“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:10
July 24, 2023
People persecuted are to be envied. Does that not sound strange? But that is what Jesus is saying in this beatitude. It challenges contemporary errors in the church: that Christianity delivers from suffering, that God loves His children too much to be abused and suffer (“How can God allow this to happen to me?”), that it is God’s will for us to live well and free of pain, that suffering is always for sin, that suffering is a sign of God’s anger, that suffering can separate us from Christ, that suffering is incompatible with joyful living. According to “Open Doors” in 1993, Christians faced high to extreme levels of persecution in 40 countries. This number has nearly doubled to 76 countries in 2023.” We Christians in the West cannot distance ourselves from those who are facing high to extreme levels of persecution. As believers in Jesus Christ we have many enemies. It’s sad to say that we must add another enemy to our list. Our own government is increasingly showing hostility to a Christian worldview. Not only should we expect persecution, we are to pray for our persecutors. It seems that some in the church think that political alignment with so-called conservative politicians can help reduce the hatred of Christians. “Persecution is simply the clash between two irreconcilable value-systems.” John Stott
Our first duty in this state of affairs is to pray. Pray for the Christians in North Korea who are some of the greatest risk-takers in the world. Here is what one believer in North Korea says, “But even though it is risky and we know it is not safe, we still have to do it.” The “it” is when traveling, their ID is checked and being identified as Christians means imprisonment or worse. The church of Jesus Christ has enemies. But God is our refuge.
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“Blessed are those in prison for their faith. Blessed are those who are spied on by the state.” “Open Doors” ministry