The Danger of Feeding Dogs and Pigs
Matthew 7:6
August 7, 2005
Introduction
Have you ever come across a verse or passage in Scripture that when you look at it, it just kinda makes you scratch your head and go, "Huh?" It’s okay, you can be honest.
Well, our passage today is one of those for me. I’ve read it before, many times in my 20+ years in being a follower of Jesus, but quite honestly, haven’t given it much attention before, because I couldn’t figure it out.
But preaching through this book has caused me to really study this like I’ve never done before. And I think that’s a good thing, how about you?
We’ve spent the last few weeks looking at the issue of judging - should we do it, how to do it in a way that does not put us in the same league as the Pharisees and religious hypocrites, and even how to be a bad judge.
And we spent a good deal of time looking at the first five verses of Matthew 7, where Jesus talks about judging, and making sure the log is out of your own eye before trying to clean out the speck from someone else’ eye.
And then comes this verse:
"Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces."
I’m of the opinion that Jesus had a purpose for everything he said. And he had a purpose for when he said it. In other words, I think Jesus said these words at this point in the sermon on the mount for a reason - they are connected somehow to his previous words.
And the task for today is show you that connection so we can better apply his words, especially in context with what Jesus just said about judging.
Because you see, the Bible isn’t just a collection of wise, religious sayings. It is a cohesive collection of books that describe the teachings of God, and how they impact the lives of his people. And so it’s very important that we look this verse in context.
So today I want us to look at three questions to help us grasp this passage. And my intention in addressing this is to help us become people of discernment - people of good judgment, especially as it relates to sharing the life-saving and life-changing news of Jesus Christ.
So let’s start by looking at the first question:
Who are the dogs and pigs?
Before I get into discussing just who Jesus was referring to, I want to take a moment to look at his choice of words.
The dogs and pigs of Jesus’ time were not quite what we think of today. We’re not talking Lassie and Miss Piggy here!
For instance, dogs weren’t the nice, domesticated puppies many of us have at home. In fact, no one kept dogs as pets then. The dogs of Jesus’ day were wild, feeding on garbage and road kill. And this is still the case for most of the dogs in the Middle East.
Dogs and pigs were viewed with contempt and repulsion, especially in the days of the Bible.
Pigs were considered unclean, and the ancient Jews were forbidden to eat them. No self-respecting Jew would go anywhere near a pig.
So knowing that background, what can we learn about the people Jesus is describing in this verse?
The first thing we can learn is that this passage is not about unbelievers in general.
There have been people in the past, who feel that Jesus was discussing all those people outside the family of God - unbelievers, and that this verse is a directive to not evangelize those who need Jesus.
But that’s not the case. All throughout the Bible, both in the Old and New Testaments, we are told that God loves everyone and wants all to come to know Him.
So who is he talking about? Well, based on this verse, I think we can see that the people Jesus is describing, these dogs and pigs, exhibit two main characteristics:
1. Treat the gospel with scorn and contempt.
"...they may trample them under their feet..."
You know, I’m just enough of an optimistic person that I think that most everyone who hears about Jesus would be glad. Know what I mean?
I mean, think about it. Who wouldn’t want to hear that their sins can be forgiven, no matter what and no matter how often, and that they can have a home in heaven for eternity instead of paying for sins in hell?
What’s not to like about that? Well, judging from the responses I’ve received from some people, plenty!
For many people the gospel represents all sorts of things they find contemptible. For some it’s the fact that we claim that Jesus is the only way to God. Lot’s of people find that idea repugnant and disgusting.
For others it’s the fact that the name of Jesus has been used to justify horrible acts against other people, like the Crusades, slavery, racial prejudice, or whatever.
For still others, the gospel represents an attitude of judgmentalism and intolerance that they don’t find in other religions.
And by the way, lots of other religions are just as "exclusive" as Christianity. Ask any Muslim if Christians will go to heaven or if the Bible is the Word of God. And they’ll tell you to forget it. Even Hindus and B’Hai followers are of the opinion that they’re right and everyone else is wrong.
