Persecution

Last week I mentioned that I was hoping we could have a dialog this week about persecution. It is a major topic of the Bible. In the Old Testament we read about the prophets being persecuted and also about the Israelites being persecuted. In the New Testament we read about disciples of Jesus being persecuted.

⭐The Early church persecuted by Saul

In the book of Acts, we have read about the church being persecuted:

Acts 8:1 CSB

1 Saul agreed with putting him to death. On that day a severe persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout the land of Judea and Samaria.

Saul continued his rampage:

Acts 9:1–2 CSB

1 Now Saul was still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord. He went to the high priest 2 and requested letters from him to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any men or women who belonged to the Way, he might bring them as prisoners to Jerusalem.

Last week we looked at Saul’s apocalypse. He literally “saw the light”. The man that once persecuted the church became part of the church.

But what happens when a key person like Saul is converted? What happens when the educated, powerful leader chooses to take sides with the “opposition” and takes us their cause, their messages and becomes their spokesperson?

It makes him an enemy.

Let’s read about what happened to Saul after the scales were removed from his eyes:

Acts 9:19–25 CSB

19 And after taking some food, he regained his strength. Saul was with the disciples in Damascus for some time. 20 Immediately he began proclaiming Jesus in the synagogues: “He is the Son of God.” 21 All who heard him were astounded and said, “Isn’t this the man in Jerusalem who was causing havoc for those who called on this name and came here for the purpose of taking them as prisoners to the chief priests?” 22 But Saul grew stronger and kept confounding the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Messiah. 23 After many days had passed, the Jews conspired to kill him, 24 but Saul learned of their plot. So they were watching the gates day and night intending to kill him, 25 but his disciples took him by night and lowered him in a large basket through an opening in the wall.

The one who was persecuting others is now the persecuted! As soon as Saul professes Jesus as the Son of God he becomes a target. The JEWS tried to kill him. They actually were plotting a trap for him. So he became a fugitive.

Acts 9:26–30 CSB

26 When he arrived in Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, since they did not believe he was a disciple. 27 Barnabas, however, took him and brought him to the apostles and explained to them how Saul had seen the Lord on the road and that the Lord had talked to him, and how in Damascus he had spoken boldly in the name of Jesus. 28 Saul was coming and going with them in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord. 29 He conversed and debated with the Hellenistic Jews, but they tried to kill him. 30 When the brothers found out, they took him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus.

AFTER Saul surrendered to the Lordship of Jesus he became suspect to Christians and a target of the religious elite. Christians didn’t trust that the conversion was legit - what if it was just a way to get among them to kill them all? The religious leaders now had someone of their caliber defending the claims of Jesus - it was no longer the uneducated and downcast, it was one of them, boldly teaching the scriptures in light of Jesus the Messiah.

Saul was rejected by both the church he became a part of as well as the religious order he left behind.

INTERESTING ARTICLE: Francis Collins

https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/cross-check/one-of-the-worlds-most-powerful-scientists-believes-in-miracles/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Collins

Francis Collins was the director of the Human Genome Project and 12 year director of the National Institutes of Health under Presidents Obama, Trump and Biden. We was, of his own definition, and agnostic for many years. In 1978 he accepted Jesus as the Son of God and became a Christian. In 2006, National Geographic interviewed him about his position as a renowned scientist and Jesus follower. (the link will be posted online).

Horgan: The danger in trying to appeal to people on both sides of a polarized debate is--

Collins: Bombs thrown at you from both directions!

Collins was rejected by many in the science world as well as the church world. Certainly, Saul knew what it was like to have bombs thrown at him from both directions, too!

The believer’s did not trust him… at least at first. I am sure there were some who were skeptical the entire time. Thank God for people like Barnabas! He was a key figure in accepting people into the family of faith!!

Saul preached Jesus and, again, is persecuted. His life is threatened and the disciples have to sneak him out and send him much farther away.

Why would Saul go back to Jerusalem?

Have you ever wondered why Saul would choose to go back to Jerusalem? He had the commission of Jesus himself - he certainly did not need to go to Jerusalem to get the approval of the Apostles or the commission of the church! The Chief Priest in Jerusalem is the one who approved of the killing of Jesus’ followers - he commissioned Saul to do it and now Saul is one of them. There would probably be a price on Saul’s head!

