This is a chapter from the book The Character of Creatures: What the Animal Kingdom Teaches Us About God and His Word.
False Teachers – The Wolf
Wolves are scary creatures, especially if you meet a hungry
pack! While some people raise wolves and these pets can be nice, the vast
majority of wolves would rather eat you.
The Bible contains no lack of warnings against the dangers
of false teachers:
Her princes in her midst are like
wolves tearing the prey, shedding blood, destroying lives to get dishonest
gain. ~ Ezekiel 22:27
Discussion:
1.
It has been said that people only want something
from you, or you are in the way of what they want. This is the perfect
description of the wolf, they want to eat the flock, and they want the shepherd
out of the way so they can dine in peace. Read Romans 12:10 and Philippians 2:3
and consider how the Christian is called to be different than a wolf.
2.
Jesus says that wolves can disguise themselves
as sheep (Matthew 7:15–16); how could you tell a real wolf apart from a real sheep?
How can you tell a spiritual wolf apart from a spiritual sheep? Will you always
be able to tell the difference at a glance?
3.
Does Jesus not know that the world is a very
dangerous place full of wolves? Why does he send us out as lambs into such
danger? For one reason, he is showing that he is both the lamb who was slain
and the good shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep. Can you think of
any other reasons? Romans 8:35–39 gives a hard, but good, answer.
The pastor ought to have two voices: one for gathering the sheep, and another for warding off and driving away wolves and thieves. ~ John Calvin
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