MEDIA
5 Bible Verses about Persecution
Every time we hear about the persecution of believers in Asia and around the world, and every time we hear negative comments about Christians on TV or even to our faces, we can wonder where God is. What’s he doing? Why does he allow these things to happen? These five verses help us realign our expectations around persecution – not just in terms of where it might crop up, but also in terms of what God might achieve through it.
Mark 13:13 – Suffering is inevitable
When Jesus talked about His disciples being hated for His name’s sake, He did not say that suffering for Him was a possibility; He said it was inevitable. He said that they shall be hated.
It’s helpful to know that suffering is not something that should take us by surprise as followers of Christ. Rather, our concern should be that we suffer only for righteousness’ sake, and not for doing what is wrong.
John 15:18 – Suffering is a normal result of following Christ
Jesus reminds us that if the world hates us, we are to know that it hated our Saviour (without cause) before us. We are persecuted because of the One to whom we belong. It’s not personal, it’s because of our association with Christ.
1 Thessalonians 3:3 – Suffering is not out of God’s control
When Paul remarked that the Thessalonians ought not to be moved (literally shaken) by the afflictions they were experiencing, he reminded them that He and his companions in suffering were appointed to these trials. Behind these words lies the unmistakable hand of a Sovereign God, who, as in the days of Job of old, was in absolute control of all things.
1 Peter 5:9 – We do not suffer alone
The apostle Peter encouraged the faithful to resist the devil, to remain steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions they faced were similarly being faced by brothers and sisters throughout the world.
If there is one thing that makes suffering acutely difficult, it is a sense of going through it alone. But we are members of the body of Christ – we are not alone in our trials! And let us not forget that Christ Himself has promised never to leave us or forsake us to the end of the age.
1 Peter 1:6–7 – Suffering faithfully glorifies God
Peter said that the various trials are God’s instruments to prove the genuine character of the faith of believers, and that their changed lives are to the praise of God. Oak trees do not grow in greenhouses. God’s saints are formed in the storms, the hail, the rain, the frost and the drought. God has a purpose in our trials – our growth in holiness, through which we become more like Christ.
Finally…
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