Lambs Among Wolves

Do not answer fools according to their folly, lest you become a fool yourself.
--Proverbs 26:4

In today's gospel from Luke 10, Jesus laments that "the harvest is abundant but the laborers are few." So he appoints 72 'others' to head out to towns ahead of his visits to evangelize--to prepare the way. 

He warns that he is sending them "like lambs among wolves." Many, he knows, will not be receptive. In fact, they may be downright hostile.

For those who are not receptive, Christ advised his evangelists not to dwell on it. Rather, he tells them to shake off the dust of those places from their feet and walk away.

Today, God wants his world back. Those 72 'others' represent us. We are to go forth, like lambs among wolves, on a journey toward spiritual perfection that ends at the gates of heaven. Along the way, we are to try to persuade others to join us on the journey.

Many will react with indifference and hostility. In those cases, Jesus tells us not to engage them on their terms. If we do so, then, as the proverb suggests above, we risk becoming entrapped in their foolishness.

Instead, shake their dust from your feet and move on.