Of Daughters and Wolves

Acts 20:29 "For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock."

In the symbolism of the Scriptures, wolves are worldly people that attack God's sheep. Many of them are worldly people attack the church from the outside. These are the ones that Jesus refers to when He told His disciples "Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves." This kind of wolf is all around us, and they are blatantly obvious in their attacks on us.

Other wolves, though, are more subtle in their approach. Matthew 7:15 tells us that some wolves like to dress up in sheep clothes and infiltrate our flocks. These are the ones that Paul warns us about in Acts 20:29; they are wolves among us.

I go into great detail explaining these wolves in another post. I wanted to write this post to expose one particular breed of wolf - one that every parent and spiritual leader should be aware of. To get our first glimpse of this creature, let's look at Genesis 49.

Jacob was nearing the end of his life. Before he died, he gathered his twelve sons around him and prophesied over them about things to come. As he spoke about each young man, he pinpointed events in their future and the future of the tribes that would come from them. For example, Jacob declared that "The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh comes..." This was a prophecy concerning the kings that would come from his son Judah, eventually leading to THE King Himself!

However, when he turned his attention to Benjamin, Jacob's words were less majestic...less promising. Look at what Genesis 49:27 says, "Benjamin is a ravenous wolf; in the morning he shall devour the prey, and at night he shall divide the spoil." Yikes! Jacob was prophesying of a time when Benjamin would lie in wait for his prey like a wolf. Do we see such a time in Scripture?

Fast forward to the last chapter of the book of Judges.

Judges chapter 21 is the ending of a tragic story; a story that results in the death of all but 500 men from the entire tribe of Benjamin! Because of their wickedness, all other men, women and children were wiped out. To make matters worse, the rest of Israel angrily vowed to keep their daughters from marrying anyone in the tribe of Benjamin. This vow would've made those five hundred men the last of the entire tribe. When they died out, so would one-twelfth of the nation of Israel.

The other Israelites realized extinction wasn't the best option. In spite of the tribe of Benjamin's sin - it was decided that they should still survive. However, there was no way around the vow they made. No Israelite father was allowed to let their daughter marry an Benjamite - and for a Benjamite to get a wife that wasn't an Israelite was strictly forbidden by God. What could they do? Finally, someone came up with a shrewd way around this oath.

Here was the plan: There was going to be a holy festival at the Tabernacle of God in Shiloh. One of the festivities was a dance procession for all the young, unmarried ladies, where they would leave the city in a large dance of celebration. The elders of Israel told the Benjamites, "Go, lie in wait in the vineyards, and watch; and just when the daughters of Shiloh come out to perform their dances, then come out from the vineyards, and every man catch a wife for himself from the daughters of Shiloh; then go to the land of Benjamin." If any father objected to this kidnapping, the elders would calm them down. This way the tribe of Benjamin would survive, even though no father willingly gave their daughters away in marriage.

Notice three words from what the elders said: "lie in wait". These Benjamites hid in the celebration at God's house, waiting to pounce on the innocent girls there. Tell me, what does this sound like to you? A "wolf in sheep's clothing" perhaps

Among the different types of spiritual wolves, I believe there is one in particular that follow the Benjamite pattern. These men (yes, this is almost always a man who preys on a young woman) work to infiltrate the house of God. They learn the right words. They play the part of  godly men. But inwardly, they're panting after our girls. These guys are smooth when they speak to their prey, leading them away and isolating them. And when the time is right they pounce - either taking what they want from them and leaving, or leading these girls away from the flock to follow after themselves.

The end result is destruction. Some girls are hurt when they give part of themselves to someone who seemed to be a righteous man, but who simply ended up using them. Other girls are pulled out of the church and end up following these men into a life that's far less than what God wanted for them.

So how do we stop these spiritual predators? Is there a way to prevent, rather than repair, the damage these wolves cause?

