Blessitudes: Overcoming

August 23, 2020                        NOTES NOT EDITED
Blessitudes:  Attitudes That Elevate

Matthew 5:10-11

 

SIS—True believers will face and will overcome persecution.

 

Over the last several Sunday mornings we have examined one of the most significant portions in the entire Bible--the opening of the Sermon on the Mount.  Here Jesus outlines the 8 basic virtues that should characterize the life of a citizen of God’s Kingdom.  Dr. Gene Getz, and incredible Bible teacher describes this sermon on Blessitudes by saying: “To discover enduring spiritual fulfillment, we must be saved by grace through faith and then demonstrate those qualities of life that reflect God’s perfection.”

Are Christians being persecuted?  This question is being raised in many circles as a result of the government’s exercise of the Public Health Act to determine which businesses and organizations they deem essential and non-essential.  For example, most abortion clinics are deemed essential by the government but the Church is deemed non-essential (except by the President and most GOP governors).

Another example.  In Nevada a casino that seats 1000 is allowed 500 in the establishment.  A church that seats 1000 is only allowed 50.  That sure seems like preferential treatment, if not outright persecution.  Now, is the government “throwing Christians to the lions in the coliseum?”  No, it hasn’t gone that far . . . yet. 

 

Tyranny is a progressive act.  Historically, tyranny follows a particular, progressive route.  First, the church is ridiculed.  Then it is marginalized.  Then, the government seeks increasing levels of control.  Finally, Christians (or other religious and ideological groups) are imprisoned, beaten, and killed. 

Jesus said, “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”  The Greek word translated, “persecuted,” is very important to the entire sermon on beatitudes.  Its construction indicates it was chosen very carefully.  The root word from which the word “persecuted” comes means, “set into rapid motion.”  Another way to translate it would be, “put into a panic.”  In our day it could be paraphrased, “create a panic-demic,” my favorite word for describing the Covid Crisis Response.

As I said, I don’t think we’ve yet experienced an explosion of persecution against the Christian Church in America, but the fuse has been lit.  Many Christians cower before the bench of black-robed judicial pawns of the petty potentates sitting on their thrones of state, so I’d say the “panic” is pretty effective.  Panic and persecution sprout from the same linguistic root and will ultimately bear the same fruit—tyranny.

 

We have looked at seven “blessitudes: humility, spiritual mourning, meekness, spiritual desire, mercy, purity, and peacemaking.  The final “blessitude” ties a neat bow around the bundle: the blessitude of perseverance.

 

(Mat 5:10-12)   Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. {11} "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. {12} Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

 

Perseverance, or overcoming, is a theme that comes up often in the Scriptures.  In His Letters to the Seven Churches of Revelation, the Lord ends each letter with a “promise of victor to those that overcome persecution and remain faithful.”  

 

History in the last 2000 years is replete with the testimonies of martyrs who were severely persecuted for the faith, yet, remained faithful in their loyalty to Christ.  In fact, they even rejoiced to be counted worthy to suffer for Christ.  The early church was born amidst severe persecution, but they persevered.   Acts 5:41 tells us:

 

The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name.

 

Martyrs always died with words of victory and rejoicing on their lips.

 

How could this be?  Because faith allows us to focus on the prize of Christ not the pain of criticism and torture. One of the early martyrs was Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna (Izmir, Turkey) about 160 AD.  He was a disciple of the Apostle John.  Refusing to burn incense to Caesar, he was tied to a stake, sentenced to burn to death.  On his farewell to his friends and followers, he said: "I bless you, Father, for judging me worthy of this hour, so that in the company of the martyrs I may share the cup of Christ."  Given one last chance to deny Christ as his Lord, Polycarp declared, "Eighty and six years I have served Him, and He has done me no wrong, how then can I blaspheme my King and Savior? You threaten me with a fire that burns for a season, and after a little while is quenched; but you are ignorant of the fire of everlasting punishment that is prepared for the wicked."  

 

The Church has always faced persecution (see grammatical structure, persecuted, pf., participle).  We overcome persecution by being Positive, Prepared, Persistent, and maintaining an eternal Perspective.

 

1.  First, We Must Be POSITIVE, vs 12a, ( “rejoice and be glad” )

 

The longer I live, the more convinced I become that the greatest gift a father can give his children is a positive outlook on life from the perspective of faith in Jesus Christ.  Zig Ziglar, a world-renown motivational speaker, hits the nail on the head when he says, “Many times I hear people talk about someone being a ‘negative Christian.’ I challenge the terminology.  I’m convinced that you can either be negative or you can be a Christian, but you can no more be a negative Christian than you can be Christian and Communist.  The two are incompatible.”

