THURSDAY February 20, 2020
Rejoice in Persecution
“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.”
Matthew 5:11-12
Understand, Christians will be persecuted for Jesus’ sake, not for their sake, but for what they are doing for Christ––all that you do, for the name of Jesus. When you are living the right way, people will persecute you and say all manner of things against you, but what should be our reaction? Rejoice! Do not retaliate! Always stand for truth.
Listen, we are in good company. Believers have good examples written in the Bible for each one of us to learn from––Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Elijah and Elisha. They all had the same kind of trials. If the ungodly persecuted the prophets, the disciples in the New Testament, and even Jesus Christ, are you any better? I do not think so! Persecution has happened in times past. Think about it. People persecuted Jesus, and they will persecute you!
As disciples of Christ, as you start applying the Beatitudes to your everyday life, walk closely to Jesus Christ. Seriously, we are the disciples of Jesus Christ in the 21st century! The disciples in the life of Christ opened the Church age, and we are closing the Church age. You can rejoice in persecution knowing that God is using you to be a light––a great influence in a dark and thirsty land. The reward for true believers is heaven. One day you will see Jesus in all His glory!
…no sorrow will ever disturb me, no trial will ever disarm me, no circumstance will cause me to fret–for I shall rest in the joy of what my Lord is! That is the rest of victory!
~Alan Redpath~
For more from Raul Ries, please visit SomebodyLovesYou.com!
