Thinking Biblically About Persecution

I’m gong to give you 7 principles this morning to help you think biblically about persecution. That’s what this next section is nearly entirely about. Jesus is still instructing his disciples about what to expect before He sends them out.

Jesus wants us to be dependent like sheep.

Sheep are such an interesting analogy for the victorious church, because sheep have no ability to attack anything at all and win. Sheep are weak. Sheep run from wolves, if they can even see them through all the wool covering their eyes. Sheep are vulnerable. And here Jesus tells the Apostles plainly…I’m sending you out as sheep among wolves.

This is part of God’s plan, brothers and sisters…that at any time, danger may be lurking, and a wolf ready to pounce.

God wants your dependency to be upon him. Our readiness for all things in this life is to be found in our dependence on God, reliance on the One who is greater and stronger. He has wisdom to give us that is not from this world.

Do you remember what David prayed to God in Psalm 23 “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.” We are to be aware of this…that the enemy is often about us, and God may permit persecution at times, yet in His presence there is peace.

So he instructs them to be wise as serpents and innocent (harmless) as doves.

2. Seek the Lord for wisdom and uncompromising holiness.

In no way does Christ permit us to compromise holiness in our endeavors to win souls. When might we be most tempted to compromise on this? When attacked in any way…when wrongfully treated…we may lose self-control and lash out, become bitter, hateful, and even worse - harmful.

But the dove is harmless, and the serpent cunning.

We can be both.

We can use intellect and wisdom from God, especially in times of trouble, but let’s not compromise holiness.

Who else does the dove symbolize in the Gospel’s? The Holy Spirit.

As they went out to spread the Kingdom, they were to expect trouble, but continue to walk in godliness.

3. Whether living or dying, be a testimony before all.

v17 and 18 Jesus instructs them to be aware, not to be paranoid, but aware. To attend to ones self. To take care....

Jesus wanted them to keep this in the back of their minds, that some would hate their message, and as a result they would stand before rulers, religious leaders, and even gentiles, and the result in their case could be arrest or flogging - the Jewish leaders couldn’t enforce much beyond flogging, but then they could be handed over to Rome for greater punishment...so yes, he wanted them aware of all this.

But what seems to be the point of telling them this? Not to scare them…Jesus is saying that this is where their faithful witness will carry them. We know this happened after the resurrection and on into the first century, because Luke and Paul record much of it for us.

One example out of many is Acts 16:20-24 “These men are Jews, and they are disturbing our city. They advocate customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to accept or practice.” The crowd joined in attacking them, and the magistrates tore the garments off them and gave orders to beat them with rods. And when they had inflicted many blows upon them, they threw them into prison, ordering the jailer to keep them safely. Having received this order, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.

There are many accounts that we read like this. All the Apostles, minus John, are believed to have died as Martyrs in various ways. But the overwhelming sense that we get from Scripture is their witness to the goodness of Christ. Even in the account we just read, Paul and Silas’s witness got them beaten and thrown in prison, where they meet a certain jailer, who also hears the Gospel, and his entire household gets saved and baptised.

Judging by the rest of Scripture, it’s much harder to live for Christ than it is to die for him. We are not instructed to die for him. That’s what Allah demands from Muslims. Our Saviour died for us, so that whether we live or die, we do it as unto the Lord, and for His glory, knowing that we are His and have eternal life. It is not required that every Christian die for Christ. Most won’t have to. But the Church would be built upon this foundation, the blood of the Apostles, and the martyrs who saw Christ, and went to their graves proclaiming Him so that we, 2000 years later, could hear about it too.

4. Your Father will give you the right words, in the right way, at the right moment.

Here’s a specific area they were instructed to not prepare for, other than the understanding that it could happen. This is different than other situations. I prepared for this sermon, because I was not planning on receiving persecution from any of you. If that were to change, I’ll probably go off script.

But think about the reasoning here. Jesus is telling them about the seriousness of persecution, which they are to be aware of - but what He’s saying is - leave the words to me in that moment when you are on trial for my sake.

I think of Moses and Aaron before Pharoah. I think of Shadrack, Meeshack, and Abednego as they stood before the furnace about to be thrown in, and Paul before Agrippa and Festus. God is with His people and gives the words when it is needed.

Just as he knows what you need before you ask Him, your heavenly Father will provide the words for you in the moment you need it.

You may never experience a moment like this. Remember…this was written for our sake, but it was spoken to the Apostles from the mouth of Jesus. Nonetheless…the principle stands that we rely on Christ for what to say when/if persecution comes.

We have the record of many of the last words of Christian Martyrs - One very famous one is Polycarp in the 2nd century while he was tied to a stake to be burned. “Lord God Almighty, Father of your beloved and blessed Child Jesus Christ. I bless you that you have thought me worthy of this day and this hour, that I may be able to share in the number of the martyrs, to drink from the cup of your Christ, that I may rise and live forever, body and soul, in the incorruption of the Holy Spirit. May I be admitted with those martyrs to your presence this day, as a welcomed and acceptable sacrifice. You have made my life a preparation for this; you let me see that this was to happen, and now you have brought it to pass, for you are the true and faithful God.”

