And so, the Lord says, “Blood, sweat, tears, hunger, thirst, death.” That’s the way it is. And He never sends anybody out without fully telling them the truth. Sure, it’s tough being on a mission field. It’s tough being a missionary right here.
You say, “Well, I’m not suffering a lot of persecution.”
Well, it may be that you’re not really definitive in your faith. You know, “They that live godly will suffer persecution,” 2 Timothy 3:12 says. And it may be that God is gracious, and there’s a time of respite for you. But listen, somewhere in the world, at all times, the Church is being devoured, persecuted. Somewhere. And it may come here.
We can thank God for this breath of fresh air, but in the midst of it, don’t be under the illusion that there’s no persecution. A lady came to me Wednesday night, and she said, “You know,” she said, “I have a job where I do counseling and social problems. And the only answer I’ve ever found for the people I counsel is Jesus Christ. And so, I’ve told them of Christ.” And she said, “Now, they have told me that I cannot speak of Jesus Christ to anyone. What do I do?”
Well, of course, the answer is, “Just ask them whether you ought to obey God or men. You have a mandate from God.”
And she said, “I accept that, even if I lose my job.”
And it may come to that. But that’s how it is out there in the world. If we’re definitive with our faith, there’s always a price to pay. You cannot confront a God-hating world without a reaction. So much of our Christianity is locked up inside the walls of our churches, though, that I wonder whether out there they even know who we are.
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