Persecution Proof

Bottom line

Is your faith persecution proof?

Opening Line

Did you know that November is the month of the persecuted church?

Introduction

It can be easy to forget that not every church operates like ours. I’m not talking about the songs that we sing or the way we pray in groups after the singing. I’m talking about the church that meet underground because the police will arrest them or even kill them for holding meetings. I’m talking about the fact that while many of us have multiple copies of the bible collecting dust on our shelves, there are believers who only own a page of the bible because any more than that is too hard to hide.

On Thursday I was meeting with the group of pastors I’ve been meeting with every week for the last four years. One of them told a story about the church in Afganistan. Apparently, the Taliban have announced that they have successfully eradicated the church from the country. That’s not true because there are always believers, they are just harder to find.

However, there was a group of people documenting the devastation that is happenng in the country. They went to one village, and the Taliban had burned the homes of all the Christians in the village, including the pastor’s. So the crew went and asked the pastor how he found the strength to endure such persecution. He responded by saying that he wasn’t being persecuted, it was just stuff. However, so and so was beaten for his faith. That is persecution.

So the camera crew went and found so and so, and asked the same question. This individual said he wasn’t being persecuted, its just his body. However, this other person had been thrown into prison for their faith. Now that was persecution! This happened over and over again, each person knowing someone who had suffered more for their faith than they had.

Main Point

As I listened to this story, I couldn’t help but think about the church in the West. It was only a few years ago that there was those in the church that were convinced that wearing a mask was persecution. I’m sorry, but when there are brothers and sisters literally risking their life for their faith in Jesus, I will gladly put on a mask if it meant being able to join with each of you to worship.

But the question remains; would your faith survive the kind of persecution that so many other believers as forced to live with everyday? The truth is that persecution is coming, and probably sooner than you think based on some of the discussion being had in parlaiment recently. In fact, I just heard that in Canada, churches have become the target arson more and more frequently than any time in our country’s history.

Why it matters

So I want you to reflect honestly on this question. What would happen if we couldn’t meet as openly as we are right now? What if we couldn’t stream our services? Would you be able to live a vibrant life of faith, or would the closing of the church be like unplugging the life support machine that is keeping your faith in Jesus alive?

I also think that this is a major reason why unity is vital in the church. As followers of Jesus, you have a lot of enemies working to rob you of the faith you have, not least of which being Satan! You don’t need enemies inside the church as well!

With the return of Christ coming imminently, and the coming persecution, it is more important than ever that you make sure your faith can withstand the storm of persecution that is coming. What you are going to see in 2 Corinthians 4 is that the Apostle Paul knows a little something about suffering hard times, and how his faith carried him through.

So if you have your bibile, turn to 2 Corinthians 4 if you would, starting in verse 1. It is also on the app and on the screen if you want to follow along. If you do not own a bible, or don’t own one written in the last century, come talk to me and I would love to fix that problem!

Scripture

2 Corinthians 4:1–4 NLT

Therefore, since God in his mercy has given us this new way, we never give up. We reject all shameful deeds and underhanded methods. We don’t try to trick anyone or distort the word of God. We tell the truth before God, and all who are honest know this. If the Good News we preach is hidden behind a veil, it is hidden only from people who are perishing. Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don’t understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.

blank

Stand on the Truth

Paul picks up where he left off in the last chapter. Since you have been given this new way, you reject that which is sinful and shameful, and embrace what is true. Jesus said on the Sermon on the Mount that anyone who hears the words of his teaching and practices them will be like the one who builds his home of solid rock. The rains fell, the winds blew, and the house stood.

The most important thing you can do is not just read this word, but put it into practice, memorize it, allow the Bible to be the lens through which you see the world. In fact, I would say that as you see things the way scripture does, it all starts to make way more sense.

But as we said last week, this is only possible if you submit your life to Christ so that he can remove the veil. Without the help of the Holy Spirit, the good news is hard to understand and accept.

2 Corinthians 4:5–12 NLT

You see, we don’t go around preaching about ourselves. We preach that Jesus Christ is Lord, and we ourselves are your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let there be light in the darkness,” has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ. We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves. We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed. Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies. Yes, we live under constant danger of death because we serve Jesus, so that the life of Jesus will be evident in our dying bodies. So we live in the face of death, but this has resulted in eternal life for you.

blank

Live to Serve Jesus

Paul was no stranger to pain and suffering. In chapter 6, Paul is going to list all the things he had endured for the sake of the gospel. But he didn’t shy away from it: in fact he actually embraced. He saw suffering as a way of sharing in the life of Christ. Jesus suffered greatly for the kingdom, why wouldn’t he? This shouldn’t surprise us, because Jesus said that the student isn’t greater than the teacher; if they did it to him, how much more should we expect hardships as his followers?

Why did Paul endure the pain and hardships that he did? Because he believed that if he suffered like Jesus did, then he would also share in the resurrection that Jesus enjoyed. Paul believed that if he pressed on, despite the persecution, it would actually show the world of the power that the good news of Jesus can have in your life.

Paul is just one example of how the Good News of Jesus can endure and even thrive in the face of persecution. In Acts, we read that after Stephen was killed by the religious leaders, the disciples scattered from Jerusalem, and this scattering caused the kingdom of God to spread through the Roman Empire. Even today, in the countries where the church faces the harshest persecution is actually the places that it spreads the quickest. You experience the power of God in your life in a deep way when that very faith may risk your family, your livelihood, and even your own life.

