Affliction and Persecution

In fact, all who want to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.

2 Timothy 3:12 CSB

I feel like it is extremely necessary to really define both persecution and afflictions. I feel like in Christianity we tend to think, “yes we’re all afflicted but not all Christians are persecuted.” I don’t feel like that’s the case when we look at Scripture. Look at the text above: the verbiage says, “…ALL who want to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” All in my book means all.

“…was Job Persecuted?”

I believe that all affliction and persecution are intended by satan for us to curse God and kill our relationship with Him. I don’t feel that persecution is only reserved for the martyrs, I believe we all take part in having persecutions in our lives because satan intends to kill that relationship. Why do I think that? In Job chapters 1-2, satan steals all of Job’s wealth, kills all of his servants, kills his kids, and infects him with horribly painful boils in order to have him curse God. So, was Job persecuted? Absolutely.

American Christianity

When I look out at American Christianity, I see a large emphasis on my freedoms, my rights, my beliefs, etc., and nothing is allowed to take that away from us because we are American. Is that what we see from Scripture? We have lost the Biblical view that persecution will come and that my rights and my freedoms don’t have anything to do with it. American Christianity, which is largely Prosperity Gospel, seeks to maintain a certain level of comfort and living rather than truly taking up our Cross and following Jesus. Jesus says:

You are blessed when they insult you and persecute you and falsely say every kind of evil against you because of me. Be glad and rejoice, because your reward is great in heaven. For that is how they persecuted the prophets who were before you. Matthew 5:11-12 CSB

You will be hated by everyone because of my name. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. Matthew 10:22 CSB

So, not to say that it’s wrong to advocate for rights and freedoms, but the real question is do we trust what Jesus has said about this? When persecution and affliction come, it’s not as much an attack on your American freedom but rather that it is an attack on your relationship with God. There’s a big difference there…

Jesus tells us to rejoice when we’re afflicted and persecuted! We’ve got a greater reward than just our standard of living and the comforts of this world. To quote Pastor Renaut Van Der Riet, “We live on Planet Death.” I don’t want my allegiance sold to the comforts of here, I want to know that my investment that comes later is worth infinitely more. And it is! So rejoice in any affliction and persecution we have… We’ve got an amazing reward!

-Austin