Sermon on the Mount: Persecution
This week we reach the end of the Beatitudes, and this first section of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount ends on a bit of a surprising note. It’s all about suffering and persecution. Let’s jump into it.
Matthew 5:10-12 ESV
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
The final things that you are blessed for are persecution, suffering, slander and accusations. I don’t know about you, but if I was trying to start a new religion or reframe an old one, I’m not sure that I would make it a defining bullet point that those who follow it can expect and even be guaranteed difficulty and persecution. It seems a bit counterintuitive, right? Yet that is exactly what Jesus did, and it wasn’t only here in Matthew that He speaks this way.
John 15:18-19
“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.”
Peter then reiterates this later in the Bible.
1 Peter 3:14-18
“But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God's will, than for doing evil.
For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit,”
There are a few important things that we can take from these verses.
First: As previously mentioned, persecution is pretty much guaranteed as a Christian. This has been the case throughout all of human history. A rough estimate assumes that there have been around 70 million people killed for being Christians throughout history with about 2 million of those being since the year 2000.
Last year
If we are going to follow God, truly follow Him, we are going to face persecution on some level.
Second: The persecution is not necessarily death. In fact, the implication in these verses is that it is not death. Persecution can come in many forms, from mild to extreme. On the extreme side is death, obviously. On the mild side it may be something like people making fun of you or calling you ignorant. However, it can take all sorts of other forms as well. Persecution may come in the form of Christianity being illegal, and facing imprisonment for being a Christian. It may come in physical torture. It may come in the loss of freedoms or property. It may come in the loss of relationships, friends and family. It may come in strict oversight or the inability to freely worship. There are a lot of things that can constitute persecution.
Third: This persecution is not the same as suffering or punishment for wrongdoing. There are consequences for actions, and there are negative consequences for negative actions. When we sin, when we mess up, when we are rude or jerks or cheats or whatever else, there are going to be natural consequences. This is not what Jesus is talking about here. He is talking about Suffering and Persecution “FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS’ SAKE” “ON MY ACCOUNT” “FALSELY” “FOR DOING GOOD”
The idea here is that you are doing the right thing. You are following the right path. You are living a life that, to the best of your ability, represents mercy and peace and purity and righteousness. However, because you are following God, and because there are people and forces that hate God, you are going to be ridiculed and persecuted, not as a just punishment or natural consequence for a crime or sin, but purely vindictive. This doesn’t necessarily make the persecution any easier, but you have a clear conscience and heart.
It has been said that one indicator that you are doing what God wants you to do, what is right, is that Satan will actively fight against you, try to stop you, make things hard for you. If you are ineffective, doing nothing, or doing what you aren’t supposed to, he’s gonna leave you alone and just let you keep coasting. This isn’t to say that if you ever face hardship in your life it is because you are following God’s plan, but if you are facing hardship on account of God’s name, because you are living a life in accordance with what He has called you to, it’s a pretty good indicator.
Finally, Jesus says that this persecution is not just something that we should expect, but that we are blessed if we are persecuted and our reward is great in Heaven. This reinforces the idea that persecution comes as a direct result of living a life that God has called us to. Paul also agreed with this when he wrote in Romans.
Romans 8:16-18
“The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”
Paul had everything, and he gave it up to follow Jesus, and his reaction is that all of his sacrifices and suffering were nothing compared to God and what eternity will be like with Him. He doesn’t even say that they are worth the future reward. He says that they aren’t even worth comparing. It’s not even in the same league.
Persecution is promised if we are living lives that align with God, but it’s ok, because our time here is just a blip in eternity, and when we align ourselves with God and accept Him, the reward in Heaven is indescribably great.
We’ll finish with this quote.
“It is better to die for something than live for nothing”
And a similar one from General George S. Patton
“Better to fight for something than live for nothing.”
Persecution will come, but it is better to face persecution because you are living for something than to coast through life free and easy because you don’t stand for anything and you are swayed by every teaching and influencer that comes around.
