The Ethics of Shrewdness
"I am
sending you out like sheep among wolves.
Therefore be as
shrewd as snakes
and as innocent
as doves."
Matthew 10:16
Youth With A
A Ministry
of YWAM (BC) Society.
August,
1997
The
Table of Contents
Introduction: Christian Survival in a
Marketplace of Moral Relativism
Innocent Shrewdness: Four Challenges
I. Shrewd to know the Challenges of
the Context
II. Shrewd to fulfill the Great
Commission
III. Shrewd in Judgment, Strong in
Character
Christ is the Ethical Agent in the
Marketplace
Jesus models Innocent Shrewdness
A Modern Model of Innocent Shrewdness
Biography of Christians in Business
Biblical Principles in Business
Ethics may be "in" ; but
"Christian" Ethics are definitely "out". In the late 1990's concern for corporate
social responsibility and for ethical decision making is a growing trend in our
culture.[1] At
the same time, Charles Colson of Prison Fellowship observes a increasing divide
between secular and non secular ideas of morality. On one hand, there is an obvious need for
accountability in public and private life.
On the other hand, postmodern culture has abandoned the Judeo-Christian
ethic as a means for that accountability.[2]
In the name of tolerance and moral relativism,
a new intolerance has arisen in society that shuts out ethical decision making
based upon a belief in absolute truth.[3] A pluralistic Society says, "Yes, we
need to have values, we need to have standards by which we can hold people
accountable, but we don't want a Christian belief system imposed on us!"
This is true in the
In this climate of intolerance to Christian
belief, the Christian in the
However, many unethical business practices
are considered to be shrewd business dealing such as bribery, cutting corners
or cheating to achieve the end result – success.[7] Although the sage in Proverbs does not
approve of the practice he acknowledges its effectiveness. "A bribe is a
charm to the one who gives it ; wherever he turns, he succeeds." (Proverbs 17:8)
If one is not "shrewd" in these
matters it commonly believed that one will not succeed or stay competitive in
business. Absolute ethics would restrict
this form of shrewdness in business decisions.
Thus a Christian's adherence to an absolute standard of morality is not
only seen as "religious fanaticism" it is also viewed as business
suicide.
Faced with this hostile environment, how is
a Christian in the
The purpose of this paper will be to
examine the ethics of shrewdness to discern a way that enables the Christian to
remain true to faith in Christ while at the same time maintaining relationship
with those who do not share that faith
and succeeding in the mission of business activity. Jesus anticipated the
In sending his disciples into the world, he
counsels them to be shrewd, even as a snake is shrewd. However, the question arises, how can Jesus
counsel his followers to be shrewd when it is well known that shrewdness
characterizes those who do business in wicked ways?
Other translations do not risk the negative
implications of the word "shrewd" so they translate the Greek word
"phronimos" to mean "wise" or
"prudent". For example in the
New King James Version, the verse is translated: "Behold, I send you out
as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as
doves."
"Phronimos"
is used 17 times in the New Testament and is mostly translated
"wise". (See Matthew
It is possible for the same word to have
similar uses in similar contexts but to be different in the actual
meaning. We know from Scripture that God
does not "tempt" his people to sin (James 1:12), (that is reserved
for Satan), but he does "test" them.(John 6:6) The Greek word for
"tempt" is the same as that for "test" but it has a
different meaning in these two instances.
So in this passage, Jesus uses the word "phronimos"
in a positive sense recommending it to his followers ; whereas, he uses it
in a negative sense in Luke 16:9 to describe the actions of the dishonest
steward.
Also, the balancing statement Jesus makes,
"but innocent as a dove" is an indication that more than prudence or
intelligent wisdom is indicted in the meaning of shrewdness. This condition qualifies the use of
shrewdness and points to a positive meaning of the word that is in contrast
with the usually negative understanding of "crafty" or
"cunning".
Thus if Christians are to survive and
prosper as "sheep in the midst of wolves" Jesus main advice to them
is to be shrewd, not as the world is shrewd, in a deceitful self interested
way, but shrewd in an innocent sense.
Let us examine some clues that will help
illuminate Jesus' positive exhortation to innocent shrewdness. The clues are discovered by looking back and
asking the question, What it the conjunction, "therefore," there for?
In doing so one discovers four challenges for positive shrewdness:
context ; commission ; character ; and community.
Jesus begins his statement in Matthew 10:16
with the word, "Behold". The
Greek for this word is "idou" which means
"see" or "behold".
What is Jesus pointing out to his disciples to see? I believe it is the context and the
conditions of the world in which they will conduct their ministry. The world will be a dangerous place (the reference
to wolves). They will face persecution,
(flogging in Matthew
Some religious people would espouse a form
of moral purity that would exclude Christians from participating in activities
and forming relationships that would tempt them to compromise. In our
consideration, for example, they would hold that business is intrinsically evil
and therefore Christians should not participate in profit making activities.[8]
Jesus knows that when Christians are sent
into the world, they will exist in an impure environment. He would not favor a form of moral purity
that avoids contact with the impurities of the world. Jesus himself lived in the
Jesus not only knew his followers would
have to exist in a sinful environment, he purposely "sent" them into
that environment. But before he sent
them he called them to consider where it was they were going. Christians that are naive and unprepared for
the shock of business activity in a corrupt
Secondly, there is a difference between
existing in a place and being sent to a place.
There is purpose in being sent.
Christ has a purpose for Christians to be in the world. Later, he warns his followers "But beware
of men, for they will deliver you up to councils and scourge you in their
synagogues. You will be brought before governors and kings for My sake, as a
testimony to them and to the Gentiles." (Matthew 10:17-18 NKJV) Christians are "sent" into the world
to be a testimony to the world, to confront the powers of the world with the
gospel, for Christ's sake.
