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The blessing of persecution

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#12 in the Sermon on the Mount series

Persecution

I have put off writing about this Beatitude because it is uncomfortable to think about persecution as being part of God’s plan for me or my family. I would like to be able to subscribe to the belief that with enough faith, I can live a comfortable life without problems. This message of prosperity and comfort is the message of the TV preachers, but unfortunately, it is not the message of Jesus.

Jesus doesn’t promise unlimited blessings or comfort in this life. Jesus promises a cross, hardship and persecution. Continuing in the Sermon on the Mount he says:

Matthew 5:10–12 — 10 “Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. 12 “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Notice that Jesus puts some qualifiers in his statement. First we are only blessed if the accusations are false. Christians are called to live exemplary lives and any accusations of evil should have no truth to them. In my lifetime many highly visible leaders and teachers in the church have fallen into sin and have been publicly disgraced and ridiculed. This ridicule is not a cause for reward.

Secondly, the persecution that is blessed comes from accurately representing Jesus Christ. Notice the phrase at the end of verse 11, “because of me.” Many things have been done in the name of Christ of which Jesus does not approve; these are justly condemned. For example, much of the rhetoric of Westboro Baptist Church in Kansas is contrary to Scripture and as Paul would say, “their condemnation is just.” These folks misrepresent the name of Christ and any persecution they receive is not a cause for rejoicing nor will it be rewarded in Heaven.

Why would God allow persecution of those He loves? This is a difficult question in general and it may be impossible to answer why any particular instance of persecution is permitted. Yet Scripture does give us some clues as to why we may be called to suffer.

Later in this same discourse, Jesus tells us that we are to allow the light of the Gospel that is within us to shine so that men may “see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). In the history of the church, those who have borne unjust persecution for the sake of Christ have demonstrated the good works of which Jesus speaks.

Because we live in a fallen world, everyone, believer and unbeliever alike, has to endure hardship and trials. How we respond to those trials is an indication of where our faith and hope are placed. When a Christian is falsely accused as a result of his faith, God can use the Christian’s response as a testimony to his accusers and the spectators of God’s power to change lives. The blessing comes as a result of being used by God as a light to draw others to Jesus.

While we may wish to live a quiet life free from conflict and hassle, Jesus tells us here that our desire may not be in his plan. No healthy person looks for suffering, but we should not be surprised if we find ourselves in hardship as a result of our relationship with Jesus.

In John 16:33 Jesus tells us “In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” We can be blessed as a result of persecution because Jesus has overcome the world. In Christ we are on the winning side.

Feedback is scary – but you need it

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I found this article to be well written and important and decided to repost it. 

Leaders, you need feedback. But most of us aren’t getting it. Why? Because feedback is scary.

 

FeedbackLet me tell you the story on where this post is coming from.

LEARNING TO PRUNE

Last year I moved to Silicon Valley to start Garden City Church. This was the scariest move of faith I’ve ever made. With just three people committed to my dream, $3,000 in the church bank account, and a heart full of big vision, I moved my wife and three young sons to start this new adventure. Plenty of people told me I was crazy.

Garden City Church is now six months old. These past six months have been the most exciting, difficult, rewarding, busy, and thrilling six months of my life. I’ve poured my heart and soul into this church. I’ve given it everything I’ve got. We’re off to a great start as a church and we are already far beyond my hopes and expectations of where we would be half a year into our life as a church.

But, as in any church or organization, things aren’t perfect. There are changes that need to be made, branches that need to be pruned, sins that need to be confessed, data that needs to be processed, and courses that need to be corrected. And, as the lead guy, I’m the one most responsible for looking at reality, calling a spade a spade, and leading change and forward movement . . . .

Read the rest of the post: FEEDBACK IS SCARY—BUT YOU NEED IT

Simple pleasures are a gift – consider the source

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Steaming Cup of TeaIt is Saturday morning and I woke up much later than usual. My waking was a result of our puppy reminding me that she cannot open her crate door and put herself outside. These tasks accomplished, I went to the kitchen to boil water for a cup of tea and a bowl of instant oatmeal. My sleep pattern was disrupted this week by a medical emergency in the family (which is resolving nicely) so the cobwebs in my brain were thicker than usual.

