“Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.”  (Matthew 10:16)

Our Lord gave these instructions to the 72 as he “sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go” (Matthew 10:1). I often think of these words when I attend an ordination. I don’t focus on the “sheep in the midst of wolves,” although that can certainly be true. Instead, I pray that the newly ordained may be “wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” It’s a lesson every pastor needs to learn.

“What is the wisdom of the snake?” Dallas Willard asks in his classic The Divine Conspiracy. “It is to be watchful and observant until the time is right to act. It is timeliness. One rarely sees a snake chasing its prey or thrashing about in an effort to impress it. But when it acts, it acts quickly and decisively. And as for the dove, it does not contrive. It is incapable of intrigue. Guile is totally beyond it. There is nothing indirect about this gentle creature. It is in this sense ‘harmless.’”

Imagine being able to act at just the right moment in just the right way to build up the body of Christ. That’s what came to mind recently as I listened to a newly ordained pastor process some early challenges in her first call. She described two different situations that involved important ministries with key leaders involved, and she wanted to engage in appropriate ways to move the ministry forward without creating conflict. The time seemed to be right, and she brought a servant’s heart to the work. But what should she do?

She shared her thoughts with a group of people trained in discipling cultures, so we naturally began using a tool called the Discipleship Square. This tool describes the experience of growing in faith and what kind of leadership style best supports a disciple’s growth. The four stages (thus a square) are as follows:

D₁/L₁ – The initial stage marked by excitement and enthusiasm. The disciple doesn’t know what they don’t know. The appropriate leadership style is directive since disciples have little depth or experience. “I do, you watch.”

D₂/L₂ – A stage marked by a lack of confidence. The disciple knows what they don’t know. The appropriate leadership style is persuasive as disciples begin to gain understanding while experiencing doubts regarding their abilities. “I do, you help.”

D₃/L₃ – A stage marked by growing confidence. The disciple knows what they know. The appropriate leadership style is collaborative as disciples gain experience and begin to lead. “You do, I help.”

D₄/L₄ – The last stage marked by self-confidence and natural ability. The disciple doesn’t know what they know. The appropriate leadership style is to delegate since the disciples have mastered the specific ministry and effectiveness comes naturally. “You do, I celebrate your work.”

If we engage a ministry with the wrong leadership style, we can create conflict, damage people, and set the mission of the church back significantly.

John Mohan

While the Square is a very helpful description of how novice disciples move toward maturity, it is an even more powerful tool when used by a leader to engage an existing ministry that needs help. My colleague above was dealing with one ministry whose leader was willing, but didn’t know what to do. The pastor needed to use persuasive leadership (L₂ “I do, you help”) to keep the disciple engaged while he learned the skills necessary. The other ministry had a leader who knew what to do but had lost some confidence. The pastor needed to use collaborative leadership (L₃ “You do, I help”) to restore the disciples’ confidence in their existing ability.

Blessedly, both situations had disciples who understood the mission of the congregation, so my colleague didn’t have to shut down a ministry to begin again from scratch, but do you see the danger? If we engage a ministry with the wrong leadership style, we can create conflict, damage people, and set the mission of the church back significantly. But if we get it right, and engage appropriately, we can grow disciples and build up the body of Christ.

The Discipleship Square helps me get it right when I need to be as wise as a serpent and as innocent as a dove.

“Bless our God, O peoples, and sound His praise abroad, who keeps us in life and does not allow our feet to slip.”  (Psalm 66:8-9)

The Lord watches over the nations and knows the times and seasons as they unfold.  He who keeps watch over you never slumbers nor sleeps.  He who put the stars upon their course knows each of us intimately.  He has called you to witness His majesty to the nations.  He gives life and keeps us alive.  He who watches over you will guide you all the days of your life.

Lord, in the turmoil of this world I see the ways in which men go to and fro and wind up going nowhere.  Lead me through the simple truth that this is Your world and that Your purposes shall prevail.  Guide me according to those principles to walk humbly with You now and always.  Keep me from going astray and help me through the obstacles that come my way that I may be faithful to You always.

Lord Jesus, You know the difficulty of this world and the ways in which many can and do lead people astray.  Help me now and always to see in You the hope You provide through the grace You purchased that I may walk in the way You have created for the faithful.  I need You to save me from this world, Jesus.  Save me and lead me now and always, keeping my eyes fixed upon You.  Amen.

