Sermon on the Mount, part 8. The Persecuted are Blessed

Transcription

1 Title Slide Sermon on the Mount, part 8 The Persecuted are Blessed Slide 2 Matthew 5:10, Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. Slide 3 2 Timothy 3:12 10 But you have carefully followed my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, perseverance, 11 persecutions, afflictions, which happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra what persecutions I endured. And out of them all the Lord delivered me. 12 Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution INTRODUCTION Simply put Jesus is saying that those who choose to: o Live Godly o Share openly o And Live radically counter culture o Will be persecuted! Right up front Jesus let them know what they were in for when they decided to reject the evil powers of this world and accept the power of God s grace to live full out as a devotee of Jesus! 1

2 Persecution is inevitable for Christians And the persecution Jesus had in mind was violence, torture, imprisonment, and even death for His names sake! And to be perfectly honest with you, we have not been persecuted for our faith. We currently live in a country and culture that still remains open and free and we are under no real threat to be persecuted as long as we stay here in the U.S.A. BUT THAT IS NOT TO SAY THAT WE WILL NEVER BE PERSECUTED FOR OUR FAITH THE TIME MAY COME WHEN WE TOO WILL BE PERSECUTED FOR LIVING AN UNDIVIDED FAITH IN JESUS! What I am interested in this morning is to prepare you for the possibility of persecution and martyrdom. You must make up your mind ahead of time how you will face the possibility and inevitable. Many people have been killed for their faith through the ages, even in the current millennium. Interestingly, the word we use today, martyr, is the basic Christian word used in the NT which is translated, witness. Therefore, when Jesus said, you shall be my witnesses (Acts 1:8); it had a great significance to them. 2

3 This does not mean, by any means, that every Christian will be persecuted or martyred, but because the witness of the early church followers lead to their martyrdom, we use the word today to mean someone who dies for their faith. Jesus was persecuted ridiculed, hated, scorned, and eventually he was tortured, beaten, and killed for confronting the religious practices of his day. The first century Christians were certainly persecuted Stephen (Acts 6, 7). Stephen was seized and persecuted for doing miracles, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and lied about, just like they brought false charges against Jesus. Stephen spoke boldly, in wisdom and the power of the spirit when we has questioned about his faith. (Great summary of Israel and promised Messiah Jesus) Then Stephen pointed to them and called them Stiff-necked, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit When they heard these words they stoned Stephen 3

4 And look how Stephen responded to his persecution!!!! Slide 4 Lord Jesus, receive my Spirit and falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, Lord, do not hold this sin against them. Wow! Wow! In the midst of his suffering and death he could see Jesus and he prayed for those who hated him and who tortured him those who killed him. From that day forward a great persecution broke out against the church and the Christians were scattered. Saul terrorized the Christians and thought he was doing a good thing. Later, after Saul s conversion and he began his missionary journey s he was persecuted over and over, everywhere he traveled. Life was never easy, but he knew that Jesus was worth it all! The history of the NT church is littered with stories of persecution. The Apostle Peter and Paul continually prepared the Christians for persecution! Jesus was right! True followers of Jesus will inevitably be persecuted. 4

5 Even today, in many parts of the world, Christians are hated, tortured, ridiculed, and killed for living for Jesus by a world that hates God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit! And so, we too may well be persecuted. We are not now persecuted, but the time may come in America when Christians will be persecuted. So, what do Jesus and the ancient and present church teach us about how to respond to persecution? Slide 5 JESUS PREPARES HIS WITNESSES FOR PERSECUTION in Matthew 10 First observe who will be persecuted All who proclaim Jesus as Son, Savior and Lord who boldly announce the Kingdom of God with healing, deliverance, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, and offer a new and radical life in Jesus! Slide 6 Next observe who will persecute Christians Sheep in the midst of wolves predators, scavengers, imposters, 5

6 Slide 7 Slide 8 Slide 9 These men will deliver you over to the courts and flog you and drag you before Governors and kings! Worse yet, persecution will come from your own family o Sons will come against their fathers o A daughter against her mother. o A daughter in law against her mother in law! o A person s enemies will come from his own household. o This is still true today! Next observe several instructions from Jesus and the Apostles on how we are to face persecution o Be wise and be innocent and beware! o Do not be anxious about what to say o The one who endures (without denying Christ) will be saved! o Do not be afraid of people who can kill only the body but cannot kill the soul! o Remember your worth! o Acknowledge Jesus as your only supreme and sovereign Lord! o Take up your cross and follow Jesus! o Be faithful to the end! 6

