The Cost of Righteousness

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.

Matthew 5:10-11

Jesus gives blessings to the persecuted for His sake. In John 15:18 Jesus says, “If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you.” Jesus said that His followers will be hated and persecuted by the world. The standards of God limit the evil of the unconverted sinner. No wonder the world hates the perfect Law of the Lord. The law convicts the heart and condemns the sinner. The law shines a spotlight on the sinfulness of man. The law shows us that our good works cannot save us. The law shows us we are judged guilty before God. The law shows us we are sinners.

The law points to the righteousness and holiness of God. The law is perfect, without error, and is just. The law is like a mirror, it shows us we do not match up to God's standards. The law points to the Saviour. That is why the ungodly hate the law of the Lord. They do not like the fact that there is a judgment to come and a holy and righteous judge. The purpose of the law is to point us to Christ. The law is our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ. The law does not only condemn us before God, but it directs us to the remedy. The law serves two main purposes. Firstly, to show us we are guilty before God. Secondly, to show us that our sin and guilt were paid for by the Saviour.

In Matthew 5:12 Jesus said, “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” Jesus said the child of God is blessed when they are persecuted for doing the right thing. Notice how Jesus tells us that they utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on His account. The Kingdom of Heaven is promised by Christ to those believers who suffer for His name's sake meaning that all true believers in Christ will suffer in the world. As believers, we may even suffer unjustly like the early Church. We know that God was at work when Christ was suffering on the Cross for sinners. Christ was fulfilling the plan of redemption. If you look at the trial from a secular point of view it was one of the most corrupt and unjust trials in all human history. There have been many people falsely punished for a crime, what happened to Jesus was a prime example of the corruption that happens in earthly courtrooms.

God's people will suffer in one form or another in the world. Not every believer will suffer extreme suffering or persecution, but every believer will know what it is like to suffer for Christ. Some believers may suffer mockery from family and work colleagues. Some believers may go through a time of rejection for their faith. Whatever the trial God knows about it. He is aware of our daily sufferings and will give us the grace to carry on.

Remember this, for the believer, this current life is the worst it will ever get and for the non-believer, this life is the best it will ever get. Remember to focus on things above and not the earth. Direct your thoughts above, direct your heart above and above all things. Considering the times in which we live it is not easy to make a stand for Christ publicly. I will never claim it is easy to make a stand, I know what it is like to suffer mockery and rejection. Many times, during evangelism I have come up against those who reject Christ. However, we must not give up. We must not bend our knees to compromise and the world's system. If we are faithful, we shall be blessed. It is important that we have the correct attitude regarding our service. Our goal must not be a spiritual reward, but the honour and glory of God.

The Church must make a stand now more than ever. We are living in an age that is growing ever more hostile toward the Gospel. If we want to see souls saved and pews filled, then we must share the Gospel. God teaches us to preach the truth in love. May I encourage you to be faithful to Christ, to hold fast to your godly convictions and beliefs even during suffering? I believe we must make a stand today and say like Martin Luther, "I cannot and will not recant anything, for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe. Here I stand, I can do no other, so help me God. Amen."

Luther was one such man who made a stand for Christ. God used Luther's faithfulness to change the face of Europe forever. It was the nailing of Luther's 95 Theses to that famous door in Wittenberg, Germany that started the Protestant Reformation in October 1517. We should not be ashamed of the Bible or its message of hope. The Gospel is the power of God to change lives. That is why the devil hates it so much. That is why the Gospel is under relentless attack and is slowly being banned. No other religious book is being banned because no other book has the power that the Holy Bible has.

The world hates the righteous teachings and examples of Christ because it exposes the world's evil. Have you noticed the anger and contempt towards Christ today? When the Gospel is declared in public there is much opposition by the ungodly. In Matthew 5:10 Christ deals with persecution for righteousness sake and in the following verse 11 with suffering for His sake, both verses are very similar but there is a difference between the two. History has shown that the world hates followers of Jesus Christ. This has been shown by street preachers being jailed and dragged through the courts and in many cases in other parts of the world being killed for Christ's sake. The foundations of the early Church were built upon the blood of the early saints.

During the history of Christianity in England many believers were murdered and martyred for truth. 2 Timothy 3:12-13 says, “Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. But evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.” The world has always proven the Bible true. The child of God ought to expect suffering for their faith. It is important that we understand that our suffering in the world does not bring us our salvation or merit our salvation. We should not willingly seek suffering and trials. The blood of Christ is the only payment acceptable to God for sin. Rather our sufferings are a result of our salvation.

There is a time to speak and a time to be silent. I pray God will grant you wisdom in this. Sadly, many of God's people do not speak up when it is necessary and speak when it is not appropriate. Are you willing to serve Christ with your life? Are you willing to stand up for His Word? What will you do in the face of adversity? These three questions must be answered. Are you faithful to Christ Jesus? Are you willing to die for Christ? Remember what Paul said about living for Christ and dying is gain. What will you do when faced with those who ask you about Christ? Will you do what Peter did and openly deny Christ before men and repent later or will you boldly declare your faith in Christ? We must be ready and willing to give an answer for the hope that is in us.