Christianity, Persecution, Blessing

The persecution of Christianity in its simplest terms, historically and worldwide, can be outlined progressively:

               1. Social Persecution
               2. Legal Persecution
               3. Violent Persecution

Graphic from
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/publiccatholic/2013/03/degrees-of-christian-persecution-where-does-america-fit/

Where are we in America?

Social persecution of Christianity is commonplace – even fashionable. Disapproval, insults, hatred, ridicule and criticism. By and large, the media will not tolerate any expression of Christianity.

We have been wading into the waters of Legal persecution of Christianity for years. How many court cases have targeted or successfully hampered the free expression of Christianity? The Gospel of Peace is now officially “hate speech”.

At least we haven’t experienced Violent persecution yet . . . or have we? Take some time and see for yourself. It’s buried, but it’s there. In this country there have been an increasing number of violent crimes and murders against Christians for no other reason other than their faith. But if Social persecution already exists, which it does, you can expect the media to avoid such stories like the Plague.

Whether you are a Christian or not, you need to know how this relationship works. Numbers of people are really inconsequential. Temperature is what matters. The spiritual temperature of Christianity is almost always directly proportional to the degree of persecution.

CHRISTIANS! Have you ever noticed that the capstone of Jesus’ Beatitudes is this:

“Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

Everyone wants a blessing, but they won’t take what the Lord gives. Stop fighting and arguing with those whose understanding is darkened. Stop useless boycotts with no power behind them. Stop feeding your natural desire to get even and win and stand up for your rights. Stop wasting your life.

READ THE WORD.

DO WHAT IT SAYS.

GET READY.

Whatever Happened to Jesus’ Church?

Jerusalem's Golden Gate.

…on this rock I will build my church, 

and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.

Matthew 16:18

Jesus said he would build his church, and that the gates of Hades would not overcome it. What does that mean? Maybe a better question is this: Is the church today the anything like the one that Jesus describes here?

First, let’s table the discussion about the identity of ‘this rock’ for the time being. Suffice to say that the rock that Jesus spoke of was the revelation of himself as “the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” The rock that Jesus’ church is built on is none other than the gospel. “It is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes,” because “in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed” (Romans 1:16-17).

So, Jesus’ church is built on a message. Hmmm. Is the church today built on that message, or is it built on more than that? Think very carefully about that for a moment...

Well, apparently the gates of Hades are no match for this church Jesus builds. In the time Jesus lived, Hades was clearly understood as the unseen realm of the dead. The living had a natural fear of this realm of the dead, which no man knew anything about. So, Jesus likened it to a fortified city that his contemporaries would have been familiar with. These fortified cities had massive defensive walls, and some cities even had a double wall. These walls could be up to 20 feet thick. You might think that would make the city gate the weak point, but think again. The doors were immense, designed to withstand battering rams. Some cities even had a double set of gates so that if the attacker broke through, they were hemmed up at the second gate and slaughtered. In sum, conquering a fortified city meant the attacking force must display a fierce and resolute commitment to vanquish his enemy, notwithstanding heavy casualties.

Artist's reconstruction of the city gate at Lachish

So, the church that Jesus built was not a cowering group of saints hiding from the darkness in the world, but a fierce and resolute attacking force committed to breaking down the gates of the Enemy. Did you catch that? The church – with Christ at the Head – is the aggressor! The church is the bully! The church has picked the fight with the Enemy where he is fortified and can do the most damage.

Now here’s a question for you: Is your church really attacking the Enemy where he is fortified in this world? Be honest. What does your congregation do together that is the equivalent of suiting up for war and attacking the very gates of Hell? If you can’t answer that with something substantial, your church probably doesn’t resemble the one Jesus had in mind.

People wonder what’s wrong with this country today, not realizing that the American church has become far too comfortable. Like King David who stayed home to take it easy while Joab took the men into battle, the American church has for the most part done the same thing. The hard truth is that we enjoy all the material blessings while the persecuted church of the does the dirty work – making real disciples. They are the reason Christianity is still spreading in the world. You know why? The gospel. It’s what Jesus’ church is built on and when it’s the only thing, there’s no doubt it’s the most important thing.