 

With our past forgiven, our present secured, and our future guaranteed, “how can a Christian be negative.”

 

Our attitude is our greatest ally, or our fiercest enemy. Dr. Victor Frankl has come to be known as one of the world’s foremost psychiatrists.  He was a Jew.  His wife, his children, and his parents were killed by the Nazis during the holocaust.  He himself was once paraded before the Gestapo and stripped naked.  The Gestapo chief noticed that Frankl still was wearing the wedding ring, a reminder of his late wife’s love.  They stripped him of that also.  The purpose was to break him--to so utterly humiliate him as to make him subhuman.   Here is what Frankl told them, “You can take away my wife, you can take away my children, you can strip me of my clothes and my freedom, but there is one thing no one can ever take away from me--and that is my freedom to choose how I will react to what happens to me.”

 

WOW!  That’s a powerful statement.  Faith breeds a positive attitude A positive attitude gives us power over even horrible circumstances.

 

2.  Second, Be PREPARED, vs 11  “¹¹because of me”

 

Please hear this: if you are in step with Christ, YOU WILL BE out of step with the world! The world hated Christ—it will hate Christ-followers. The Bible is very clear: the gospel is confrontational.  Listen to the words of our Lord:  (Mat 10:34-40)

 

"Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. {35} For I have come to turn "'a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law-- {36} a man's enemies will be the members of his own household.' {37} "Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; {38} and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. {39} Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. {40} "He who receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives the one who sent me.

 

There is a dangerous myth milling about in church growth seminars that we, the church, must make the gospel acceptable to the lost world.  It is easier to make broccoli acceptable to a toddler.

 

I do believe that we must tear down any barrier traditionalism has erected that makes it difficult for a lost person to come into contact with the gospel.  I believe we can allow for various tastes in music, from rock to Rock of Ages.  I believe we can make our services warm and inviting.  But, there is absolutely NO WAY we can change the gospel to make it less confrontational.

 

The world hates Jesus, because Satan is the god of this world. Persecution of believers is a sign of the last days. Lk 21:12-19) tells us, "they [the government] will lay hands on you and persecute you. They will deliver you to synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors, and all on account of my name. {13} This will result in your being witnesses to them. {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, relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death. {17} All men will hate you because of me. {18} But not a hair of your head will perish. {19} By standing firm you will gain life.

Don’t expect special treatment at work because you are a Christian.  Don’t expect an easy road in school because you are Christian.  In fact, be prepared for just the opposite: insults, insinuations, isolation, and incrimination.  The world hates us, because it first hated Christ (Jn 15:18).  So, to overcome, you must be prepared.  You might recall a few years ago a major earthquake in California that caused the collapse of the “Cypress Freeway” in the San Francisco Bay Area in 1989.  The Loma Prieta Earthquake collapsed the upper deck pancaking the cars below.  A few months earlier, I travelled this same freeway every day to Seminary in San Francisco.  The earthquake struck without warning.  Lives were lost along with millions of dollars in damage.  I remember shortly thereafter that major TV stations were broadcasting the “how to’s” of putting together an earthquake survival kit, so that you could stay alive for the few days, or perhaps weeks, in which you would be without water, electricity, food, or medical supplies.  It was not a matter of being prepared IF another quake hit, but a matter of WHEN another quake would hit.  Be prepared---persecution is inevitable. Third,

 

3.  Be PERSISTENT vs 12c

 

“they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

 

Persecution of God’s people is not new as we have already said.  Evil forces have always opposed God’s plan, even before the creation of the cosmos:

(Isa 14:12-15)   How you have fallen from heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! {13} You said in your heart, "I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. {14} I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High." {15} But you are brought down to the grave, to the depths of the pit.

 

Some scholars dispute the validity of using this passage as a basis for understanding the origin of Satan.  However, this is the same language Jesus used when describing Satan:  (Luke 10:18)  He replied, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.

 

When did Jesus see Satan fall--before the cosmos was created.  The point is this: Satan has been accusing and abusing God’s people from the beginning--and he’s not about to let up on us now.  We must be persistent, and stand in patience against persecution, just “like the prophets before us.”

 

A person never graduates from the school of hard knocks until they go home to be with the Lord.  Count on trouble from your baptism into the church until your coronation in the kingdom! Perseverance requires persistence.