In my fog and stupor, as I poured the water over the tea leaves and oatmeal, the combined aromas provided a pleasurable moment. The smell of the white tea and maple brown sugar oatmeal was delightful. I am often moving too quickly to find enjoyment in such simple things, shame on me for this. I must be more observant moving forward.

As I experienced the aromas, I recognized that the aromas and my ability to enjoy them are both gifts from God. I read James 1:17 recently which says, “every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.”

I assume that those who claim there is no God would explain about how our DNA has evolved so that we associate smells with food which gives us sustenance so that we can keep our biological machine running. I am sure that research has been done on which part of the brain is stimulated by food smells and what chemicals the stimuli release into my body to trigger the enjoyment response. The biochemical process of enjoyment can be explained but does the understanding of the chemical and biological processes adequately answer the question “why?”

I assume that those who claim there is no God would think that my enjoyment of the aroma could be explained as nothing more than a programmed response to these stimuli. The question I ask is “who did the programming?” Is it just chance that we find enjoyment in the small things in life? Is my pleasure only a mechanical reaction to a mechanical process?

Or, could the enjoyment of aromas and other simple pleasures be clues that God provides to remind us of his existence and his goodness? Is this enjoyment a gift? I choose to believe it is.

The Light that can be found – reflections on a lyric by 3 Doors Down

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3 Doors Down Logo

The song “When I’m Gone” by 3 Doors Down begins this way:

There’s another world inside of me
That you may never see
There’re secrets in this life
That I can’t hide
Somewhere in this darkness
There’s a light that I can’t find
Maybe it’s too far away…
Or maybe I’m just blind…

What struck me about this lyric is the comparison with light and darkness. The Bible uses this same image in describing the light of the Gospel (Gospel means “good news”) shining in the darkness of the world. In Matthew 4:16 it says, “The people who were sitting in darkness saw a great Light, And those who were sitting in the land and shadow of death, Upon them a Light dawned.”

There are two problems identified which cause someone to not see the light. The first is blindness: “The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it” (John 1:5). This is the starting point for all of humanity. We are all born in spiritual darkness. God shines the light of his love into that darkness and we have to choose our response to it. The difference between believers and unbelievers is that believers choose to respond to the light of the Gospel.

The second problem is willful blindness: “This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil” (John 3:19). Some choose to reject Jesus Christ and remain in darkness. Often this rejection is in reaction to the behavior of some who claim to follow Jesus. I empathize with this reaction and would like to offer a response.

Even though believers have responded to the Light, Scripture teaches us that until death or rapture some of the darkness remains in us and we say and do things that are wrong. True believers do not think themselves better than unbelievers. Even the Apostle Paul, the writer of much of the New Testament, struggled with this. He writes, “For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want” (Romans 7:19).

The only difference is that believers have accepted the love and grace of Jesus Christ. If we are changed, it is a result of that love and grace changing us; we can claim no credit. While our motives may be improved sometimes our results are not. Some of the cruelest things ever said to me were said by believers. That is the icky truth.

My point is that believers still hurt people, say stupid things, struggle with addictions, act in selfishness and generally struggle with the same stuff the rest of humanity struggles with. This does not make the Gospel less true.

The fact that we are changed at all is testimony to the power of the Gospel.

If you are an unbeliever, I would ask you to consider Jesus based on what He said and did. He is the truth and the light. We believers are sometimes good reflectors and sometimes poor reflectors of his light. Please do not reject Christ because of our poor reflection of him.

I can tell you that life with Jesus, in spite of our failures, is good. Paul follows his lament about his own struggles with this statement, “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1).

No condemnation, peace, forgiveness. Life is good (not perfect) in the light. Please join us. The Light wants to be found and is always available.

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