of your words" ( Prov. 23:9 ).
Like Jesus, Solomon advised using caution when attempting to teach others. In Proverbs 9:7-9 he tells us, " He who reproves a scoffer gets shame for himself, And he who rebukes a wicked man gets himself a blemish. Do not reprove a scoffer, lest he hate you; Rebuke a wise man, and he will love you. Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser. Teach a just man, and he will increase in learning."
Some Christians spend too much time on those who do not appreciate the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Many hesitate to "give up" on someone they believe to be a good prospect for the message of the Kingdom. However, when our Lord sent out the apostles in Mark 6:11 he said, " And whoever will not receive you nor hear you, when you depart from there, shake off the dust under your feet as a testimony against them."
As Christians we can't go around judging everyone that we come into contact with. However, we need to be cautious. Christians need to discern the dogs and swine when we see them and we must not treat them as priests and kings.
To give holy things to the swine was to profane them. Similarly it would be a great mistake to use any Kingdom activity in such a way as to profane it. Taverns should not to be opened with prayer, nor should same-sex marriages be performed by a man of God. To give pearls to swine in this respect is to force the Gospel upon those who despise it. Such an approach will result in terrible persecution and abuse.
When we have identified individuals who are enemies of the Gospel, they should be avoided on many occasions. Otherwise we set ourselves up to be trapped and attacked. Jesus often acted on this principle when he refused to answer the Pharisees, and the apostles did the same when they turned to the Gentiles after the Jewish communities would reject the Gospel and blaspheme.
So, how can we tell when it is time to "give up" on someone and turn to other fields? It should be only after we have first brought the Word to them in good faith, prayed and exercised longsuffering. But, even the longsuffering of God has limits ( 1 Pet. 3:20 ).
We need to understand and accept the fact that despite our best efforts, many people will reject the Gospel and perish " because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved."
It is certainly hard to give up on someone that we have hoped would accept the Gospel. But, when an individual not only repeatedly rejects the Gospel, but becomes an enemy of the Gospel then it is up to us to pick our battles. We can waste a lot of time working to bring a knowledge of the truth to those who have absolutely no intention of ever accepting it. Or we can leave them to the care of God and turn our attention to those who are honestly in need of the Gospel and searching for the Lord.
The Lord has given every believer pearls of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We are called to be good stewards of the same. We must neither think that everyone is unworthy to receive the blessings of the pearls we have been called to share nor should we indiscriminately and foolishly believe that everyone will appreciate the pearls of the Gospel.
So my friends be cautious, be loving, be cunning as serpents and harmless as doves. Pray continually that the Lord will give you wisdom in when and how to share the pearls of the Kingdom with those He would have you bless. And, trust that He will lead you to all truth and identify those whom are wolves in sheep's clothing, and those who are wild boars just waiting for an opportunity to eat you alive.
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Top-level comments on this article: (3 total)Thank you Mark! I needed this. another great article!!BlessingsAngieThank you, Angie!I hope you have a blessed week.Mark
Good article Mark. Ask any non Christian what they think about Christians and most will tell you they don't like them because they are generally very judgmental. I was brought up in the church and that is what first drove me away. Everyone wants to be special, and being part of "the chosen people of God" definitely makes people feel special and part of something great. The problem is, the reason they feel special is that they feel they are now better, or more blessed than someone else. The same goes for Muslims. Everyone wants to be "chosen" and feel special, part of something "greater". Many many people out there believe in God but will not let themselves be associated with hypocrites. We would rather live our lives according to what we feel is right, and stay away from those that judge. We all have flaws and it is not Jesus like to look down on someone for their flaws or bad decisions. I agree with most of what you have said...a good article indeed.
Thank you, Goldenshamen.
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