Matthew 5:10-12 “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

Not only is persecution a given but the second paradox to persecution is that it is a:

• Gift

I think if we were honest most of us can not only see but also agree that persecution is a given, but for many of us to say that persecution is a gift would be a serious stretch. We see a gift as something that is given to us to be a benefit and a blessing. From our perspective persecution is more of a problem and a pain than a present. We fail to see how persecution can be productive, but we are blessed when people mess with us for our faith because what we receive is the kingdom of heaven. It’s a gift that goes beyond gold because it’s a gift we get to keep forever, one that no one can take away from us. Just before Stephen was stoned to death in Acts 7:55 it says that he “looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at God’s right hand” Steven didn’t focus on the hurt of persecution he focused on the hope and his home in heaven. One of the reasons we fail to recognize persecution as a privilege and a blessing, and perceive it only as a problem, is because we expect an earthly reward instead of getting excited over an eternal one. Are you relying on an earthly reward or rejoicing over an eternal one? Sometimes in the midst of the misery of persecution all we can do is focus on the promise of what is to come. We can jump for joy not because of the hurt but because of the hope that is ahead. We may lose everything here on earth, but we will inherit everything in heaven. When we have a faulty perspective on persecution we tend to lose focus on the future and end up living for things that will fade and perish. When we go through persecution expecting and demanding that God blesses us in the present we end up prisoners. We hold our selves hostage instead of holding on to hope. Persecution is the precursor to blessing; it’s the trigger that causes God to pour out His blessings on life. His word reminds us that there is more to life than this world, that in the midst of persecution God promises us that it will all be worth it. Jim Eliot the missionary who was martyred for his faith said in a famous quote, “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.” Are you focused on immediate blessing or a future reward, on temporary treasure that will fade or future treasure that will never tarnish? Not only is persecution a given and a gift but the last paradox to persecution is that it brings:

• Gladness

The third paradox is perplexing and is found in verse 14: “Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” The phrase, “be glad” is not a suggestion but a command, meaning to jump up and down with joy. This is what Jesus said in Luke 6:23: “What blessings await you when people hate you and exclude you and mock you and curse you as evil because you follow the Son of Man. 23 When that happens, be happy! Yes, leap for joy! For a great reward awaits you in heaven” Jesus did not call us to revel in persecution but in what persecution produces. Do you approach persecution with exceeding excitement, are you leaping forth with exuberant gladness? Jesus didn’t call us to reveal in the pain of persecution but in what it represents. Persecution confirms our relationship, it’s like a certificate of Christian authenticity. 1 Peter 4:16 says: “If you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear his name.” We can rejoice in the realization that people will see Jesus in us. While most of us push persecution away because we see it as a pain the bible calls it a privilege. Jesus thinks enough of you to let you share in His sufferings. Acts 5:41 says, “The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name.” Instead of being resentful over their rough treatment they rejoiced. How are you responding to persecution are you praising or throwing a pity party? Suffering for Jesus is a badge or better yet a brand of our discipleship. Not only does persecution confirm our relationship but it also causes reliance. Suffering tends to strip us of self-strength and cause us to lean on the Lord in ways that we may have never done. As we do we get to see God’s power, its what Paul experienced in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10: “Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” Not only do we get to see His power but we get to know Him personally. Persecution produces reliance and it also cultivates righteousness. Some of my greatest times of growth have come in through grief. 1 Peter 5:10: “And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.” We tend to grow more in the groaning times than in the glad ones. Jesus reminds us of the persecution that the prophets faced before us, because they serve as a model. Their rejection was the rule, not the exception and to suffer for what is right is to join the ranks of great godly men and women. The Beatitudes are not easy to live, but perhaps that’s the problem, we have made the Christian life way too painless. Why do we expecting the pursuit of Jesus to be problem free? Today we are pursuing happiness instead of holiness, pursuing pleasure instead of the Prince of Peace. Are you stepping out in your service to the Savior or playing it safe? Are you living a life that is causing others to challenge your faith? When and where have you risked speaking out for Jesus? Are you living your life out loud for the Lord, or are you a covert Christian, keeping Christ under covered so as not to cause personal difficulty or cramp your lifestyle. Are you deliberately defending the cause of Christ? Have you identified yourself as a Christ follower? Perhaps you’re not persecuted because people don’t see the Savior in your life. The truth is that every believer who boldly proclaims Christ will face persecution. You will be made fun of for your faith; you will face scathing sarcasm from a society that hates your faith. But as they ridicule you remember persecution is a given, it’s a gift, you may be bullied by some but you will be blessed by the Son, and it can bring you gladness in the midst of the sadness because the rewards are worth the risk. If you are going through persecution embrace the promise and not the pain.

