May 21 Armor On

John 16:1-4 "All this I have told you so that you will not go astray. 2 They will put you out of the synagogue; in fact, a time is coming when anyone who kills you will think he is offering a service to God. 3 They will do such things because they have not known the Father or me. 4 I have told you this, so that when the time comes you will remember that I warned you. I did not tell you this at first because I was with you.”
 
WHAT would you think if your pastor preached these warning words? How would you and others respond to a famous Christian speaker whose main point was, “Expect rejection and suffering for your faith.” Would you think, “That’s crazy talk.” Or would you think, “I need to be prepared.”
   Jesus wants you prepared. The Bible warns and promises throughout that God’s chosen messengers will face various degrees of persecution. Some is emotional. Some is physical, even ostracism and death. Jesus spoke these hard truths to his disciples, so they would be prepared for the deadly forces about to confront them.
    To help them stand up for Jesus, the Lord urged his disciples to remember that he had predicted his own persecution. When they would see the cross, they would recall Jesus words. And they would take his message to heart. This real-life demonstration of evil against God would fortify the apostles for the difficult days to mark the remainder of their lives.
    How easy it is to tell ourselves, “It’s too much.” when hardships arise. Many people quit a cause when unprepared for obstacles. If we anticipate struggles, though, we become emotionally ready. Others who have overcome defeat and stayed the course inspire us to remain faithful. That’s why Jesus pointed his disciples to, “All this I have told you.” His accurate predictions would increase their trust in his instructions.
   The apostles and we to this day witness the truth of Jesus’ warning, “In fact, a time is coming when anyone who kills you will think he is offering a service to God.”  This deadly persecution began very soon in the early church. A deacon in the church, Stephen, would become the first martyr for the faith (Acts 7:54-60). James, one of the disciples present with Jesus during this teaching, would be put to death by King Herod (Acts 12:1-2). Saul of Tarsus — before his conversion to become the apostle Paul — went through the land hunting down and persecuting Christians. He was convinced that he was serving God by killing those who proclaimed Jesus as their Messiah (Acts 9:1-2). And it has become worse. There are more martyrs in Jesus’ church today than at any point in history.  
   If you do hear a pastor, Christian speaker or a Bible teacher preach these hard words, believe them. Jesus said it. Jesus is truth. These awful things do happen and will happen to Christians until Jesus comes again. Be emotionally and spiritually prepared to know your Lord suffered and died for you, so you will live. Stand against persecution. Know you are in God’s protection.
   Ephesians 6:10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.  
 
Prayer: Thank, Jesus, for preparing us for war. We pray we are faithful warriors for the gospel. Amen.
 
Addendum: Here is news from the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) email: A mob hurled bricks at Christians for hanging a Palm Sunday banner. A Christian family was gunned down over the Easter holiday. Churches have been bombed and Christian neighborhoods attacked. Christians can't even count on local authorities. Last year, a gang of policemen savagely beat a young Christian boy to death.