Persecution

Devotional Reading: “You can expect to be persecuted, even killed; for you will be hated by all the nations because of your love for me. Matthew 24:9 TPT

There is no doubt absolutely nothing has a higher reward than belonging to Jesus – salvation, reconciliation with God, the Holy Spirit indwelling in us, and on and on. But then logic would dictate that the risks of following Jesus are great, too. Paul tells us this in 2 Timothy 3:12, “All who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” This promise is reiterated in several other verses throughout Scripture.

If you are a true follower of Jesus, meaning you do not compromise God’s Truth, you do not put anything else above Him, and you strive to more and more resemble the Savior, you run the risk of paying a high cost.

You expose yourself to being ridiculed, name-tagged, ostracized, physically attacked, or maybe even killed. But Jesus never asks us to pay the costs alone. He is with us through it all. He gives us the hope that though we may be afflicted, we will not be crushed. We may be persecuted, but we will not be forsaken. We may be struck down, but we will not be destroyed.

As Christians, we need to be ready for what we may face and to decide how we will respond. If we want to be a true follower of Jesus, Jesus needs to be in the center and at the head of our lives. He must always be our top priority.

Jesus willingly temporarily gave up His glory and His majesty to come to earth as a man and to save us. What He got in return was temptation, rejection, betrayal, heartache, torture and death. If He was willing to pay all of that for us, is there any sacrifice that would be too great for us to pay for Him?

Prayer and Confession
Lord Jesus, thank you got counting worthy to suffer for your name. Further give me the strength to withstand any form of persecution that may come my way.

Further Reading: 2Corinthians 4:7-18, Acts 5:41-42