Morning At Last

Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.   Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.   Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. (Matt 5:10-12)

No one wants to think of being persecuted and yet there are parts of this world where  it happens everyday.  We would much rather turn our eyes to the part about peacemakers and forget about it.  However, that would be a big mistake.  Such thinking only waters down our expectations and causes us to waver when we need our faith the most.  Jesus never promised us that life would be rosy once we accepted Him as our Lord and Savor.  In contrast, he said:

If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.   If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.  (John 15:18)

Not all persecution takes the form of physical violence.  Words are powerful and when people are sending “poisoned darts” your way, you have to learn to forgive.  Here’s the thing, Christians come in all shapes, colors and levels of maturity.  What looks like heresy to you today may reveal God’s glory tomorrow as another veil is removed from your eyes.  It’s so important to give grace to the less mature as God will reveal Himself in His own time.  They have to learn that if you really are wrong, you are still God’s child and He will correct you.  In either case, we have to look through the eyes of love and be patient.  Remember the post on meekness?  Just because you understand a little more than your brother doesn’t mean you are supposed to share it with him.  We all have to develop ears to hear what God is saying and commit to doing that above all else.