Boldness in death

 

Estimates vary, but research suggests over 1 million Christians were killed for their faith between 2000 and 2010, and approximately 900,000 between 2011 and 2020. More recent data from specific years indicates thousands of deaths annually, for example, 5,621 in 2023 and 5,898 in 2022. 

A friend gets very upset at talk of persecution. He cannot accept that a sovereign God would allow such evil to happen to His people. He is firm that people who persecute should be brought to justice. Some are, most are not.

In the NT story of the early church, persecution was the norm. It is from these accounts and others that the second-century theologian Tertullian said "the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church” meaning that the persecution and martyrdom of Christians paradoxically leads to the growth of the church. He observed that the more believers were killed, the more people were inspired by their sacrifice and willingness to die for their faith, which led to new conversions.

At times I forget two truths. One that everyone dies sometime, and two, that Christians who die for their faith are with Jesus. Can that be a terrible end?

In the early church, the disciples preached about OT prophecies and how God would bless all the families of the earth by sending His servant (Jesus) to bless them and turn them from their sin. The religious leaders were “greatly annoyed” at their message about Jesus being raised from the dead, so had them arrested and jailed. “But many of those who had heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to about five thousand.” (Acts 3:25–4:4)

They also preached:

This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” 

Those who heard were astonished that these “uneducated, common men” could say such things, yet recognized that the disciples had been with Jesus because the man who had been healed was real and visible before their eyes. They didn’t know what to do, so simply warned them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John answered them, 

Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.

Because of the people who were praising God for what happened, they were released. (Acts 4:11–21) 

What is missing today? Certainly we are praying, but is it like those early believers: “And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness” (Acts 4:29) or is it because those facing death because of their faith are living in countries where observers are not impressed by miracles? Or justice to them means death to any opposition? Or the media is not reporting the thousands who become Christians after some die for their faith?

I’m thinking that those living in freedom in the western world are not aware of how God is using the blood of the martyrs just like He did in the NT:

And more than ever believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women, so that they even carried out the sick into the streets and laid them on cots and mats, that as Peter came by at least his shadow might fall on some of them. The people also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits, and they were all healed. (Acts 5:14–16)

In those days, the opposition was afraid of public opinion and the Christians who were threatened and told to stop or to deny their faith, boldly said: 

We must obey God rather than men. The God of our fathers raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him. (Acts 5:28–33)

And when they heard this, they were enraged and wanted to kill them, and today in many parts of the world they still do. 

PRAY: Oh Lord, it is vital to seek Your will of God and pray for all believers to stand firm. It may lead to a martyr’s death, but it could also lead thousands of others into Your kingdom and into eternal life. How much we need wisdom, and compassion, and boldness!

Speak the truth in love. . . .

 

Piper clarifies and challenges me at the same time. Today his devotional says: “Our job as Christians is not to control government and education. Our job is to speak God’s truth at every level. We may or may not change minds or laws. That is not our responsibility. Our responsibility is to speak with boldness and clarity what God would say.”

He is not advocating preaching on street corners or making judgments that rile those who  advocate ungodly ideas. Instead, he is telling me to speak truth whenever opportunities arise. A few weeks ago I was in a group who were discussing political issues. One of them said something about electing leaders who had got past that ‘old fashioned idea that (a certain sin)  was bad.’ That was one opportunity, but I missed it, partly because it her statement shocked me.

Another reason might have been that I didn’t want to rock the boat or publicly challenge her. And I was thinking in terms of challenging, not what Piper advises. Instead, he is saying I should declare my convictions without trying to control what others think. Just say what is true and I could be surprised that someone, even those person who say the opposite of what God says, is just waiting for someone to speak truth. The Bible says:

Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says, “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” (Ephesians 5:11–14)

I’ve often wondered what “expose them” means, and also “to not speak of what is done in darkness.” These two directions seem opposite. However, the word ‘expose’ means to sternly admonish anyone who advocates shameful and sinful activities. Speaking truth to counter such activities has the effect of making darkness visible. That is, if someone talks about sinful deeds as if they are okay, and I say truth (from God) about those deeds, I am exposing them for what they are, rather than letting my silence give anyone the idea that I also approve of those deeds.
In other words, I could have said, “The Word of God forbids (that sin she mentioned) and also tells his people to not condone such behavior but call it what it is — sinful and not at all what He intends for our lives.”

To be blunt, talking like that takes guts. It means that truth must be fare more important to me than ‘making and keeping friends’ or being considered odd or old-fashioned.

To sum up this idea of defending truth, Piper quotes another verse and it should be one that governs how I respond to those who speak from a secular and ungodly perspective:

Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. (Ephesians 5:15–17)

PRAY: Jesus, I certainly do not want to be careless or unwise or foolish. Nor do I want to waste time by neglecting to understand AND DO Your will. Forgive and remove my fears and enable me to be bold with truth when I hear someone speaking contrary to it and to You, not because I’m defending my ideas or trying to convince them, but when truth is spoken You can use it to shed light on the evil that so easily grips human hearts and minds.