Bottom line up front (BLUF): Lambs in the Midst of Wolves

Text: After this the Lord appointed seventy-two^[a] others and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go. ² And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. ³ Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. ⁴ Carry no moneybag, no knapsack, no sandals, and greet no one on the road. ⁵ Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace be to this house!’ ⁶ And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest upon him. But if not, it will return to you. ⁷ And remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they provide, for the laborer deserves his wages. Do not go from house to house. ⁸ Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you. ⁹ Heal the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ ¹⁰ But whenever you enter a town and they do not receive you, go into its streets and say, ¹¹ ‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet we wipe off against you. Nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near.’ ¹² I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town. (Luke 10:1-12, ESV)

Context: This is where the Lord Jesus Christ sends out the 72. They were to bear witness to Christ, the truth. But Jesus told them something very, very important. It was an image they’d track with, something they saw regularly—sheep and wolves. Jesus tells them, “I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves” (Lk 10:3, ESV). Why did Christ use that metaphor? Well, because the forces that hate the truth are like wolves; they’re out to devour. To quote Jesus’s words to Nicodemus, “the people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil” (John 3:19, ESV). See Christ’s consistent teaching? Be wise, be discerning, be alert to the wolves. Again, and again, and again, his teaching emphasizes this.

Encouragement: If you’re perhaps like I am, you have sung great hymns of the faith like “Amazing Grace” and “How Great Thou Art” and “It Is Well” hundreds of times in your life. I certainly have. But do we believe what those hymns teach—things like that we sinners are “wretches” who are saved via God’s amazing grace; that “God, His Son not sparing, sent Him to die”; and that “Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come, Let this blest assurance control, that Christ hath regarded my helpless estate, and hath shed His own blood for my soul”?

That’s the reason for the seriousness of understanding Christ’s teaching about wolves, and how God’s people are sent out as lambs in the midst of them. We’re to recognize the battle lines; we’re to understand the war into which we are commissioned by the Lord; we’re to see why the imagery of wolves and sheep pervades the Bible and should therefore fill our minds. Why? To teach us that the battle is not ever won by us. We’re simply sheep. The battle was won by the Lamb of God, Christ the Lord. Our duty is fidelity to him. As Esther said, “and if I perish, I perish” (Esther 4:16, ESV). Ultimately, it’s faithfulness to the truth that conquers. All lies will be exposed in God’s time. Our job is just to trust the Lord and be faithful.