Persecution

"Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you."

 It was a bright, sunny day and I had new found hope as I rode home on the bus with all the other school kids. Although I was hopeful, my heart pounded as I ran the tapes through my head. Today would be a landmark, a historical marker, a sign for future generations. As I gripped my bike chain, I thought long and hard through all my past bus rides. My courage grew as I remembered all the times I'd put up with the shenanigans. I was done. No more. This was the end.

It was time to step off the bus into the real world. And there he was, my arch enemy. Waiting. Smiling a murderous smile. 

Justin Garcia, you're going down. I'm not letting you push me around anymore. 

As I walked up to him, I kept the bike chain concealed behind my back. I was a warrior. I was the Gladiator. I was a superhero. Really, I was a kid scared for my life, holding the only assault weapon I've ever let run through my fingers. 

As I moved closer, he advanced. I knew what was coming - the usual kicks, shoves, and insults. Not today though. No. Today, I'm putting an end to it once and for all.

Before he could even move his arm from his side, I whipped the chain around from behind and lashed him across the side of the face as hard as I could. He fell to the ground holding his face and I ran as fast as I could to my house. Never again did Justin Garcia mess with me. Never again did I take the same route home either. 

Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before me.

There's no telling how many countless lives I saved from my greatest antagonist.

I stopped the cycle once and for all. The battle was over. The victor was applauded. 

While that sounds great in my head, I don't think that's what Jesus was talking about when he addressed his audience about persecution. But for some reason, some circles in American Christianity seem really convinced that everybody from the gays to the GOP are against them. 

Never mind that Jesus' mentor just had his head served up on a silver platter.
Never mind that countless Jews and Christians were being served up as human torches as a reminder to the revolutionists of what happens when you counter the Roman government. 
Never mind that most of the Roman caesars demanded worship from their citizens.
Never mind that the Roman caesars literally thought they were the sons of God.

Never mind all that, because things are different now, right?

The game's changed, that's all. Since I don't have to worry about the Roman sword, I can count all sorts of things as persecution. Lets go ahead and list them now: 

Gay marriage. Yup, they want to infect the God-willed system of one man and one woman. They must be persecuting me. Let's make sure to infuse politics with verses that don't exist to make sure our holy ways are protected. 

Muslims? They're after me. They're all trying to kill me. Let's go ahead and infuse politics with verses that don't exist to make sure everybody knows this is all in the name of God. After all, I'm part of the new Israel right? I'm one of God's chosen people, right?

Illegals? Deport them. They're taking all my jobs, aka persecuting me. Lets go ahead and infuse politics with verses that don't exist so we can make sure everyone knows that America is God's sovereign nation. 

Obamacare? It's socialism. God's against socialism, so Obama's trying to persecute me through government tyranny. Obviously, if the government is trying to make me do anything against my will then it's against God's plan. It's persecution. 

Abortion clinics? Persecution.
Rob Bell? Persecution.

The lines of what Jesus was originally talking about have gotten so blurred haven't they?

Yet, the message that seems to circulate these days is that persecution is what happens when I offended in any way, especially my belief systems. 

But according to scriptures, Jesus not only told his audience to look forward in the hopes that their perseverance would be rewarded, but to not resist the evil that was being directed toward them. America may be the only country in the world that takes religious freedom for granted. Everywhere else it seems, there are Muslims, Christians, Jews, atheists, homosexuals, etc., actually being killed on a daily basis for their belief systems. Being put to the literal sword for unswervingly sticking to what they believe. 

Yet, here in America, all it takes is one disapproved law to throw religionists into a riot and a false sense of persecution. 

It's not that Jesus' words aren't relevant, because they are. But the problem is, my Christian beliefs are so bedded up with politics that the "two have become one flesh." The words God and America have become synonymous. I can't imagine a God without America, a Jesus without a free market, a Christianity without democracy. I don't even know if I'm more Christian or more political these days. It's all blurred. 

But, I have to ask why the people Jesus was talking to were being persecuted. Why were they?

Because in their view, they could either serve God or the Roman government. You couldn't serve both. And if you were against the Roman emperor, then you were likely to be punished if you raised enough commotion or were connected to somebody who raised enough commotion. The message Jesus was proclaiming was so radical that it actually offended the government. Why? Because Jesus was simply carrying a message to the masses that said, The emperor isn't God. Don't worship him. Choose God and this is how . . .  

Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before me.

So what does it look like to choose God in the face of persecution? It looks like having this inward realization that something better is waiting. Somehow, some way, in the end, everything's gonna work out. 

I get all these emails all the time from Christians who are wrapped up in politics, trying to convince me to sign a petition to get the government to do something. But the truth is, it's not the government's job to do what the Christian mission is.

So what does it look like to choose God over government and make a clean slice? 

• It looks like feeding the homeless even when the law says not to.
• It looks like opting out of the voting game, knowing that as long as politics and Christianity are bedfellows, neither the government nor Christianity are going to experience their greatest potential. 
•  It looks like the Church recognizing gay marriage regardless of whether the government does or not.
• It looks like future marriage partners redefining what constitutes marriage and opting out of the "state recognized marriage" game. 
• It looks like sharing the abundance of food that I have so people don't have to rely on food stamps.
• It looks like helping out immigrants regardless of whether the government calls them illegal or not. 

It looks like a lot of things, but in the end it looks like loving people without end. When love is the motive, something happens inside that seems to take away the fear of the unknown. I stop worrying about what they're gonna think of me, or what he's gonna do with the money I just gave him, or how she's gonna take advantage of my giving. The negative things that may happen don't matter because I'm not looking to get anything in return except the inward reality of God's presence and provision.

Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before me.