I think that we can easily forget that Saul was a human and a sincere man of faith.

He was a Pharisee, so the men who commissioned him to kill off the Jesus followers were also his cohorts and friends. I would imagine that he had many debates over the scriptures with some of them - like we do at our small groups. He most likely had a genuine concern for these people. He also was going back to the Hellenists. If Saul was from Tarsus originally, then he was a Hellenist as well. He helped this group kill Stephen, and he went back to this group. If you care about someone you want them to know the truth. I believe he went back in order to help his friends see the truth the way he did. Perhaps he could right a few wrongs? Perhaps he could help enlighten his peers?

In the end, he was persecuted. And Saul will continue to be persecuted. Listen to this description of it:

2 Corinthians 11:24–27 CSB

24 Five times I received the forty lashes minus one from the Jews. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I received a stoning. Three times I was shipwrecked. I have spent a night and a day in the open sea. 26 On frequent journeys, I faced dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my own people, dangers from Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers at sea, and dangers among false brothers; 27 toil and hardship, many sleepless nights, hunger and thirst, often without food, cold, and without clothing.

When Jesus said that Saul would suffer for him, he was not kidding!

⭐The Early church persecuted by Rome

The church continued to be persecuted, even though Saul was no longer the ring leader. In Acts 12 Herod violently attacks the church and slaughters James (the brother of John) and then arrested Peter because he saw that the Jews were happy with it: ⭐

Acts 12:1–5 CSB

1 About that time King Herod violently attacked some who belonged to the church, 2 and he executed James, John’s brother, with the sword. 3 When he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter too, during the Festival of Unleavened Bread. 4 After the arrest, he put him in prison and assigned four squads of four soldiers each to guard him, intending to bring him out to the people after the Passover. 5 So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was praying fervently to God for him.

Just a few years after these events, and during the lifetime of the first church movement, Nero became Emperor of Rome. In 64 AD he accused Christians of starting fires in an attempt to burn down Rome. Nero was a messed up man! He actually started the fires, and then used Christians as his scapegoats:​

The Lexham Bible Dictionary The Burning of Rome and the Christian Scapegoats

As Tacitus records, “Nero substituted as culprits, and punished with the utmost refinements of cruelty, a class of men, loathed for their vices, whom the crowd styled Christians … Vast numbers were convicted, not so much on the count of arson as for hatred of the human race. And derision accompanied their end: They were covered with wild beasts’ skins and torn to death by dogs; or they were fastened on crosses, and when daylight failed were burned to serve as lamps by night” (Annals 15.44; compare also Suetonius, Lives of the Caesars 6.16.2).

The church has been persecuted throughout the years. As a matter of fact, our country was founded by religious outcasts that were persecuted!

Mennonites

Lutherans

Huguenots (French Protestants)

Jesuits

Puritans

It was the persecution of Christians (by other Christians no less!) that helped colonize the United States of America. Even the Library of Congress records this. https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/rel01.html

⭐Modern church persecution Around the World

Today, many people who follow Jesus are persecuted around the world. Some are beaten, others imprisoned - just like Saul. Some are sexually abused and others brutally killed.

According to the World Watch List, ⭐1 in 7 Christians are persecuted worldwide. ⭐ In 2023, more than 360m Christians suffered high levels of persecution and discrimination for their faith.

⭐5,621 Christians were killed for their faith last year. 90% of these were from Nigeria alone.

If you look at the Word Watch List you will see the top 50 most hostile countries towards Christianity. In 2022 Afghanistan was #1. It dropped to #9 and the explanation is this:

Despite its drop in ranking, persecution remains extreme in Afghanistan. Fewer Afghan Christians were killed for their faith in 2022: many have fled or were killed when the Taliban took over. Christian converts who remain are in deep hiding – and would likely face death if discovered.

