PERSECUTION

Scripture for the day: John 15:18; 2 Timothy 3:12 “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you” … Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.

Thought for the day: I have a friend who was once a Satanist. He was a priest in the Worldwide Church of Satan, and practiced all the rituals associated with worshipping Satan "religiously". At the same time, he attended a Christian church every Sunday morning with his wife who knew nothing of his involvement in Satanism. One day I asked him, "Didn't it make you uncomfortable sitting in a Christian church knowing what you were really like?" He replied, "Christians are all alike. They think that when they go to church they're safe, that the devil stands outside the door waiting for them to return. Where do you think Satan spends every Sunday morning? In church of course. He doesn't need to be at the bar; he already has those people firmly in his camp."

At first I was startled but then, as I thought about it, the whole thing made sense. If I wanted to hire some people to work for me, would I ask those already on the payroll or would I go to the unemployed? If I were having a party would I invite those already in the hall or would I send out invitations to those who hadn't yet been invited? In the same way Satan has no need to harass those firmly in his grip. Rather, he goes after the ones who've escaped to the arms of Jesus. And most particularly he goes after the ones who are actively involved in the Kingdom of God, those who have surrendered completely to Jesus and have been filled with the Holy Spirit. Those are the ones who are dangerous to the devil and he'll do whatever he has to in order to bring them back or tear them down. That's where persecution comes in.

You see, the devil doesn't care one whit about non-Christians or even very much about those who claim Christ as Savior and do nothing to cultivate that relationship. He's as happy as can be with those who profess but don't possess; who talk the talk but don't walk the walk. In fact, he's generally nearby to encourage such behavior.

The question arises then: if we're not experiencing any persecution, does that mean we're no threat to the devil? Possibly. Or it could simply mean God is protecting us and giving us a chance to rest before the next battle. We ought to examine ourselves whenever things go too smoothly to see if we're causing any trouble in Satan's camp. He'll be after those who do. At the same time, we ought not go look for trouble just to prove we're on God's side. Come to think of it, that won't be necessary; if we just follow Jesus closely, trouble will find us.

Sometimes trouble comes just because we live in a fallen world and we can't give the devil too much credit for calamity. We'll know when persecution comes because there will be a definite connection between the trial we face and our work in the kingdom. Generally, persecution comes despite the fact that we've made good decisions, done nothing wrong or deserving of punishment, and have responded in a Christ-like manner. Then we know that the difficulty we face is from the devil himself in response to our service in the Kingdom. And then we can "count it all pure joy" as James admonished us to do.

Feeling persecuted? Examine the reasons and, if you can see the devil at work to bring you down, rejoice at being counted worthy to suffer for the Name. He will not allow Satan to so harass you that he defeats you altogether. The battle's already been fought and won on Calvary. We have but to remain in the ranks of the Savior and He'll see us through to victory. Stand firm, then, as Paul said, clothed with the full armor of God and push on!

Now go take on your world. - Bill