In this study I want to look with you at the question: what exactly is persecution? We all know the stories from North Korea and countries in the Middle East, where Christians are arrested, hurt, and sometimes even killed because of their faith. This is the worst kind of persecution you can imagine.
But the Bible shows us that there are many more kinds of persecution. Sadly, many of these are also present in the Netherlands (where I live). Here is a list:
- Being cursed at, or being wrongly accused of bad motives or slander while you do what is good.
Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. (Matthew 5:10-11)
- Being excluded: people hate you and they make fun of you.
Blessed are you when men hate you, And when they exclude you, And revile you, and cast out your name as evil, For the Son of Man's sake. (Luke 6:22)
- Being persecuted by politics, or treated unfairly by religious leaders, including punishment for preaching the gospel.
But beware of men, for they will deliver you up to councils and scourge you in their synagogues. You will be brought before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles. (Matthew 10:17-18)
- Family members turning against you because of the faith.
Now brother will deliver up brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and cause them to be put to death. (Matthew 10:21)
- Everywhere you preach the gospel, people follow you with bad motives and slander.
But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brethren. (Acts 14:2)
- Pressure to be silent about your faith, at work, in your family, or wherever you go.
So they called them and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus. (Acts 4:18)
- Being told that you belong to a sect.
For we have found this man a plague, a creator of dissension among all the Jews throughout the world, and a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes. (Acts 24:5)
There are more examples of persecution. Again, my situation in the Netherlands cannot, thankfully, be compared with that of brothers and sisters in North Korea or in many other countries. But sadly, persecution also happens in Europe.
But, and this is the beautiful and loving part of Jesus Christ: when you are persecuted, you do not have to be sad. You may even be thankful, because when you are persecuted, God will bless you. Then your reward will be great in heaven.
Blessed are you when men hate you, And when they exclude you, And revile you, and cast out your name as evil, For the Son of Man's sake. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy! For indeed your reward is great in heaven, For in like manner their fathers did to the prophets. (Luke 6:22-23)
There is much more to write about persecutions. With this study I hope you see that persecution also happens in the Netherlands today. Here it does not (yet) cost you your life to choose Jesus, but sadly the situation in the Netherlands is getting harder. Persecution happens more and more.