Persecution: A Badge of Honor--Sermon on the Mount Series

            In the early 1900’s, a man organizing an exploratory journey to the South Pole is said to have placed an ad in a newspaper that read like this: “Men wanted for hazardous journey. Small wages, bitter cold, long months of complete darkness. Constant danger, safe return doubtful. Honor and recognition in case of success.” There’s nothing quite like the truth, huh? I suppose that captain could always tell his crew, “Don’t say I didn’t warn you!”

            Throughout the Gospels, we see a similar honesty from Jesus concerning the troubles that his followers could expect to suffer because of their testimony for him. With apologies to Joel Osteen, if Jesus had been a published author, he certainly would not have entitled his book, “Your Best Life Now.” Jesus consistently told his closest followers that following him would result in suffering in the here-and-now. Consider just a few examples:

·         Matthew 16:24-25—“If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

·         Matthew 24:9—“…they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake.”

·         John 15:20—“Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you.”

Of all the statements Jesus ever made, perhaps none have been proven true with more consistency than statements like these about persecution. The history of Christianity has been written in the blood of men and women who have faced hatred simply because they have faithfully followed Jesus Christ. Even today, one organization estimates that 100 million Christians around the world are being persecuted for their faith—and that number doesn’t even include people like you and me, who may not face violence because of our faith, but may still face insults and other forms of rejection.

But predictions about persecution were not Jesus’ only words on this subject. In fact, we will see in the Beatitudes today that Jesus pronounces a blessing on those who face persecution for him, and we’ll find out why as we take a closer look at Matthew 5:10-12 [READ Matthew 5:10-12]. Let’s break down these verses by talking through three questions that will help us get to the heart of the matter.

WHY IS THE PERSECUTION MENTIONED HERE TAKING PLACE?

            We should note that Jesus is not talking in these verses about suffering we may face from a health problem or from world events like a tornado, a drought, or a downturn in the economy. I do think we will be blessed if we maintain a good testimony in those events, but that simply is not what Jesus is talking about at this time. He is thinking specifically about moments in which we become a target for the hatred of others because we are living by his standards and proclaiming his message.

            It is easy to think that we in the United States really don’t face persecution for our faith, and I will admit that the rejection we face does seem like nothing compared to Christians in other parts of the world who face imprisonment or death because of their faith. But notice that in v. 11, Jesus mentions examples of persecution like insults, slander, and gossip. Those are precisely the forms of persecution that we are most likely to face in our lives today, so I think these verses are more directly applicable to us than we might think.

            We should also note that Jesus would not be talking about times where we might face hostility for representing him in a way that’s just downright obnoxious! Sometimes we find ourselves in heated conversations about religion where we lose our cool or act with arrogance and a lack of love. We may be insulted by others in those moments, but that’s not really persecution—that’s just a case of people responding with the same attitude that we displayed through our tone of voice or choice of words or our actions.

So, I am a target of persecution only if someone makes me the target of their hatred because they see the character of Christ in me.

HOW SHOULD WE RESPOND TO PERSECUTION?

            It is never a pleasant experience to be the target of someone’s anger for any reason, so how should we respond when we find ourselves being persecuted for our faith? The Lord’s answer is very clear—“rejoice and be glad!” That sounds strange enough, but wait ‘til you get a load of this—the Greek verb translated “be glad” really encourages expressions of gladness. One Greek dictionary says it conveys gladness that often involves verbal expression and appropriate body movement. In other words, we’re talking about doing a touchdown dance!

Now why in the world would we respond this way to something as unpleasant as persecution?

WHY SHOULD WE RESPOND THIS WAY?

1. We have a great reward to look forward to

            This is why we can have such joy and gladness during persecution despite the pain of the moment. All persecution hurts, whether you face insults, slander, abuse, or even death, but Jesus is not calling us to some sadistic love of pain or even to a denial of the pain of the moment. He is simply calling us to change our perspective from the present to the future; to lift our eyes from the suffering of the moment to the satisfaction that will be ours down the road. Enduring persecution in a God-honoring way today will produce benefits for us in heaven.

