In this last weekend’s message, I shared some information found in a recent article posted in the MBC Pathways magazine titled “Are Southern Baptists Ready for a World That Despises Christians?” That article can be found here. In my message, I discussed that while the author of the article addressed three different contexts of Christianity over the last several decades, positive, neutral, and now negative I posed that perhaps we are up against a fourth context to which Christians now live, or soon will be living in: Hostile. If not already based on several factors such as location,
rural vs urban, bible belt, etc and local contexts Christians may now be living in a hostile environment or soon will be. We discussed how as Christianity has moved from the neutral context to the negative one being a confessional Christian in the world is often hidden so we can live our lives in our spheres without having any of those negative connotations placed on us. We live as silent or closet Christians afraid to come out. This has greatly impacted the Gospel going forth.
Today an article came out in the Gospel Coalition “Coming out as a Christian at work” that could help us reframe our thoughts on being outwardly confessional in our Christian faith. That article can be read here and I encourage you to read it today.
I think the Church at large and the individual Christian will continue to be challenged to own and express our calling to be “salt and light” according to Matthew 5 and live out Jesus’s calling to be His witness to the ends of the earth if we are not able to come to terms with sharing in the sufferings of Christ. Suffering and persecution were the expected norm for the early church. So much so, that much of our New Testament speaks to how we should respond to persecution.
James, the brother of Jesus and pastor of the church in Jerusalem told his readers in the book of James to “count it all joy” when they faced trial in this life. By the way, James was martyred. He witnessed the effects of Stephens’s martyrdom, that, coupled with the persecution of the church in Jerusalem was a catalyst the Holy Spirit used to spread the Gospel. My brethren, count it all joy.
Peter, who by the way was also martyred, encouraged the church to prepare for sufferings and persecutions: “Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; 13 but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy. If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.” The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), 1 Pe 4:12–14.
In the midst of a changing climate towards Christianity in our world today, and forward looking towards hostility we have this great hope: The Gospel will prevail and we live for eternity and the second coming of Christ, not for the temporal comfort of a life of peace and comfort. My friends be bold, live the Gospel, your reward is found in eternity but your joy in living for Christ and His Gospel is experienced today.
I pray today you embrace God’s call to live as salt and light in a world that is continually becoming more hostile towards our faith and that you would experience newness of joy that is only found in a life fully surrendered to Christ, living for His glory.
As a closing let me share one of my favorite songs by Shane & Shane that has brought me comfort many times in situations where things did not go as I had hoped, were difficult and heartbreaking: