Okay, tonight, if you would, 1 Peter chapter
number 4, and I don't want to distort
the text by not reading the entirety of
the context, and I think it's so essential
tonight as we look at the subject of
preparation for persecution.
Now, I'm not here standing before you tonight
to introduce in your hearing a conspiracy theory,
okay?
God knows we have enough of those today.
But there are some things that are coming
down the pike in this hour that I'm
not even going to introduce tonight, because what
it'll do is have a tendency to distract
you from what is the most important thing,
and that is to hear from God through
his scriptures.
And so I want to read the entire
context and then share with you some thoughts
under the title of preparation for persecution.
Follow with me, if you would, in 1
Peter chapter 4 and verse number 1.
And I'm reading from the New King James
tonight.
Therefore, since Christ suffered for us in the
flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind,
for he who has suffered in the flesh
has ceased from sin, that he no longer
should live the rest of his time in
the flesh for the lust of men, but
for the will of God.
But we have spent enough of our past
lifetime in doing the will of the Gentiles
when we walked, we practiced lewdness and lust,
drunkenness, revelries, drinking parties, and abominable idolatries.
In regard to these, they think it strange
that you do not run with them in
the same flood of dissipation, speaking evil of
you.
They will give an account to him who
is ready to judge the living and the
dead.
For this reason the gospel was preached also
to those who are dead, that they might
be judged according to men in the flesh,
but live according to God in the spirit.
But the end of all things is at
hand.
Therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers,
and above all things have fervent love for
one another, for love will cover a multitude
of sins.
Be hospitable to one another without grumbling.
As each one has received a gift, ministry
it to one another as good stewards of
the manifold grace of God.
If anyone speaks, let him speak as the
oracles of God.
If anyone ministers, let him do it as
with the ability which God supplies, that in
all things God may be glorified through Jesus
Christ, to whom belong the glory and the
dominion forever and ever.
Amen.
Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the
fiery trial which is to try you, as
though some strange thing happened to you.
But rejoice to the extent that you partake
of Christ's sufferings, that when His glory is
revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding
joy.
If you are reproached for the name of
Christ, blessed are you, for the spirit of
glory and of God rests upon you.
On their part He is blasphemed, but on
your part He is glorified.
But let none of you suffer as a
murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or as a
busybody in other men's matters.
Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let
him not be ashamed, but let him glorify
God in this matter.
For the time has come for judgment to
begin at the house of God.
And the idea there is the righteous judgment
of God falling upon the church.
And if it begins with us first, what
will be the end of those who do
not obey the gospel of God?
Now if the righteous one is scarcely saved,
where will the ungodly and the sinner appear?
Therefore let those who suffer according to the
will of God commit their souls to Him
in doing good as to a faithful Creator.
It's a very interesting text.
And certainly profoundly timely in the hour in
which we live.
You see brethren, what Peter is giving us,
what he is setting forth are divine directives
that you and I can take refuge in
as we prepare ourselves for the upcoming persecution.
When I was with my brother Paul Washer
back years ago in Atlanta, we were on
a panel discussion and people were asking questions
from the floor.
And I remember Paul taking the liberty during
the course of that time to share how
he believed that within ten years in North
America we would be experiencing extreme persecution.
That was seven years ago.
With our coming election, you have no idea
what potentially lies before you and before me.
It is amazing.
It is astounding.
It is indescribable the things that we hear
of behind the scenes.
Or suddenly at times you catch glimpses of
on certain television networks and they don't have
the information at the moment to elaborate on
some of these astounding events that await us.
But as we look at this text tonight,
we find sure hope.
Sustained help during times of oppression and persecution.
You see, friend, persecution is inevitable for the
church of Jesus Christ.
The church was born in fire.
I believe it will be taken out in
fire.
And see, when I talk about the church
these days, by and large the common church
will not suffer.
But that's not the true church.
That's not the body of Christ.
Those that have been redeemed by the blood
through the love of the dying Lamb, they
will suffer persecution.
For all they that live godly in Christ
Jesus shall experience severe persecution.
Now listen carefully for a moment.
Here is Peter consoling.
And even we find in Acts 14 verse
22 where Paul does the same when he
says that we must through much tribulation enter
the kingdom of God.