First, to these young sheep: Get to know the voice of your Shepherd. In John 10:4-5, Jesus tells us this,
"And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers." You see, once a sheep learns to recognize the voice of her Shepherd, she won't be so vulnerable to the sweet, silky-smooth voices of these strangers. So, it's crucial for you to learn what Jesus sounds like when He speaks to you. Get in the Word! Spend time in prayer. Get close to Him and follow Him only.

Second, to the shepherds: Guard your flock! Listen to the words of Paul to the Ephesian elders.
Acts 20:28-31 "Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves. Therefore watch... "

Paul laid the responsibility of guarding the flock on the leaders. Sheep don't fight off wolves...shepherds do. Let me tell you one thing I've learned about these wolves: In every case I've seen, the leaders in the girl's life (either her pastor, her father, or both) usually suspect something's wrong ahead of time. Every time, the leaders are left scratching their head wondering, "I knew something was wrong! Why didn't I do something?" Leaders, pay attention to the voice of the Holy Spirit! Don't wait to clean up the pieces - take action before the attack!

When we read Paul's words of warning, we can see a few things we can do to protect our sheep:
#1 - Take heed. In other words, pay attention to your flock. Keep your spiritual sense of discernment sharp and listen to what the Chief Shepherd is telling you.
#2 - Feed your sheep. Jeremiah 3:15 tells us that God appoints shepherds to feed the sheep with knowledge and understanding. Acts 20:30 tells us that the wolf's main weapon is twisted words. Put these together and you can see that a shepherd is responsible to feed their sheep the Truth - and that Truth will counteract any lies wolves may tell.
#3 - Watch. This term carries more meaning than simply "pay attention". This term implies "watching to defend." According to John 10:11-13, a good shepherd is one that is willing to confront a wolf to protect the flock if necessary. Hirelings (that is, those who care for the flock without ever really caring about them)won't bother to confront the wolf, being afraid for his own "reputation" and well-being. But listen to me, leader - this can't be us! When we (as fathers or as pastors) see a man leading one of our sheep away, separating her from the flock and isolating her, then we must confront him!

Jesus trusted us with part of His flock. Let's not take this responsibility lightly. Now that this breed of spiritual predator has been exposed, don't close your eyes to the threat!

We Don't Have To Wonder

The last two weeks’ posts have been all about Who God is. We’ve covered over twenty different names for God - each name pinpointing a specific part of God’s nature. But there’s still more!

Yahweh Nissi - meaning Yahweh, My Banner.
Exodus 17:15 “And Moses built an altar and called its name, The-Lord-Is-My-Banner”
He owns us, leads us, and covers us with His protection. He gives us the victory over battles that we have never been able to win by ourselves. When we rally behind His banner and march according to His commands, we’ll won’t lose! Addictions, depressions, fears, family problems - Yahweh Nissi has already given us the victory in every battle of life.

Yahweh Shalom - Yahweh, My Peace
Judges 6:24 “So Gideon built an altar there to the Lord, and called it The-Lord-Is-Peace.”
God is the source of our peace and rest. Shalom means peace, but it also means completeness and wholeness, with nothing missing or lacking. God wants to bring peace to the frantic. He wants to bring order to the confusion. His desire is to make broken hearts whole. Psalm 147:3 tells us, “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” That’s shalom peace, and that’s how Yahweh Shalom describes Himself.

Yahweh Maccaddeschcem - Yahweh, My Sanctifier
Exodus 31:13 “...that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctifies you.”
God separated us for His own purpose. We’re called to walk out His purposes in our life not our own. Salvation is the start of His plan, not the end goal. Jesus separated you from your old life so that He can use you in this world.

Yahweh Ra’ah - Yahweh, My Shepherd
Psalm 23:1 “The LORD is my Shepherd, I shall not want.”
God is the one Who leads us and provides for us. There are benefits to having God as Your Shepherd. Provision (I shall not want), peace (He leads me beside still waters), healing for your soul (He restores my soul), and guidance (He leads me in the paths of righteousness) are all connected to having God as your Shepherd.