The Bible and the good news of Jesus are ignored, scorned, and treated with contempt. And when you find someone who does this, then you need to recognize that this is the type of person Jesus is describing in this passage.
Pigs do not realize the value of pearls; all they know is that they cannot eat them, so they spit them out and then trample them into the mud. Contemptuous, evil people cannot grasp the value of the gospel, so they scornfully cast it away. (Life Application Concise New Testament Commentary)
Another characteristic of dogs and pigs is that they...
2. Treat the people of God the same way.
"...then turn and tear you to pieces."
It’s my honest hope that if you step out with courage to share the good news of salvation with someone that you never experience this.
I have, and it’s no fun, believe me.
You talk to someone because you’re concerned for their immortal soul, and they rip you to shreds, with an anger that would have seemed impossible before then, because you got along so well.
We were friends one minute, then enemies from then on. Why? Because I told them about Jesus.
I was gracious, and while I admittedly needed some help in people skills regarding how to let people come to Christ on their own time, I think I made it fairly obvious that I was truly and honestly concerned for them.
It hurts to get screamed at for telling them how they can get to heaven!
But you know what? That’s nothing compared to what’s happening around the world.
I’ve gotten yelled at. But at least nobody’s trying to kill me. I get anonymous "hate mail" at times (infrequently, thank God!), but nobody has threatened my family.
And I get ridiculed sometimes for my beliefs, but nobody’s taken me to a prison and tortured me for them.
Believers around the world right now are being abused by the dogs and pigs who not only treat the message of Jesus with scorn and contempt, but they treat the messengers with scorn and contempt as well.
But doesn’t this mean I have to judge people?
Yup. Jesus is saying we need to make a judgment call about people and their attitudes toward the good news. We need to be judges of their character.
Remember, Jesus does not condemn all judging. He says we’re to make right judgments, and that we are avoid being harsh and hypocritical judges who are unwilling to live by the standards we’re using to judge others.
This is critical in understanding this passage, because the basis of this verse is that we are to judge others.
How can we do that if Jesus doesn’t allow us to judge? You can’t. And that’s why it’s so important to understand the context of these words of Jesus regarding judging.
If you try to live by just verse one ("Do not judge, or you too will be judged."), then you cannot live by verse 6.
But when you understand what Jesus is really addressing in these verses in Matthew, then the passage can be applied as a whole.
W never want to be the kind of hypocritical judge Jesus condemns in the first part of verse 1, but we also need to be people who can discern who is willing to honestly consider the good news of Jesus without treating it with contempt.
Folks, think about something for a minute. God is holy. His Word is holy. His message is holy. And we are not to give the holy to those who would treat it in an unholy manner.
Does that make sense? Let me ask you this: would any of you take your Bible, rip out the pages, and use them to clean your toilet? I hope not! That would be a profane use of your Bible.
But entrusting holy things to dogs and pigs would be tantamount to doing just that.
That brings us to the last question we’re going to look at today, and that is...
How should we respond to them?
1. Walk away from the conversation.
I mentioned my optimism about sharing the good news with people. I simply expect them to want what Jesus is offering.
But in those instances where they not only don’t want what Jesus is offering, but they treat the message or me with contempt, all I can do is walk away from the subject.
I simply have to decide that this topic is dead, unless they bring it up again. I don’t want to open Jesus or his message up to scorn and contempt.
This doesn’t mean that I sever my ties with such people. I just don’t discuss Jesus or my faith with them.
However, if they do bring it up, the question I have to ask is this: "Are you seriously wanting to discuss this, or are you just looking for a reason to make fun of me?"
If they’re serious, then we talk. If not, then we don’t. But this leads me to the next action we can take toward them, and that is to..
2. Pray for them.
A few years ago, I gave a message based on Jesus’ parable of the sower: where a guy throws seed on four different types of soil, and each type of soil represented four different types of people - those whom the message of Christ doesn’t penetrate, those who believe but fall away when trouble or persecution comes, those who believe but the worries and priorities of the world choke the Word out of someone, and those who hear the Word, retain it, and produce a wonderful crop of life, love, and service for Christ.