What timely words for our generation, as the
probability once again of persecution increases daily.
Recently a man who is a real thinker,
he's very full of the wisdom of the
Lord, and he keeps abreast of a number
of things and filters everything through the light
of Scripture.
But in his recent post he said, quote,
Afghan troops missing from U.S. training centers.
U.N. troops deployed to U.S. bases.
U.N. saying it may need to protect
the United States citizens from U.S. police
forces.
Continual new evidence of crimes by one of
the candidates.
Widespread voter registration fraud by one of the
political parties.
The Fed destabilizing one of the biggest banks
in the European Union.
The president talking about the possible need for
martial law if the election gets, quote, unquote,
unruly.
Going to be an exciting 30 days.
That was just two weeks ago.
So we look at this for voting theme.
And I want to stress how important it
is for us to be prepared.
For us to be on guard for what
lies ahead.
You know it says that in church history
many men prepared themselves for persecution.
One of those men was a man by
the name of John Hus who was martyred
for his faith.
We are told that when John Hus was
arrested and informed that he would be burned
to death for his faith, he purposely practiced
holding his hand over a fire to prepare
for the final test.
He wanted to feel the heat and experience
the pain from the burning to ready him
for persecution.
Well, perhaps we will not go that far.
But I think we need to be in
a ready position, a posture, if we're going
to be prepared for what God is going
to allow to come down the pike.
These in the text here tonight, these words
that we've just read, the background is that
Nero with his insatiable appetite for more, what
he did is he himself set the city
of Rome on fire.
The only way that he could build more
was to destroy what already existed.
And so he is burning the city of
Rome.
And suddenly the rumor gets around that it
was their emperor that had burned their homes
and their idols and their icons.
And they begin to rise up corporately, the
citizens of Rome, and begin to criticize and
were in a spirit of aggression to come
against Nero.
So Nero, his strategy to divert the attention
of the people whose focus was upon him
to take his life was to blame the
Christians for it.
And suddenly they begin to shift their hostility
to Gentile and Jewish believers.
It's with this backdrop that persecution is on
the horizon.
And so as we read further here in
what we have looked at tonight so far,
there are six key words, brethren, that afford
us encouragement for persecution in our own hour.
You'll note the words.
They are arm, love, think, rejoice, glorify, and
commit.
First of all, we find the first divine
directive in verse number one.
Peter says, arm yourselves with the mind of
Christ.
Notice it says once again in verse one,
For as much then as Christ has suffered
for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise
with the same mind.
Now what does the phrase there, arm yourselves
with this mind, mean?
It means that we are enabled by contemplating
those very sufferings, the passion of the Christ,
we are enabled to weather the storms of
persecution.
And he should die.
If we should die for Christ, the benefit
is, according to the context here, is that
that person ceases from sin in glorification.
Look at the text once again, verse number
one.
Therefore, since Christ suffered for us in the
flesh, you arm yourselves also with the same
mind.
In other words, we cultivate that mentality.
For he, not speaking of Christ the he,
it's not a reference to the Lord, but
he in general, the believer who has suffered
in the flesh, to the extent that he
even cost him his life, has ceased from
sin.
That he no longer should live the rest
of his life in the flesh for the
lust of men, but for the will of
God.
So as I face persecution, and the potential
even of martyrdom, my mentality is one of
joy.
Because if they take my life, and I
pass from this life to the next, the
benefit of that is I have ceased from
sin.
I no longer grieve Him.
I no longer reproach His name.
Listen carefully here.
John MacArthur said, the worst that can happen
to a believer suffering unjustly is death.
And that is the best that can happen,
because death means the complete and final end
of all sins.
He goes on to say, if the Christian
is armed with the goal of being delivered
from sin, and that goal is achieved through
his death, the threat and experience of death
is precious.
So you're going to kill me?
You're going to take my life?
You're going to hang me from the gallows?
Burn me at the stake?
Take my head off?
That's the best thing you can do for
me as a believer.
For I will encounter it next, in the
next world, the living presence of He who
gave His life for me.
Peter says we are to arm ourselves with
this same mind of suffering that Christ endured
on our behalf.
Now here is the practical implication, and we
really seek to make it very practical here.
How often do we think on the gospel
again?
Is it perpetuated in our thought life?
