How Much Are We Willing to Suffer for Christ?

I have been listening to a series of lectures on church history recently by a Bible teacher named Steve Gregg. Steve is a teacher that I would highly recommend to anyone interested in learning more about God and His word. The fascinating thing about Steve is that as far as I know, he has never attended a single day of college in his life. All of his knowledge comes from reading, self-study, listening to lectures, etc. With all of this being said, I can honestly say that Steve seems to have a better grasp on God’s word than any teacher I have had up to this point in both Bible college and seminary. For more on Steve, you can visit his website at www.thenarrowpath.com.

I didn’t intend for this to become an ad for Steve Gregg, however. I really do have something else that I felt compelled to share. In listening to Steve’s lectures over the first four centuries of church history, I was reminded of how gruesome the history of our faith really is. I’m not talking about the crusades and how professing Christians killed others in the name of God; I’m talking about how our forefathers in the faith loved Jesus with such a burning passion that they chose death rather than to abandon the Savior.

In reviewing just a few instances of martyrdom that Eusebius recorded in his Ecclesiastical History, I came across the account of Apphianus. In describing this hero of the faith, Eusebius noted that when Apphianus tried to prevent Urbanus from sacrificing to a god, he was seized and torn by the soldiers. He received innumerable stripes on his whole body and was cast into prison. There he was stretched with both feet a night and a day on the rack. When he was brought before the judge and refused to make a sacrifice, his sides were furrowed and scraped to the bone while he was being beaten on the face and neck. When he still did not yield, they covered his feet with linen steeped in oil and set fire to the cloth. The fire penetrated to the bones, but the youth did not die or yield. Defeated, the tormentors returned him to prison. After three days, he was taken again to the judge. This time, as he remained faithful to his belief, he was thrown into the sea and drowned.

This account of Apphianus probably shouldn’t come to us as a surprise. Paul noted in 1 Timothy 3:12: “ Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.”

On a similar note, we read in Hebrews 11:24-27: “ By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to endure ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, considering the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he was looking to the reward. By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured, as seeing Him who is unseen.” From reading just the New Testament alone, it appears to me that there is something about living as a disciple of Christ which invites persecution from the world. Not the same persecution for every disciple, to be sure, but to some, this trial, and to another, a different one. Nevertheless, Jesus Christ has called us to be a counter-cultural community living within this present world, being a picture of the coming kingdom and a prophetic voice to those rejecting God.

As Christians living in America in the twenty-first century, how can we relate to the biblical and historical reality of persecution? It is possible that you have seen little or no real persecution in your life, as is the case with me. On the other hand, you may already have endured many strong trials and the testing of your faith. In either situation, we need to prepare our hearts and be ready. I am doubtful that persecution, if and when it comes upon believers in this country, will come because of doctrinal or theological issues (as was often the case in the past). Instead, I suspect that any persecution arising in this country will be because of our resolve to live as disciples of Jesus Christ in a God-hating world, living as a counter-culture and bearing witness to the everlasting gospel of Jesus Christ.

Wherever you might find yourself-whether things are going your way and you have plenty, or you have very little and you are despised by those around you-persecution for the sake of Christ is always a reality. We need to look to our past, when our forefathers were persecuted, and to the present, when our brothers and sisters in Christ are suffering for His name's sake around the world, so that our hearts and minds will be prepared for the future.

On Talking Snakes and Sharing the Gospel with Lesbians

In my last post, I made the rather hasty promise that I would be blogging soon about the issue of theological immaturity (also known as theological puberty). If you're looking for that post, stayed tuned! I haven't forgotten about it.

What I do want to share is an experience that I had this weekend while I was downtown with some other brothers sharing the gospel. Since it is the Christmas season and many people are out shopping, we decided that it might be a good idea to get out where the people are and share the good news of Jesus with those who need Him. So out we went to downtown Portland, and we were certainly not disappointed in finding individuals to share with.

While we had the opportunity to share with many different people, two people in particular have been in my mind a lot lately. These two women (probably in their mid-to-late twenties) approached us when they realized that we were telling people about Jesus, and as another brother and I had the opportunity to speak with them, it became quickly apparent that they weren't enthused about what we were doing. It began with complaints, angry questions, and broad generalizations directed at Christianity.

In particular, these ladies asked one question that I haven't forgotten. "Do you really believe in talking snakes? How could anyone be so ignorant as to believe in a talking snake?" I assumed that they were talking about the serpent in Genesis 3, and I quickly shared that I do believe Genesis 3 is literally true, describing a literal serpent controlled by the devil, but I decided not to stay on this point for too long. "Well I don't know," one of them responded, "talking snakes seems like just a little bit too much for me to believe. Besides, I can't believe the Bible, because it tells me that because I am attracted to women, I am going to hell."

I realized that this particular young lady had just said something important, and I stored it away in my mind for later. About this time, the older of the two ladies (who I later found out was the partner of the younger lady) had to leave, but the younger lady stayed around to continue talking with us. "I just can't believe it," she said. At this point, I made a conscious decision to shift the course of the conversation away from talking snakes and homosexual relationships to another issue altogether.

"Let's suppose that the Bible is true," I told her, "and when you die, you will stand before God so that He can judge you. If this is true, which I understand you don't believe right now, do you think you would be innocent or guilty in His sight?" She assured me that she was no saint, but that overall she was a fairly good person. So on the basis of this, I walked her through just a few of the ten commandments, asking her if she had ever lied, stolen, murdered, or committed adultery (the latter two I explained were committed even by hatred and lust). As she answered "guilty" to several of these commandments, I saw the dynamic of the conversation begin to change, and she began listening much more, and asking far fewer questions.

With this turn in the conversation, I was able to explain to this young lady that in God's sight, she is not a good person, but a bad person who deserves the wrath and anger of a very good God, just like the rest of us. It is true that homosexual activity is a sin, but even setting this aside for just a moment, I assured her that there was enough sin in her life-and mine-to condemn her apart from her sexual behavior.

Some of you might be wondering, "Why in the world did you do this? Don't you realize that sinners need to hear about God's grace, and not the judgment to come?" It is true that some sinners need to hear of God's grace, but as long as a person sees himself as basically good before God, they cannot begin to appreciate God's grace. This is why the Bible teaches that "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble." God has given us the law to show us our condition before Him, and when we see in truth how deserving of judgment and wrath we truly are, we will be compelled to flee to the foot of the blood-stained cross.

Going back to our conversation downtown, this young lady truly seemed to be challenged by this encounter. She thanked us several times for sharing with her, expressed her desire to meet us again sometime, and even accepted an evangelistic CD that we had brought along with us. After that, she left to return to her partner. I honestly don't know what will happen in her life from here, but I will continue praying for her, and I hope to see her in heaven.

In reflecting on this situation, I realize that the only reason that this conversation was somewhat successful was because God was working in it. I'm not very good at evangelism, and in the past when I have tried to share apart from the leading and guidance of the Spirit, it has gone horribly! But I really believe that God was at work in this conversation, and I felt compelled to share it with you here today so that maybe God might give you some ideas about how to share your faith in your sphere of influence, too!