READY OR NOT, HERE I COME!

Devotional for First Sunday in Advent, December 3, 2017 based upon Mark 13: 24-37

When you were young, did you play Hide and Seek?  If so, where was your favorite place to hide, and were you able to find a place to hide where no one was ever able to find you?

In playing Hide and Seek, the person who is It will close his eyes, while everyone else runs and hides.  The person who is It counts to a hundred or so and then says, “Ready or not, here I come!”  In our Gospel lesson for the first Sunday in Advent Jesus is saying to the world, “Ready or not, here I come!”  But unlike Hide and Seek, this is not a game.  This is dead serious.  We are in the final countdown before Jesus appears on earth to judge the world and to gather the faithful.  Jesus concludes His talking about His return with the words, “What I say to you I say to all: Keep awake.”  Ready or not, Jesus is coming.  We had better be ready.  We had better get ready.  But how do we get ready?  In our Gospel lesson Jesus tells us three things that we need to and can do to get ready.

First, JESUS TELLS US TO KEEP AWAKE AND WATCH.  

Now of course, we all need to be asleep part of the time – six, seven, or eight hours a day.  But this is not what Jesus is talking about.  Rather He is talking about the sleep of being unprepared.  The sleep of not caring about what is happening in the world.  The sleep of indifference and unconcern.  Like the cartoon that depicted a couple men talking at a party.  One rather unconcerned-looking man said to the other, “So what if it’s Armageddon?  It’s not the end of the world.”

We need to be awake to the fact that someday Jesus will return – to bring history to a close, to judge the wicked and to gather the faithful.  According to the Bible, there is no question at all as to the certainty of His return.  The only question is when.  A car accident can happen – an explosion can occur – like a bolt out of the blue.  Jesus said that His return will be like that.  Sudden and immediate.  We must be ready before He comes, because we cannot get ready when He comes.  We must wake up from our sleep of business-as-usual, because Jesus is coming – whether or not we are ready.

Second, JESUS TELLS US TO KEEP AWAKE, WATCH, AND PRAY.

But what does prayer have to do with being ready for Jesus’ second coming?  Through prayer we keep in touch with God.  If we daily keep in touch with God, we will not become careless about being ready.  We will always be ready for Jesus’ return at any time.

And then we also need to pray for those who do not know Jesus as their Savior and Lord.  We do not want these people to be found without faith if Jesus should return.  It is our responsibility to pray daily that they will be ready when Jesus returns.  

A young boy was fishing with his grandfather off the coast.  The young lad noticed a flashing light coming from the lighthouse even though it was mid-day.  The child said, “But I thought they used that light only when there was fog or a storm.”  His grandfather replied, “No, son, they use it all the time, because you never know when fog or bad weather might come up.  It’s better to always be prepared than to miss the opportunity to save someone’s life.”

Prayer is our taking advantage of every opportunity to save someone’s life.  In good times and in bad, in sunshine and in storm, we need to keep awake, watch, and pray that souls will respond to the love of God and get ready.

Third, JESUS TELLS US TO KEEP AWAKE, WATCH, AND WORK.

When Jesus returns suddenly and unexpectedly, what will He find you doing?  Jesus expects each one of us to be about His work, so that when He comes, He will find us doing what He wants us to be doing.

A traveler was visiting a castle in northern Italy.  The old gardener opened the gates.  The visitor stepped into the garden, which was being kept perfectly.  The visitor asked, “When was the owner last here?”  He was told, “Twelve years ago.”  “Does he ever write?”  “No.”  “Where do you get your instructions?”  “From Milan.”  “Does the owner ever come?”  “No.”  “But you keep the grounds as through your master were returning tomorrow.”  The old gardener replied, “Sir, I keep the grounds as though my master were returning today.”  As Christians we need to keep awake, watch, pray, and work as though Jesus were returning today.

Whether or not you are ready, Jesus is coming.  If you are not ready, you have reason to dread His return.  If you are ready, you have reason to rejoice.  For He is coming to be with us, to bless us, and to take us home to be with Him in glory.

Jesus is saying, “Ready or not, here I come!”  Are you ready?

Dennis D. Nelson

President of the Board and Director of Lutheran CORE