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Follow God - No Matter What
Mark Warren • September 26, 2022
When Your Faith Costs
I think for most American Christians it is really hard to conceive of being persecuted for their faith. Even though we fully acknowledge that in the end times that will be common-place.
When we read Biblical passages like Daniel chapter three, there is this disconnect with the reality of our world vs. the reality of the world of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. These three Hebrew young men had resolved to faithfully worship their God in their daily lives. And one day - they had to make a decision, between following the authority in the land and practice idolatry, or violate law and cultural norms to remain faithful to their God. They chose to follow God - no matter what.
When you read their story - what is your take-away?
Perhaps, we should remind ourselves of what Jesus said:
“Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you." Matthew 5:10-12
Jesus said those words at the beginning of what we call His Sermon on the Mount. He began with the Beatitudes, which led Him to say what He did in verses 10-12. "People possessing these qualities would naturally stand out in the crowd and would not be understood by others. Thus they would be persecuted; others would speak evil of them (v. 11). However, Jesus’ words encouraged His followers, for they would be walking in the train of the prophets, who also were misunderstood and persecuted. {Louis A. Barbieri Jr., “Matthew,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, ed. J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985), 29.}
When you read Jesus' words - what is your take-away?
That may seem to be an odd question to ask, especially to a Christian. Afterall, one becomes a Christian because of their faith in God and the redeeming work of His Son, Jesus Christ. But, it appears there is more to faith in a Christian’s life than just the faith that resulted in their salvation. When reading the early pages of the Bible, we encounter a man whose name is Enoch. While there are only three verses in the Old Testament and just one verse in the New Testament that talk about him, he is a very unique human. Enoch, was only one of two people throughout all of human history, up to this point, who did not have to suffer death to be taken into Heaven (Elijah being the other person). So, Enoch’s life has special notoriety. The Old Testament records for us, that the reason God spared Enoch from having to physically die before being translated from this world to Heaven is because he “walked with God” (Genesis 5:24). “Walked with God” is the English rendering of the Hebrew record from Genesis 5:24. Centuries later, when Jews primarily spoke and wrote in the Greek language, the Greek translation of that phrase became “well-pleasing to God.” By Enoch walking with God, based on his faith in God, it pleased God. God would add a commentary on the exemplary life of this individual in the New Testament book of Hebrews 11:5-6: 5 By faith Enoch was taken up so that he would not see death; and he was not found because God took him up; for he obtained the witness that before his being taken up he was pleasing to God. 6 And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him. Pleasing God/Walking with God is vital in a Christian’s life. That requires faith. “Because of the littleness of your faith” Those harsh remarks were made by Jesus to His disciples. The context of Jesus’ remarks to His followers are recorded for us in Matthew chapter 17. Early in the chapter, Jesus takes with Him, the inner-circle disciples (Peter, James and John) up to the Mount of Transfiguration; leaving the remaining nine disciples with a crowd. Apparently, while Jesus was gone, a man brought to the remaining nine disciples, his demonic-possessed son - asking for their help. They were unable to cast out the demon and free the boy. Upon His return from the mount, the man approached Jesus to intervene, which He did and cast out the demon who was plaguing this man’s son. The disciples pulled Jesus aside from the crowd to seek an explanation as to why they couldn’t cast out the demon themselves. Jesus’ response is a valuable teaching moment for each follower of Jesus Christ. Jesus said the reason the disciples failed was “Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you.” (Matthew 10:20) A Lack Of Faith Limits The Disciple In faith, God expects His followers to trust Him in the course of our daily lives and in living out His mission for us. That was certainly the case at the Mount of Transfiguration. He is displeased when we lack that faith and put stock in what we can do, instead of what He can do. Ultimately, that was Israel’s defeat at the Jordon River when it came time to inherit the Promised Land. The penalty for their lack of faith - wandering in circles in the wilderness for forty years/not receiving God’s inheritance (Numbers 13 & 14). As followers of Jesus Christ, God wants us to live by faith. So, let me ask you the question: got faith ?
God tells us that the greatest commandment to follow, is to love Him supremely. Our loving God should emanate from every fiber of our being. And yet, if we were honest about our reality, we walk through much of our day without even giving God a thought. Our whispered prayer over a meal, which some would hold up as a trophy, is instead, an indictment of how little in our daily lives we demonstrate our love for the God who sacrificed Himself for us. Little else needs to be said about how neglectful we are, on a day-to-day basis, of the greatest commandment. So, perhaps what we need to contemplate is, how and when can I express my love for God? When do you express your love to God within the week, within a day? As a husband, I have learned over the past 39 years that there are many opportunities which I can demonstrate my love to my wife. Of course, there are the remembered and celebrated occasions, such as her birthday, our wedding anniversary and so forth. Yet, if that is the only time I express my love for her - our relationship will soon be on the rocks. For too many believers, their expressions of love to God are tightly restricted to an hour on the weekend. And, as a pastor, I observe that several believers make that weekly gathering mostly about them, their likes, their interests, instead of loving God supremely. What would our community celebrations of God look like if we worshiped God with every fiber of our being? Different, I suspect. How do you express your love to God? Going back to my marital relationship, the ways I express my love to my wife of almost four decades are important as well. For her, she loves cut flowers - roses, particularly. So - I don't go out and bring her a bouquet of daisies. I choose to make her desires, my desires. I select the restaurant she likes over the ones I would prefer. Turning the tables, just for a moment, she has recently been sending me frequent text messages that start, "Today I love my husband because...." What follows is something, usually small, but meaningful to her that I have done that demonstrate my love for her. The challenge is to be intentional about demonstrating your love to God. Be creative. Perhaps through a song, through an act of obedience, doing it God's way instead of your own. Celebrate Him in your life. So, how are some ways you can and will express your love to God? Let's make that part of the interactive challenge with you this week. Let me challenge you to come up with ways you can express your love to God today and post them in the comment section below.
