Persecuted For Christ

You are blessed when they insult and persecute you and falsely say every kind of evil against you because of Me. Be glad and rejoice, because your reward is great in heaven. For that is how they persecuted the prophets who were before you. - Matthew 5:11-12

I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, friend, but if you want to truly live for Jesus, you're going to be persecuted. There's absolutely no getting around that in this life.

So, hypothetically speaking, if one didn't want to be persecuted and go through the discomfort of being slandered, accused of false things, ridiculed, and other things we'll discuss later on, would one still have a relationship with Jesus, the Father, and the Holy Spirit? Would one still go to heaven at the end of days?

I don't find anywhere in the bible that says we won't go to heaven if we're not persecuted. *phew* BUT hold on... don't get too excited... Jesus said those who are persecuted are blessed. It's my understanding that the opposite of that is also true - those who are not persecuted for the sake of Jesus are not blessed.

Now, I don't believe that if you're not persecuted for Christ's name you're not going to have a "good" life. But, friend, is that your goal? Is your life goal while you're here to have a cushy cozy life and nobody says or does anything mean or wrong to you? If so, I'm sorry to say but that's not what God intended for you or for me.

1 Peter 2:19-21 says: For it brings favor if, mindful of God’s will, someone endures grief from suffering unjustly. For what credit is there if you sin and are punished, and you endure it? But when you do what is good and suffer, if you endure it, this brings favor with God. For you were called to this, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in His steps.

Being in relationship with Jesus is beautiful, and intimate (not in a sexual way... that would be demonic), it's filled with joy, trust, glory, and goodness. It also should be filled with hardships, probably betrayal by loved ones, suffering, and yes, persecution.

As a reminder, persecution can be people speaking badly or falsely about you, or making false accusations against you. Persecution can look like being ridiculed, reviled, and harassed. And yes, sometimes, persecution for the sake of Jesus can even mean death.

All of the hardness IS a blessing! How? Because it makes us more like Him! It develops our strength, endurance, patience, compassion, empathy, and love for fellow mankind. It helps us to become selfless and outward.

If you find yourself avoiding doing things that you know in your gut, or your intuition (the Holy Spirit), you're supposed to do - like start that bible group, or say the hard yet loving thing to that family member, or eating whole foods - please take a moment or two to ask Father WHY you're avoiding the thing(s). I'm willing to bet it has something to do with discomfort.

Again, sorry to give you the bad news: life is meant to be uncomfortable.

In our society, which has been on a slippery slope downhill for a long time, one of the gods people worship is the god of comfort. They choose their own comfort over God's will for their lives. I don't know someone personally who doesn't do this. Myself included - we all like to feel comfortable. The key to moving forward from this is to first acknowledge it, ask God for the strength to do the thing He's asking you to do, and then (the hardest part!) go do the thing!

James 4:13-14 says: Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will travel to such and such a city and spend a year there and do business and make a profit.” You don’t even know what tomorrow will bring—what your life will be! For you are like smoke that appears for a little while, then vanishes.

In other words, God has a plan for your life and it's a great one, so long as we do His will above our own. This may seem harsh, but in my opinion, our plans for our lives are mediocre at best. God's plans are perfect and beautiful!

Friend, if you struggle with the need to stay comfortable and you are terrified to move outside your comfort zone, I want to challenge you to do something hard and scary this week. Don't do something stupid! Do something that God has been asking you to do but you've been avoiding because it'll be uncomfortable.

So, what's the blessing if I do this? You get closer to being like Jesus! And also, as He stated in Matthew 5:12, your reward is great in heaven and you'll be in good company with the prophets that came before you who were also persecuted for Jesus' namesake.

I want to add that 'reward' in this context means: fruit naturally resulting from toils and endeavors. Naturally as in spiritually - not of this world! What spiritual fruit will you gain? All the fruits! A basketful! However, this will require planting the seed of patience, dear one. The spiritual blessings and rewards don't always come to you right away. In fact, in my experience, it takes time to mature, and that means enduring hardships and persecution your entire life here on earth.

As long as we're seeking do to the Will of the Father He will give us the fruits of the spirit here on earth. I believe He does this to help us endure hardships and persecution. How would be able to without patience, love, or goodness? I believe these fruits will be magnified and endless in Heaven!

Revelation 12:11 says: They conquered him [the devil] by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they did not love their lives in the face of death.

The brothers and sisters before us were willing to give their testimonies of how they came to Jesus. Those testimonies were filled with embarrassing facts, yet they shared openly and honestly to anyone willing to listen. And they were persecuted for it.

They loved Jesus and His purpose more than their own lives and therefore they conquered the enemy. They won. And when you love the will of God, Jesus' life, and the conviction of the Holy Spirit over your own life, your own will, and your own comfort, dear one, you'll also win and conquer the enemy!

Rejoice and be Glad!