Matthew 7:6 Commentary and Bible Study

(Synoptics: Matthew 7:6) This is about what we say to people who are outside God’s kingdom. Although the subject changes here, this verse corrects any false interpretation of the previous five verses: they do not teach that we must never pass judgement on another; we cannot avoid giving what is holy to dogs or casting pearls before swine without making a judgment about those we speak to. There are judgments which can and must make be made by Christian people. We do this because we want every knee to bow to Christ and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, but those who mock the message are only encouraged to do so again if we give them more of its precious truths.Does this mean that there are times we should not preach the gospel, or that there are people we should not witness to? In general we have a very clear command to preach the gospel to the lost. Neither their opposition to the gospel, nor their persecution of the messenger is a reason for remaining silent, unless practical steps are needed to protect lives (John 7:1). The gospel is the only message that God has given us and has promised to use for the salvation of sinners. Its message cannot be watered down or modified in order to make it more acceptable. Paul continued to preach an unadulterated gospel even though he knew the offence it caused (Galatians 5:11). The evangelist must expose sin, and must preach Christ crucified as God’s only remedy for sin. Persecution for Christ’s sake is a cost we must be willing to pay without altering our message or denying the gospel (Matthew 10:32-33).Nevertheless Christ did not speak in the same way to all; neither did John the Baptist, nor the apostle Paul. Each took into account the nature of their hearers. When Christ spoke to the Pharisees (Matthew 23) he had a very different message than when speaking to the common people (Matthew 13). He remained silent before Herod (Luke 23:9) and did not answer Pilate (John 19:9). John the Baptist treated the Pharisees very differently to the genuine inquirers (Matthew 3:4-9). Paul spoke with much stronger warnings to the Jews in Rome (Acts 28:25-28). The lesson of the passage is that we should be discerning in what we say and should, Martin Lloyd Jones says, learn to discriminate between different type of person. We must do nothing to encourage irreverence towards God. Sadly, there are those will scorn the gospel, the more they hear of it. In their case, evil has developed a momentum of its own; they think they are getting somewhere in their rejection. There are times when continuing to speak only provoked further blasphemy. The greatest punishment they can receive is for God to cease to speak to them, and this is what they are asking for. Christ responded differently to the sincere enquirer, and to the hardened cynic. The rich young ruler was encouraged to leave all and follow Christ, while the hostile were reminded of the standards by which God will judge men. The more hostile people are, the more appropriate it is to speak of judgment. We must not be naïve, but must be on our guard. At times we will speak words encouragement, at others we will instruct and explain, at others we will warn and rebuke. Even when dealing with converted people the response is not always the same: Paul fed solid food to some and milk to others. In general, we are always trying to create a respect for the gospel, although we cannot avoid mockery altogether – Christ was mocked: ‘The soldiers also mocked Him, coming and offering Him sour wine, and saying, "If You are the King of the Jews, save Yourself”’ (Luke 23:36-37), and Paul also: ‘And when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked, while others said, “We will hear you again on this matter”’ (Acts 17:32).The image is so striking – pigs trampling pearls under their feet in the mud. Pigs are preoccupied with their stomachs and see no value in anything that is not edible. There is a whole world of things which have great value which they know nothing about. Pig nature means pig behaviour. They treat the attempt to put pearls in front of them as a provocation, an act of aggression, and so they are liable to take revenge on you. What you say when you are speaking about the gospel will depend on what value they set on the message. There is always a tendency of some to hate the message of the gospel so much that they turn on the messenger. The lesson here is that we should not behave in a way that makes us more likely to be attacked. It is painful to the believer to have the things they value most treated as if they were worthless.