BLESSED ARE THE SPIRITUALLY PERSECUTED

THE BEATITUDES: How to Be Truly Blessed Sermon Series

“Blessed are the Spiritually Persecuted” (Part #9)

KEY PASSAGE: Matthew 5:10-12 (NASB)

Father God, we thank You again for a wonderful praise and worship experience, and [we] honor You for Your presence in this church. We pray that Your grace, mercy, love, compassion, and peace will inspire us to do Your will, serve you faithfully, and obey Your Words. In the name of Jesus, we commit the rest of the church service [into] the hands of living God. Amen. You may have your seat. And let us thank our worship team [again] for ushering us into God’s presence.

The Lord’s Supper (Holy Communion Exhortation)

[We will move on to our Communion Service] As we partake of the Lord’s Supper, I want to remind you that we are united as one body as we eat the bread [that represents Christ’s Body] and drink of this cup [that represents His Blood]. When we celebrate the Lord’s Supper together, it is not a gathering of individuals who all happen to be having fellowship with Jesus at the same time in the same [place] – no! When we partake of the Lord’s Supper, Jesus unites us together into one body and builds us up together in unity in Him, as together – in fellowship with one another – we feed upon our Savior, Jesus Christ. We share in one bread and are being built into one body in Christ. We share in one cup and “have all been made to drink into one Spirit according to 1 Corinthians 12:13. May the Lord’s Supper unite us as Christ’s church, [inspire us to do God’s work faithfully], and bring us [all] together. May God bless you.

Let us go to God in prayer. Father God, we thank You for this opportunity to break bread with You. I pray for the grape juice, and we lift it [up] to You. Cleanse it and wash it in Christ’s blood and make it holy, pure, and sanctified, and it will be His blood indeed. As we partake of this grape juice and the little piece of bread, we are partaking of Christ’s blood and body, and the power in the blood will affect and impact our lives. In the name of Jesus, we pray. Amen. We will pass around the communion element as we continue with worship service.

TITHE and OFFERING

I will call our ushers to pass around the offering plates as we collect our tithes and offerings. Please follow the instructions on the screen on how to give to the church. Ushers, please pass around the plates. The worship team will lead us as we collect our tithes and offerings.

WELCOME

Please stand up, greet some folks around you, and welcome them to worship. We welcome you [all] again to our Sunday Worship Service and are glad to have you in God’s house. Our first-time visitors, please stand so we can see you. We also welcome all who join us online.

ANNOUNCEMENT

· The Church Leadership Meeting is on Saturday, November 16th, at noon. All ministry leaders, please take note of that date and time.

· Women’s Night is on Saturday, November 9, 2024, from 6:00 - 7:00 p.m. This is a time of fellowship and encouragement.

· Wednesday Night [Remember] is our Bible Study Connect at 7:00 p.m. Please join us on Wednesday night to STUDY THE WORD OF GOD. We have excellent teachers. And we are studying the Book of Romans.

· Please complete the sermon survey sheet and return it to the usher and media team.

PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION

Let us pray together. Father, we come today to a very needful passage—very, [very] hard for all of us to understand. Filing into such an affluent, materialistic, comfortable culture is challenging. God, somehow, helps us see. By Your Spirit, penetrate our hearts and minds; change our lives. I pray that You will use this church to be a faithful witness for You and bring hope into our lives so that we might be all we can be for You. It is through the oneness we have in Jesus Christ that we pray. Amen.

DECLARATION of FAITH in GOD

Let us stand and say the Declaration of Faith in God together.

SERMON INTRODUCTION

We have come to the next to the last message on the Beatitudes. We will conclude next week with a sermon titled “Pursuing the Blessed Life.” But today, we come to the eighth beatitude taken from Matthew 5:10-12. Beginning with verse 10, Jesus said, “Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” “Blessed Are The Spiritually Persecuted” is the title of our sermon for today. This Beatitude [is a little] different from the preceding ones because this one offers a double blessing. All the other ones give a single blessing. This Beatitude from Jesus doubles your pleasure and doubles your fun.