Yahweh Sabbaoth - Yahweh of Hosts
1 Samuel 17:45 “Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.”
He is the commander-in-chief of the armies of Heaven. Every angel listens to His commands and does them immediately. Psalm 103:20 says, “Bless the LORD, you His angels, who excel in strength, who do His word, heeding the voice of His word.” Apparently, even the written Word of God gives the angels direction!

Yahweh Shammah - Yahweh is There
Ezekiel 48:35 “...and the name of the city from that day shall be: THE LORD IS THERE.”
No matter where you are physically, no matter where you are in your relationships, no matter where you are emotionally, Yahweh is there! Of course, we know this from Hebrews 13:5, “For He Himself has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you.’”

I’ve realized that we could spend months talking about each name and each part of God’s nature. Instead of doing that, I’ll wrap it up today.

Studying the different names of God helps us. It isn’t about knowing God’s “nicknames” or trying to find a name that gets His attention. When we use these names in prayer, it isn’t for God’s benefit, it’s for ours. These names are to remind us who God is! When we realize that we’re praying to our Healer, our Provider, our Peace - it takes the guesswork out of our prayers.

We’ve all had that lingering doubt when we pray for healing. We’ve all wondered whether God wants to heal our bodies or not. But when we realize that God calls Himself Yahweh-Our-Healer, we don’t have to finish our prayer with “if it’s Your will.” When we realize that God is Yahweh Shammah - the-LORD-Is-There - we stop asking Him to “be with us” and “be with them.” He’s always there!

The key to answered prayer is faith in God. One of the keys to faith is knowing that God wants to do what we’re asking. And one of the keys to knowing what God wants is to find out Who He is. So these names are more than historical information - we can still know God in these ways today!

Barnyard Basics 3 - Dogs

Revelation 22:15 “But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie.”

For those of you who believe that your dog went to heaven when it died...relax! This verse isn’t referring to natural dogs, it’s talking about a specific group of people. The New Testament refers to “dogs” nine different times, and only once is it actually talking about four-legged creatures. Every other time it’s using a well-known natural thing to illustrate a spiritual concept.

Naturally speaking, dogs are domestic wolves.

Wolves and dogs are both classified as Canis lupus - the scientific name for the wolf. Dogs come in all shapes and sizes. Some of them are huge and some of them are tiny. Some of them have long fur and some of them are naked. Some of them are very useful and some of them are nothing more than lap warmers. But the one thing every dog has in common is their wolfish nature. Thousands of years of domestication has managed to suppress their wild side, but it’s still there! Many times stray dogs begin to group together and form packs. When this happens, their behavior and hierarchy becomes identical to wolves.

Dogs can be friendly, playful and even lovable - but when they’re backed into a corner, it doesn’t take long for that wolf to come to the surface. It’s estimated that there are around 30 million dog attacks every year in the United States, with 850,000 of them seeking medical attention and about 30 of them fatal. Clearly, some dogs are as vicious as others are useful and friendly.

Spiritually speaking, the Bible calls unbelievers dogs.

Can they be friendly? Absolutely. Can they be lovable? Sure! Can they help the church? Many times. They come in all different shapes, sizes, and behaviors. Most of them are actually good people. Society’s laws and rules have suppressed the wickedness of humanity. But only salvation can change their nature.

Until a person is born again, their wolf nature will always be there. Watch what happens when the rule of law is taken away - people become savage. When people form groups, otherwise harmless individuals become vicious.

Sometimes people in the world try to improve themselves. They try to attend church, try to increase their knowledge, try to become good - but they can never get rid of their internal wickedness. All their efforts are like a dog trying to suppress its inner wolf. No matter how they try, they can’t change who they are. Only Jesus can do that.

Pastors can tell when they have a dog in the church by watching their attitude toward holy things. Matthew 7:6 says, “Do not give what is holy to the dogs.” Why? Because dogs don’t understand or appreciate holy things.

That’s why worldly churches are trying push the Holy Spirit out the back door. Unbelievers (even religious unbelievers) don’t understand the holy things He does. When the Holy Spirit takes control of a church service, the dogs are the first to be offended. I believe this: as God continues pours His Spirit on the true church, the dogs are going to find other places to attend. Worldly churches may be growing in number - but I’m curious whether their congregations are made up of true sheep or dogs.

