Pearls

"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" (Matthew 7:6).

The text makes me think of a parable told later in the Matthew. "The kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it" (Matthew 13:45).

If we sell everything for the kingdom, then we don't take it lightly. We value it so much that we don't even like it to be spoken poorly of or jested about. While on one hand, we are "not ashamed of the gospel of Christ (Romans 1:16) on the other hand we realize that thereJesus said, "be wise as serpents and innocent as doves" (Matthew 10:16).

Not every moment is the right moment for talking about Christ. There are times when to speak of Him would be to throw our pearls to the pigs, but God sometimes prepares the way for the hearers to be receptive. is a time and a place to speak of it.

I once tried to witness to a hostel mate in London. She was immediately defensive so I changed the topic. Later that night, I woke up to some horrible groaning on her end. I asked her what was wrong, and she said she thought she was having an appendicitis. She was alone in the country so I offered to go with her to the hospital. So early on a Saturday morning I found myself catching a cab to a hospital with a complete stranger. I stayed with her for several hours--long enough to learn she had a kidney stone and hear her get reprimanded by a nurse for not drinking enough water.

I wasn't able to speak directly to her about the gospel, but I think that moment prepared her for the next Christian who could.

Not only should we not throw our pearls to the pigs, but we should be in the business of praying for the transformation of those "pigs" into creatures ready for pearls.