Christians in the
Thirdly, it is
important to note WHO it is that commissions Christians into the world. Christ is the active agent who sends his
"ambassadors" into the world. (2 Cor. 5:20) They are sent to give testimony to him. They testify to him by displaying his
character in the world. The character of
wolves is to shrewdly hunt their prey and devour it. The character of Christ, the Lamb (sheep) of
God, is to lay his life upon the altar to save those he loves. Christ came into the world not to condemn it
but to save it. (John 3:17) So too,
Christians are in the
The character Christ calls his followers to
display is taught by him in the Sermon on the Mount. (Matthew 5-7) Christ calls his people to stand out,
"And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others?
Do not even pagans do that?" (Matthew
Under
the consideration of character, it is interesting to note that Aristotle
considered "phronimos" (shrewdness) the
chief virtue in ethical decision making. He understood it to be "good
judgment" that arose from sound character rather than rote application of
rules to specific problems.[9] Thus another aspect of innocent shrewdness is
wise judgment. This is judgment that arises from the character of Christ and
that seeks to win others to Christ through self sacrifice and service. While worldly judgment would wait for the
best time to maximize the greatest benefit to oneself, good judgment knows the
right time to act to make the most impact for Christ. It knows not to offend unnecessarily. It knows to wait until the right opportunity
presents itself to testify to the love of Christ.
The final clue to the understanding of
positive shrewdness is that of community.
Christ sends his people to be in the "midst" of the world. The
last place for sheep is in the midst of wolves.
Who ever heard of a shepherd who purposely allowed his sheep to graze
among wolves? Sheep are not well endowed
with natural abilities to defend themselves against wolves. In fact, in the animal kingdom, there is not
a better mismatch than a fight between a wolf and a sheep. One well placed bite on the inside portion of
the neck of a sheep and it bleeds to death almost instantly. How then could a sheep survive in the midst of
a pack of wolves?
Yet that is where Christ sends them. There is intention in that word picture. Christ intends us to be in the world.
Christians are not to function separately from the rest of their
community. The German Theologian
Dietrich Bonhoeffer chose to remain in
Thus the final aspect of shrewdness is that
of identification without being co-opted.
In the world it may be shrewd to ally oneself with others who share a
common goal and "network" to achieve that goal. As a Christian in the
In summary, Jesus counsels Christians in
the Marketplace to be "shrewd as snakes", but not shrewd as the world
is shrewd. Rather, Christians are shrewd to know, perceive and understand the
challenges of a corrupt
Let us consider one final note in
understanding Christ's exhortation. It
begins with the pronoun "I".
In the
Jesus sends his people into the world
knowing they will face the danger of persecution, but he does not leave them to
face it alone. He is with them as the
active ethical agent protecting them, equipping them and bringing about his
purposes through them.
Christ is also their example in the ethics
of shrewdness. Let us examine his response to the challenge of the "Herodians" whose master he had previously labeled a
"fox" (Luke
Later they sent
some of the Pharisees and Herodians to Jesus to catch
him in his words. They came to him and said, "Teacher, we know you are a
man of integrity. You aren't swayed by men, because you pay no attention to who
they are ; but you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. Is
it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not? Should we pay or shouldn't we?"
But Jesus knew their hypocrisy. "Why are you trying to trap me?" he
asked. "Bring me a denarius and let me look at
it." They brought the coin, and he asked them, "Whose portrait is
this? And whose inscription?"
"Caesar's ," they replied. Then Jesus said to them, "Give
to Caesar what is Caesar's and to God what is God's." And they were amazed
at him. (Mark 12:13-17 NIV)
Rather than avoid the question of taxes,
Jesus faces the challenge head on. He
understands the context of the question.
He knows the Pharisees are out to trap him. He knows that the tax burden on the people
was heavy. He knows that the people
considered loyalty to Caesar as disloyalty to God. Jesus is not naive about his context, neither
does he try and avoid it.
Secondly, Jesus knows why he is there.
"For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost." (Luke
Thirdly, even the Pharisee's acknowledge Christ's
character, as one of integrity, or wholeness.
But their appeal to moral purism, "not swayed by men" falls to
the ground, because Jesus knows their duplicity.
Fourthly, Jesus affirms the responsibility
of people in community. His answer,
"Give to Caesar what is Caesar's and to God what is God's" is a
shrewd answer that affirms the authority of human government while
acknowledging the obligations that we all have to God. Right relationship with both God and with men
is affirmed, rather than a self righteousness that pits one against the other.
Jesus models the ethics of shrewdness. "To the faithful you show yourself
faithful, to the blameless you show yourself blameless, to the pure you show
yourself pure, but to the crooked you show yourself shrewd." (Psalms
18:25-26 NIV) Christ responds in kind to
those who respond to him so should Christians in the
In application,
the best policy is prevention. A friend
of mine in the Real Estate business was attending a job interview for a sales
position. During the interview he told
his potential employer that he would never lie TO them, but as a consequence of
that personal standard of integrity he would also never lie FOR them. In doing so, he affirmed his loyalty to the
company and made them aware of the benefits of truthful employees, in return,
though he restricted what the company might require of him. This was done before he became an employee
and constituted a shrewd preventative action on his part to protect his
integrity while at the same time benefiting the company. Aware of this position, the company had the
choice to hire him on these terms or to forego his services and hire some one
with less scruples. By making this
statement prior to employment he was also avoiding the surprise and potential
offense that might occur when the company discovers his personal standard of
integrity.
My friends story is a modern example of
innocent shrewdness. He was aware of the
context and pressures of the Real Estate business especially when it came to
truthfulness. He had thought through the
issue before it confronted him He
understood his purpose in the
In conclusion, Christians in the
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