[Let me begin by saying that] Being a dedicated Christian is difficult because society is not a friend to God or God’s people. Whether we like it or not, there is a conflict between the church and the world. Why? Because God’s people are different from the world, and we have different attitudes.

The world praises pridefulness, not humility. [The world] endorses sin, especially if you can “get away with it.” The world is at war with God, while God seeks to reconcile His enemies and make them His children by bringing them into fellowship with His through His Son Jesus Christ. You don’t associate a blessing with hardship or persecution. [You don’t associate a blessing with suffering or pain]. While all the other Beatitudes have a brief expression, three verses are given to this one, verses 10–12. There is something [church] about persecution that brings a double blessing. There is something [church] about persecution that brings a miracle. There is something [church] about persecution that brings a breakthrough.

When we started studying the Beatitudes months and months ago, we told you that the word “blessed” means “happy,” and the first thing Jesus ever said was that He wanted people to be happy. He didn’t come into the world to make people miserable; Jesus came to make people happy, and that is why His first utterance ever recorded for us, the first sermon Jesus ever gave or preached in the book of Matthew, the beginning of the New Testament, the first gospel begins with the word “happy.”

SERMON EXPOSITION

The word ‘Persecution’ in Greek means to be harassed. Has anybody here today ever been harassed? It means to be treated in an evil, negative manner. It includes insults, abuse, malicious speech, and, as recorded here, false accusations. Persecution means to endure suffering for Christ. Jesus [The Son of God] pronounces a blessing on people who are persecuted. But His blessing is [not only tied] to the fact that you were persecuted but why you were persecuted. [Watch This] Jesus says this blessing goes to those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness. He says it another way: at the end of Verse 11, you are persecuted because of me. You are persecuted because you are my followers. Please notice that Jesus did not say you are persecuted for your wrongdoings. Jesus did not say that you are persecuted for your disobedience.

And so, Jesus is not talking about persecution because you are Christian, and you are wrong. Persecution is not your fault. Persecution is not the fault of any Christian. Jesus is talking about persecution [Watch This] because you chose to do the right thing. And what is the right thing that He is talking about? Righteousness (For the sake of righteousness…). A lot of people hate a righteous life because what righteousness does is that it exposes their unrighteousness.

Persecution is tied to the fact that you are living out the values of the Kingdom of God, and [you are] associated with Jesus Christ in living out those values. Therefore, negative repercussions [negative consequences] have come upon you because you have chosen to obey that value system called righteousness as opposed to evil. [As opposed to wrongdoings.] You have chosen not to disassociate yourself from Jesus. And to suffer for Christ is a privilege that should cause a believer joy. Philippians 1:29 says: “For to you it has been granted for Christ’s sake, not only to believe in Him but also to suffer on His behalf.”

2 Timothy 3:12 says, “All who want to live in a godly way in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” Let me read that again. “All those who live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.” Well, let me say it another way: If you are not being persecuted, it is because you are not living godly. That means if you go [month after month] and [year after year] and there are no negative repercussions because of your faith, your faith has not been demonstrated. You are a secret agent Christian, A spiritual CIA Representative. You are an undercover operative because there are repercussions to your faith in Jesus Christ.

The “who” in Matthew 5:10 and 2 Timothy 3:12 is everybody who lives the Beatitudes life. It is everybody who comes into the Kingdom of God. Everybody who lives this way is a son and daughter of the Kingdom. You go into the world and try to bring mercy to the world. You go into the world and try to purify men’s and women’s hearts by bringing them the consciousness of sin. You go into the world and try to make peace through the only Peacemaker, Jesus Christ.

In John Chapter 15, verse 20, we read from Jesus, “Remember the word [that I] said to you, ‘A slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will persecute you as well; if they followed My word, they will follow yours also.” In other words, what they did to Me, they will do to you because they don’t like Me. So, when you look like Jesus and and associate with Jesus, [Folks who don’t like Jesus and oppose His teaching] will treat you the same way they treated Jesus because you manifest Jesus to them. Jesus says, but blessed are those who are persecuted because they are operating by the divine standard of God, which is called righteousness, and they are operating in association with Me.