 

There was a lady who had a parrot.  She thought he could only say three words, “Who is it?”  That’s all she ever heard.  On one occasion her basement flooded.  She called the plumber, but the plumber did not know exactly when he could get there.  The lady waited and waited.  Finally, she decided to run to the corner store quickly for some bread.  As you might expect, the plumber arrived right after she left.  He knocked on the door and a voice said, “Who is it?”  He answered, “The plumber.”  The voice replied again, “Who is it?”  The plumber responded a little louder thinking the person had not heard him, “It’s the plumber.  You called and said your basement was flooded.”  Expecting that the person would open the door, he heard the voice again, “Who is it?”  The plumber irate and began to yell, scream and pound on the door saying,  “I said it is the plumber.  Either let me end or I’m leaving!”  Well, the plumber became so frustrated and angry, he passed out with a thud on the floor.  The neighbor heard the commotion and rushed over, just as the lady of the house arrived from the store.  Seeing the man on the doorstep the neighbor asked, “Who is it?”  A voice from behind the door replied, “It’s the plumber!” Moral of this story:  don’t buy a bad parrot.

 

Life will present some very frustrating situations.  We must be persistent in our trust in God.  We must persistently cling to His promise to take care of our every need, and lead us through every dark valley in life.  We can’t give up.  We must be persistent.

Perseverance and overcoming requires persistence. To overcome we must be positive, prepared, persistent and of course, we must always.

 

4.  Keep an Eternal PERSPECTIVE.  Vs 12b

 

“great is your reward in heaven”

 

Benjamin Franklin was known for many things, but he was primarily a printer and publisher.  On his tombstone we find these words:

 

The Body of Benjamin Franklin, Printer

Like the Cover of an old book,

Its contents torn out and stripped of its
lettering and gilding

Lies here, food for worms.
But the work shall not be lost

For it will (as he believed) appear once more

In a new and more elegant edition

Revised and corrected by The Author.

 

The promise of heaven and eternal life puts our problems and persecution in proper perspective.  The enemies of Christ can do much to damage our body--but, nothing can touch our souls.  Our reward is deposited in God’s eternal bank, and they are secure.  We will make withdrawals on our reward when we finally enter God’s eternal kingdom.

 

I often tell others, what I remind myself when facing persecution . . . “In a hundred years--it really won’t matter!” What WILL matter, is what we have done for the Lord.  As Christians, we each have a cross to bear.  We must view our present cross with an eternal perspective.

 

A great preacher reminds us God washes the eyes with our tears until they can behold the invisible land, where tears come no more. —HWB

 

The promise of Heaven makes all the difference in how we view persecution– One drop of heaven’s sunshine, and earth’s storms are a forgotten memory!  “Blessed are those who are persecuted . . . for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.”  Always think ETERNALLY.

 

Are Christians being persecuted?  This question is being raised in many circles as a result of the government’s exercise of the Public Health Act to determine which businesses and organizations they deem essential and non-essential.  Abortion clinics liquor stores are deemed essential by the government but the Church is deemed non-essential (except by the President and some GOP governors).  In Nevada a casino that seats 1000 is allowed 500 in the establishment.  A church that seats 1000 is only allowed 50.  That sure seems like preferential treatment, if not outright persecution.

Now, is the government “throwing Christians to the lions in the coliseum?”  No, it hasn’t gone that far . . . yet. 

 

Tyranny is a progressive act.  Historically, tyranny follows a particular, progressive route.  First, the church is ridiculed.  Then it is marginalized.  Then, the government seeks increasing levels of control.  Finally, Christians (or other religious and ideological groups) are imprisoned, beaten, and killed.

All over the world, Christians are being killed, like in Nigeria by the Boka Haram, or in Syria by Radical Islamic Terrorists.  In fact, more Christians were killed for their faith in the Twentieth Century than all the previous 19 centuries combined.

Persecution IS coming to America, and in some ways it is already here.  We can overcome any persecution that comes if we have the right “attitude,” the Blessitude of Perseverence.

 

These eight “blessitudes” are attitudes that elevate.  They allow us to live above the world on a godly plane.  As Dr. Gene Getz has said, “To discover enduring spiritual fulfillment, we must be saved by grace through faith and then demonstrate those qualities of life that reflect God’s perfection.”

Revisit this passage often for an attitude adjustment—attitudes that bring incredible blessing by “reflecting God’s perfection.