In Biblical times, dogs were always outside. They weren’t clean animals, so the Jews would never let them into the cities. That’s the same picture used in Revelation 22:15 - “But outside are dogs”. Dogs aren’t able to enter God’s Kingdom. Until they change, until they have a genuine salvation encounter with God, they will always be on the outside looking in. Sadly, if they refuse to change in this life, their eternal fate can never change. Spiritual dogs and spiritual wolves share the same destiny.

No matter how religious the person may be, this truth remains the same - you were born with a wolf nature, so you must be born again!

Barnyard Basics 2 - Savage Wolves

Acts 20:29-30 “For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves.”

In this passage, Paul is referring to a natural creature to describe a spiritual type of person. We’ve already learned what sheep are - now we’re going to find out about wolves.

Naturally speaking, wolves are one of the domestic sheep’s worst enemies. They are vicious and opportunistic predators. Wolf packs have a clear hierarchy and alpha wolves dominate by strength. Cooperating together with clear strategies, wolves try to separate the weak from the strong.

Paul calls this type of people savage. They don’t care about the sheep - all they're interested in is what they can take from them. They “speak perverse (twisted) things to draw away disciples.” Wolfish people are those who are directly and purposely opposed to God’s sheep - or more accurately, God's shepherds. After all, the spirits that drive these predators know this concept..."strike the shepherd and the flock scatters."

Some wolves hunt from outside the flock. They are the people you hear on the TV mocking and blaspheming our Shepherd. They’re heard every week in college classrooms as they ridicule the lone sheep who dared to stand out. They’re even attacking the flock from the podiums of our government, trying to shame believers out of their faith. These attacks are easily seen but still effective far too often.

Jesus knew that there were wolves in the world. He knew that there would be people that violently oppose and seek to prey on His flock. He warned us in Matthew 10:16 and Luke 10:3 that there would be times when His sheep would be surrounded by wolves! But according to John 10:12-14, our Shepherd will never leave us alone in those situations! Follow Him, and it will ultimately work out for your good!

There are other wolves that are more dangerous. Jesus describes them in Matthew 7:15, “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.” According to Jesus, some wolves disguise themselves as sheep. They infiltrate the flock, often going unnoticed by the sheep. But listen to me - these people are not confused about their identity! These are not wayward believers, they’re not saints living in sin, and they’re not mistaken leadership. These are not sheep. They have no connection to the Shepherd at all!

You can hear the howling when a so-called “christian” professor wonders out loud if the book of Genesis is true or not. You know you’re dealing with a wolf when a preacher tries to distort God’s commands to give credibility to sin. You’re being attacked by a wolf when a congregation member tries everything they can to separate you from your flock! Don’t be deceived!

Their goal is the same as any other wolf, to “draw disciples after themselves.” Their method is also the same, “speaking perverted things.” The only difference between the wolves outside and the wolves inside is the sheep disguise. Wolves in sheepskin hide their fangs inside spiritually-sounding words.

Every sheep needs to understand something, wolves only want to eat! They don’t twist God’s Word by mistake. They are trying to scatter the flock (according to John 10 :12). They can be false religions and militant atheists attacking from the outside, or they can be liberal theologians and slick-sounding preachers on the inside - but they’re both trying to steal your very life.

Wolfish teachings must be openly opposed! You can’t play games with a wolf. You can’t sit down and talk with them, hoping that they mean well! If someone is twisting the gospel of Jesus Christ to draw people out of their flock, you cannot stay with them! Your spiritual life depends on staying with the Shepherd and following His voice!

Barnyard Basics 1 - Sheep And Goats

John 10:11-16 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep. I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own. As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd.”

We all know that Jesus is the Good Shepherd. We recite Psalm 23 over and over again - “the LORD is my Shepherd, I shall not want...” Everyone claims that He is their Shepherd - but the Bible is very clear that not everyone is a sheep. In fact, Jesus teaches about some people who are sheep, some who are goats, some who are pigs, some who are dogs, and some who are wolves. These are five spiritual types of people - and they each have defining characteristics.