SERMON ILLUSTRATION 1

America is hated in the Middle East, and the primary reason why America is hated in the Middle East is our identification [associated] with Israel. Because America has identified itself with Israel, there is a great hatred for America because there is a great hatred for Israel in the Middle East. And therefore, our association with Israel has reverberated to a great hatred for us. For us Christians, it is that identification with Christ. Jesus says, “If you identify with Me, you claim Me as Lord and Savior. You believe that I died for your sins.” If you claim My Kingdom’s value system as your value system, then the world will feel the same way it felt about Me and treat you the same way it treated Me.

SERMON ILLUSTRATION 2

I am reminded of a story several years ago: a group of missionaries went the Amazon River in South America to do missionary work. The folks from this tribe had never seen a mirror. The only way they could see themselves was in the water, through the reflection of the water. That was not a good view of themselves. So these missionaries came over, and they had mirrors.

So, one missionary from the group took a piece of mirror and put it on a tree. The mirror was hanging from the tree so that the tribe from the Amazon River could see themselves. [So that they could see what they look like.]The first person to look in the mirror was a female from the tribe. She was the first to see herself, and when she walked up and saw herself for the first time, she took the mirror from the tree and smashed it to the ground.

Why? Because she didn’t like what the mirror revealed. She didn’t like what the mirror revealed about her personality and appearance. So she destroyed the mirror. In other words, she was unwilling to accept the truth about what things looked like. [She was reluctant to accept reality.] So, she chose [chowz] to stay away from that, which revealed how things are. She was mad at the truth. She was upset at the truth because the truth revealed her appearance and what she looked like.

SERMON EXPLANATION

See, when you are [the] light, and you are carrying the values of the Kingdom of God in the sphere that God has put you, and folks get to see themselves in light of that reflection, it will produce people who are mad at the mirror. Not because the mirror has done something wrong or something bad. All the mirror did was reveal the reality of things. But what that does is cause [a negative] reaction. And Jesus says that will happen to you.

In 1 Thessalonians 3, verses 3 and 4, the apostle Paul says that afflictions should move no one. Affliction and persecution should surprise no believer. You should not be worried if you are persecuted for righteousness. You should not be fearful if you have to take a little bit. Why? “For you yourselves know that we are appointed to this.” Another version says, “For you yourselves know that we have been destined for this.”

Paul says, "I keep telling you that you will suffer if you represent Christ." And if you are not having a problem, you are not representing Christ. If you do not have insult, persecution, rejection, lies told [on] you, or losses that accumulate to your value system and your identification with Jesus Christ, it is because Christ has been reduced in your witness. You have not manifested who Christ is.

In other words, this is God’s design. Believers are to be like Christ, set for the rising and the falling of many. We are to be loved and hated. We are to be honored and cursed. If you are a Christian and you don’t have any persecution in your life, you better examine whether you are a Christian because persecution is an evident token of the substance [the truth] of your salvation.

Jesus calls it a blessing. Jesus calls it a double blessing. Jesus [not only] calls it a blessing, but look what He says in verse 12. He says, “Rejoice and be glad.” He says, when they talk about you, get your praise on. Jesus says, “When they lie [on] you, be happy about it.” He says, “When they make fun of you, be glad.” He says, “When they mess with you, and you didn’t get the promotion or a pay raise because you were unwilling to compromise your value systems at work, Jesus says smile about it.” He says, “Be happy about it.”

But how can I smile when all these negative things happen to me? Jesus gives two reasons why you should smile. He says the first thing you have to smile about at the end of Matthew 5 verse 10 is that … “For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Instead of being of the kingdom of earth, where men rule, you will [get to] see the Kingdom of Heaven, where the Almighty God rules. What is a kingdom? A kingdom has a king. And God is the King of Heaven. You and I live on earth. You see, when folks lie [on] you, insult you, make fun of you, keep you from getting ahead, that is the kingdom of men ruling earth.

