Under Attack
From it’s humble, yet miraculous, beginning as a prayer meeting attended by 120 devoted followers of Jesus Christ, the church has been ridiculed, persecuted, and under attack.
Each of the original disciples, with the obvious exception of Judas, suffered greatly for their testimonies of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Nearly all of them were killed for their faith.
Paul endured beatings, arrest, being stoned and verbally abused because he had come tI recognize (and preach) that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who takes away the sin of the world.
The church’s earliest martyr was Stephen – a man whose practical ministry was to assist widows. His ministry to the widows didn’t seem to bother anyone; however, when miracles began to occur, the scrutiny began. Ultimately it was his declaration and explanation of the Gospel that turned the ungodly religious leaders against him, resulting in him being stoned.
Being kind won’t get you in trouble. Being an advocate for social-justice issues won’t make enemies. Even being an activist for particular groups and issues will go uncontested.
But take a public, verbal stand for faith in Jesus Christ and you will quickly find yourself being scrutinized and judged.
Believer- Jesus Himself was persecuted. Why would we think that we can avoid it?
In fact, Jesus told us that we WOULD be persecuted – increasingly, as the Day of the Lord draws near.
John records these words in his revelation:
“When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne.
They cried out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?”
Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been.”Revelation 6:9-11 ESV
Persecution, although painful, is momentary; but it’s rewards are eternal.
Have faith in Jesus. Live out your faith boldly. Let grace be your response amidst persecution. Keep eternity in your sight.
Your redemption draws nigh.
My Praise
I praise You, oh Lord.
Your goodness exceeds my worthiness.
Your hand has brought me both protection and provision. All that I have I owe to You.
You have given me a wife whose beauty and strength inspire me. You have given me children who now give back to me as much love as I give to them.
You have been faithful. I have never lacked. In fact, I have always had abundance.
Your words comfort me. Your Spirit fills me. Your joy strengthens me.
Your mercy is greater than my sin. Your grace overwhelms my weaknesses.
When I think about Your goodness and all You’ve done for me… my soul cries out in praise. I am overwhelmed.
Thank You…
- For a marriage that is healthy.
- For children who are godly.
- For a church family who is loving.
- For friends who are loyal.
- For opportunities to minister.
- For Your word that inspires me.
- For being my Shepherd.
“But we your people, the sheep of your pasture, will give thanks to you forever; from generation to generation we will recount your praise.”Psalm 79:13 ESV
Tolerance and Truth
Truth is polarizing. It can be rejected or accepted, but it will not be affected one way or another- it will still be truth.
Many people, over the course of thousands of years, were moved by God to write letters, historical accounts, prayers, songs, poetry, or prophetic messages under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit – the compilation of which we refer to as the Holy Bible, God’s word.
Two examples are Jeremiah, the Old Testament (weeping) prophet, whose unenviable job was to confront Israel’s sin and rebellion; and John, the New Testament disciple/apostle, who not only wrote a Gospel account of Jesus’ ministry, but also wrote letters (1, 2, & 3 John and The Revelation of Jesus Christ) to several churches of which he was considered an overseeing pastor and spiritual father.
The words of both Jeremiah and John have literally shaped humanity and history. Their words are still read and revered today.
However, not everyone received their words – not then, and not now. Though revered and received by many, their words are often rejected.
God instructed Jeremiah to write out the words of prophecy, and to deliver the scroll to the king. The king destroyed the scroll, burned it, and rejected every word.
“Take a scroll and write on it all the words that I have spoken to you ” Jeremiah 36:2 ESV
“As Jehudi read three or four columns, the king would cut them off with a knife and throw them into the fire in the fire pot, until the entire scroll was consumed in the fire that was in the fire pot. Yet neither the king nor any of his servants who heard all these words was afraid, nor did they tear their garments.” Jeremiah 36:23-24 ESV
Many generations later, John wrote with one goal in mind- that people would place their faith in Jesus Christ. His words were received by some and rejected by others.
“Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” John 20:30-31 ESV
Not everyone receives truth. Many reject it. Truth is polarizing – it is either heeded or hated, but it cannot be ignored.
I am a believer and follower of Jesus Christ, and one who desires to proclaim the truth. As such, I have come to realize that, in a world which is moving further away from God with every generation, my words and my stance are becoming less popular and less acceptable than ever before.
Tolerance applies to everything but the truth. Many people have no tolerance whatsoever for that.
If we reject truth, what, then, is left to set us free?
Scoffers, Skeptics, and Sincere Seekers
The accusations against God are increasing in volume and intensity in the last days.
- How could your God of love allow such suffering?
- How could your God allow such injustice?
- Who are you to say that your religion (Christianity) is right, and others are wrong?
There is a cavernous difference between those who are lost and searching for God and those who reject and refuse God. The bible refers to the latter as “scoffers.”
Scoffers are in attack mode, accusatory and angry. They crassly degrade God and those who identify with Him. And they constantly question God’s love, His justice, and His righteousness.
Scoffers arrogantly assume to have greater knowledge, having been enlightened and risen above what they perceive as the pettiness of faith.
Jeremiah prophesied about such people:
“Thus says the Lord: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the Lord.””Jeremiah 9:23-24 ESV
God is misunderstood where He is not known.
- To those who know God, His love is measureless and humbling.
- To those who know God, His justice is characterized by a fullness of both grace and truth.
- To those who know God, His righteousness does not result in a “holier-than-thou” attitude, but in a humble gratitude.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. Knowing God gives understanding to life’s tough questions.
Though tainted by the venomous pride of scoffers and skeptics, the questions themselves are not entirely unfair or antagonistic. Many sincere people have difficult, if not painful, questions about God.
It gives us all the more reason for believers to dig deep and seek the heart and word of God for answers. But far more important than having all of the answers is knowing the Answer.
The bible says that the people of Israel knew God’s acts, but Moses knew His ways.
I pray that we not only see the hand of God, but that we know His heart.
Accepting Rejection
“He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.” Isaiah 53:3 ESV
Being accepted by others drives most of us to a certain degree. We want to be loved and accepted. Of course, we eventually learn that it is an impossible task to be always accepted by everyone.
The drive to be accepted can often tempt a person to compromise. The word compromise is not always evil – sometimes a good compromise between two people is exactly what needs to occur in a relationship.
But, too often, a person compromises something of their character and identity in order to be accepted by someone else.
For many years the (Ametican) church has been striving to be more relevant, approachable, and palatable. Previous generations of believers had focused more on holiness and being set apart- so much so that it created a cavernous gap between the church and the world. In response to that concern, the next generation reached out and became what we refer to as “seeker sensitive,” which in itself is a good goal.
Today, however, that sensitivity is crossing over into compromise. What began as a wonderful, Spirit-led move to reach out to the unsaved has now become a blurring of lines, a tolerance of sin among believers, and a politically correct perversion of faith.
We should not forget that, to be a follower of Christ is to identity with His sufferings as well as His glory. We cannot embrace only His grace and forget (or tinker with) His truth.
Yes, Jesus was loved by sinners; but not at the cost of compromise.
If Jesus Himself was despised and rejected, shouldn’t I expect that to be sometimes true of my own life of faith?
To be honest, I’m a little weary of hipster Christianity. I think it was and is superficial. What I desire is an authentic faith that expresses itself in love.
My faith in Jesus Christ will not always be popular. In fact, it will become increasingly rejected in the last days.
I am not driven to be accepted by people; I am driven by the acceptance I have already received by one Man who set me free.
I love Him because He first loved me.
Pastor Dale Jenkins 