I think it’s important to take note that not all persecution leads to the death sentence. Many live under that reality in places of the world, and everywhere that this is the case, there is a vitality of faith in Christ that we do not often see here.

A man by the name of Witness Lee, who was a protege of the famous Chinese pastor, Watchman Nee…said this...

“The biggest problem today is that it is hard to find any wounds or scars in most Christians. Most of us do not have any wounds, scars, marks of death, or experiences of the cross.” - Witness Lee

Now, nobody should get offended here. This is not saying that you’ve not gone through hardship in other ways. But there’s a difference between hardship because of sin, and hardship for the name and sake of Jesus.

Now, a person can trust the sovereignty of God if He chooses the place where someone is born to be a place that receives less persecution. People who try to shame Christians for not being persecuted more are out of line…but brothers and sisters, let’s not be unaware of the idol of ease and comfort, and fail to bring ourselves daily to cross of our dying savior who told us that unless a person is WILLING to deny themselves, and bear a cross to live a life of sacrifice, then that person CANNOT be His disciples.

v21-22

5. When you count the cost and follow Christ, be prepared for deep divides.

Jesus was preparing them to be hated. That hatred could lead to death. The disciples needed to know that this level of persecution was possible, even in those places that God designed to bring comfort and stability, the home and family. I believe this is something we’ve seen to some extent too, that families can and will be divided because of the Gospel.

The Gospel heals families, and it breaks families. It heals marriages, and it breaks marriages. It can unite child and parent, and it can sever their bond.

If there are to be these kinds of divisions in your family, may it be for the name of Christ - We remember the beatitudes?

“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.”

Yes, the good news of Jesus brings division. It won’t always heal, and God sometimes intends that through our message there are lines that will be drawn, our faith will be tested, and grace will be given to His sheep in that hour of need.

We don’t try to divide. Simply stand on the Gospel, and watch God work. If he’s not saving their souls, then He’s sanctifying yours through whatever hardship you face.

The only explanation for the fact that such good news can divide such important relationships is that Jesus Christ really is the King, and when He comes into a life, and wakes it up to the truth, and someone begins following him, it means a full abandon of the sin he or she once loved. There is no middle ground, and this threatens those who love themselves, and hate Christ and His Word. Jesus didn’t say, follow me unless your family isn’t onboard with it. Count the cost, and follow Him, because the peace he brings to those who trust in Him is greater than any temporal peace you might be able to maintain here.

Brother turning on brother. Father turning on his children…children turning against their own parents to have them put to death, all because of the name of Jesus. Jesus is preparing them for the worst, but not without giving them hope. So he says, the one who endures to the end will be saved.

6. Persecution will not last forever.

Jesus just told them that there is an end to these things. God determines that end. The shorter seasons of suffering we face, and all the sufferings of this life in general, WILL come to an end. He does bring peace, and we SHOULD pray for peace. We pray for it in revivals and awakenings. We pray for it in our homes, and at our jobs, and we trust that God wants to bless us - but we also pray for it in an ultimate sense, fully relying on God, and remembering that this life is temporary, and those things that are eternal matter more.

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. 17 For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, 18 as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

And lastly...

7. Remember Jesus Christ, our Master and Teacher.

Here Jesus simply reminds them that He, too, will be persecuted. When or if persecution of any level comes upon you, and you think to yourself, why would God allow this…remember Christ. Remember that you are not above your Master. Jesus suffered the greatest extent of persecution. The people of Israel, his own people, maligned his name and his mission, accusing him of being Beelzebub.

Remember Christ as teacher and master. We are his disciples in suffering too. What do you need him to teach you this morning?

Are you bowed down, submitted to all the realities of what it means to be a slave of righteousness and a student to suffering. We MUST look to Christ for the help we need in this.

Paul also instructed Timothy in this way, so we will close with his words.

2 Timothy 2-4-13 No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. 5 An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. 6 It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops. 7 Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.

8 Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David, as preached in my gospel, 9 for which I am suffering, bound with chains as a criminal. But the word of God is not bound! 10 Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. 11 The saying is trustworthy, for:

If we have died with him, we will also live with him; 12 if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he also will deny us; 13 if we are faithless, he remains faithful—

for he cannot deny himself.

1. Jesus wants us dependent like sheep.

2. Seek the Lord for wisdom and uncompromising holiness.

3. Whether living or dying, be a testimony before all.

4. Your Father will give you the right words, in the right way, at the right moment.

5. When you count the cost and follow Christ, be prepared for deep divides.

6. Persecution will not last forever.

7. Remember Jesus Christ, our Master and Teacher. We are not above Him.