But Jesus says to those [who are] persecuted because of the value system and their identification with Me, they will see another kingdom operate in their lives. They get to see the Kingdom of Heaven overrule earth. You get to see the supernatural invade the natural. You get to see heaven invade history. You get to see eternity invade earth. You get to see what God looks like when He shows up on your behalf.

Many of us Christians today have never seen God overrule anything because we have never had a situation where earth looked like it was ruling, and by the power of God [Heaven] overrule because of the negative repercussions we were receiving by identifying with the value system of the Kingdom of God, [that is righteousness], and the person of Jesus Christ. I believe that God double-blesses those who suffer. God gives a double blessing to those who are persecuted. And the more you live for Christ, the more likely you are to create a response and reaction.

Have you ever seen a person driving in two lanes? You are a confused driver if you are driving in both lanes. See, a lot of Christians want both lanes. They want to drive on the side of Jesus, but at the same time, they want to drive on the world’s side to have both lanes. There is a word in the Bible about folks who are two-lane drivers. 1 John Chapter 2:15 says, “Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” That person loses the love of the love of the Father. You cannot have both lanes. You can choose the value system of God’s Kingdom and the value system of Jesus Christ. You have to choose Jesus’ lane, and yes, there will be criticism for being in the lane of Jesus. But the good news is that you will also see heaven rule in history. You will see heaven overrule earth.

That is why Jesus says, “Rejoice and be glad.” Your reward in heaven is great. That is good news, by the way. That is why, in the Book of Acts, we are told that a great wave of persecution swept over the early church. Believers were dragged out of their homes and thrown into prison. But when they were persecuted for Christ’s sake, they rejoiced that they were precious to be considered to suffer for their identification with Jesus Christ. Being glad means that heaven is on your side. Many of us are so unhappy [depressed, and sad] because the world is on our side. And there has been no heavenly investment, and eternity doesn’t feel obligated to enter history. We want to look religious. We want to say we attend church every Sunday. We want to have a spiritual conversation with other believers.

You know, I am blessed and highly favored. God is good all the time, and all the time, God is good. We want to use the terminology but don’t want to operate by the Kingdom of God’s value system. Jesus says in Luke 9:26, “If you are ashamed of Me and My words, I will be ashamed of you.” The Bible says that Moses, in Hebrews 11:26, was willing to suffer with the people of God, anticipating his reward. Moses knew one thing: the suffering would not be a waste of time on earth when God intervened for him and in eternity. [Watch This] We are told that God intervened for Moses because he was restored to the earth and then from the dead fifteen hundred years later on the Mount of Transfiguration. And this was [a great] reward for Moses.

Many people today miss out on God’s plans for them because they don’t want to associate too closely with Him. On Sunday morning, I will associate with God by going to church. Out in the world, we don’t want to associate with God because we don’t want to look different and strange.

Let me close with a store to encourage you and call you to action. I love the story of the Three Hebrew Boys, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. They were working for the Government of Babylon, headed by King Nebuchadnezzar. In Daniel Chapter 3, Nebuchadnezzar comes up with a law. Nebuchadnezzar’s law says we will build an idol [a false god], and everybody must bow. When you hear the trumpet blow, everybody goes down and recognizes this god [this idol] as me.

The three Hebrew boys said, “King, we will work [hard] for you and do an excellent job. We will work overtime for you but not bow down to your idol. We cannot do that because our allegiance is to the true God. Our allegiance is to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Nebuchadnezzar said, no, you don’t understand. When I say bow, you must bow. When I say submit, you must submit because you don’t have a choice. Because I hired you, and I can fire you. I can fire you if you don’t bow. You are going to lose everything because I run this show. This is my show. The Three Hebrew boys said, “King with all due respect” because they said O’ King, we will not bow. We will do whatever you want, but our value system will not allow us to bow. They said, “King, we operate in a different kingdom. Our value system is not of this world.”