The #1 most hostile country last year was North Korea. If discovered by the authorities, believers are either sent to labour camps as political prisoners where the conditions are atrocious, or killed on the spot – and their families will share their fate as well. Christians have absolutely no freedom. It is almost impossible for believers to gather or meet to worship. Those who dare to meet must do so in utmost secrecy – and at enormous risk. A new 'anti-reactionary thought law' makes it amply clear that being a Christian or possessing a Bible is a serious crime and will be severely punished.

https://www.opendoors.org/en-US/persecution/persecution-trends/

⭐Modern Church Persecution in the US

What is considered “persecuted” by Open Doors is not what we experience in the USA. According to the CEO of Open Doors USA, we are NOT persecuted - especially in comparison to the countries they are reporting on. (https://religionnews.com/2022/09/19/are-american-christians-on-the-path-to-severe-persecution-for-their-faith)

However, I believe Christians in the US are persecuted. Perhaps it matters how we DEFINE persecution, right? (https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/kevin-deyoung/are-christians-in-america-persecuted)

διώκω - Greek word for “persecute”. Jesus used in the following passages to talk about persecution: ⭐

Matthew 5:10–12 CSB

10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs. 11 “You are blessed when they insult you and persecute you and falsely say every kind of evil against you because of me. 12 Be glad and rejoice, because your reward is great in heaven. For that is how they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Insults, persecuting, speaking evil. These are all persecution. Persecution may mean being put to death (Matt. 10:21), but it can also refer to being “hated by all for my name’s sake” (Matt. 10:22). ⭐

Matthew 10:21–22 CSB

21 “Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child. Children will rise up against parents and have them put to death. 22 You will be hated by everyone because of my name. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.

While this is nothing as dramatic or morbid as what is going on in North Korea or Nigeria, ⭐

“…you don’t have to be lunchmeat for a hungry lion or lit up as a torch in Nero’s palace before it’s fair to claim that you’re facing persecution as a Christian. And just because we are, that doesn’t mean we shrink back for one second. In fact, we run all the faster and work all the harder, making the most of the days, for we know that they are short and evil.”

–WILLIAM WOLFE

Saul was persecuted because he stood for something the religious elite could not accept. He bucked the system. Apparently, he, and every Christian, was seen as a plague to the government as well. Why? What types of things did Saul teach and do that were so repulsive?

He taught that Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of God, and the only way to the Father.

He taught things that contradicted societal norms.

Just because Saul was persecuted, and the early church was persecuted, should we expect that we, who live in the land of the free and home of the brave, one nation under God - should WE expect to be persecuted?

We will be persecuted.

We are told, as Christians, we can expect persecution.

Persecution by others does not indicate abandonment by God. Nor does it declare that God is displeased with us. Persecution will come because the hatred of mankind. We are told we will be persecuted: ⭐

2 Timothy 3:12 CSB

12 In fact, all who want to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.

What are some of the things that Christians in the United States might speak out about or stand for that would make them face persecution from the church, the government or society at large?

********************* ⭐

To declare Jesus as the only way of salvation.

To define marriage and family the way God intended.

To declare all life sacred and promote the abolition of abortion.

To recognize divine design in human and define gender by biology, not a mental decision.

*********************

Jesus is the ONLY way

We mentioned last week that if we take a stand for Jesus, and we MUST, then we will be branded as intolerant and arrogant. Our society sees this an an affront and as part of our imperialistic past, not a present reality.

At campuses throughout the country, outspoken Christians are regularly demeaned, debased and targeted for their beliefs. Academics, social groups, and college organizations regularly ridicule Christians by calling them hateful, bigoted, and privileged, among other labels. They conveniently forget that Christians have historically been among the most persecuted religious groups in the world and are still persecuted at ever-increasing levels throughout countries in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East.

https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/christian-persecution-not-just-happening-overseas-many-in-us-targeted-for-their-faith-too

Marriage & Family

While our government has made same sex marriage legal, we must stand for the truth that marriage is defined by God and it involves one man and one woman. It is a beautiful thing! ⭐

Matthew 19:4–6 CSB

4 “Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that he who created them in the beginning made them male and female, 5 and he also said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’? 6 So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, let no one separate.”

Churches and ministers of the gospel should not be officiating same-sex marriages. This core, theological truth has been a challenge for certain denominations over the years. Most recently, the United Methodists saw 25% of their churches leave their denomination - reportedly the most of any church group in history - over the issue of performing same sex marriages and ordaining gay and lesbian ministers and bishops.

I applaud those that saw same-sex-marriage as apostacy and chose to leave their denomination - however, I know those churches are now branded as “intolerant” and “right wing”. Actually, they have been accused of not understanding the Bible!