Do we take the time each day to
allow our minds to be fixated upon the
good news of what Christ has done on
our behalf, and specifically His sufferings for us?
Do we allow Christ and Him crucified to
drive our thoughts, ministry, and lives in everything
that we do?
To preach the gospel, you see, to yourself
will afford you innumerable benefits.
Some of you have been under my preaching
the last few years.
You know that this is a part right
now of my present spiritual pilgrimage of what
it means to be gospel-centered or gospel
-driven.
But listen to what it does.
It will give you incentive to mortify sin
and walk in humility.
It will lift your head from depression and
cause you to rejoice in adversity.
It will motivate you to love and forgive
your enemies.
And it will prepare you for persecution and
death if God should cause your life to
be imperiled for the gospel's sake.
I ask you, friend, is the very gospel
that you've believed on as the power of
God unto salvation is it having a sanctifying
power over your life?
Does it improve your relationships?
Does it restore your relationships?
Does it cause you to see sin from
God's perspective that you might subsequently mortify to
the praise of His glory?
The gospel can do all those things as
we allow it to salivate in our minds.
But listen to this.
Nothing dispels fear and emboldens the saint of
God any more than the sufferings of the
dying lamb.
As a handsome communist soldier after his conversion
testified, with great reality and empathy, he says,
for me, for me, he died.
For him, for him, I live.
Think about it, friend.
Let it sink down deep into your heart.
Let it take hold of you.
There is nothing that will help you in
life and sustain you in every trial than
the gospel of Jesus Christ, namely, His passions
or His sufferings.
And Peter says, let that mime be in
you.
Arm yourself.
We don't fight with physical weapons.
Carnal weaponry will never win the day.
But we are to take to ourselves this
weapon called the gospel that Christ has so
beautifully set forth in His example in bearing
the cross and bearing our sins upon it.
Secondly, notice something else, another key verb here
in the text.
And that is, you'll notice in verses 8
and 9, he speaks of being sober.
Being sober.
Look at verses 8 and 9.
But the end of all things is at
hand.
In other words, the persecution is coming.
The aggression is on the horizon.
I mean, the threat of martyrdom, it looms,
it's impending before you.
And he says this, in the light of
that, be you therefore sober and watch unto
prayer.
He says in verse 8, but above all
these things have fervent charity among yourselves, for
charity shall cover the multitude of sins.
And then he gives us the outworking of
that fervent love, that extended love, as he
says in verse 9, use hospitality one to
another without grudging.
Don't complain about the privilege of extending hospitality
even in the face or even context of
persecution.
Verse 10, as every man hath received the
gift.
The word gift there means endowment encompassing many
physical resources and spiritual gifts.
He's not talking about one specific thing.
He's talking about us being the beneficiaries of
an abundance of gifts physically and spiritually.
And he says we're to be good stewards
of those things and using them for the
glory of God in our ministry to one
another.
Now let's elaborate on this.
When Peter says at the end of all
things is at hand, there's differing opinions from
different commentators.
Some believe that he is referring to the
end of the world.
While others believe that he refers to the
end of their fiery trial.
Therefore, Peter exhorts them, though, to be serious
minded and not be given to frivolity or
levity.
In this frame of mind, brethren, and this
is significant to note now, in this frame
of mind, we must understand that they are
to watch in prayer and so are we,
meaning that as the end approaches, they should
be serious and prayerful.
You say, well, if the end's coming, if
it's going to come to an end, why
pray?
But he says even in that context where
your life is being threatened, where the prospects
of being taken captive and tortured, perhaps, are
real.
He said our response should be one of
sobriety.
And in that, we should be praying.
Listen, from this mindset, brethren, he instructs them
to do three things.
This is very, very important now.
Do three things in love to strengthen faith
-family relationships.
First of all, he says they are to
express a non-hypocritical love to one another.
In other words, listen, they are to convey
an extended love among themselves because the very
word fervent means in the Greek extended.
They say elaborate.
In other words, friend, I don't just say
I love you, I show you how much
I care.
I affirm my love through my deeds.
It's what John said in 1 John 3
and verse 18.
My little children, let us not love in
word, neither in tongue, but in deed and
in truth.
So in other words, if I say I
love you, Dan, I'm not just saying that
casually at a distance, but I'm showing you
how much I love you in reality by
extending my love to you.
