I was talking to the Lord the other day, asking Him about all of the pain... the rejection, the helplessness, the failures, more... The biggest painful thing on my mind were the people who I had invested so much time and energy into who in the end, not only left me, but did vicious things to me as they left or after they left.
He said to me, "You are making ministry harder than it should be." In other words, the fact that it is so hard is greatly your own fault! Just what I wanted to hear!
As I contemplated what the Lord had said, the following scripture came to me.
Matthew 7:6 (NLT)
6 “Don’t waste what is holy on people who are unholy. Don’t throw your pearls to pigs! They will trample the pearls, then turn and attack you.
Here it is again in another version:
Matthew 7:6 (NKJV)
6 “Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces.
Wow! Since I had thrown my pearls to pigs and dogs, wasted what is holy on unholy people, I had reaped a reward of having them turn on me and tear me up!
So I inquired of the Lord further... "Aren't most people spiritual pigs and dogs?" "Yes." "Is it 50%?" "More." "Is it 75%?" "More." "Is it 90%?" "More." I stopped asking that and asked something else.
"Lord, if most people are pigs and I can't give them pearls, am I even supposed to minister to them?" He answered, "Yes!"
So pigs and dogs need ministry, but they need a different kind of ministry. They simply need the ministry of getting cleaned up. Of someone speaking the truth to them in love over and over again. Leading them to repentance and the processes which renew their minds. I saw a vision of spraying a "flock of pigs" with a fire hose.
So when does someone come to a place that I can give them pearls? Train them for leadership, teach them the deeper things, bring them into a greater place of trust, raise them up in the gifts and more? The answer is, once they stop behaving like pigs and dogs!
What is it that pigs and dogs do that the people of God are not supposed to do? The answer is found in the following scripture!
2 Peter 2:22 (NLT)
22 They prove the truth of this proverb: “A dog returns to its vomit.” And another says, “A washed pig returns to the mud.”
Dogs eat what they vomited out and pigs go back and jump into the mud! People go back to their sinful and empty ways! You will know who is serious by their fruit!
So from now on, until I see that someone has stopped rolling in the mud and going back to what they purged to partake again, I will take them as seriously for discipleship as they take themselves. If they aren't serious, then I can't be very serious about them. But if they are serious about walking according to God's Word, then I can seriously walk with them and invest my pearls into their life!