Rev. Cynthia Good, a pastor at Calvary United Methodist Church in Arlington, Mass was quoted by MSNBC in saying this, ⭐“Take Galatians 3:28, often a favorite verse for conservatives. Paul writes: “In Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female." Martin Luther called Galatians “the Magna Carta of Christian liberty.” And in it, Paul very clearly sets aside religious, economic and sexual distinctions, on the power of the unity of faith, of baptism and the Gospel of Christ. “There is no male and female,” but rather the unity of faith, hope and love in the person of Christ, crucified and risen. Thus, many of those now leaving the denomination, purportedly on biblical grounds, have apparently not read all of the Bible, or at least have not read some parts of it carefully, faithfully and fully, especially Galatians 3:28 and similar passages within the full and fully liberating arc of biblical theology.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/the-bible-verse-proving-anti-lgbtq-methodists-have-not-truly-read-the-bible/ar-AA1mgMbb

Her basic claim is that when Paul said, “In Christ there is neither… male nor female” he was establishing a theological basis for ignoring gender in all areas of life thus condoning and celebrating LGBTQ lifestyles and homosexual marriages?! That is hardly what Paul was teaching and it certainly ignores the history of Sodom and the teaching of the Torah: ⭐

Leviticus 18:22 CSB

22 You are not to sleep with a man as with a woman; it is detestable.

It also is totally contrary to a direct statement that Paul (the author she quoted) made to the church in Corinth: ⭐

1 Corinthians 6:9–11 CSB

9 Don’t you know that the unrighteous will not inherit God’s kingdom? Do not be deceived: No sexually immoral people, idolaters, adulterers, or males who have sex with males, 10 no thieves, greedy people, drunkards, verbally abusive people, or swindlers will inherit God’s kingdom. 11 And some of you used to be like this. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

There is a very clear teaching that God does not condone homosexual marriage. That lifestyle is one that was never designed by God, but rather it was something man craved. I have heard people ask, “If God did not want people to be homosexual, why did he give them the attraction and love for others of their own sex? Saul tells us: ⭐

Romans 1:26–28 CSB

26 For this reason God delivered them over to disgraceful passions. Their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. 27 The men in the same way also left natural relations with women and were inflamed in their lust for one another. Men committed shameless acts with men and received in their own persons the appropriate penalty of their error. 28 And because they did not think it worthwhile to acknowledge God, God delivered them over to a corrupt mind so that they do what is not right.

Mankind has rejected God to the point that God has given them what they wanted. Those churches that take a stance for the truth of God’s Word will be persecuted. Some will be threatened, others sued. Christian business owners are being sued for choosing not to support homosexual marriages:

a baker in Colorado

a florist shop in Washington

Abortion.

In 2019 NYS updated their abortion laws. In NYS adults, as well as minors without parental consent, can have an abortion up to 24 weeks into the pregnancy. Later term abortions may also be approved for certain conditions. In the same state, if your fetus of 20 weeks or more is still born, you can request a certificate of fetal death (https://www.health.ny.gov/vital_records/fetal.htm) but that same life is not considered a murder if taken by abortion after 20 weeks.

When reading about what to expect, the information NEVER explains what happens to the fetus. It is just what the “patient” will experience. During the 2nd trimester (weeks 13-24), an abortion is performed by pulling apart the fetus one piece at a time and then vacuuming up the remnants, referred to as D&E. (https://downloads.frc.org/EF/EF18F25.pdf) In NYS this is legal and incomprehensible.

Also in 2019, NYS banned declawing cats stating that it is “archaic ... inhumane and unnecessary." Ironic that the word inhumane is used about cats and not the taking of a human life. Tragic.

When Roe vs Wade was overturned, any Christian who celebrated felt the realities of persecution! Pregnancy care centers were threatened and even torched. People were blocked on social media accounts and shunned by peers. Threats were lobbed at the justices that made the ruling.

As Christians, we believe that ALL life is sacred! People are made in the image of God by the breath of God, and therefore have an intrinsic value and sacredness. ⭐

Genesis 1:26–27 CSB

26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness. They will rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock, the whole earth, and the creatures that crawl on the earth.” 27 So God created man in his own image; he created him in the image of God; he created them male and female.

