Why Not To Fear Persecutors

Scott Stewart

The Gospel of Matthew • Sermon • Submitted 3 years ago

Matthew 10:26–33

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Disciples of Christ are not to be afraid of their persecutors.

Notes

Transcript

Sermon Summary: Disciples of Christ are not to be afraid of their persecutors.

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Revelation

Psalm 69:5–9 ESV

5 O God, you know my folly; the wrongs I have done are not hidden from you. 6 Let not those who hope in you be put to shame through me, O Lord God of hosts; let not those who seek you be brought to dishonor through me, O God of Israel. 7 For it is for your sake that I have borne reproach, that dishonor has covered my face. 8 I have become a stranger to my brothers, an alien to my mother’s sons. 9 For zeal for your house has consumed me, and the reproaches of those who reproach you have fallen on me.

Introduction

Go ahead and open up your Bibles to Matthew chapter 10, starting in verse 26.

Before we read our text for the day, I want to say that nobody looks forward to suffering. In general, I would say that 99.99% of people don’t wake up in the morning, start rolling out of bed, and say “Oh boy… I sure do hope I suffer today!”

That’s just not realistic. It’s not what we, in our very nature, wake up in the morning excited to endure. We need God’s promises to be pressed into us to even have a vague notion that suffering is worth enduring.

The unsaved person will go through whatever means necessary to dull their suffering. Whether escaping into drugs and alcohol to numb themselves, or plastic surgery to feel better about themselves, or Netflixing their way into next week to forget themselves… the unsaved person will avoid any suffering at any cost.

The Christian, however, sees suffering as important. Why? Because it brings us closer to Christ as long as we are clinging to Him in His Word during our suffering.

Today, however, our topic is not suffering in general. It’s a particular form of suffering which is: Suffering by the hands of persecutors.

We may be tempted to think that Christians ought to avoid those who persecute them. It only seems natural for us to want to run away and hide from those who are wounding and killing us, but that’s not what Jesus says. // We may even be tempted to think that we’re to get vengeance on those that harm us.... But that’s also not what Jesus says.

Remember last week, we discussed the inevitability of suffering for the Apostles at the hand of wicked men who would see fit to squash Christianity. This week, however, we will be looking at some admonition or counsel from Christ to His Apostles about WHY they should not be afraid of their persecution.

Hence the title, and the sermon summary on the inside of your bulletin which reads: Disciples of Christ are not to be afraid of their persecutors.

Let’s read:

Matthew 10:26–33 ESV

26 “So have no fear of them, for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. 27 What I tell you in the dark, say in the light, and what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops. 28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. 30 But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. 32 So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, 33 but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.

Christ gives us four reasons for His Apostles to not be afraid. All four have implications for us today, but especially in the midst of persecution.

Reason 1: The persecutors will be judged for their wickedness

Notice what Christ says in the first verse. He says clearly and plainly: “So have no fear of them!” Whose the “them?”

Well, if we go back in our Bibles to verse 17 of Matthew 10, we read Jesus saying “Beware of ‘men,’ for they will deliver you over to courts and flog you in their synagogues...” These men who drag into courts and synagogues are none other than the Pharisees and other Jews of the day. Those same “men” become the “them” of verse 26.

That means that Christ is thinking specifically about Jewish persecution on Christians, which was the vast majority of persecution in the first days of Christianity.

Christ also goes on to say “For” (which means that this is supposed to be the reason or ground for their lack of fear of persecution at the hands of Jews) “for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known.”

What Jesus means in this sentence is that there are no evil deeds that will not be judged by God. He sees all sins. Yours, mine, everyone through all of time. There will not be a single evil deed that the Lord will not see and will not judge. The evil acts of men will either judge a sinner as wicked and have them cast to Hell, or they will be judged by the merits of Christ Himself, leading to forgiveness and bringing into the presence of God.

There are no in-betweens, and what we see in this text is Jesus’ assurance that sins will be judged. “Do not be afraid of your persecutors,” Jesus is saying, “because my Father sees all sins. Nothing will be covered up or hidden from His sight. It will all be known.”

Now, this truth is plain to Christians and confirmed throughout the entire Bible.

Psalm 69:5 ESV

5 O God, you know my folly; the wrongs I have done are not hidden from you.

Numbers 32:23 ESV

23 But if you will not do so, behold, you have sinned against the Lord, and be sure your sin will find you out.

Proverbs 28:13 ESV

13 Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.

And many, many more statements throughout the Bible making this truth plain to us.

So here is Christ reassuring His disciples with a truth that they should know, that they would’ve grown up hearing. The truth that no sin can be hidden from the Lord, and that they will all be judged by Him as well.