First of all, if you want to be one of His sheep, you have to line up with Leviticus 11:3. That is you have to have a split hoof and you have to chew the cud.

Remember, everything in the Old Testament is a picture of the New. And the Bible will interpret itself! So what does split hooves have to do with us? Every time the Bible talks about a person’s foot, it’s referencing their walk, their way of life and their destination. If you want to be one of Jesus’ sheep, you have to have a split hoof - that is, a separated walk. We call this salvation.

When you were saved, you were taken out of the world. Your life is now separated from this world’s system - divided, if you will. Now you have a different walk, a different way of life, and a different destination! If you were born again, congratulations! You are halfway to becoming one of Jesus’ sheep!

The other half is chewing the cud - this has to do with your diet. Every believer should have a diet of God’s Word. That is our only source of spiritual food! If you’re not feeding on God’s Word, you’re starving yourself!

You see, sheep have a very unique way of eating. I’ll spare you the details, but give you enough to illustrate the point! Sheep are constantly chewing their food. Whenever they have a moment of rest, they bring it back up to chew it over again! Disgusting? Sure! But there’s a valuable lesson here. Chewing the cud isn’t just reading God’s Word, it’s meditating on it! It’s thinking about it continually. Whenever you get a chance, your mind goes right to the Word of God! That’s what makes a person one of Jesus’ sheep!

But wait a minute! There’s another animal that Jesus talks about that has both of these characteristics! Goats have split hooves and chew the cud too! In fact, goats and sheep are nearly identical. They’re so similar to each other that casual observers often have problems sorting them out. But according to Matthew 25:31-33, you don’t want to be a goat. “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left.” (a place of dishonor and rejection)

What’s the difference? What separated the sheep and the goats? Using the same symbolism, we can see that the goats are believers, as well as the sheep. They both have separated lives (split hooves), they both meditate in God’s Word (chew the cud) - what makes them different? In a word - behavior.

The dividing factor in Matthew 25 is their obedience. The sheep’s love for Jesus caused them to care for each other. The goats thought they were serving Jesus, but neglected their brothers and sisters. It was all about obedience. Every believer knows that we’re commanded to love each other. Rebellion is the sole reason that the goats in this story ignored their brothers and sisters.

I believe that Jesus was referring to goats again in Matthew 7. He said in verse 21-23, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!” Can you see it? These are believers that call Jesus “Lord” but don’t do what He says!

That is the defining attribute of sheep and goats. John 10:27 repeats this concept; “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.” When a shepherd took his sheep out for pasture, he would walk in front of them and talk and sing. The sheep would recognize the shepherd’s voice and follow along. That is the sheep’s nature, to follow!

Goats, on the other hand, have to be driven. You won’t see a goat herder walking in front of the goats. They have to go behind and drive them. Goats are rebellious and independent. They’re often running away and getting into trouble. The nature of goats is to do their own thing! Sound like anyone you know?

A lot of people claim to be one of Jesus’ sheep, but not everyone qualifies. First of all, they must be born again - that rules out those in the world. Then they have to meditate on God’s Word - that rules out worldly Christians! Most importantly, they have to submit and follow the Good Shepherd - that rules out rebellious believers!

Thankfully, if you’re not already, you can still become one of His sheep. Just follow Him! Just stay in His Word and do what He says. Then, and only then, does this passage apply to you:

The Lord is my shepherd;
   I have all that I need.
He lets me rest in green meadows;
   he leads me beside peaceful streams.
He renews my strength.
He guides me along right paths,
   bringing honor to his name.
Even when I walk
   through the darkest valley,
I will not be afraid,
   for you are close beside me.
Your rod and your staff
   protect and comfort me.
You prepare a feast for me
   in the presence of my enemies.
You honor me by anointing my head with oil.
   My cup overflows with blessings.
Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me
   all the days of my life,
and I will live in the house of the Lord
   forever.

Psalm 23 only applies to His sheep!