Beware The Wolves Series

A few weeks ago, a UPS driver came up to my door to drop off a package. As usual, my dog Napoleon started barking and going nuts. (He’s my mailman alarm system) So, when he started barking, I went into the front room and opened the door just enough to let myself out to receive the package, when all of a sudden, Napoleon burst through my legs, almost knocking me down, and charged toward the driver.

I’m telling you folks, I had never known Napoleon to act like this before, and it was scary. The driver kept the package between him and Napoleon, but Napoleon did bite him on the arm. I frantically got hold of my dog and got him inside the house, and then I immediately began apologizing and doctoring the driver’s wound. Thankfully, the bite wasn’t too bad to bleed, but it did break the skin and the driver wasn’t too upset, but he did have to report the incident to his superiors who then called me to check on Napoleon’s shot status.

Folks, I was terrified that the cops were going to show up to put Napoleon down, or at the very least that I might be called into court to answer for what he had done. But to my knowledge, it never went any further than my conversation with the driver’s supervisor. If he reported the incident to the local Sheriff’s office, all I know is that no one has come by to talk to me about it yet.

Now, I’m really sorry for what my dog did to that driver, and we’ve taken precautions to put him outside or in the bedroom before we open the door for deliveries. I’ve even thought about getting a “Beware of Dog” sign to put at the entrance of our driveway and in the window by the front door so we can make sure everyone is warned.

Beware signs are a good thing to have because I know that whenever I see one, I immediately pause, look around, and then proceed with caution and on the alert for possible danger. We all probably do the same thing or should, and so, that’s why I’ve titled this sermon “Beware the Wolves.” There are a lot of unscrupulous people out there who love to take advantage of people. They’ll lie in wait and pounce on you as soon as they see an opening. They’ll call you on the phone and pretend to be a niece or a nephew who had an accident and need money sent to them to stay out of jail, or they’ll use any number of other scams to steal your money.

But you know, there are also wicked people who pretend to be faithful ministers of Jesus Christ. Jesus called them “wolves” and He warned us against them in our text today.

Mat 7:15-23 "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. (16) You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? (17) Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. (18) A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. (19) Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. (20) Therefore by their fruits you will know them. (21) "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. (22) 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?' (23) And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'

They are ravenous wolves. Several years ago, we went up to Colorado for an Evans family reunion. All of Terri’s family showed up and we had a good time catching up with her brother’s and sister’s, niece’s and nephew’s. One day, we all drove way back into the mountains around Walsenburg and visited a place called Mission Wolf. It was a place where some hippies created a natural zoo of sorts for helping wolves recover from illness or injury. They also helped to relocate some wolves, and they took in several hybrid’s that people discovered don’t actually make good pets.

We learned a lot about wolves at Mission Wolf, and we even got to sit in an enclosure and let an unchained, unleashed, unmuzzled Ambassador pack walk all around us, and get up close and personal with us. Folks, if you have never let a wild, full blood wolf come nose to nose with you to smell your breath, then you’ve really missed out on an experience of a lifetime!