Life begins at the moment of conception and is present in the womb. We see this teaching reinforced in several places in the Bible: ⭐

Exodus 21:22 CSB

22 “When men get in a fight and hit a pregnant woman so that her children are born prematurely but there is no injury, the one who hit her must be fined as the woman’s husband demands from him, and he must pay according to judicial assessment.

Notice is says that her children are born prematurely? Not fetus, which is different Hebrew word.

When we read the Christmas story - as Mary approached Elizabeth, what happened? ⭐

Luke 1:41 CSB

41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped inside her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.

The baby obviously was reacting to something, which is a sign of life. If you have ever been pregnant you understand how much LIFE there is in that child - especially as he/she is kicking you!

We understand from the Bible that God is the giver of life and the one who forms and creates life: ⭐

Psalm 139:13–14 CSB

13 For it was you who created my inward parts; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. 14 I will praise you because I have been remarkably and wondrously made. Your works are wondrous, and I know this very well.

It is because of this view of the sanctity and value of life that we must defend innocent lives, especially of those that are defenseless - the unborn. This is not an issue of “reproductive rights” - you have the right to reproduce! This is an issue of sanctity of life and that no one should have the right to take the life of another unjustly. It is not the bane of women that they can become pregnant and thus have justification for taking life; rather it is the blessing of God that they can have the privilege of pro-creating - of giving life.

As you and I stand for this view of life we can expect to be opposed. We will be persecuted.

‌Gender Transitioning

There is a biology that is referenced is scriptures that is also acknowledged in science. ⭐

Genesis 1:27 CSB

27 So God created man in his own image; he created him in the image of God; he created them male and female.

There are two genders: male and female. There is no such thing as a non-binary gender. While someone may not be attracted to one gender or the other, or may not feel connected to one or the other, it does not change biology.

While certain people may feel anxiety about their current gender or sexual orientation, announcing that you are something other than what your DNA has determined is about as accurate as me claiming to be 7’ 2” tall. I am 5’10” and cannot think of any immediate family members who have ever crested 6’ let alone 7’. I certainly have not. I might “feel” tall, or wish I was taller, but the physical reality is that I am not.

If we are commanded ... ⭐

Ephesians 4:25 CSB

25 Therefore, putting away lying, speak the truth, each one to his neighbor, because we are members of one another.

It would be inaccurate and inappropriate for me to call someone who was born male a female and vice versa. We cannot live double standards, and we must choose not to live a lie. While I may be willing to call someone by a new name or nickname that they prefer, I will not change their pronouns because that is to promote a lie.

Biology is not a science founded on sociological principles but on physiological facts. Gender dysphoria is defined as a mental disorder, and lying about one’s biology does not fix it. While we are told that affirmation is the key to happiness, the opposite has been proven true by the countries who are actually studying it as a medical science and not political matter. According to a study in Denmark, ⭐

In this nationwide cohort study of 6 657 456 Danish-born individuals, transgender individuals identified through hospital and administrative registers had significantly higher rates of suicide attempt (adjusted incidence rate ratio [aIRR], 7.7), suicide mortality (aIRR, 3.5), suicide-unrelated mortality (aIRR, 1.9), and all-cause mortality (aIRR, 2.0) compared with nontransgender individuals. This Danish population-based cohort study spanning more than 4 decades found that transgender individuals had higher rates of suicide attempt and mortality compared with nontransgender individuals.

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2806531

If we truly loved people who are struggling with gender dysphoria we would stop affirming the lie and love the person in truth. Mutilating their bodies and altering their physiology is not helping, it is hurting. Until they can see the divine design of the God who created them, they will continue to struggle trying to define themselves.

While many are focused on what gender they identify with, God says that, through faith in Jesus, we have a new identity - one that is not natural to us, but one that is imparted to us. One that transforms us not biologically into something we are not, but spiritually into something we could not be on our own. Not from one gender to another, but from one kingdom to another - from darkness to life, from death to life. They will only find the healing and acceptance they need in Jesus.

Making those statements is sure to get me branded as “transphobic”, which is not true. I am not afraid of people who struggle with gender dysphoria. What I am afraid of is the lack of responsibility our government has shown by promoting untested and unproved medical procedures, and wanting to impose them on minors as well - and that without parental consent.

Many businesses are being sued because of violations of DEI policies. Christians who refuse to use pronouns that are preferred rather than those that are factual are being taken to court for “hate crimes”. Individuals who refuse to agree to this ideology are being discriminated against. In Massachusetts, a couple was “...denied the right to foster a child because they ‘would not be affirming to a child who identified as LGBTQIA.’”