Verse 27 reaffirms this. Now, verse 27 is actually kind of hard to understand, but if we were to open Luke’s account of this conversation, we’d see that he sheds a little more light on what Jesus is talking about.

Turn with me to Luke 12:1-3

Luke 12:1–3 ESV

1 In the meantime, when so many thousands of the people had gathered together that they were trampling one another, he began to say to his disciples first, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. 2 Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. 3 Therefore whatever you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed on the housetops.

What we see in these verses is another instance Jesus has used this particular terminology. He uses it in reference to the Pharisees, avoiding their practices and beliefs because their steeped in hypocrisy. He even uses the exact same phrase we read in 10:26, and clarifies that this hearing in the dark is actually the Pharisees words and planning, plotting and schemes against Christians.

Therefore, Jesus is saying this: “Since no sin can be hidden from God, as you discover the plots and hypocrisies of the Pharisees then you must announce them.” This was literally played out by the Apostle Paul’s nephew in Acts 23. He heard of a plot to assassinate Paul, men who took an oath to not eat or drink until he was dead. So Paul’s nephew went and reported this to Paul, who had this conspiracy shared with the Romans, and he ended up being protected.

Therefore, what we see here is the encouragement to not be afraid of persecutors. Why? Because their wickedness will be found out by God, and will often be uncovered by men. Their persecution will be stopped, and Christians are to boldly stand up to persecutors.

Those who are against Christ and seek to harm His people will be judged. Their hypocrisies are ruinous, and if we today were to learn of a plot against Christians, we should go to the authorities. If the authorities do not hear us, then we are to face that persecution with a joyous reminder of God’s inevitable judgment on the wicked.

So do not be afraid of persecutors, because their sin will be found out by Him who judges sins perfectly.

This leads us to the second reason to not be afraid of persecutors.

Reason 2: Fearing God more than man makes us bold for truth

Jesus makes this reason as clear as He possibly can. “And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.”

When Jesus uses the word “kill” in reference to these people, He means what He has said. “Do not be afraid of these men who will seek to kill you on earth for your faith and witness” is what Jesus is saying.

Again, this is illustrating on the persecution that these disciples will face. They are actually being hunted and killed by these persecutors, yet Christ tells them not to be afraid of them.

Why this time? Because a persecutor on earth is only as good as the damage they do. And here they can only kill you… But fear God even more, because He not only takes the life of people but also condemns them to Hell. Both their soul (their consciousness of their lives) and their body (their physical existence) will be cast into Hell to be tormented under the wrath of God for all eternity.

There are those in this world who would argue against an eternal, conscious existence in Hell. They conveniently think that God will annihilate their existence, because a “loving God” certainly would never do a thing like torment people with burning wrath.

If you encounter someone who thinks this, point them to this verse.

Men can only go so far in their torment, but God torments eternally, both body and soul in Hell for those who did not fear Him.

Therefore, a healthy fear of God will result in a healthy, bold Christian life against persecutors.

Remember that these were real men that the disciples were facing. Men who really wanted to kill them, and really succeeded in killing them. Not every discomfort with Christianity is a form of persecution. Just because an atheist says “I don’t want to hear about this Jesus guy anymore” means that it is persecution. But, when they try to get authorities on their side and silence all Christians because of their discomfort, then it is persecution.

If that were to happen, then we would have to fear God more than man and proclaim the gospel despite being told not to. But remember the command of Jesus just a few verses before to “be wise as serpents and innocent as doves” (10:16). Exercise intelligence in the midst of persecution, friends.

Fear God more than man, but be wise and shrewd about how best to proclaim truth.

This next statement of Christ is one of the most wonderful promises in surviving persecution. It’s about God’s absolute sovereignty over death, but also His care and compassion on His people.

Reason 3: A persecuted Christian is valued and beloved by God

Matthew 10:29 must be taken in context of the time period. Two sparrows were sold for a “penny,” but they didn’t have pennies in the first century. What they had were called “assarions.” A single assarion (which is the actual Greek word used here translated as “penny”) was about 1/16th of a day’s wage. That means that a sparrow’s life was worth 1/32nd of a day’s wage.

You might be asking: “What would someone do with a sparrow?” Sparrows were often used as “burnt offerings” in the temple, and they were allotted for the poorest of the poor at this time.

So sparrows weren’t fried up and given as food, but they were killed as an offering to the Lord.

This is important, because what might we say about someone who dies a horrendous and hideous death trying to spread the gospel? Would we not say that they were offering their lives to the Lord? We would, as a matter of fact.

The Apostle Paul uses this metaphor when he encourages the Roman Christians to be “living sacrifices.”

