"For ye had compassion of me in my bonds, and took joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance." Hebrews 10:34
I had the privilege of listening to a 92 year old preacher some years ago, and I can't forget what he said. These were his words: "How can you threaten a man with death who is already dead? Or what can you threaten to take from a person who has nothing, nor what can you tempt a person with, who owns all things?" This seems to be the state of mind of Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:31, where he said of himself, "I die daily". For such a man who had the sentence of death in himself, the threat of death was vane. But what could make a man so fearless of the threat of death? He was sure of a coming resurrection. Knowing that death was not the end of the matter gave him an unusual attitude toward death.
The early church's attitude toward persecution was shaped by what that old man said. You couldn't threaten them with death because they already counted themselves as dead; you couldn't threaten to take away their possession because they owned nothing; and you couldn't tempt them with riches because they knew that all things were theirs. How remarkably different they were from us.
Sometimes I stop and wonder what would happen if God allows the kind of persecution that the early church experienced to happen in our time! How will it be with me? Will I still say, with all boldness, that Jesus is the Lord? Will I still carry the bible openly when it becomes an offense to be found with a copy in my hand? What if faith in Christ becomes a thing of life and death, will I love my life and lose my faith in Him, or will joyfully lose my life to secure my faith in Christ?
These are questions I each follower of Christ must strive to give concrete answers to, because the times are changing, and the tides are swirling around the corridors of our faith, and it may not be too long before it gets to us. At such a time, I tell myself, "Arm yourself with a mind ready to suffer persecution peradventure that becomes the will of God for you". I also ask myself, will the present marketable "gospel" message that the church is fed with equip us with the resoluteness to stand for Christ, whatever it may cost us?
Nothing has done more harm to the church than the message of "making it". And you wonder what purpose this "making it" serves the cause of our Saviour. Maybe it will do us good to listen to the spirit and heart of men who were sold out to Christ, and hear what made them joyful. "... you took joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance." O that the prospect of someday being with Jesus will become the reason why we rejoice exceedingly, knowing that there is a place called heaven, where our Saviour is.
It's clear that they took the words of Jesus to hearts, which He spoke in Matthew 5:12, "Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you."The early church showed that their rejoicing was not dependent on anything that this world had to offer them, but their joy was entirely anchored on Christ and Him crucified. But how can this be our testimony? Like them, we must make what Christ did on the cross the object of our faith, and allow it to moderate our lives. This is what living for Christ means, allowing what He says to be the basis upon which we live our lives in the here and now. When we do this, it give the Holy Spirit the latitude to empower us with His strength to face whatever the enemy brings our way.
I sincerely pray that we all will give these contemplations serious thought, because we are living in a world that is progressively hating Christ and all who stand for Him. So that when being a Christian means the death sentence we will yet proclaim that Christ is Lord of all. God bless and preserve you for His glorious coming in Jesus name.
I am your brother,
Toni
Sometimes I stop and wonder what would happen if God allows the kind of persecution that the early church experienced to happen in our time! How will it be with me? Will I still say, with all boldness, that Jesus is the Lord? Will I still carry the bible openly when it becomes an offense to be found with a copy in my hand? What if faith in Christ becomes a thing of life and death, will I love my life and lose my faith in Him, or will joyfully lose my life to secure my faith in Christ?
These are questions I each follower of Christ must strive to give concrete answers to, because the times are changing, and the tides are swirling around the corridors of our faith, and it may not be too long before it gets to us. At such a time, I tell myself, "Arm yourself with a mind ready to suffer persecution peradventure that becomes the will of God for you". I also ask myself, will the present marketable "gospel" message that the church is fed with equip us with the resoluteness to stand for Christ, whatever it may cost us?
Nothing has done more harm to the church than the message of "making it". And you wonder what purpose this "making it" serves the cause of our Saviour. Maybe it will do us good to listen to the spirit and heart of men who were sold out to Christ, and hear what made them joyful. "... you took joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance." O that the prospect of someday being with Jesus will become the reason why we rejoice exceedingly, knowing that there is a place called heaven, where our Saviour is.
It's clear that they took the words of Jesus to hearts, which He spoke in Matthew 5:12, "Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you."The early church showed that their rejoicing was not dependent on anything that this world had to offer them, but their joy was entirely anchored on Christ and Him crucified. But how can this be our testimony? Like them, we must make what Christ did on the cross the object of our faith, and allow it to moderate our lives. This is what living for Christ means, allowing what He says to be the basis upon which we live our lives in the here and now. When we do this, it give the Holy Spirit the latitude to empower us with His strength to face whatever the enemy brings our way.
I sincerely pray that we all will give these contemplations serious thought, because we are living in a world that is progressively hating Christ and all who stand for Him. So that when being a Christian means the death sentence we will yet proclaim that Christ is Lord of all. God bless and preserve you for His glorious coming in Jesus name.
I am your brother,
Toni
