Tuesday, December 3, 2024
Luke 6:22-23
22 Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you,
and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you,
and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man's sake.
23 Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy:
for, behold, your reward is great in heaven: for in the like manner did their
fathers unto the prophets.
Leaping for joy is not
our first or natural response to being hated and abused. Either God doesn’t understand our pain,
or we don’t understand His perspective. I think the latter might be the
best guess. God does not think like we do, and he doesn’t mark time the way
that we do. Our frustration at His patience while we endure trials is due
totally to our failed understanding. There is little hope of reconciling our
thinking without a healthy dose of faith in the unseen.
When, for our innocent
attempts to serve the Lord and to serve people, we become the victims of
rejection and harsh abuse, we find ourselves in some rare company. Jesus said:
“for
in like manner did they unto the prophets.” We do not feel worthy to
sit with such a company but that is exactly where Jesus has placed those who
suffer on His behalf. Paul suffered the equivalent of being run out of town.
This was not the mega-church welcome that many of today’s servants have come to
expect.
Acts 9:23-25
23 And after that many days were fulfilled,
the Jews took counsel to kill him:
24 But their laying await was known of Saul.
And they watched the gates day and night to kill him.
25 Then the disciples took him by night, and
let him down by the wall in a basket.
Since Christianity has
been driven from the streets and forced to reside inside the walls of
churches, the church has now become the devil’s battle ground. Pretend
Christians and real Christians sit together at worship, and it is inevitable
that conflict will be the result. When we try to redefine genuine
Christianity to fit a particular mold we exclude anyone that doesn’t fit. It’s
painful but it’s common.
Paul urged young
Timothy to “endure hardness” as a good soldier of Jesus Christ (2 Timothy 2:3). The word “endure” speaks
nothing of strategy or tactics. It simply points out that spiritual conflict
will be cruel and uncomfortable. Brace yourself! Experience, hope and boldness
are the products of pain. Read it for yourself in the following
verses.
Rom 5:3-5
3 And not only so, but we glory in
tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;
4 And patience, experience; and experience,
hope:
5 And hope maketh not ashamed; [makes us bold
and confident] because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy
Ghost which is given unto us.
Dear Lord, it seems we have been lied to when
we have been led to believe that Christian service involves large adoring
crowds, fancy clothes, and big smiles. In reality, we soon learn that we are
battling a foe that is hell bent on destroying us. Let us brace ourselves for
the conflict and sternly endure the trouble that comes with serving you. Only
be our captain! AMEN
No comments:
Post a Comment