Matthew 5:10-12 ESV
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
The final things that you are blessed for are persecution, suffering, slander and accusations. I don’t know about you, but if I was trying to start a new religion or reframe an old one, I’m not sure that I would make it a defining bullet point that those who follow it can expect and even be guaranteed difficulty and persecution. It seems a bit counterintuitive, right? Yet that is exactly what Jesus did, and it wasn’t only here in Matthew that He speaks this way.
John 15:18-19
“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.”
Peter then reiterates this later in the Bible.
1 Peter 3:14-18
“But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God's will, than for doing evil.
For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit,”
There are a few important things that we can take from these verses.
First: As previously mentioned, persecution is pretty much guaranteed as a Christian. This has been the case throughout all of human history. A rough estimate assumes that there have been around 70 million people killed for being Christians throughout history with about 2 million of those being since the year 2000.
Last year
- 4,744 Christians were imprisoned.
- 7,679 churches and Christian properties were attacked.
- 4,476 Christians were murdered.
- Just in the top 50 worst countries, 310 million Christians faced very high or extreme levels of persecution.
If we are going to follow God, truly follow Him, we are going to face persecution on some level.
Second: The persecution is not necessarily death. In fact, the implication in these verses is that it is not death. Persecution can come in many forms, from mild to extreme. On the extreme side is death, obviously. On the mild side it may be something like people making fun of you or calling you ignorant. However, it can take all sorts of other forms as well. Persecution may come in the form of Christianity being illegal, and facing imprisonment for being a Christian. It may come in physical torture. It may come in the loss of freedoms or property. It may come in the loss of relationships, friends and family. It may come in strict oversight or the inability to freely worship. There are a lot of things that can constitute persecution.
Third: This persecution is not the same as suffering or punishment for wrongdoing. There are consequences for actions, and there are negative consequences for negative actions. When we sin, when we mess up, when we are rude or jerks or cheats or whatever else, there are going to be natural consequences. This is not what Jesus is talking about here. He is talking about Suffering and Persecution “FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS’ SAKE” “ON MY ACCOUNT” “FALSELY” “FOR DOING GOOD”
The idea here is that you are doing the right thing. You are following the right path. You are living a life that, to the best of your ability, represents mercy and peace and purity and righteousness. However, because you are following God, and because there are people and forces that hate God, you are going to be ridiculed and persecuted, not as a just punishment or natural consequence for a crime or sin, but purely vindictive. This doesn’t necessarily make the persecution any easier, but you have a clear conscience and heart.
It has been said that one indicator that you are doing what God wants you to do, what is right, is that Satan will actively fight against you, try to stop you, make things hard for you. If you are ineffective, doing nothing, or doing what you aren’t supposed to, he’s gonna leave you alone and just let you keep coasting. This isn’t to say that if you ever face hardship in your life it is because you are following God’s plan, but if you are facing hardship on account of God’s name, because you are living a life in accordance with what He has called you to, it’s a pretty good indicator.
Finally, Jesus says that this persecution is not just something that we should expect, but that we are blessed if we are persecuted and our reward is great in Heaven. This reinforces the idea that persecution comes as a direct result of living a life that God has called us to. Paul also agreed with this when he wrote in Romans.
Romans 8:16-18
“The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”
Paul had everything, and he gave it up to follow Jesus, and his reaction is that all of his sacrifices and suffering were nothing compared to God and what eternity will be like with Him. He doesn’t even say that they are worth the future reward. He says that they aren’t even worth comparing. It’s not even in the same league.
Persecution is promised if we are living lives that align with God, but it’s ok, because our time here is just a blip in eternity, and when we align ourselves with God and accept Him, the reward in Heaven is indescribably great.
We’ll finish with this quote.
“It is better to die for something than live for nothing”
And a similar one from General George S. Patton
“Better to fight for something than live for nothing.”
Persecution will come, but it is better to face persecution because you are living for something than to coast through life free and easy because you don’t stand for anything and you are swayed by every teaching and influencer that comes around.
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