May 22 - Matthew 5:10-11

Matthew 5:10-11 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ¹¹ Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. ¹² Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

When I write these daily devotions, I like to bring words of encouragement to everyone each day from the Word of God. Sometimes, however, I do come forth with strong statement of our responsibility as a believer to stir you up to stand up for the truths of the Word of God, and other times it may be a word of encouragemenet, comfort or hope. Today, however, as I continue on with the Beatitudes, these words will speak to someone because if you are living the true Christian life, you will be persecuted for your righteous living. That is the reality of life!

Nobody like anyone to say bad things about us, but the reality is - people do! Christian and non-Christians alike. These words, however, from Jesus' mouth ring in our ears as a promise that when we are persecuted through word or deed for righteousness' sake, there are rewards - not only having the right of entrance into heaven, but great rewards will come when you get there because of any persecution you had to endure.

Right now I am thinking of the death of the president of Iran whose helicopter slammed into a mountain the other day. He was known as the butcher because of the merciless killings he had performed with Christians in his country. While I am sad that he never turned his life around to Christ while he had a chance, I am happy that many - maybe thousands upon thousands of Christians have been spared death under his brutal presidency.  Presently Iran is the fastest growing nations in the world for Christianity. More people are coming to Christ from Iran than any other country in the world. The sad part is, however, is that those who come to Christ are forced to go underground to church for fear of death. Maybe with the president's death, Christians can now come out in the open in Iran.

Here in America, we are not killed for our beliefs in Christ - at least not at this time; yet, Christians as a whole, are silent or weak spoken as far as their faith with others for fear of words of persecution from others. The old saying "sticks and stone may break my bones, but words will never hurt me" is not a true statement. Words do hurt and can be devastating in our lives.  Yet, as Christians, we are called to speak forth words of truth from God's Word, living a righteous life in spite of any fear of words or actions of persecution. There are over 360 words of "do not fear" in our Bible - one for each day of the year. We cannot let fear of man stop us from speaking and living out God's Word in our life. That is why Jesus' gave us this promise that with persecution comes rewards - if not in this life, you are guaranteed rewards as a result in heaven.

So, if you are feeling persecuted today, please be comforted that Jesus is with you, He is fully aware of everything that is going on, and He is promising you that His rewards will come to you no matter what. Trust in Him - for His Words are faithful to come to pass.