Persecution Of The Church

Sermon on Luke 21:5-19

Text: Some of his disciples were remarking about how the temple was adorned with beautiful stones and with gifts dedicated to God. But Jesus said, 6 “As for what you see here, the time will come when not one stone will be left on another; every one of them will be thrown down.”
7 “Teacher,” they asked, “when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are about to take place?”
8 He replied: “Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not follow them. 9 When you hear of wars and uprisings, do not be frightened. These things must happen first, but the end will not come right away.”
10 Then he said to them: “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 11 There will be great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from heaven.
12 “But before all this, they will seize you and persecute you. They will hand you over to synagogues and put you in prison, and you will be brought before kings and governors, and all on account of my name. 13 And so you will bear testimony to me. 14 But make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves. 15 For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict. 16 You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers and sisters, relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death. 17 Everyone will hate you because of me. 18 But not a hair of your head will perish. 19 Stand firm, and you will win life.”

Jesus had just spent the day teaching in the temple. Then, each evening of Holy Week, he and his disciples would spend the night on the Mount of Olives, which was just east of Jerusalem. On this particular evening, Jesus’ disciples called his attention to the temple. As the sun was setting, the light reflected off the stones of the building and the gold that decorated it. It must have been a beautiful sight. You can imagine how shocked the disciples were to hear Jesus say, “As for what you see here, the time will come when not one stone will be left on another; every one of them will be thrown down.” (Verse 6) Jesus spoke of the destruction of this beautiful building, as well as, the rest of the city. This would occur some 35 years later, in 70 A.D., when the Roman army razed the city of Jerusalem. The disciples, in response, asked, “Teacher, when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are about to take place?” (Verse 7) In Jesus’ response, he doesn’t tell them exactly when it would happen. However, Jesus did give them signs to watch for. In verses 8-11, Jesus speaks about things like false prophets, wars, earthquakes, pestilences, and famines. These are all occurrences that everyone will see and experience. In verses 12-19, Jesus shifts the focus to what his disciples would face, and that is persecution. This morning, we will look at the PERSECUTION OF THE CHURCH. 1. It Will Happen. 2. It Will Be An Opportunity, and 3. It Will Be Overcome.

Jesus said in verses 12,16-17, “They will seize you and persecute you. They will hand you over to synagogues and put you in prison, and you will be brought before kings and governors, and all on account of my name . . . You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers and sisters, relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death. Everyone will hate you because of me.” Note that Jesus didn’t say that this might happen. He says that it will happen. You will be arrested. You will be betrayed. You will be hated. You will be put to death. As you read through the book of Acts, you can see fulfillment of this. A few years after Jesus said this, Stephen, a follower of Jesus was put to death by stoning. Peter and John were arrested and put in prison, though later released. When you follow the apostle Paul on his missionary journeys, you read about how many times he was imprisoned, punished, and even stoned. According to church history, all of Jesus’ disciples were martyred, except John, who spent the end of his life in exile on Patmos. Jesus’ disciples were persecuted.

The same is true today. There are many places in the world where Christians are punished and face the treat of death every day. While we, as Christians, might not have to face these extremes, there is still persecution. For example, think of how Christians and Christianity are often portrayed in the media. They are either absolute fools or hypocrites. A Christian may face persecution at the job for refusing to do something that is illegal or immoral. The student is ostracized by their friends for refusing to go along with the crowd. If a family member dares to point out that what another family member is doing wrong, that family member refuses to speak with them. Though these examples might not be as violent as the others that we mentioned, they are still forms of persecution.

Why is there persecution in the first place? Jesus tells us the source in verse 12, “On account of my name.” It is because of the name of Jesus. When Jesus uses the word “name,” he is not merely referring to the actual name “Jesus” or any other titles of God. Rather, in this instance, Jesus is also including everything that has been revealed about God in the Bible. Sinful humanity cannot stand to hear what the Bible says about God. It does not want to hear that there is a God with absolute standards of what is right and what is wrong. Sinful humanity likes to think that it is in charge and that it is up to them what is right and what is wrong. Sinful humanity doesn’t want to hear that God will punish the ones who break his law. It would rather ignore God’s will or compare themselves to others, soothing themselves by saying that they are not as bad as others. Sinful man doesn’t want to hear about Jesus’ suffering and dying on a cross, because it reminds them that their sins are so awful that God sent his Son into the world to pay for them. It doesn’t want to hear that it is only through faith in Jesus Christ that a person is saved. It likes to think that there are many ways to get right with God. It is the absolute disregard and hatred of the name of Jesus that is the cause of persecution.