And in that message, I shared my belief that anyone can be changed into the good soil. They can start off by being the rocky soil of unbelief, and God can work in that person’s life to bring them to the point of being a fruitful believer in Christ.
Well, I also think that God can change people from being dogs and pigs into gloriously saved children of God!
Here are some things to pray for them:
* That God would open their eyes to recognize the truth of Jesus and soften their hearts to accept it.
This happens all the time! Some of the greatest stories you will ever read are about those who had spent considerable time persecuting people, either by making fun of them, or by hurting them physically through arrest, abuse, torture, and even murder.
Then somehow, the message gets through their brains, and they surrender to Christ.
There’s even at least one rather high-profile case of that happening in the Bible. Any guesses as to who that is? Paul.
Another thing you can pray is that...
* That God would put people into their path that they will listen to.
I came to the conclusion a long time ago that there were some people who will simply not listen to me anymore. For some it’s because I bugged them too much earlier, especially when I was in college and didn’t know how to just let people walk away.
For others, they’ve just put up a wall to the message, as long as it’s coming from me. It may be a personality difference, or something like that.
And there are still others who won’t listen to me, simply because I don’t fit into their culture and can’t relate to them on a real deep level.
And so I pray that God will bring someone else into their lives. And you know what? He does it. Believe me, I’ve seen it.
And here’s a third thing you can pray:
* That you will be able to see the fruit of your prayers.
For those I’m unable to reach for one reason or another, I pray that not only will they come to find and accept the truth of Jesus someday, but I pray that they’ll contact me so I can share the joy of their newfound faith in Christ.
You know, there is wonderful joy in knowing that someone you shared the gospel with once has finally made that choice to believe and follow Jesus.
I can’t describe it to you. You have to experience it for yourself. So pray for it.
But whatever you do, don’t give up hope. God is still God, and he’s still moving in the earth and in the lives of people.
No one is beyond the hope of God. Ask the murderers who have been saved, and are not living for Jesus in prison and leading others to Christ.
People who by the looks of them, and based on their prior lives would have no hope. But they heard the good news and the Holy Spirit spoke to them. And they came to Christ.
How do we respond to the dogs and pigs? Walk away from the conversation, and pray for them.
Conclusion
Let me just spend a few closing minutes giving you some bottom-line stuff about judging, okay?
First, harsh hypocritical judging based on spiritual arrogance is wrong. Period. We are not above sin and error. We need to make sure that we’re striving to have our own eyes cleared out as we seek to help others clean out their eyes.
Yet, we are called to judge in Scripture. We are to judge actions, attitudes, lifestyles, and all sorts of stuff, and yes, even people.
But the correct measure for those judgments has to be the Bible, not the whims and acceptance of society. Because it’s by the Bible that you will be judged.
When you use the Bible as the measuring stick, then what’s happening in most cases is that God is the one making the judgments, not you. You’re simply communicating the judgments.
I say, "in most cases," because it’s very easy to use your own personal preferences or to make the Scriptures "fit" your judgments rather than making your judgments fit the Scriptures.
And lastly, with judgment, we also need to remember grace. It’s not enough to pronounce judgment - we need to pronounce grace.
"Yes, that’s sin. But Jesus died for that sin, and he wants to forgive you and free you from it."
Folks, you have to look at the whole counsel of Scripture regarding these things. Don’t quote one verse and hope that’s the end of it. That only leads to error.
How many here are ready for me to be done talking about this whole "judging" thing? I tell you what -I’m sure ready to be done with it, that’s for sure!
But I think these past few weeks have been good for us to really take a look at what judging really is - for better or for worse.
We need to be people who aren’t self-righteous hypocrites who condemn others based on our own preferences, but we also need be people who exercise good judgment - applying Biblical thinking and Biblical principles to what we encounter in life.
