Did you know that being persecuted for the name of Jesus brings with it many special blessings? While no one wants to be persecuted when we live for Jesus it is often part of the package. When we mention the name of Jesus, neutrality in rarely an option. People usually are either attracted to His message of salvation or repulsed by our need to repent of our sins. As an ambassador for Christ, we often will be persecuted when we take a stand for Jesus. But when persecution comes rather than recoil we should rejoice and praise God for the opportunity to be used to impact our world for Christ.
For we read in (Matthew 5:11-12): “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” Notice that these two verses tell us when we are persecuted for Christ’s sake we should “rejoice and be exceedingly glad,” for we will receive a great reward in heaven. I like what we read in the parallel verses in (Luke 6:22-23) where we are told when we are persecuted for Christ that we should: “Rejoice in that day and leap for joy!”
My friends if we are faithfully sharing the Gospel there will be some who will be very hostile to our message, but rather than be sorrowful, we should thank the Lord for using us to help advance His kingdom and praise the name of Jesus! In (Acts 5) we see how the apostles were beaten after they shared the Gospel by the Jewish leaders, but rather than be sad we read: “So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name.” (Acts 5:41).
I believe when we praise God, after being persecuted for sharing Jesus, that we receive a double blessing. First, we are accruing a great reward in heaven, which no one can ever steal. And second, we are being filled with a special joy that no one can take from us.
Standing up for the name of Jesus is not always easy but the rewards are simply out of this world. And I believe that when we praise God for being given the privilege of being persecuted for His name’s sake, the exhilaration that floods our soul is an experience that is indeed worthy of our leaping for joy!