Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also. (John 15:20)
Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. (2 Timothy 3:12)
Persecution is good!
We really need to understand persecution? The greek transliteration of the word persecution is dioko (dee-o'-ko). This means the following in its biblical usage:
1) to make to run or flee, put to flight, drive away 2) to run swiftly in order to catch a person or thing, to run after a) to press on: figuratively of one who in a race runs swiftly to reach the goal b) to pursue (in a hostile manner) 3) in any way whatever to harass, trouble, molest one a) to persecute b) to be mistreated, suffer persecution on account of something 4) without the idea of hostility, to run after, follow after: someone
5) metaph., to pursue a) to seek after eagerly, earnestly endeavour to acquire
With all of that, you can see that we are not in control when it comes to persecution. This verb suggests that the doer is trying to afflict and drive away in a hostile manner. Doesn’t sound to positive huh? Yet this is what the Lord says that we are happy if we have this:
Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. (Matthew 5:10-12)
Persecution is a good thing. It is a great thing that we all must suffer as brothers and sisters in the Lord Jesus Christ. We should look at these brothers and sisters in these other countries and rejoice that they are suffering for our LORD JESUS. We should not be afraid to take a verbal blow or even a physical blow over here in the United States. So you’re probably asking, how can I come to embrace persecution?
How can we embrace persecution?
Embracing persecution is possible. We know from scripture alone persecution will come to the life of the true believer. So how does the believer embrace something he know is coming? Lets go to our authority, the Holy Scriptures:
And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows; And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites. Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them. Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt. And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt? And he said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this mountain. (Exodus 3:7-12)
In the Exodus passage, we find the Lord God commissioning Moses to return to Egypt to redeem His people. Remembering His promise to Abraham (Genesis 15:13-16), God tells Moses that Pharaoh will resist (v19), but by the Lord, later he will let them go. So Moses heard he is going to go through some resistance, just as Jesus Christ the Lord tells us we will experience persecution. God being with us in verse 12 is what we must understand in order to embrace persecution when it takes place. When the believer comes to understand Christ Jesus is in them (1 John 4:4) and He is not going anywhere,they can go through anything. Even if it leads to death, a true Christian can go through it. For Christ I live, and for Christ Jesus I die, because Christ is with me. Jeremiah was told the same thing:
And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the LORD, to deliver thee. (Jeremiah 1:19)
We don’t like persecution because of the negative connotation associated with it in our minds: “I got suffer, I got to be rejected, and somebody ain’t going to like me!” We sometimes cannot deal to well with that. Hey, when you really believe Christ is with you my beloved, you’ll travel right through it. That’s why our brothers in China can take a bullet to the head, be thrown in urine in front of the public, then whole villages want to come and know Jesus Christ who they serve! Our Chinese brethren understand stand that Jesus Christ is with them. Moses got it as well:
Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. And Moses called unto Joshua, and said unto him in the sight of all Israel, Be strong and of a good courage: for thou must go with this people unto the land which the LORD hath sworn unto their fathers to give them; and thou shalt cause them to inherit it. And the LORD, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed. (Deuteronomy 31:6-8)
See that! There is no use for you to be freaking out because you experience light affliction, let the joy of the Lord rule in your hearts my beloved!
For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:17-18)
So let us embrace what those in other countries have embraced: persecution. It’s coming American Christian, don’t be afraid, let’s instead get ready to truly praise our Lord Jesus Christ. The pimps and sheeple are dancing right now! They’re shouting and running around the building talking about Tonta catching a Honda! Trust me, these people are making a show but will they suffer persecution:
As many as desire to make a fair shew in the flesh, they constrain you to be circumcised; only lest they should suffer persecution for the cross of Christ. For neither they themselves who are circumcised keep the law; but desire to have you circumcised, that they may glory in your flesh. (Galatians 6:12-13)
In Paul’s day they compelled us to be circumcised. Now the New Apostolic Reformation, Fred Price, Creflo Dollar, T.D Jakes etc are asking all of you to speak in tongues, throw money at their feet and do holy laughter barking etc. But when it comes time to burn down our churches and homes, glory be to Jesus Christ, we will really praise the Lord!! Ha ha, O my friends, let us not become weary in experiencing persecution. Instead let us understand that God is with us, and embrace this knowing we are taking part in what our Lord Jesus Christ took part of. I’ll leave you with a great example of persecution and the attitude a believer should have. Very famous scripture let God speak to you my beloved.
Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, whose height was threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof six cubits: he set it up in the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon. Then Nebuchadnezzar the king sent to gather together the princes, the governors, and the captains, the judges, the treasurers, the counsellors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the provinces, to come to the dedication of the image which Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up. Then the princes, the governors, and captains, the judges, the treasurers, the counsellors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the provinces, were gathered together unto the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up; and they stood before the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up. Then an herald cried aloud, To you it is commanded, O people, nations, and languages, That at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, ye fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath set up: And whoso falleth not down and worshippeth shall the same hour be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. Therefore at that time, when all the people heard the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and all kinds of musick, all the people, the nations, and the languages, fell down and worshipped the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up. Wherefore at that time certain Chaldeans came near, and accused the Jews. They spake and said to the king Nebuchadnezzar, O king, live for ever. Thou, O king, hast made a decree, that every man that shall hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, shall fall down and worship the golden image: And whoso falleth not down and worshippeth, that he should be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. There are certain Jews whom thou hast set over the affairs of the province of Babylon, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego; these men, O king, have not regarded thee: they serve not thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up. Then Nebuchadnezzar in his rage and fury commanded to bring Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Then they brought these men before the king. Nebuchadnezzar spake and said unto them, Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, do not ye serve my gods, nor worship the golden image which I have set up? Now if ye be ready that at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, ye fall down and worship the image which I have made; well: but if ye worship not, ye shall be cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace; and who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands? Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter. If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up. Then was Nebuchadnezzar full of fury, and the form of his visage was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego: therefore he spake, and commanded that they should heat the furnace one seven times more than it was wont to be heated. And he commanded the most mighty men that were in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and to cast them into the burning fiery furnace. Then these men were bound in their coats, their hosen, and their hats, and their other garments, and were cast into the midst of the burning fiery furnace. Therefore because the king's commandment was urgent, and the furnace exceeding hot, the flame of the fire slew those men that took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell down bound into the midst of the burning fiery furnace. Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonied, and rose up in haste, and spake, and said unto his counsellors, Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? They answered and said unto the king, True, O king. He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God. Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, and spake, and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, ye servants of the most high God, come forth, and come hither. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, came forth of the midst of the fire. And the princes, governors, and captains, and the king's counsellors, being gathered together, saw these men, upon whose bodies the fire had no power, nor was an hair of their head singed, neither were their coats changed, nor the smell of fire had passed on them. Then Nebuchadnezzar spake, and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in him, and have changed the king's word, and yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God. Therefore I make a decree, That every people, nation, and language, which speak any thing amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made a dunghill: because there is no other God that can deliver after this sort. Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, in the province of Babylon. (Daniel 3:1-30)
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