I'm there for you.
I care for you.
I help you bear your burdens.
I'm coaching you in persecution.
I'm affirming you.
You see.
And this is the picture that Peter portrays
here.
Now, here's another thing.
Number two, they are to use hospitality toward
each other without complaining.
You say, you've got to be kidding.
We're supposed to demonstrate, convey hospitality toward our
brothers and sisters in Christ when we're running
for our lives?
May I remind you that this is the
very thing that God has used to produce
such a colossal bomb of healing and encouragement
and consequently has used it to reproduce believer
after believer in oppressed China?
In that context, where the threat of death
looms daily in the lives of so many
of those believers, they are driven to use
hospitality toward one another.
And that method of evangelism, which we call
house-to-house or oikos evangelism, in that
context, friend, suddenly because of the threat of
persecution without, it drives them within and they
build stronger bonds with each other.
They're greatly edified and many people are being
brought into glory as the consequence.
Listen.
He says on top of it, we shouldn't
complain.
Now friend, if we can't use hospitality when
things are well, what makes us think that
we're going to extend hospitality when our lives
are on the line?
It's interesting, but the Greek word for hospitality
has the idea of pursuit.
In other words, I'm literally chasing down strangers
to drag them into my home to love
them and minister to them and comfort them
and help them any way I can.
I'm stalking strangers.
That's the idea of biblical hospitality.
It's not like I like you, you like
me, I'll have you in my home, I'll
have you to eat and you have me
in your home to eat because we have
this special friendship.
No, friend.
We're literally looking for opportunities to extend hospitality.
We are searching, pursuing, stalking people to bring
them into our homes.
And this is what he says that we're
to do.
Use hospitality and don't complain about it.
Don't gripe and say, well, you know, I'm
not sure I can afford it.
I tell you, all glory goes to God,
but we were moved years ago outside of
Atlanta in Lawrenceville, Georgia, and before my wife
got up to speak at this women's conference,
just a little mini women's conference, the pastor's
wife stood up and said, you know, years
ago, Cindy invited us to come to their
home and we got there and she just
had sweet tea and pimento cheese sandwiches.
And even though it wasn't very elaborate, the
food, she said that really impacted me because
nobody had ever asked us to come to
their home before.
Are we given to hospitality, brethren?
And even people maybe at times that we
don't particularly like.
This is the thing that God's going to
use to give us strengthening and sustaining grace
in the face of persecution is learning to
build relationships through this grace of hospitality.
Furthermore, we also find there to use every
available gift.
As we said, the word gift there in
the context means endowment.
And it denotes multiple gifts.
Not just physical gifts that God has given
you benefits through your lot in life, physical
resources, but even spiritual gifts.
You're the beneficiary of many things.
And we're to use those things as good
stewards to build our relationship with one another.
Now, why is this so important?
Listen.
Because one of the greatest deterrents to cowering
under the threat of persecution is the strength
of body life.
I had some friends the other day that
said, well, thank God that there's a good
church three hours from here that we can
go and take refuge in among those people
if the persecution does come.
And I said, well, what about your own
faith family?
Well, yeah, but those people up there are
a lot more spiritually minded.
I said, first of all, a lot of
us won't have the advantage of going to
a church that we feel like is a
spiritual colossal church that's really going to be
able to feed us and affirm us.
And I said, furthermore, if you're getting your
input of body life through a televangelist, you'll
never find hope and affirmation from him when
the oppression comes.
You see, right now, friend, it's so important
whatever faith family that you're identified with, that
you're a part of, strengthen the relationships within
that family.
You see, the truth of the matter is
when the mortars are flying over your head
and you're in a foxhole with people that
have glitches and idiosyncrasies in your eyes, those
things really don't matter anymore.
It really don't matter that you're bunkering down
with an Arminian.
As long as they love Jesus, and they've
proven their love for Christ by virtue of
the fact that they're willing to endure persecution
for Him in that bunker with you.
But I tell you, to have any saint
of God, I don't care how poor he
is or immature he may be, to be
with me during those times of horrific aggression
from satanic influences that will seek to snuff
out our life, I tell you, will be
a tremendous consolation.
So we need to build relationships.
