The
Blessedness of Inevitable Persecution
Matthew
5:10-12
Introduction
– We come to the final Beatitude in the Sermon on the Mount,
the one that, at first glance, no one looks forward to claiming. Maybe that is why Matthew records some
additional teaching on it. The
Beatitude is verse 10, and the following two verses are an exposition upon that
subject. Remember, the Beatitudes
describe the character of a disciple through the work of the Spirit, but here
we see the results of righteousness.
Jesus teaches that opposition is the normal mark of being his
disciple, as normal as hungering and thirsting after righteousness, or being
merciful.
The Text –
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’
sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of
evil against you falsely for My sake.
Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for
so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
Why is Persecution Inevitable? Historically this has been true. But it remains true today. First, we must remember that regardless of
how you read the statistics, the fact remains that many Christians are persecuted
for their faith throughout the world today.
But there is a second reason (John 15:20, 2 Tim 3:12, Acts 14:22). We should be convinced of the deep tension
between the ways of the world and of the ways of the Christian. When we live for His sake, we display the
antithesis of light and darkness (John 3:20-21).
So Where is the Persecution? We
are either hiding our light under a bushel, concealing the offense of the cross
(Gal 5:11, 6:12-13), or we are causing people to move either towards opposition
or conversion. It doesn’t always happen
immediately, as we see when the Pharisees were hindered, fearing the crowds.
James, the son
of Zebedee, was beheaded in Jerusalem.
John, his
brother, was exiled to the island of Patmos.
Thomas was
killed in India.
Simon Peter was
crucified, head down, during Nero’s reign.
Simon the
Canaanite, who preached the gospel in Africa and then to Britain, was
crucified.
Bartholomew was
beaten, crucified, and beheaded, in Armenia.
Andrew, Peter’s
brother, was crucified in Egypt.
Matthew was
killed by means of a spear in Egypt.
And, in addition,
Mark was burned
in Egypt, and Paul was beheaded in Rome.
No wonder Paul
could quote so generally “For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are
accounted as sheep for the slaughter” (Rom 8:36). This is the cost of discipleship (Luke 14:25-33) and those
looking for an easy religion need not apply.
Persecutions come by the hand, but by the tongue as well (Matt 5:11),
and examples abound. David’s name
became a song of mockery (Ps 69:11-12), Paul was slandered (Rom 3:8), and Jesus
was accused of having a devil (John 8:48).
The Gift of Persecution – We must remember this gift comes by God’s
decree (1 Thess 3:3), and by His design (James 1:2-4)
Rejoice
– We
are commanded to be joyful about our persecutions. Not only that, ‘exceedingly glad’ has the idea of jumping
up and down for joy – ‘O Boy! Here they
come’. Our first reaction must not be
to retaliate or defend ourselves or our reputation. Our first reaction is to shout for joy and receive our gift (Acts
5:41, Phil 1:29). We rejoice because we
are being treated like Christ, proving who we are, where we are going, and
procuring the great rewards to come.
Rewards
– It
is unscriptural to ignore the promise of rewards and to live ‘the Christian’
life for the sake of obedience alone.
There will be no sense of loss in heaven, but mysteriously to us today,
there will be great rewards according to the sufferings we faithfully endure
here (Matt 19:29, 2 Cor 4:17-18).
Conclusion
– We pray for a reformation, but reformation has never come
without bloodshed. We must practice in
the little trials, giving thanks in all things. We may enjoy this present world, but we must not love it (2 Tim
4:10). We must practice a constant
heavenly mindedness, keeping our ultimate goal and reward always before us (Heb
11:13-16, 12:1-2).