7 Slide 10 Click Click Slide 11 Slide 12 o I Cor. 4:17 When persecuted we endure, when slandered, we entreat (ask earnestly), when reviled we bless! o 2 Timothy 3:14 Continue in what you learned o Romans 8 Remember that nothing can separate you from the love of God not death, not life, not angels, not rulers, nor powers, nor height, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the Love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. o 1 Peter 4:12-19! Beloved do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.! But rejoice insofar as you share Christ s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed...! If you are insulted for the name of Jesus Christ, you are blessed because the Spirit of Glory and of God rest upon you! But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief, or an evildoer or a meddler. 7

8 ! Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name.! Therefore, let those who suffer according to God s will entrust their souls to a faithful creator while doing good! Slide 13 Click Finally let us notice what we are promised when persecuted Yours is the Kingdom of heaven! Your reward in heaven is great! Rejoice and be glad! Now this is a shocking piece of counsel. What can possibly justify the command to be glad when we are hated and mocked and tortured and killed? And make no mistake about it Jesus does have death in view here. This is what they did to the prophets (Matthew 23:30; 1 Kings 18:13; 19:10; Nehemiah 9:26; Jeremiah 26:23). This is what they would do to the disciples. So he says in Matthew 24:9, Click "Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and put you to 8

9 death; and you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake." Slide 14 Why This Shocking Counsel from Jesus? What can justify such counsel to people in pain? "Rejoice and be glad!" This is the Lord speaking. It is not some pastoral novice that blunders into a funeral home slapping people on the back, saying, "Praise God, anyhow." This is the Lord. And he says to his disciples, most of whom will drink the cup of martyrdom, "Rejoice and be glad" when you are persecuted, when you suffer. How can he say this? He can say it because he knows beyond any shadow of a doubt that the reward of heaven will more than compensate for any suffering we must endure in the service of Christ. "Rejoice and be glad, for great is your reward in heaven." There is a mystery here the mystery of joy in the midst of agony; 9

10 the mystery of gladness in the midst of misery and groaning. And this mystery is contained in a miracle, namely, the miracle of faith the bedrock assurance that heaven is a hundredfold compensation for every pain. "Rejoice and be glad, for great is your reward in heaven." Keeping Our Hearts in Heaven I close by pressing home one of the clear implications of this text. Jesus wills for his disciples to desire the reward of heaven more than we desire the reward of the world. Jesus wills for us to have our treasure in heaven not on earth (6:19 20). Jesus wills for your heart to be so set on heaven that to leave this earth is a cause of rejoicing. Not without tears! as Paul said, "As sorrowful, yet always rejoicing," and as Jesus sweat blood in Gethsemane in the face of his own pain, but for the joy set before him endured the cross. 10

11 Jesus wills for us to have our hearts primarily in heaven, our hopes primarily in heaven, our longings primarily in heaven, our joy primarily in heaven. There is no other way that you can rejoice and be glad at the loss of your earthly joys. How shall we rejoice and be glad when these things are taken from us if we have not loved heaven more? Click Dietrich Bonhoeffer German pastor, theologian, and resister of Hitler s reign of terror in Europe. as he left his prison room on the way to the gallows in 1945, he said, This is the end-for me the beginning of life. Slide 15 Ten years later the camp doctor wrote: As the place of execution, he again said a short prayer and then climbed the steps to the gallows, brave and composed. His death ensued after a few seconds. IN the almost 50 years that I worked as a doctor, I have hardly ever seen a man die so entirely submissive to the will of God! Look to the prophets! Look to the martyrs! 11

12 Whatever you must do to get your heart in heaven and off the world, do it! Click Slide 16 Otherwise you will not be able to obey the command of our Lord, Rejoice and be glad in persecution, for great is your reward in heaven. How to Pray from the Bible Because the New Testament was written to persecuted believers, it is filled with examples of how to pray for our brothers and sisters under attack. Here are 5 examples from Ephesians: Please pray persecuted believers would know the hope God gives (Ephesians 1:8). Pray the Holy Spirit would strengthen them (Ephesians 3:16). Please pray persecuted believers would know how much God loves them (Ephesians 3:17) Pray they would know how to share the gospel (Ephesians 6:19). Please pray persecuted believers would fearlessly tell others about Jesus (Ephesians 6:20) Slide 17 Matthew 5:10, Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 12

13 Invitation to respond to God s offer of Grace 1. Salvation Are you saved? Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your savior and Lord? Do you know for certain that when you die you will go to heaven? 2. Healing Body, soul, and spirit, emotions, relations, etc. 3. Empowerment Do you have a hard time being strong and powerful? Do you find it difficult to be a positive witness for Christ? Have you made the wonderful discovery of the spirit filled life? 13