Years ago, I was working, and quite honestly,
I've done everything in the local church or
everything in the ministry.
I mean, I've been associate pastor.
I've been a jail minister.
I've gone into the prison regularly.
I've worked with youth ministry.
I mean, I've been a custodian.
I've cleaned toilets in the church.
I've been in mission work.
Everything I've done.
And I was working at a youth camp
years ago, and we used to have toward
the end of the camp a game that
we called the persecutors.
And all of a sudden, all the staff,
they dressed in army fatigues, and they dressed
up their face with all these black marks.
And our whole personality took on a different
demeanor.
We were harsh and oppressive and rude, and
we had no patience whatsoever for the campers.
And so here we've got 200 campers with
their youth leaders, and we create this scenario
that the whole land is under persecution.
You've got to survive.
Well, the first 30 minutes, they think it's
a cool game.
We can't touch them.
We can't inflict any harm to them, but
we can speak very roughly to them.
And if they're caught, of course, we take
them to two different places that have been
set up as prisons.
It's amazing, after 30 minutes, that suddenly something
begins to take place.
They recognize that the reality of this may
indeed come down the pike.
We may one day be running for our
lives.
And what was amazing is suddenly these kids,
they start singing to the Lord.
And you can imagine in the woods of
northwest Texas or northeast Texas, I mean, it
just pierced the darkness there.
They're singing to the Lord.
They're singing choruses.
They're singing hymns.
Back in the day, it was hymns.
It wasn't contemporary choruses.
It was hymns.
And they're singing to the Lord.
And then suddenly, they begin to turn to
us and they start witnessing and sharing Christ
with us.
Others are starting to cry.
They're cowering down under the pressure.
Nobody comes forward and says, I deny Christ
in that context.
But see, friend, the purpose of that game
was to convey the reality that one day
you may suffer for the cause of Christ.
And it had tremendous implications in their own
experience.
You think about tonight.
If suddenly you went home and you heard
the news report that some things have changed
in government and there are certain maneuvers and
strategies that they're imposing that's going to make
life very uncomfortable for you as a professing
believer in Jesus Christ.
And friend, don't you dare for a minute
say, it'll never happen in my lifetime.
It's coming.
I'm not a prophet of doom.
But I tell you, there is too much,
as I see in the Scripture now, with
what I am hearing on the horizon that
confirms the fact that this potential is about
to occur.
So we need each other.
Interestingly, this historical context of Nero's reign of
terror, the apostle exhorts the Christians to serve
one another.
Once again, look at verses 8-10.
And above all things, have this fervent charity
among yourselves, for charity shall cover the multitude
of sins.
And then he says this, Use that hospitality
toward one another without grudging, as every man
hath received the gift, even so, watch now,
minister the same one to another as good
stewards of the manifold grace of God.
Listen, body life is of utmost importance.
Faith, family is essential.
Build it.
Strengthen relationships.
For in so doing, you will draw a
grace of courage that will help you withstand
the coming storm.
Thirdly, look at another verb, if you would,
in verse number 12.
Verse 12.
You find here that he exhorts them to
think.
Think providentially.
Notice the words in verse 12.
Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery
trial which is to try you as some
strange thing happened unto you.
Now listen, brothers and sisters, carefully.
We must get beyond our feelings and our
fears and learn to think.
Thank you, brother Dan.
Thank you, brother.
Very good.
Thank you, brother.
We must get beyond our feelings and our
fears and learn to think biblically.
I don't know what you're going through tonight.
I don't know what your struggle is.
It may be something domestic.
It may be something relational.
It may be something financially oriented.
But listen, friend.
We would solve every problem that we have
if we would think biblically.
And in this context, it must needs be
that we think providentially.
The tendency is, is we look upon the
circumstances and we say such things as I
never thought it would happen in my lifetime.
I never anticipated these things occurring while I
was living.
You know what we're admitting?
This is strange.
Listen, the phrase, some strange thing happened means
to fall to chance.
We must never think of any tribulation as
an accident, brother.
Listen, when we hear of new government regulations
that will affect the future of our children,
born or unborn, we must refuse to see
them as happening independently of divine intervention.
The Apostle Paul had a providential perspective.
No matter what he incurred for the gospel's
sake, he said, I realize that all these
things have fallen out, have occurred to the
furtherance of the gospel.
