Words from the Rock
Not only that—count yourselves blessed every time people put you down or throw you out or speak lies about you to discredit me. What it means is that the truth is too close for comfort and they are uncomfortable. You can be glad when that happens—give a cheer, even!—for though they don’t like it, I do! And all heaven applauds. And know that you are in good company. My prophets and witnesses have always gotten into this kind of trouble.
Matthew 5:11–12 Message
Now, the sort of persecution Jesus describes in these verses is not the everyday variety. At least not in our country. Jesus was warning his followers that their persecution might be extreme and severe—they would be locked up, tortured, and even executed for their faith. And that’s just what happened. Since then, many more generations of Christians have gone through persecution. And in some countries it still happens today.
It’s hard to imagine that we could be persecuted for our faith like that in the United States, but if we were, we could be assured that God would bless us in a huge way. And we could also know that we wouldn’t be alone. In a very real sense, we’d have Jesus and all the others who have suffered for their faith standing alongside us, cheering and encouraging us as we remained firm in our commitment to God. Perhaps best of all, we’d know that we really belonged to God—because we’d be enduring the same kind of persecution as his own Son.
My Prayer
Dear God,
It’s hard to imagine that the world would ever change so drastically that I would be seriously persecuted for my faith. But if that’s ever the case, I pray that you would be my strength and that I would stand firm and remember you are standing right beside me.
Amen.
Final Word
But it is no shame to suffer for being a Christian. Praise God for the privilege of being called by his name!
1 Peter 4:16 NLT
Stone for the Journey
I’ll hang on tighter to God if the going gets really rough.