Standing for TRUTH.

As Christians stood firm on their belief of Jesus as Messiah, they were persecuted. As Saul later stood for Jesus as the only way to the Father, he was persecuted. Christians unwavering commitment to the teachings of Jesus made them the scourge of the Roman empire, and brought persecution from the government.

As you and I stand for the truth of Jesus and the truth of God’s Word in a society that has deemed truth as a whim at best and a threat at worst, we will face persecution.

While our society may call it discrimination, it is certainly persecution.

What counts as persecution then? Any number of different things. It could be being slandered and mocked for your faith. Or being passed over for a promotion at your consulting firm because you refused to fly the Pride flag from your cupholder during June. It’s anything and everything from suffering social ostracization to getting put on trains and taken to death camps. Christians would do well to recover a robust understanding of this, and prepare for it, rather than sticking their heads in the sands of the cultural pablum about how the real threat is a “rising theocracy” or “Christo-fascism.”

...

The point is clear: To pretend that cultural forces, private corporations, and governmental actors have not been, and are not even more aggressively now, targeting Christians in America is to deny the reality that both 1) exists and 2) can be confirmed with a five-minute Google search.

The only way to maintain that Christians are not facing persecution in America is either through ignorance or in service of an agenda.

https://www.standingforfreedom.com/2022/07/yes-christians-are-being-persecuted-in-america-heres-how-we-can-respond/

Yes, we are persecuted. But we are not without hope and we do not despair: ⭐

2 Corinthians 4:8–9 CSB

8 We are afflicted in every way but not crushed; we are perplexed but not in despair; 9 we are persecuted but not abandoned; we are struck down but not destroyed.

Why does this matter?

It should NOT lead to a victim mentality. THAT is part of the problem that is fueling the persecution. It is the ridiculous victim mentality promoted by critical race theory or wokeism that has people on the streets and campuses in America chanting for the annihilation of the Jewish people.

No, as Christians we are no more victims than our Savior: ⭐

John 15:20 CSB

20 Remember the word I spoke to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours.

How do we respond?

How did Jesus respond when he was persecuted? He died for that that persecuted him. He responded in love, and not in retaliation. His words were, “Father, forgive them for their ignorance.” Similarly, as Stephen was stoned by Saul and the Sanhedrin, how did he respond? “Father, do not hold this sin against them.”

Jesus did not come into the world to condemn the world, but to save it. It is not our position to be judge and jury, but to be light. Each one of us was once in darkness.

Isaiah 53:6 CSB

6 We all went astray like sheep; we all have turned to our own way; and the Lord has punished him for the iniquity of us all.

We have received grace, and we are to show grace. You and I are to act in love towards those that persecute us. In all of this, we are reminded that when people attack us and condemn us because of our faith in Jesus, it is not US they are rejecting, it is Jesus. It is not WE who are persecuted, it is Jesus. And our response is to be like Jesus, or Stephen. It is to pray and bless. ⭐

Matthew 5:44 CSB

44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,

Saul will also pen these words in his letter to the believers in Rome.

Romans 12:14 CSB

14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.

Those words were most likely written about 57-58 AD, which is only 6-7 years before Nero would start burning Christians as light posts.

Blessing others does not mean turning a blind eye to that which is wrong. It means pointing people to that which is good, and just and right and pure - to Jesus.

Conclusion

At the end of our chapter, we read that the church had “peace”. This should not lead us to the false conclusion that all was well with the Christians now that Saul was a Christian. Not only does the church grow and expand, but the persecution and hatred of the church by both the Jews and the Romans will continue to spread.

We also read that the church increased - in SPITE of being persecuted. ⭐

Acts 9:31 CSB

31 So the church throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and was strengthened. Living in the fear of the Lord and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers.

When people see that we are so committed to the truth, and love them enough to share that truth in love, and to pray for them and bless them, I believe they will have the blinders removed from their eyes and see Jesus for who he is and what he has done for them.

Our desire as followers of the Way ought to be to stand for truth even if it causes us persecution. We should be in prayer for the salvation of those hostile to the gospel and the truth of God’s word - that they would see the light and follow the Way.