This is what makes the gospel so savory
and effectual to the salvation of sinners is
persecution.
You see, nothing will give us peace and
stability any more than resting in the ordained
promises of God.
Someone said years ago that contentment is an
embracing of the sovereignty of God.
So how is your reaction?
When things happen, do you allow your feelings
to govern your life?
Does fears, would they begin to shut down
your exercise of faith?
Or would you look beyond the pressure and
the difficulty and see the sovereignty of God
in it all?
This passage is, brethren, like Ephesians 1.11
that God works all things after the counsel
of His will.
In Romans 8, verse 28, as Thomas Watson
put it, God's divine cordial, that He's working
all things together for good to them that
love God, to them who are the called
according to His purpose.
It's taking refuge in those promises, thinking biblically,
thinking providentially that we are buoyed up in
hopeless situations.
I remember Spurgeon talking about this prophet who
ultimately became a martyr himself.
And the guy had one message everywhere he
would go.
At least this was his premier message.
All things together for good.
Everywhere he would go, this was his testimony.
All things together for good.
It was always all things together for good.
And over and over again, he had that
reputation.
That was the reputation of his ministry.
And one day, Bloody Mary, it was during
her terrible reign, she took him captive.
And the soldiers that put him in chains,
they began to taunt him.
And they said, all things together for good,
huh?
How is this going to work together for
good?
Talking about his persecution.
He said, I do not know, but I
believe that even this will work together for
good.
Well, in the process of terrorizing and buffeting
this guy, they broke his leg.
As a result, it delayed their entrance back
into the city where he was scheduled to
be executed two additional days.
Because of the delay, this man was set
free.
The order was given for all the prisoners
to be released because Queen Mary, Bloody Mary,
had been dethroned and Queen Elizabeth had been
enthroned.
A great revolution and liberation swept over England.
He looked at his tormentors and said, did
I not tell you that all things will
work together for good to them that love
God, to those who are called according to
his purpose?
You see, we must understand the importance of
seeing things from a providential perspective.
But brothers and sisters, notice a fourth word
here in our text, and that is in
verse 13.
Rejoice, rejoice.
But rejoice inasmuch as you are partakers of
Christ's sufferings, that when his glory shall be
revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding
joy.
Now watch verse 14.
For if ye be reproached for the name
of Christ, happy are you, for the Spirit
of glory, the idea is the presence of
God, rests upon you.
The Spirit of glory and of God rests
upon you.
On their part, he is evil spoken of,
but on your part, experimentally, he is being
glorified.
Now watch this.
Suffering for Christ gives us much reason to
rejoice.
When's the last time someone shared a cynical
remark in your presence, said something under their
breath, or perhaps even overtly, loudly blasphemed you
because of your faith and you walked away
from it rejoicing?
Do you realize that there is a grace
that accompanies those who rejoice in the fact
that they are worthy to suffer for his
name?
Listen.
To recognize that our good and all-wise
Father is orchestrating every detail according to his
predetermined plan affords us peace and the grace
of courage and gives us every reason, brethren,
to rejoice that he has ordained us to
be a part of it.
You see, there are certain things we see
in these verses that we just read.
First of all, our union with Christ.
You'll note once again, but rejoice in as
much as you are partakers of Christ's sufferings.
Certainly that validates this union that we have
with our Head, the Lord Jesus.
Secondly, we are assured that when we behold
his glory in his death or his return,
we will have the joy of knowing that
we have suffered for him.
Once again, verse 13, that when his glory
shall be revealed, ye may be glad also
with exceeding joy.
We have no idea, friend.
The presence of God comes to the rescue
of those who suffer for Christ.
And with that said, thirdly, we encounter the
manifest presence of God in suffering for the
Savior.
Verse 14, watch this now.
If ye be reproached for the name of
Christ, happy are you, for the Spirit of
glory and of God rests upon you.
I don't know if you've read Richard Wurmbrand's
account of the suffering under Krzyzewski, the Romanian
communist leader.
But when Richard Wurmbrand was held captive in
the prison, he said the glory of God
so filled his cell that he was dancing
with the Lord in the cell.
His presence was so rich, so pronounced, that
the presence of Jesus was in the cell.
He was dancing before the Lord.