I would also say that this formal actually shines a light on what is happening to the Western church. By contrast, I would say that the church in Canada and the US has experienced a large degree of favor. Despite the rejection of the gospel, the church is a generally respected entity because of the good we do in our community. However, it has caused the church to become comfortable, and by no coincidence the church has started to go into decline in our society. I said last week that the North American church is losing our teens at a rate of 60%. I can’t help but wonder if the reason for this is because there’s no power in our gatherings. There doesn’t have to be because generally being a believer doesn’t really cost you anything. Following this line of logic, I wonder if the reason that things are happening in Parliament is actually part of God’s plan to wake up the church and get us moving again.

Pressure doesn’t just make the church grow; it also reveals what you’re made of. The way large amounts of pressure can turn a lump of coal into a diamond, pressure also reveals what is happening beneath the surface. When you are stressed, is it your faith in God that starts to show, or something else? This is why James 1 says that you should consider it pure joy when trials and tribulations come because they develop endurance, and endurance in turn develops character. What shows in your when the pressure is on?

2 Corinthians 4:13–18 NLT

But we continue to preach because we have the same kind of faith the psalmist had when he said, “I believed in God, so I spoke.” We know that God, who raised the Lord Jesus, will also raise us with Jesus and present us to himself together with you. All of this is for your benefit. And as God’s grace reaches more and more people, there will be great thanksgiving, and God will receive more and more glory. That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.

blank

Fix Your Eyes On Eternity

In verse 1, and again in verse 16, Paul says that he will never give up. Why? Because the new way, the Good News of Jesus, that he died on a cross to take away your sins, and rose to life again three days later, gives you hope that you will share in that same resurrection. The hope is that all that is seen, all of its brokeness, sickness, and pain, will fade away and what is not seen, the eternal, the glorious and pure, will take it’s place. The hope that these bodies that are slowly dying will be replaced with immortal bodies that will never die or get sick. You faith survives persecution when you remember that all that there is right now is only here for a moment, a glimmer of the eyes, and will be replaced by that whick will never fade away. Fix your gaze on things that cannot be seen, set your heart on eternity. The author of Hebrews says this

Hebrews 11:13–16 NLT

All these people died still believing what God had promised them. They did not receive what was promised, but they saw it all from a distance and welcomed it. They agreed that they were foreigners and nomads here on earth. Obviously people who say such things are looking forward to a country they can call their own. If they had longed for the country they came from, they could have gone back. But they were looking for a better place, a heavenly homeland. That is why God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.

blank

They considered themselves foreigners and nomads, knowing that their home was in heaven. Jesus said it too, that you would store up treasure in heaven, because where your treasure, that’s where your heart would be also.

When you set your heart on heaven, and remember that nothing in this life can compare to glorious life that awaits you in eternity, you begin to take the perspective of Paul and the believers on Afganistan. What could they do to me that isn’t far surpassed by the glory of heaven?

Transition to Application

So now that we’ve looked at ways to make your faith persecution proof, the next question is how do we test it?

Main To Do

Recently in my Wednesday small group, we were looking at the practice of submitting to Jesus as only Savior, and submitting to Jesus as Functional Lord of our life. The question that we were asked is this:

Are you clearly open with others that Jesus is the only way to God?

If it comes up in conversation, will you take a stand with a believer or unbeliever, that Jesus is the only way to God? Jesus said it this way.

John 14:6 NLT

Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.

Luke 12:8–9 NLT

“I tell you the truth, everyone who acknowledges me publicly here on earth, the Son of Man will also acknowledge in the presence of God’s angels. But anyone who denies me here on earth will be denied before God’s angels.

Will you take a stand for Jesus with your family, your friends, or your co-workers? Are you willing to endure whatever hardship may come for the sake of the Gospel?

But I want to take it a step further. Will you ask for it? Will you take time, this week, in your prayer time with the Lord because I not only assume you pray, I expect that you, as disciples, are praying. When you pray, will you ask God to give you an opportunity to take a stand for your faith?

Why it matters

If you are, then your faith is well on its way to being persecution proof. It has passed the first test of honoring God over fearing man. Because we’re not talking about risking jail time or a beating; we’re just talking about a little bit of ridicule and harassment. Let’s be honest.

If you’re not, then I think you need to take a good hard look at your priorities, and maybe spend some time re-reading that Luke passage. I pray that God renews your heart so that you are not in a position where Jesus has to deny you before God’s angels.

Closing Line

The end is near, persecution is coming. As scripture says often, be on your guard, be ready, and make sure your faith can withstand everything that is about to come. Let’s pray.

Discussion Questions

What stood out from the message?

How can we practically prepare our faith to withstand future persecutions?

In what ways can we increase our unity as a church to better support each other in times of trial?

What does it mean for you personally to fix your gaze on eternity amidst present challenges?

How do the experiences of persecuted Christians influence your understanding of your own faith journey?

What steps can you take this week to publicly affirm that Jesus is the only way to God?

How do you think your faith might be tested in today's society?

Can you identify any moments in your life where your faith was challenged? How did you respond?

In what ways can you show support for your friends who might feel isolated in their faith?

What would you say if someone asked you about your faith, considering today's societal pressures?