Romans 12:1 ESV

1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

In the context of Romans 12, Paul is actually meaning to abstain from sin and continue to live, but when he uses the word “sacrifice,” he’s trying to invoke the notion that we are to sacrifice all of our sinful actions and continue to live. But, there are those who sacrifice their lives for the gospel… Those we call “martyrs” or “witnesses,” like we discussed last week.

So here we have in our text, a statement about almost-worthless birds who are sold for basically nothing, who are then sacrificed to God.

“…not one of them,” Jesus says, “will fall to the ground apart from your Father.”

Refrain

Not even a sparrow falls to the ground, which is to be read as “dead,” apart from your Father. God is sovereign over the deaths of even these cheap, worthless sparrows… Reserved for only the poorest of the poor to be sacrificed in the temple… He’s sovereign over even their deaths.

And so He is sovereign over your death!

God knows even the very hairs of our heads, He is perfectly knowledgeable, and perfectly in control over the deaths of sparrows and the number of hairs that you have on your head!

Of how much more value are you to Him than MANY sparrows, friends? That is Jesus’ point! You are of more value than many, even countless sparrows. The one who is persecuted is BELOVED by God!

If you or I were facing immense persecution, afraid to go out into the streets, unable to show our faces because Christians were being BUTCHERED outside the walls of our home! Do you know what Jesus has to say to that person afraid to go outside?

He says: “Don’t be afraid! Even if you were sacrificed, even if you are martyred, YOU ARE MORE VALUABLE TO GOD THAN ANYTHING ELSE HE’S CREATED!” “Don’t be afraid,” He says! Don’t be afraid.

If there’s any single comfort for us to remember in the midst of our suffering and persecution it’s that we are valuable to God. That He cares for us. That He knows us. That He hasn’t forgotten us.

What a sweet promise! In the midst of a Christian’s most painful portions of their lives, they might be tempted to think God has a vendetta against them, or that they have failed Him and are being punished.

LIES! Absolute lies and you will NOT find that anywhere in God’s revelation of Himself and His nature that’s contained in the Bible!

YOU.........ARE..........OF MORE VALUE........... THAN MANY SPARROWS!

Especially in the midst of persecution, Christians are to remember this fact. To find comfort in it. And to not back down from the responsibility of sharing the gospel and saying what God has said!

Do not forget the love of God, friends. Don’t forget it. Don’t think that He has forgotten you.

It’s far more likely, honestly, to forget God in the midst of suffering. Which brings us to our final reason.

Reason 4: Remaining faithful to Christ results in acceptance by Christ

These final verses are meant to be a comfort, but they should also terrify us. Let’s read it for clarity:

Matthew 10:32–33 ESV

32 So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, 33 but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.

While suffering, while going through intense persecution, I would imagine it would be easy to huddle in a corner, curl my arms around my legs, and cry out into the darkness: “God… Where are you? Have you forgotten me?”

No, He says, I have not. You are of more value than many sparrows to me. You are precious to me. Therefore, I should be precious to you. So precious that you will acknowledge me before your persecutors.

Have you ever been in a situation where it’s convenient to not be a Christian? Where it would be easier to be an honorable man parading your righteousness, or an employee who keeps his mouth shut, or a person who is in trouble? Have you ever been in a situation where it would be better to be recognized by someone as something other than a Christian?

Of course you have, that’s a stupid question. Even if you don’t fit in any of my examples, you’ve all been (or WILL be in) a situation someday where it’s better to have something else hanging on your nametag than “Christian.” Where you can appeal to some other “witness” in your life before another person.

If you have failed to acknowledge God as your first and foremost authority, failed to confess Him as Lord to your judgmental family, to coworkers, to neighbors. If you’ve lied about your faith to cover up for something in your life, then you have sinned.

You’ve failed to acknowledge Christ before men...

The implication of Jesus’ words here to the Apostles are this: “When your life is on the line on account of me, then you should still acknowledge me before your persecutors. I will acknowledge you before my Father if you acknowledge me before men. But if you won’t, then I won’t.”

For us, that same admonition holds true. Whether it’s a coworker who feels judged and has reported you to HR, or a cousin who complains to your aunt about you saying “Jesus is Lord” or something thereabouts.

Then you better acknowledge Jesus. You better declare the hope of the gospel. You better stand firm in your conviction that God will get justice on persecutors, that He is worthy to be feared, and that you are valuable to Him.

You better do that if you want to be acknowledged before Jesus’ Father. I bet you’ve failed in the past. You may not even remember your failure, but God does.

Carry those convictions to repent and avoid failure in the future, remembering that Jesus died to cover those failures and sins of yours. If you do, then you will find yourself acknowledging Him before men… Even when it would be foolish to do so.

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