Matthew 24:9 – “Then they will hand you over to torture and put you
to death; and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake.”
Hey, Jesus, don’t sugarcoat it! This is a really blunt
prediction of what life will be like for the disciples (and us). History has
shown his words to be true. Following Jesus can lead to torture or even to our
death. It meant death for Dr. King. However, just to be clear, Christians as a
societal group are not persecuted here in America. We get persecuted when we
follow Jesus’ commandments to speak out against injustice.
There was a time in Christianity when people were killed
simply for being a Christian. Although that is not true in the US, there can be a
focus in some Christian circles on being willing to die for Christ. No doubt,
that is a tough decision, and I personally would not judge anyone for how they decided. However, living for Christ is the pinnacle of being a Christian, in my opinion.
Loving our enemies is hard. Praying for those who have hurt us or others is
hard. Speaking out and acting against injustice is hard.
The question is not, “will you die for Jesus?” The question
is, “will you live for Jesus?” Living for Jesus means that loving our enemies, praying
for those who’ve hurt us, and speaking out against injustice must be done every
day rather than once. When I was first diagnosed with lupus, I thought it would
kill me. As time went on, and I realized I have a manageable case and it would
be chronic, that seemed worse. Because now I have to live with it every day. It
will never go away. That is harder in the same way, although not the same degree, that living for Jesus is
harder than dying for him. It means sticking our neck out for others. It means
risking ridicule or praise. It requires all of our mind, our body, and our
strength every day.
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