Are Christians in America Persecuted?

2 Thessalonians 1:11-12 - With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may bring to fruition your every desire for goodness and your every deed prompted by faith.  We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

 

Paul’s second letter to the Thessalonians was written very shortly after the first letter.  The reason for the letter was that the issues he wrote to them about in the first letter had actually gotten worse.  The persecution had intensified and they were more confused about Jesus’s return. So Paul writes this short letter in hopes of encouraging and comforting them. 

In the first part of the letter, the Apostle addresses their persecution.  He assures them that God has not forgotten them and God will hold those who persecute them accountable.  The Thessalonians will be found righteous in God’s sight for their faithfulness and their oppressors will be punished.  The Thessalonians had probably hoped that these things were true, but it was probably good to hear Paul confirm it.

However, Paul offers a prayer in this section that they will stay the course in the midst of persecution.  He prays that through this difficult time, they will be able to keep boldly doing the work to which they were called.  Persecution doesn’t let them off the hook and Paul prays they will be found “worthy of [God’s] calling.” 

There are Christians in America who complain that we are in a time of persecution in this country.  I want to go on the record as saying, “hogwash!”  There may be isolated examples here and there of Christians actually suffering for their faith here in the US, but it is not comparable to what the early churches in the Roman Empire suffered. Are we portrayed as idiots, simpletons, and/or zealots in movies and TV? Yes, sometimes.  Are our values always upheld by the laws of this country? No, not always. Is it easy to live out Jesus's teachings in our culture?  No, but it's not easy to do so anywhere.  However, there are many places in the world right now where letting it be known that you are Christian is a life-risking act.  Christians die every day for simply being Christians across the globe.  We should remember that and pray for those who face this danger daily. 

My other challenge to us today is to do the work God has called us to do.  If the persecuted church can be faithful under life-threatening conditions, how much more faithful should we be? 

 

Question:  What work has God led you to be involved in right now?  What is one step you could take today to move forward in faithfulness to that call?

 

Prayer:  Gracious God, thank you for bringing me to this moment in my life with all the blessings and privileges I have.  Show me how I may leverage those blessings and privileges for your glory.  Amen.

 

Prayer Focus:  Pray for the persecuted church in other countries across the world.

 

Song:  "No Turning Back" Christian Persecution Play by CORNERSTONE ASIAN CHURCH YOUTH]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICRAuOFzj2U

Not Winning Any Popularity Contests

Mark 13:9-13, CEB - “Watch out for yourselves. People will hand you over to the councils. You will be beaten in the synagogues. You will stand before governors and kings because of me so that you can testify before them.  First, the good news must be proclaimed to all the nations.  When they haul you in and hand you over, don’t worry ahead of time about what to answer or say. Instead, say whatever is given to you at that moment, for you aren’t doing the speaking but the Holy Spirit is.  Brothers and sisters will hand each other over to death. A father will turn in his children. Children will rise up against their parents and have them executed.  Everyone will hate you because of my name. But whoever stands firm until the end will be saved.

 

                Throughout the Old Testament of the Bible, people who live according to the way God leads consistently run into resistance and often open hostility from others, even others who claim to be people of faith as well.  Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery.  The people Moses led constantly grumbled against him.  Saul tried to kill David multiple times.  Job’s own wife told him to “curse God and die.”  And the prophets . . . not a one of them escaped open resistance.  Some have even tried to create an axiom that asserts that you’re not doing the right thing if you’re not encountering resistance.  I’m not sure this statement holds true all the time, but I am quite convinced that if you consistent follow God’s leading, you WILL, at some point, encounter people who at least question your direction.   

                So Jesus’s words above should not be surprising at all to people familiar with the history from which Jesus springs.  What is surprising is that Jesus get specific.  Family members will turn on each other, even parents against their own children.  Believers will be brought before councils and even rulers to give an account of themselves.  What is even more surprising is that Jesus instructs his followers to welcome such trials as an opportunity.  When else, after all, would a normal citizen get to witness to their faith before a king?  The resistance encountered presents previously forbidden chances to move the mission forward.  Mark does not include Matthew’s great commission, but it is here in this passage; “First, the good news must be proclaimed to all the nations.”  Resistance and hostility actually serve that mission.

                Jesus also includes two important encouragements in these instructions.  First, when those unforeseen opportunities present themselves to give an account of your faith, the Holy Spirit will give you the words to say.  So instead of crumbling under pressure, we trust and expect that our words and actions in such circumstances will come to us via God’s direct leadership.  Second, Jesus assures us that no matter what may happen to us as a result of living out our faith, we “will be saved.”  We should note that almost all of Jesus’s 12 primary disciples who are hearing these instructions will martyred for their faith.  So Jesus’s promise of being saved must mean a rescue from beyond death.  There is a vindication from God that transcends even those who die for their faith.  Mark’s first readers needed to hear this because many were dying for their faith.  There are still many hundreds of Christians martyred each year in our own time who, along with their families, need Jesus’s assurance offered here.

                For most of us who do not risk our lives expressing our faith, these words of Jesus as till crucial for us to hear and digest.  We need to hear that doing the thing God wants us to do will often not popular.  Though we may not face violence, we will most likely face ridicule and or sacrifice our popularity at some point.  Many times, when we face such situations, our tendency is to get quiet, perhaps even mute.  It’s not pleasant to know people in our faces are not with us, so we feel pressure to simply go with the flow, or at least, not continue to move against it.  Jesus reminds us that these situations can be an opportunity to allow out true faith to be seen and possibly heard when it might not have been otherwise.  If we will embrace those opportunities and rely on the Spirit, we will be led in what to do and say.  And regardless of what happens as a result, final vindication will eventually be ours. 

 

Questions:  Can you think of times when you felt pressure to hide or minimize your identity as a follower of Jesus because you sensed resistance or hostility?  What did you do?  What will you do next time?

 

Prayer:  Jesus, sometimes, being a bearer of Your name seems to put us at odds with those around us.  Help us navigate the balance between being at odds with others and being at odds with You. Amen.

 

Prayer Focus:  Pray for those Christians around the world who face fierce persecution for their faith in Christ.

 

I Am Not Ashamed – Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AStr4gfQGTM