By Francis Frangipane
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. —Matthew 5:10, NIV
As I begin this message on persecution, I want to clarify what it is not talking about. If we view the Beatitudes as a progression, it becomes obvious that verse 10 does not apply to someone who has not yet gone through the sequence of discovering your need, repenting, and becoming humble.
Oftentimes, some of the problems we call persecution might be self-inflicted. We can suffer from a general lack of grace, love, wisdom, and even a lack of Jesus. It turns people off when we come in His name without His nature. So, we can get criticized for the lack of Jesus as much as for the fullness of Jesus. And I want to separate those categories.
I also want to clarify that there's never been a command in the Bible where God said to any of His saints, "I want you to persecute somebody else." You might know Christians who feel anointed to persecute, but the Scripture says in Galatians that "he who was born after the flesh persecuted him who was born after the Spirit" (Gal. 4:29, MEV).
So, you'll find that those born of the Spirit never get into the realm of persecution. They might speak the truth in love and confront wrong things, but they won't get into a crusade against someone or something.
Last, we must be honest about the struggle in this sequence that God is working within us. We must recognize that the word struggle is part of the Christian experience. It goes back to the difference between conversion and discipleship. Salvation is free because Jesus paid for it, but the kingdom of God costs you everything—and it does not come with a money-back guarantee. You've got to give your all and keep giving it until you get what God has for you.
That's why there's a struggle involved in the stages. And in that struggle, things break down in us—things like our pride and that separation that the human soul has from tragedy until we are touched by the pain of life. When that shell of superficiality—that little fragile thing that keeps us from truly feeling other people's needs—is broken down, we gain a new understanding and connection with those in pain. For example, once somebody close to you has cancer, suddenly cancer is a terrifying word. It's not a word you joke about because it's personal and carries an intimacy that is painful. It's the same thing when it comes to sin.
When becoming Christlike, you embrace the struggle of walking through life without fear. You embrace the struggle of walking without lust and all the sins common to humanity. You get into the pain, the stumbling and rising, the fight. You get into the depth of repentance, and suddenly, when you look at somebody going through that, you're not standing back judging them.
The Christian pharisee judges harshly because he's never had a personal experience with the struggle of getting the roots of sin out and truly repenting. He doesn't have compassion for the struggle. He can't relate to a disciple's freedom when they truly repent and God removes the stain of sin from their heart. He doesn't have humility. He stands dressed in self-righteousness, pointing the finger without ever having a real, intimate knowledge of all that it means to come into purity of heart.
The persecution referenced in the Beatitudes is not about the self-righteous people who have not passed through the cross or felt the pain of struggle. Unless we go through those things, we're not enough of a threat for the enemy to hunt and begin a slander campaign against us. The persecution Jesus spoke of is the culmination of going through all God has brought us through, leading us to see God.
Right now, the enemy doesn't fear the church because the church doesn't fear the Lord. But when the church fears God, the enemy fears the church. The church that sees God is a tremendous threat to the devil because the power of God is now able to be released.
If you've progressed this far in the sequence of transformation, you're becoming a threat to the enemy. You're becoming a son of God, a peace offering. Jesus is a peacemaker, but He's also a peace offering. You are developing spiritual authority. You see God, so you have the desire to make peace where there is conflict. You are extending the kingdom of God wherever you walk; you're the frontier of the kingdom of God. That is something Satan persecutes.
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Adapted from Francis Frangipane’s book, The Heart That Sees God, available at www.arrowbookstore.com.