ITCZ 101 - Wise As A Serpent

When Jesus was sending out the 12 disciples to deliver the message that the Kingdom of Heaven was at hand to the people in the surrounding regions, He gave them a detailed plan. The plan was summarized with the following scripture.

Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves. - Matthew 10:16 KJV

We'll tackle the phrase, "be wise as serpents," first. We'll follow up with a post on being harmless as a dove. So let's kick off with a quick word study, looking closely at the word "wise" and "serpent."

Wise - Thoughtful, Sagacious (Having or showing acute mental discernment and keen practical sense; shrewd), Discreet.

Serpent - From a word meaning, through the idea of sharpness of vision; a snake, figuratively, as a type of sly cunning or specifically Satan. From G3700, G3708

A Focused Vision

Let's see what we've got. First, we need to bring the wisdom of God to bear to do the work He has given us. The Word of God is where we acquire this information. Let's also think about our approach as well as "what" we say.

In that, we want to be thoughtful about our approach to the work the Lord has charged us with. The word, sagacious, indicates the ability to use our mind and develop our discernment and use these abilities in a practical way.

We also want to be discreet in an effort to keep those we encounter engaged and helping them to remain thoughtful as well.

Now being wise as a serpent almost sounds like getting off track. A quick review of the word serpent seems to indicate that we are to be one who has a vision. Not just any vision, but a sharp vision!

Think of it as a developed and highly tuned vision. It's the vision that is laid out in our scriptures that God has given us... given you!

God has a plan. It's a plan you can know. It's a plan that has you in mind as a son/daughter of God. He has a vision and mission that is yours.

Think Bigger... No, BIGGER!

This vision and mission the Lord has for you has many aspects to it that you may not have previously considered. We think about the things we need to do but we also need to think about how we prepare ourselves to do that work.

There is a preparation phase that generally gets skipped. This preparation is a renewing of your mind. You can think of it as a development of your vision and mission that galvanizes your heart to do the work.

God's plan is for you to know Him and be like Him. So to prepare to do the work let's begin to think like Jesus thinks so we can be efficient and effective. Let's become the expert follower of Christ we were designed to be.

Getting In The Cool Zone

Getting in the cool zone is simply a way of saying let's prepare to do the work the Lord has given us... and not to just do the work, but to excel at it!

We start with the mind. We want to prepare our mind for work. We want to think like Jesus thinks. Then as we grow in our thinking we can more effectively deliver the Gospel and teach what we have learned.

We were never asked to renew our emotions. We were commanded to renew our mind. I call that, thinking like Jesus thinks.

Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. - Romans 12:2 NLT

Just One Good Place To Start

Get in the cool zone! Please take the time to review the short articles in our Table of Contents to begin or even continue the process the Lord has started in you.

Don't act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do. - Ephesians 5:17 NLT

Maybe you would like to adopt our vision here at In The Cool Zone and join us in our mission. Are these things something that you can hang your hat on?

Vision Statement
Delivering the Gospel at every opportunity and wisely creating opportunities where they are not readily apparent while teaching and developing fortitude in new and inexperienced Christians.

Mission Statement
The mission is to equip people with the spiritual information that they need most to provide them the best opportunity to make good life decisions, understand God's plan for them and live a peaceful, productive life in the Lord.

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Take Action!

How are you learning and developing yourself in the vision and mission God has put on your heart?

Find out what God is doing and you will understand what you are supposed to do.

Please, add your thoughts in the comment section.

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