Suffering for Him
For the disciple of Jesus, retaliation and violence are NOT appropriate reactions when persecution occurs. Rather than respond in kind, they must meet threats and violence with humility, mercy, and forgiveness, which is part of what it means to “deny yourself, take up his cross” and follow him wherever he leads. Praying and doing good for one’s “enemies” is contrary to the “wisdom of this age,” yet doing so is how the disciple emulates the Crucified One and begins to become “perfect” like his Father in Heaven.
In stark contrast to this fallen world, Jesus
exhorted his disciples to “rejoice and leap for joy” whenever “men
hate you, and ostracize you, and profane you, and spurn your name as evil, for
the sake of the Son of Man.” The persecuted disciple was especially “blessed”
and therefore should “exult greatly” since “great is his reward in
heaven” - (Matthew 5:10-12).
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| [Photo by Michael Elliott on Unsplash] |
By enduring trials and persecution faithfully, and with grace, the disciple conforms his life to that of Jesus, and he learns what it means to “follow the Lamb wherever he goes.” Just as his enemies abused him, so the enemies of the Cross mistreat the man who dares to tread the same path as the Nazarene did.
After his resurrection, his disciples took
this teaching to heart. When Peter was hauled before the Sanhedrin and ordered
to cease preaching, rather than respond with anger or denunciations, he went his
way “rejoicing that he was counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name.”
On another occasion, after being abused and
imprisoned, Paul and Silas spent the night “praying and singing hymns to God”
from their prison cell. At no point did they curse their persecutors or call
down God’s wrath on them - (Acts 5:41, 16:23-25).
Jesus provided
the ultimate example of enduring unjust suffering for others. As Isaiah prophesied,
the “Servant of Yahweh” was “oppressed and afflicted, yet he opened
not his mouth.” The man anointed by God Himself did not “wrangle or cry
aloud, nor did anyone hear his voice in the streets. He did not break a bruised
reed or quench a smoldering wick” - (Isaiah 53:7).
EMULATING THE FATHER
Jesus exhorted
anyone who wished to follow him to “love your enemies and pray for them who
persecute you.” Showing mercy to your enemy, especially to one’s
persecutor, is how his disciple becomes “perfect” or “complete” like
God. “Perfection” is achieved not through self-discipline and moral
purity, but through acts of mercy to one’s enemies. The “God and Father of
our Lord Jesus Christ” desires “mercy, not sacrifice” - (Matthew
5:38-48).
Since the
creation, Jesus is the only truly righteous man who has ever lived. If anyone
deserved respect for his “rights,” he did. Yet rather than be served or lord it
over others, the one destined to reign from the Messianic Throne chose “to
serve and give his life a ransom for many.”
This he did by suffering a horrific and undeserved death for our sake. Not only so, but he chose to die for us when we were “yet enemies of God.” Conforming to this pattern is how his disciple becomes “great in the Kingdom of God” - (Matthew 20:28, Romans 5:10).
When an
armed mob arrested Jesus, Peter drew his sword and “smote the high priest's
servant, cutting off his right ear.” Jesus then did the unexpected. Rather
than join Peter in defending his “rights” and lopping off body parts, he
rebuked the hot-tempered disciple, commanding him to sheathe his sword. He then
healed the wounded man who had come to arrest him - (John 18:10-12).
Interrogated,
beaten, and reviled before the High Priest, Jesus reviled not in return. While in
his death throes on the Roman Cross, he prayed for his Father to “forgive
them, for they know not what they do” - (Matthew 27:39, Mark 15:32, Luke
23:34).
In Scripture, persecution is something disciples
should expect and endure faithfully. Not only so, but to suffer for his sake is
a great honor and a matter for rejoicing, not anger or despair.
In some nations today, through loud
protests and legal machinations, Christians may avoid persecution; however, in
doing so, they may rob themselves of something of infinitely greater value than
a comfortable life in this fallen age.
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| [Photo by Brian Erickson on Unsplash] |
We like to insist on respect for our inviolate civil “rights” that must be defended at all costs, though this flies in the face of New Testament teachings on discipleship, mercy, suffering, and forgiving our enemies.
The man who would be his disciple must “take up his cross daily and follow” the same path that Jesus did. Failure
to do so makes one unworthy of the “Kingdom of God.” To become "greatest"
in His realm, his disciple must first become the “slave of all.” The
Cross means denying to yourself that which is yours by right.
In contrast to the political ideologies
and systems of the present age, the Kingdom of God offers its citizens the far
greater privilege of self-sacrificial service for Jesus and his people, and the
very high honor of enduring insults, hatred, and persecution because of him. The
rewards for doing so in the “age to come” will far outweigh any losses we
might suffer in this present life.
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