Are You Being Persecuted for Righteousness Sake?
Matthew 5:10-12
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Jesus, in His sermon on the mount. makes it clear that as believers and Christians, days of persecution will come. It is inevitable. There are days were family will taunt you about your righteous stand on certain matters, there are times were friends will insult you and call you ‘stupid’ or ‘not-sharp’ because you decided not to tell a ‘white lie’, or because you did not compromise godly principles for worldly gain; even people who you love will mock you for doing things God’s way. And there are certain places in the world right now where the mention of the name of Jesus can get you killed. Jesus has comforting news for you: Rejoice and be glad
12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
You would not be the first believer who would go through this neither will you be the last. Even the Lord Jesus went through persecution in the hands of men, the Joy in this is in the knowledge that you are going through what you go through because of JESUS. You are identifying with the suffering that He and all the prophets also suffered. You are on the right path
Hebrews 12: 2
2 looking unto Jesus, the [a]author and [b]finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Again, do not be afraid of any affliction that may arise out of your right relationship with God. The Lord Almighty has promised us in His Word that he will deliver us from them all
- Psalm 34:19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the Lord delivereth him out of them all.
- Exodus 14:14 The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.
- Hebrews 13:5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.
However, if you are a believer and you have been a believer for a while now and you cannot remember a time at all when anyone tried to make you feel bad or mocked you for righteous decisions you have taken at one time or the other, it may mean that you are trying too hard to ‘blend’ in and be ‘accepted’ by the world. You have to be very careful
2 Timothy 2:4 No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier.
Make a decision today that regardless of how people may react towards you, you will choose to live a life that is in alignment with the dictates and principles of God. It does not matter what men say about you, the only thing you should be concerned about is what God says about you:
Matthew 10: 32 So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, 33 but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.
Selah
