Sermon Tone Analysis

Until recently, many of us perhaps thought that religious persecution was a thing of the past.

We think of things like the Crusades or the Spanish Inquisition and say, “Well, that belonged to a primitive time.

But we’re enlightened now and most countries are moving toward religious liberty rather than away from it.”

Is that the case?

Because the Christ that we worship here is the same One who promised “Indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God” (John 16:2 ESV).

“You will be hated for my name’s sake”, He also said; “but the one who endures to the end will be saved” (Matt.

10:22 ESV).

“When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next” (Matt.

10:23 ESV).

He didn’t say “if they persecute you”, but when they persecute you.”

There may be periods of respite and relief from persecution, but persecution is the norm, not the exception.

The reality is that Jesus never promised that persecution would one day come to end.

Jesus promised, actually, that things will be hard and will get worse.

Until Jesus returns to rescue the church and judge the unbelieving, there will be persecution of Christians.

There may be periods of respite, like the last 250 years in this country.

But our country is moving very, very quickly away from our Christian roots.

What will the next five, ten, 20 years look like?

But then 9/11 happened.

The vacancy where the Twin Towers once stood in Manhattan became a painful reminder that religious persecution is alive and well.

We were uncomfortably reminded that there are people and organizations and forces out there who just as soon kill us for our faith in Jesus.

Then a few years ago, we started hearing of a group called ISIS.

We became familiar with their tactics: arrest and detain Christians, coerce them to deny their faith in Christ, and then brutally murder them if they refuse.

We remember the 21 Egyptian Christians who gave their lives for Jesus on the beach, bound and on their knees in the sand, with ISIS executioners standing behind them, swords in hand.

We remember the Christians who were taken out into the ocean and placed in metal cages and then dropped into the water to drown.

We don’t know, but we do know what it is like for many of our brothers and sisters in Christ around the world.

For many, simply going to church is a crime, so churches meet in warehouses or businesses late at night, under the cover of dark.

Many of those brothers and sisters who go to those churches know they need to vary the route they take to get there, that they need to wear dark clothing and hoodies to prevent recognition.

Will it become like that here?

Only the Lord knows.

In the meantime, though, it’s not a bad idea for us to begin to prepare ourselves.

Two questions about persecution:

What is the nature of persecution?

How has Jesus equipped us to face it?

Which is why need to hear what the Holy Spirit is saying to us in this text today.

What can we learn about the opposition that Jesus has promised we will face?

And then, what can we learn about how the Holy Spirit has equipped us to engage that opposition?

Round #1: The world vs. the church

Let’s take just the first one.

What is persecution?

Now you say, “Well Dustin, of course, persecution is when someone gets harmed or threatened or killed even because of their faith.”

That’s true, but we can further.

What is Christian persecution like?

Who’s behind it?

What is the nature of it?

#1: What is persecution?

Persecution is the world, under Satan’s influence, united together in opposition to God and His people

Persecution: the world, under the influence of Satan, united together in opposition to God and His people (v. 5, 26, 27)

Now, how do we see that in our text?

Well, we don’t see the word “world” in our text.

But just because we don’t see it explicitly doesn’t mean it’s not there implicitly.

Anywhere and anytime people gather together to oppose God and His people, there you will find the world.

If persecution is the world under Satan’s influence united together in opposing God and His people, then where do we see that in the text?

What does “world” mean, anyway?

In the NT the concept of “the world” occurs just under 200 times.

What does “world” mean?

Planet earth (59x)

The people inhabiting earth (38x)

The “world system” (73x)

So what is the “world system”?

I know this is getting deeply theological, but if you stay with me I’ll have like donuts for your or something.

Actually, no - that won’t happen.

Your reward will be the satisfaction you gain from digging into God’s word is the gathering of the people of God.

What is the “world system”?

Everyone who is in active rebellion against God, together with their values, morality, and beliefs

Can you think of some examples of this?

Hollywood?

Social media?

Our universities?

Government agencies?

Wherever you find human beings rebelling against God, there you will eventually find persecution.

So what’s the big deal about this word?

Well, this word first comes out of Psalm 2.

And shockingly, this is true even in with some religious leaders and even some Christian churches and pastors.

This is true even here in our text.

#2: Where does persecution often come from?

Persecution often comes from the religious leaders SOURCE

Persecution: comes almost exclusively from the religious leaders of the sanctioned religion (vv.

1-3, 5-7)

Who are the ones who crucified Jesus?

The Jewish religious leaders, not the Romans.

Who are the ones who persecuted the church early on?

Again, at first, it was not the Romans.

It came from the so-called leaders of the people of God.

Look with me at Acts 4:1-2.

We see that here in these verses at the start.

Look in your Bibles with me and help me count.

So that’s three right there.

Now look down a few verses to verses 5-6:

Acts 4:5-6

Here you have not only the priests who led in temple worship, and the captain of the temple guard who provided security, and the Sadducees, but you also have Jewish rulers and town elders and scribes who were scholars in the law of Moses.

on top of that all that, you have Annas and Caiaphas, two of the most influential men living in Jerusalem during the first century.

All of them were tasked with shepherding the people of Israel to know the Lord and His word, so as to be able to recognize when the Promised One came and commit themselves to Him.

And yet, it is precisely these men, these leaders, these Bible scholars and “pastors” and “deacons” and “committee chairs” and who not only refused to believe that Jesus was this Promised One, but also to kill Him and persecute His disciples.

Shawn and I were talking a few weeks ago about the end-times and persecution and the anti-Christ and we were sort of wondering out loud, “Do you think it’s possible that the anti-Christ could come from within Christendom?”

Of course, I don’t mean that the anti-Christ will be a believer.

But we do know that the anti-Christ will deceive many professing believers.

And to deceive, you have to have just enough truth in your false teaching to attract those people who have a superficial understanding of the gospel and no more.

If that’s true, then it is very possible that the anti-Christ could arise from within Christendom.

Maybe that’s why Jesus so emphatically warned us to be on the alert, to be aware.

Maybe that’s why we are warned time and again in the NT to go deeper in our knowledge of Jesus and His gospel so that when a deceiver arises, we are not among those swept away, but are among those who know and love the truth.

#3: How does persecution achieve its goal?