How were the disciples to react when they were persecuted? You might think that they would have said hateful things to their persecutors. Perhaps, they might have said nothing, at all, hoping that, at the end of time, they would get theirs. However, that is not the way that Jesus wanted his persecuted followers to react. Rather, we read in verses 13-15, “And so you will bear testimony to me. But make up your mind not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves. For I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict.” First, Jesus tells his followers that he is giving them an opportunity, even when being persecuted, to be his witnesses. This is the job of the church, to tell others about Jesus Christ. As you read about the examples that I gave from the book of Acts, you see them reaching out to their persecutors. Second, we note the promise that Jesus gave to his followers. They were not to worry about what they were going to say when they were persecuted. Rather, “I will give you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist or contradict.” Jesus would give them exactly what to say at that moment.

What an encouragement for us, when we face persecution. It would be so easy for us to either stay silent or to say things that would be hurtful to them. Yet, Jesus tells us that, even then we have the opportunity to be a witness for him. If we end up losing a position or prestige because of our faith, we don’t threaten to get even in one form or another. We use that to show the example of some who is a follower of Jesus. When they say things that are hurtful, we respond with love in Jesus. Jesus makes the same promise to us that he will give us the words and wisdom that we need at that time. This is an encouragement for us to be in his Word. Through that Word, our faith is strengthened to stand during the time of persecution. Through it, we hear God’s Word that gives us the things that we can say, whether in defending the truths of God’s Word or reaching out to those who oppose us. Though it may not seem like it at the moment, we can see that the times of opposition and persecution, are actually opportunities that God gives us to be his witnesses.

Jesus concludes this section by saying, “But not a hair of your head will perish. Stand firm, and you will win life.” (Verses 18-19) Doesn’t this seem to contradict what Jesus had just said? Would stones that were being thrown at them suddenly miss their bodies? Would the means of execution mysteriously fail? Again, when you go through the book of Acts and church history, you see that this was not the case at all. So, in what regard, are these words true? Jesus is saying that, even though there will be persecution and death, it is not the end. Even though they might take the lives of the disciples, even if they might take our lives, there is something beyond that. Jesus is speaking about the glories of heaven. Do what they might, the persecutor can never take this away from the believer. At the end of this life, we have heaven waiting for us. The apostle Paul, as it appeared that he would soon be put to death for being a Christian, wrote these words to Timothy: “Of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher. That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet this is no cause for shame, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until that day.” (2 Timothy 1:11-12) Later, he would pen, “I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day — and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.” (2 Timothy 4:6-8) Paul was encouraging his co-worker Timothy, as he would face persecution for his proclamation of the gospel. It may be horrible now. It may be painful now. But look at what is waiting for you. It is eternal life. It is the life that Jesus won for you by his life, death, and resurrection. We have the same assurance. Whatever form persecution might take in our lives, heaven is waiting for us. This fact strengthens and encourages us. No matter what the persecution may be, it will, ultimately, be overcome.

It is not a pleasant thing to think about or talk about persecution. It’s hard. It’s painful. But persecution comes into our lives. This is not to say that we go out of our way to be obnoxious so that we’re persecuted. If we feel we haven’t been persecuted enough, it must mean that I’m not really a Christian. You don’t have to go looking for persecution. It will come as we live for and witness to Christ. Rather, this morning, we find encouragement whenever we face persecution. Though we know it is a certainty, our Savior helps us to see it as another opportunity that he has given us to tell others about him. He, also, reminds us that, whatever may be thrown our way, it’s not the final word. Rather, we know that at the end of everything, we will hear him welcoming us into the heavenly home that he has prepared for us. May we be encouraged in times of persecution by Jesus’ promise in Revelation 2:10, “Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown.” Amen.