Nebuchadnezzar says, if you don’t bow, you will burn, and who is this God that will deliver you out of my hands? Who do you know that can overrule me? The Three Hebrew Boys responded, “King, since you asked which God can deliver us out of your hand, our God whom we serve can deliver us out of your hand.” I like what they said: “Our God whom we serve.” Not our God, who we will start serving right now because we are in trouble. Because we are persecuted for righteousness.

This is not the God we talk to and pray to at [our] Saturday Prayer Meetings because you just came down with this pink slip. Everyone knows what the pink slip is. The termination notice from an employer that you are fired or laid off. [The Three Hebrew Boys Said] Our God can handle this problem, persecution, and situation you just put us in. Our God, who opened the Red Sea, can get water to quench this fire. Our God, whom we serve, can deliver us. The Bible says Nebuchadnezzar got hot and told his men to turn up the heat in the fiery furnace. The Bible says they turned up the heat so much that the men who threw them in the fiery furnace burned to death because the fire had been heated so hot. They tied up their hands; they tied up their feet and threw them into the fire tied together. Nebuchadnezzar came to the glass so that he could look down to watch these three Hebrew boys burn because they would not bow before his god.

FAITH APPEAL, CALL to ACTION and ALTAR CALL

They would not change their value system like some of us Christians today, who keep switching lanes. Nebuchadnezzar came to see what man’s power could do in teaching these rebellious boys. But the Bible says when he looked down into the fire, he said, “Wait a minute, didn’t we put three people in the fire?” The king said, but I see four men in the fire. [I see Shadrach], I see Meshach,] [I see Abednego], but I see a fourth Man in the fire acting like He is the Son of God. Where did this fourth person come from? [Watch This] They threw the Three Hebrews Boys in the fire with their hands and feet bound together. But when Nebuchadnezzar looked down into the fire, it says the boys were walking in the fire with nothing on their hands and [nothing on their] feet.

They were in the fire and free. They were in the fire and still delivered. Why? Because when God doesn’t bring you out of your persecution. When God doesn’t bring you out of your suffering or [out of] that situation you are going through, that never seems to be ending. God [steps in] and joins you [when you go through] that persecution and challenging time. Nebuchadnezzar said, "Open up the door." The three Hebrew boys came out with no burns when they opened the door. Nebuchadnezzar rehired them and said, “Let it be known that there is no other God except the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.” The three Hebrews Boys took their stand [They stood up for God and lived up to His value system] and got a promotion. May you be identified with God [so that you can] see heaven intervene on earth for you. The Kingdom of Heaven is now, and may this church be a greater witness for Christ. God bless you.

I will ask everyone talk to the Lord Jesus in their heart, very quietly, in the silence of this moment. And maybe some of you need to say, “Lord Jesus, I don’t even know what it is to live the kind of a life that is a rebuke to the world.” And if you are here and don’t have a relationship with Jesus, please come forward so we can pray for you. If you need prayer, please come forward so we can pray with you.

BENEDICTION

Let us pray.

Thank You, Father, for today, for giving us such a vibrant and rewarding study of these outstanding truths of our dear Lord Jesus Christ recorded in Scripture. Oh God, may we be kingdom people and a kingdom church. May we live the way You want us to live? May we come and enter on Your terms the narrow way, and may we walk that narrow way, difficult as it is, in Your strength? God, I pray for those who have never given their life to Christ that this might be [the time] they make that commitment. For Christians who don’t know what it is [what it means] to come out and be separate from the world, to pay the price, to live the life that You have asked us to live, may this be the time they do that? And God, help us not to lower the standard. Help us not conform to the world’s standards but transform the world by being conformed to You in Christ Jesus. May we know a price and be willing to pay it for the sake of Jesus, our Lord, Savior, and Redeemer. Amen.

God bless you. We will see you next week at 10:30 a.m.