Persecution!

 Persecution

Persecution is an avoided subject in the Western Church!

“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is The Kingdom of Heaven. Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in Heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” Matthew 5:10-12 This is the last of the beatitudes from the Sermon on the Mount.

JESUS said throughout His Ministry that we would be persecuted, He said our enemies would come from our family, friends and the government. “Remember The Word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they keep My Word, they will keep yours also.” John 15:20 (study The Gospels).

Paul said, “But you have carefully followed my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, perseverance, persecutions, afflictions, which happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra-what persecutions I endured. And out of them all The LORD delivered me. Yes, and all who desire to live godly in CHRIST JESUS will suffer persecution.” 2 Timothy 3:10-12

Not everyone is called to live the good life (actually no one is called to live the good life that is taught in the Church today) Paul was called of GOD and shown what he had to suffer in his service to GOD, “But The LORD said to him (Ananias) ‘Go, for he (Paul) is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My NAME before Gentiles, kings and the children of Israel. For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My NAME’s sake.’” Acts 9:15-16 (Paul had a lot to say about persecution, study his letters).

“The worse things that happen are the best things that can happen.” Eric Metaxas said this during an interview with Mike Thompson, talking about coming persecution and increased evangelism by the Church. Persecution will increase as evangelism increases because the adversary hates salvation. As the Light of The Gospel increases so will the darkness of the anti-christ! “All that is dark is anti-christ!”, said Mike Thompson.

There is already much persecution of The Church in the earth today; countries like China and North Korea persecute all religions, especially Christianity. In most Muslim countries and in India Christians are persecuted. There are other countries where serious persecution of Christians takes place.

In the Western Church, especially in America the Church faces little persecution. But, this is coming to an end, as GOD is calling the Church to repentance and a return to evangelism, persecution will increase, as the dark gets darker the Light gets brighter.

The call for all Christians is to be ready to proclaim the Gospel and expel the darkness. We are commanded to “Be of Good Cheer”, “to Stand Strong”, to “Be Encouraged”, to “Gird ourself up, to “Be bold”. When the going gets tough the Saints turn to JESUS. We listen to His SPIRIT and study His Word and “Stand fast in the Liberty where CHRIST has made us Free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.” Galatians 5:1 Because, “I am crucified with CHRIST, nevertheless I live, yet not I but CHRIST lives in me and the life that I now live in the flesh, I live by Faith in The Son of GOD, Who Loves me and Gave Himself for me.” Galatians 2:20

No one says persecution is easy or desirable, but it is inevitable!

When persecution comes to our life what are we going to do?

Endure to the end like Paul? 2 Timothy 4:6-8

Kill ourself like Judas? Matthew 27:3-10

Quit like Demas? 2 Timothy 4:9-10

Get prideful like Diotrephes? 2 John vs.9

Matthew 10:27-31: “Whatever I tell you in the dark, speak in the light; and what you hear in the ear, preach on the housetops. And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him Who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s Will.But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.”

Romans 8:27-28, 35-37: “Now He Who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the SPIRIT is, because He makes intercession for the Saints according to The Will of GOD. And we know that all things work together for the good to those who love GOD, to those who are The Called according to His Purpose.” “Who shall separate us from The Love of CHRIST? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or perl, or sword? As it is written: ‘For Your sake we are killed all day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.’ Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him Who Loved us.”

2 Corinthians 4:7-11: “But we have this Treasure in earthen vessels, that the Excellence of the Power may be of GOD and not of us. We are hard pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed - always carrying about in the body the Dying of The LORD JESUS, that the Life of JESUS also may be manifested in our body. For we who live are always delivered to death for JESUS’ sake, that the Life of JESUS also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.”

Revelation 12:10-12: “Then I heard a loud voice saying in Heaven, ‘Now Salvation, and Strength, and The Kingdom of our GOD, and the Power of His CHRIST have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our GOD day and night, has been cast down. And they overcame him by the Blood of The Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. Therefore rejoice, O Heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time.”

“To this very hour we are both hungry and thirsty, dressed in rags and mistreated and homeless. We toil, working with our own hands. When we are cursed, we bless. When we are persecuted, we endure. When we are slandered, we speak kindly. We have become the scum of the earth, the dregs of all things - even to this moment. I do not write these things to make you ashamed, but to warn you as my dearly loved children.” 1 Corinthians 4:11-14.