Being Christ's Witnesses In A Hostile World
Matthew 10:16-32
On January 4, 2026, Pastor Bipin
Bihari Naik from Odisha, India, was assaulted, publicly humiliated, and forced
to consume cow dung by members of a radical Hindu militant group. "Forcing
a person to eat cow dung is a grave act of violence and humiliation, targeting
an individual's dignity and faith," the Catholic bishops asserted. This
incident occurred when Naikk was attending a prayer meeting at a private
residence with his family and several others.
A mob of around 40 people reportedly
gathered outside the house and forcibly entered the premises. Pastor's wife,
Vandana, said, "The attackers began beating everyone inside the house. "Seven
families were praying with us. My children and I managed to escape through a
narrow alley and ran to the nearest police station," she said.
The mob beat
Pastor Naik with sticks and smeared red sindoor (vermillion powder) all over his face. He was then forced to wear
a garland made of slippers and paraded through the village. They bound his hands
behind a rod and tied him inside a Hanuman temple. He was bleeding badly.
People slapped him and forced him to chant 'Jai Shri Ram,' Vandana said.
Parjang village,
where this assault took place, is a Hindu-majority village with only seven
Christian families."[1]
You can only imagine the kind of hostility that was aimed towards Christ and
His followers. This was only one incident in a small village in India, but
there are thousands of hostile places where Christ's followers are diligently carrying
out their Mission of preaching the Good News. Jesus predicted this kind of
hostile environment long ago, yet He sent His followers to be His witnesses in
a hostile world. Matthew 10:16-32
I. We Are Called To Be Christ's
Witnesses
Up
until the 10th chapter of Matthew, we see Jesus preaching the Gospel
through signs and wonders and equipping his disciples with the Kingdom values.
Seeing the abundance of the harvest and the shortage of workers, he urged his
disciples to pray to the Lord to send workers into his harvest field. At times,
God may have you become the answer to your own prayers.
In Matthew Ten we see the beginning of an answer
to the prayer for workers. Matthew 10:1, "Jesus called his twelve
disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to
heal every disease and sickness." Vs 5, "These twelve Jesus sent out
with the following instructions." This calling was initially meant for the
twelve apostles and was later extended to all followers of Christ. Acts 1:8, "But
you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my
witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea,
in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." NLT.
The
Greek word Martus, translated as "witness," literally means
"one who remembers," "one who has information or
knowledge," or "one who can bring to light or confirm." That was
what the twelve disciples and the early Christians did: they shared with others
the miracles they saw Christ perform and the teachings they had heard. They
became the eyewitnesses of his violent death through crucifixion and glorious
resurrection, and His ascension into heaven.
The
calling of the universal Church, and every follower of Christ, is to be His witnesses
in this World. That is the calling of Hope Church, that we are to be telling
people everywhere about Jesus, beginning from Sharon, MA, and to the four
corners of the World. Please study the whole passage in Matthew 10:16-32 as it
addresses several themes. For our study, we will focus on the challenges we
face as Christ's witnesses and on how we can remain effective witnesses in a
world where many people are bent on harming God's People.
II. Being Christ's Witnesses In A
Hostile World.
Matthew 10:16-18 "I am sending you out like sheep
among wolves. Therefore, be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves. 17Be on your guard;
you will be handed over to the local councils and be flogged in the
synagogues. 18 On my account,
you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to
the Gentiles."
Can you imagine how the disciples may have reacted to that
unfriendly proposition? How many of us would like to be a sheep that was sent
among the wolves? You know it is not going to be pretty. You might get killed.
That's how it always has been. God sends His people, with His message of love,
into an unfriendly and, at times, even hostile environment. Yet He commissions
them to proclaim his message, even when people refuse to listen, as He did with
Isaiah. Is 6:8-10
Recently, we had Pastor Samuel Sarkar, who ministers in a
very hostile environment in India, visiting us. I said to him, preaching the
Gospel in Massachusetts is like preaching in Bihar, Northern India. Many people
here are secular, highly educated, wealthy, and successful, and they think they
don't need God. Jesus used two figures of speech to show us how we can be
effective witnesses in a hostile world: Wolves and Sheep, a Serpent and a Dove.
Wolves were intentional in killing the sheep; likewise, some
people who are influenced by Satan will kill God's people. Jesus also warned us
about wolves in sheep's clothing (false prophets), who are far more dangerous.
Matt 7:15
III.
Being Wise as Serpents and Innocent as Doves.
Matthew 10:16b, "Therefore, be
as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves." NIV. "Be ye therefore
wise as serpents, and harmless as doves." KJV. Jesus explains how the
disciples can keep themselves from being unwisely, unnecessarily, or untimely
killed while being his witnesses in a hostile world. We have to be as "wise
as serpents and innocent as doves."
Without attaching the
Edenic deception of the Serpent, Jesus invoked the real nature of these
creatures. The serpent was "subtle" or "crafty" or "shrewd"
in Genesis
3:1. The dove, on the other hand, was thought of
as innocent and harmless—doves were listed among the "clean animals"
and were used for sacrifices (Leviticus 14:22). To this very day,
doves are used as symbols of peace, and snakes are thought of as "sneaky.
When Jesus told the
Twelve to be as wise as serpents and harmless as doves, He laid down a general
principle about the technique of kingdom work. As we take the Gospel to a
hostile world, we must be wise (avoiding the snares set for us), and we must be
innocent (serving the Lord blamelessly). Jesus was not suggesting that we stoop
to deception, but that we should model some of the serpent's famous shrewdness
in a positive way. Wisdom does not equal dishonesty, and innocence does not
equal gullibility.[2]
Being witnesses for
Christ at times results in us being beaten up and paraded in the streets like
that pastor in Orissa. Or at other times, we might be brought before governors
and judges for sharing the Gospel with others. When that happens, let's not worry;
the Holy Spirit will help us know how to answer. It is not us who will be
speaking but the Spirit of God through us.
I suggest the
following: To be an effective witness, you need only three stories.
First, the Story of the World, which also includes the story of humanity. Their
origin, their purpose, and their destiny. Second, the story of God's redemptive
plan, including Christ's birth, work, sacrificial death, resurrection, and his
soon-coming return. The third is your story: how you came to experience God's
love, his forgiveness, and how your life has been changed for the better since
then. The first two stories you can learn from reading the Bible, and the third
one is your own personal experience. Do you have a personal story? Tell it
boldly and without any shame!
[1]
https://catholicconnect.in/news/odisha-pastor-assaulted-humiliated-and-forced-to-consume-cow-dung-by-mob