            We have already talked about this concept of rewards in some of the earlier Beatitudes. Now sometimes it sounds “unspiritual”—almost selfish—to think about obeying God with the motive of receiving a reward, but the Bible actually leads us to the opposite conclusion. Hebrews 11 says that Moses made the choice to stand up for his people “because he was looking to the reward (Heb 11:26).” The Apostle Paul wrote that he presses on toward a deeper knowledge of Christ “for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus (Phil 3:14).” In the very next verse he wrote, “Let those of us who are mature think this way!”

            So its actually a sign of maturity to be motivated by the rewards that God promises. And why is that? Because it reveals that we believe the promises of God! So we can celebrate when we face persecution because the experience produces a reward for us which we will claim when we one day see the Lord.

We can also respond to persecution with joy because…

2. We are in great company

            Jesus reminded His audience in Matthew 5:12 that the Old Testament prophets faced persecution for speaking up for God. Those men were godly men, faithful servants, and it is an honor to be placed in the same category as them even if we’re placed there because we face similar persecution.

            Hebrews 11:32-38 contains a description of the accomplishments and the sufferings of the prophets. Why don’t you look at that passage with me? [READ Heb 11:32-38]. I think the parenthetical statement of v. 38 says it best—these were men of whom the world was not worthy. Now in some ways, we’d rather not be in a group like that because of what they had to suffer. That’s okay on one level because we’re never told to seek for persecution. But if it comes to us, we find ourselves in the company of people of whom the Bible says the world was not worthy.

            This is why we can have such great joy and gladness even in the midst of persecution. We can look to the past and see ourselves stepping into the company of great men, and we can look to the future and see the reward from God that awaits us. Its really all about a change of perspective, isn’t it?

            John Chrysostom provides us with a great example of the perspective that we should have during persecution. Chrysostom was a pastor in Constantinople in the late 300’s AD, and his faithful gospel preaching got him into trouble with the Roman Emperor. At one point, he was called before the Emperor because he had denounced the Emperor’s wife, and he was threatened with banishment if he did not recant his statements:

            “Sire,” he replied, “you cannot banish me, for the world is my Father’s house.”

            “Then I will slay you!”

            “No, you cannot, for my life is hidden with Christ in God.”

            “Then your treasures will be confiscated!”

            “Sire, that cannot be, either. My treasures are in heaven, where no one can break through and steal.”

            “Then I will drive you from men and you will have no friends left!”

            “You cannot do that either, for I have a friend in heaven who has said, ‘I will never leave you or forsake you.’”

What a difference our perspective can make!

            Allow me to close our time now with a couple of thoughts on the application of these verses to our lives. There is some irony in the fact that this statement “blessed are those who are persecuted” comes directly after the statement “blessed are the peacemakers.” We might think that if we’re trying to live at peace with others, we won’t face persecution. If only that were true! But this statement about persecution reminds us of the tremendous importance of living at peace with each other in the church.

            We’re not all that surprised when we face insults and rejection from people outside of church. In fact, the Apostle Paul told his young assistant, Timothy, “all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted (2 Tim. 3:12).” We’re going to face it in some form, but when we face insults and rejection from people inside our own church, the pain can be almost unbearable. After all, where else can we turn to find love and acceptance? If we do not have peace with each other, our great temptation then is to make our peace with the world. It is very tempting at that point to stop living an obedient Christian life just to feel acceptance from someone, even if it comes from people who do not hold Christian values.

            Our church should be like an oasis from the rejection that we face in the world. That is why we must be peacemakers, as Jesus said. On so many levels, we simply cannot afford to fight with each other.

            Finally, as we take some measure of comfort in the fact that we rarely face the most severe forms of persecution in our country, let us never forget that many of our brothers and sisters around the world cannot say the same. Many Christians at this moment face imprisonment, physical abuse, and even death because of their faith. In Hebrews 13:3, we are commanded to remember our brothers and sisters: “Remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body.” There are a number of good organizations today that work to help us remember the plight of our persecuted brothers and sisters. I would recommend to you The Voice of the Martyrs—you can find out more about their work at www.persecution.com. Let us remember to pray for our Christian family.