This is something, friend, that is significantly subjective.
We're not talking about some academic knowledge of
Christ here.
We're talking about Christ's presence being manifest in
the midst of suffering.
I believe a couple of years ago, I
may have shared this with some of you,
but if you've read Francis Chan's book, Crazy
Love, it gives the story of how these
South Koreans went up to Afghanistan to minister
to the people.
The country was ravaged by war.
Poverty was abounding.
And so they saw an opportunity to share
with these people the Gospel.
When they got there, they were taken captive
by the Taliban, the terrorist group.
And so the Taliban saw the opportunity of
getting a lot of money, so they sent
word back to the Korean government.
The only way we'll return the people is
for you to send us X amount of
dollars.
The South Korean government refused to do that.
So they said, if you don't send us
money, we're going to start killing them one
by one.
Once again, the government did not respond.
They found out later, the ones that were
fighting over the privilege of dying first for
Christ were the two leaders.
Both of them were martyred for their faith.
And when the Taliban found out that nobody
was going to yield and no one was
going to pay a ransom for the rest
of the people, they let all the people
go and sent them back to South Korea.
When they got back to South Korea, these
Christians were perplexed because they had experienced such
a rich manifestation of the presence of Jesus
when they were held captive, that they wanted
that same presence.
They fasted, they prayed, they sought the Lord,
but still no manifestation of His presence.
You know what those almost 30 people did?
They scrounged up any amount of money they
could to get their airline flights back to
Afghanistan because they wanted to be held captive
for the cause of Christ again to encounter
the presence of the Savior.
Now brothers and sisters, call it mystical if
you want, but you can't deny the Word
of God.
The Spirit of glory and of God rests
upon those who suffer with Him.
You think He's going to ignore what you
will endure for His namesake?
I tell you, you may know more the
tangible presence of Christ in the midst of
oppression than you've ever known in your life
before.
Look at something else.
Number five, very quickly.
Verse 16 is the word glorify.
The verb glorify.
He says, Yet if any man suffer as
a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but
let him glorify God on this behalf.
Now the word, friend, the word glorify means
to put on display by showcasing, embellishing.
In other words, it's placed upon a pedestal.
So in the midst of our persecution, our
suffering for Christ, we are putting on display
our allegiance and devotion to God.
And God is magnified.
He's glorified in our suffering.
First of all here, we believe that if
we suffer for Jesus, we are assured.
Here's one reason we should rejoice and glorify
Him.
We are assured that we belong to Him.
The greatest thing that could happen to the
church in North America is intense persecution.
Because there are some preachers and there's a
lot of people in churches that you thought
were really devoted to Christ who loved loving
Jesus, but they didn't love Jesus.
And they're going to fall away.
That is the ultimate apostasy, is to fall
away when the oppression comes.
Persecution, friend, validates our profession.
If we are reproached by the world for
being a believer, then more than likely, we're
a Christian.
Paul is clear on this point in 2
Timothy 2 and verse 12 again.
If we suffer, we shall also reign with
Him.
And Jesus said, listen, in Matthew 5 verses
11 and 12, Blessed are you when men
shall revile you and persecute you and say
all manner of evil against you falsely for
My name's sake.
He says, rejoice and be exceedingly glad for
great is your reward in heaven for so
persecuted the prophets which were before you.
Secondly, if we are chosen to suffer, we
must remember it's a very high and honorable
privilege.
Such a privilege.
There are those in the book of Acts
who rejoiced in knowing that they had been
counted worthy to suffer for His name.
Acts 5 verse 42, And they departed from
the presence of the council, rejoicing once again
that they were counted worthy to suffer shame
for His name.
Why?
Why was that?
Listen, the Jewish rulers there did not beat
these believers to create fear in the people
to keep them from following these men.
They did it to disgrace the disciples of
Christ.
But rather than feeling shame, they overcame evil
with good.
By seeing that God had honored them with
the opportunity to identify with the sufferings of
Christ.
Now think with me for a moment as
we wrap things up.
The third thing here we find in this
thing of glorifying Him, it gave them a
significant platform to advance the Gospel.
Advance the Kingdom of God.
You see, persecution, friend, affords a unique opportunity
like none other to validate our Christian message
and to exalt the God of the Gospel.