Matthew 5:10-12 “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

These eight statements spoken by the Savior describe the call of a Christian, what it looks like to live our lives for the Lord. Jesus does not focus on outward performance, like going to church, giving, or even serving. No His concern goes much deeper as He delineates how a disciple should be on the inside. A follower of Christ is someone who is poor in spirit, recognizing their own spiritual bankruptcy, who laments the losses of life, sorrows over sin, cries over the condition of others, and weeps for the world. A Christ-follower is one who is meek, who hungers for right living, is merciful to others, pursues purity and peace, bringing calm in the midst of conflict, and is persecuted for trying to do what is right. At the beginning of His ministry as He preached this message from the mountainside, Jesus knew not only the end and what awaited Him, but also what was in store for His faithful followers. In John 12:27 as Jesus contemplated the crucifixion and His coming death, He said: “Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour.” Jesus knew the suffering ahead, He came as our sacrifice, choosing to die as our sin substitute. In His final hours, He suffered horribly, He was betrayed, arrested, and faced a sham trial. He was beaten and bloodied, He was spit on and scourged with a whip called a cat-of-nine-tails because there were nine pieces of leather to which bits of bone were tied to rip off flesh. His kingship was mocked as they crammed a crown of sharp thorns upon His head. Yet even knowing the pain that awaited Him Jesus proclaims that persecution is a blessing. But as we come to the eighth and final beatitude we discover the blessing that nobody wants. When it comes to persecution we would rather take a pass and skip the suffering. But it is this last beatitude that serves as a test of all the others. Persecution is as much a normal mark of discipleship as being merciful is. It’s the longest and wordiest Beatitude maybe because it’s the hardest to embrace. It is also the only beatitude that comes with a command, which is to “Rejoice and be glad.” It’s the only one with an explanation, and it’s the only one repeated twice, so that we see the word “blessed” used two times. It is also the only beatitude addressed to us personally, for it is here that the tense changes from “blessed are those” in verse 10 to “blessed are you” in verse 11. For some Jesus last statement may seem strange. It may seem out of place to move from peacemaking to persecution, from harmony to hostility, but remember not all attempts at reconciliation succeed, and no matter how hard we try to make peace with some people, they may refuse to live at peace with us. The truth is that if we live life according to the first seven Beatitudes then we will automatically experience the eighth. It’s like an equation, people who pursues verses 3-9, get the product of verses 10-12, persecution. When you are “poor in spirit,” some will think you are self-righteous. When you “mourn” over sin, others will feel convicted and may respond with rejection and not want you around. The “meek” may get run over. Those who stop settling for the spiritual status quo and really “hunger and thirst” for God, will get label as a religious fanatic and ridiculed. When you are “merciful” people may take advantage of you. When you pursue purity as you strive to be “pure in heart” in the midst of a promiscuous world that lives on lust you will get labeled a looser.  When you pledge to be a “peacemaker” get ready for war. As we live out the first seven beatitudes our faith grows and matures, where under the eighth our faith groans and moans. The first seven cultivated our faith where the last challenges it. The further we go with each beatitude the greater the gulf between fair weather fan and faithful follower, between being part of the crowd and pursuing Christ. What’s hard about this last beatitude is that we all like to be liked. We want to fit in not feel bad. Another challenge was that people in Christ’s day believed that suffering was an indication that God was not pleased and that the person going through persecution was being punished. This is clearly seen in the Book of Job, where his friends are convinced that Jobs suffering is the result of sin. So Christ’s claim that Christians would face persecution not because of sin but because of service was not only controversial it was counter cultural. As you study the blessing that no one wants you will see three paradoxes related to persecution, first persecution is a:

• Given

There are many Christians who have bought into the bogus belief that once they have God in their life everything will go great. There are some who have replaced the gospel of persecution with a gospel of prosperity, preaching success in place of suffering. But Jesus never taught a “prosperity gospel,” He preach the “persecution gospel.” In John 15:20, Jesus said, “If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also.” In John 16:33 He added, “…In this world you will have trouble…” and in Matthew 24:9, He told His disciples that they would face serious struggles: “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me.” All of the disciples faced persecution and most were put to death for their faith. James was beheaded, Phillip was scourged, thrown into prison, and then crucified. Matthew was slain with a sword, while James was stoned to death. Matthias was beheaded, Andrew, Peter, Jude (Thaddeus), and Simon the Zealot were crucified, while Bartholomew was beaten with clubs and then crucified. Thomas was speared to death while John was exiled to an island called Patmos where he died a prisoner. 2 Timothy 3:12 says, “In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” This is echoed in Philippians 1:29: “For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for him.” Peter who was an eyewitness to the suffering of the Savior wrote in 1 Peter 4:12: “Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you.” So why are we so shocked at suffering? Because today we think that if we live a sold out life for the Lord we will not suffer, and that everything will going well for us. Persecution of God’s people is not an if but a when and there are at least two reasons why we will be persecuted. First because of the life we live, verse 10 says “those who are persecuted because of righteousness.” Second because of the Lord that we love, in verse 11 Jesus says that people will insult, persecute, and say false things, “because of me.” The reason that we will be persecuted is because of the life that we live and because of the Lord that we love. Verse 11 serves to help us both understand the meaning of the word “righteous” which means to live like the Lord as well as reveal the different forms that persecution will take. Verbal insults, these are misrepresentations intended to degrade and destroy another’s reputation. They can take the form of verbal abuse and insulting language, and while the old children’s nursery rhyme tells us that “sticks and stones will break my bones but words will never harm me”, the truth is words can wound. Persecution can also take the form of physical attack. The word, “persecute” means to be hunted down like an animal. They can also take the form of false accusations. Jesus not only faced false charges but according to 1 Peter 2:23, “He did not retaliate.” People will try to belittle you and even talk behind your back, but remember they did the same to Jesus, they tried to slander the Savior. If the Prince of Peace faced persecution so will His people, but remember you don’t have to respond with retaliation and resentment, instead you can respond with rejoicing because persecution is a privilege. When it comes to persecution are you shocked and surprised, or do you see persecution and suffering as part of the package for those who are sold out to the Savior? How are you responding to persecution pouting or counting it a privilege?