And we're in Matthew Chapter 10 looking at Jesus second big

speech of the book of Matthew there are five speeches that Matthew structures his

whole book around and in this one Jesus is fixing to send out his 12 disciples the

Uber famous ones that they're all the sculptures of and everything out into the

great big wide world to go and tell people about the kingdom specifically they're

supposed to say the kingdom of heaven is near. It's almost like it's a code that you hear in spy movies. It's like, and the kingdom is often rainy this time of year.

People were supposed to recognize it and register what was going on

because they should be able to read the writing on the wall, see the signs. So Jesus is

sending out his bannerman expecting that these representatives of the kingdom

will be recognized as associated with him, the king.

But he is also a realist and so he sends them out with this warning that I think is the pivotal verse of the whole speech in verse 16 of Matthew 10 where he says to his disciples before they go out

I'm sending you out like sheep among wolves therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves

What was the original audience supposed to do with this instruction?

What is the modern reader like you or me supposed to do with this instruction?

Simply put, what does it look like to be shrewd and innocent at once?

And look, this is where we just kind of burst the balloon.

The reality is that we, you and I and the other people who are listening. We have kind of a weird little cabal going here.

You got me.

I was a Christian for a long time growing up and then I went to seminary and somewhere

after that I wasn't.

The faith thing broke for me and I wanted to be a Christian

but there were things about the Bible, things about God, things about the church and how it plays out that I couldn't

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