Matthew Henry was accosted on one occasion by
thieves.
And after the whole ordeal was over, he
said he would be thankful for four things.
This is what he recorded in his journal.
He said, first of all, he said, I
am thankful that I was never robbed before.
Secondly, he said, I can be thankful that
though they took my purse, they did not
take my life.
Thirdly, I can be thankful that though they
took my all, it was not much.
And fourthly, he said, I can be thankful
that it was I who was robbed, not
I who did the robbing.
God is magnified in our persecution.
But number six and finally, verse 19, look
at this.
This is the sixth verb that's very significant
in the text for providing a divine directive
for preparation.
He says, Wherefore, let them that suffer according
to the will of God commit.
You see that?
Commit.
The keeping of their souls to Him in
well-doing as unto a faithful Creator.
Faithful.
A faithful Creator.
You see, brethren, the word commit here in
Psalm 31 and verse 5 means to yield
for the keeping.
It's important.
You say, why should I do that?
I'm going to die anyway.
I mean, it's inevitable.
I mean, why should I do it?
Because God requires it.
We are to yield for the keeping.
To commit the soul is to devote the
entire being to God.
Lord, come what may, whether it's the anguish
through being tortured or martyrdom, Lord, I commit
my entire existence to You.
Listen.
Because of the imminent danger of persecution and
possible martyrdom, friend, Peter exhorts them to commit
themselves to God as they continue to do
well.
For, listen now, for their God has promised
that He would be faithful to them even
unto death.
Alborn says this, they were to leave everything
in His hand, faithfully performing every duty and
not being anxious for the result.
The Lord Jesus in Luke 23 and verse
46 says, And when Jesus had cried with
a loud voice, he said, Father, in Thy
hands I commit, I commend my spirit.
The word there means I entrust my spirit
to Your keeping.
Why is this important?
As I say it, I'm closing.
Listen.
We must not underestimate the importance of committing
ourselves to God.
You should be doing it now when all
is well.
When there is no impending threat of persecution.
Still be doing it now.
But even when persecution does come, especially, He
said be conscious of committing your soul to
that faithful Creator.
Listen.
We are not to underestimate the importance of
committing ourselves to God.
For in so doing we see some significant
things.
First of all, it's an acknowledgment of our
faith.
You're not going to cower under persecution, are
you?
You're not going to wither under what they'll
threaten you with, are you?
For me to commit my soul is a
statement that I believe.
I commit my soul to this faithful Creator.
I acknowledge with an exclamation point that I'm
not my own.
I'm bought with a price.
Therefore, I commit myself to Him that already
has purchased me with the blood of His
Son.
Secondly, it is the final obedience in a
saint's perseverance.
Dear people, in persecution, only those who persevere
will inherit eternal life.
If you do not persevere in this life,
you will perish.
Understand, we're not talking about perfection.
Even a believer sins.
And sins at times in a way that
grieves the Master that maybe we would assess
when we look at our own sin as
a regular sin pattern.
But let me tell you something, friend.
You're troubled about it because you're not your
own.
You've been redeemed through the merits of Christ.
But in that, we continue to keep picking
ourselves up.
The just man falls down seven times.
He keeps rising.
Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but
the Lord God shall deliver them out of
all of them.
And by virtue of your perseverance, it's an
evidence of the fact that you are being
kept by the power of God.
So when we finally, the ultimate exercise is,
Father, into Your hands, I commend my spirit.
I commit myself.
Then it's the final act once again of
our perseverance.
But then this, if you do suffer, and
it results in death, martyrdom, you're not going
to die.
You're not going to die.
For the believer, the world looks at your
corpse and says they died.
But from God's perspective, it's a triumphant transition
into glory.
You want to know why?
Because Jesus said in John 8 and verse
51, He that keepeth My saying shall never
see death.
You're not going to encounter death.
It's just a transcendent, triumphant transition into glory.
So while they're killing you, and your life
is ebbing away in their eyes, you're committing
your soul to a faithful creator.
And guess what, friend?
You're not going to really draw a last
breath.
First thing you know in that transition, there's
the Savior, Stephen, standing on the right hand
of the throne of God.
He's there.
What a blessed reality.
What an exceeding great and precious promise.
Preparing for persecution.
It's coming.
Let's pray together.