How to Bless Difficult People (Romans 12:14)

WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.799 Well, let's return now to Romans and hear God's word there, from Romans 2 00:00:04.839 --> 00:00:10.349 Chapter Twelve, and please remain standing with me if you're able, and let's 3 00:00:10.349 --> 00:00:16.350 turn our attention to Romans chapter twelve. Going to be focusing on one one 4 00:00:16.429 --> 00:00:22.339 verse this morning, Verse Fourteen. But let me read to you versus nine 5 00:00:22.500 --> 00:00:29.219 through fourteen. Here are Paul is giving instructions to us as Christians, these 6 00:00:29.379 --> 00:00:35.219 things that mark us out, things that characterize us and describe our lives and 7 00:00:35.420 --> 00:00:39.810 how we ought to live. So let's give our attention. This is the 8 00:00:39.850 --> 00:00:45.090 word of our god Romans, and I Romans twelve, verse nine. Let 9 00:00:45.210 --> 00:00:49.450 love be genuine, abhor what is evil, hold fast to what is good, 10 00:00:50.359 --> 00:00:54.560 love one another with brotherly affection, outdo one another and showing honor. 11 00:00:55.399 --> 00:01:00.479 Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord, 12 00:01:00.719 --> 00:01:06.790 rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer, 13 00:01:07.750 --> 00:01:12.870 contribute to the neans of the saints and seek to show hospitality. Bless those 14 00:01:12.989 --> 00:01:19.739 who persecute you. Bless and do not curse them. You may be seated. 15 00:01:47.200 --> 00:01:53.000 So throughout the Bible God tells us the Christians are to expect persecution for 16 00:01:53.200 --> 00:01:57.560 his sake. It's something that we are to expect. It's it's put in 17 00:01:57.599 --> 00:02:01.469 a very input in a various way, said in a numerous ways. One 18 00:02:01.510 --> 00:02:07.870 way we see that here is the way that persecuting or being persecuted is just 19 00:02:07.030 --> 00:02:12.949 a part of this list of other things that we should expect and experience. 20 00:02:14.270 --> 00:02:21.020 Loving one another, being zealous, serving the Lord, having hope and rejoicing 21 00:02:21.060 --> 00:02:24.740 in it, in our tribulations, being patient in prayer, being constant, 22 00:02:24.860 --> 00:02:29.659 all of these things that are just assumed to be a part of the Christian 23 00:02:29.740 --> 00:02:34.210 life. Same to here. When you're persecuted, you are to respond by 24 00:02:34.490 --> 00:02:39.569 blessing the one who persecutes you. So God tells us to expect persecution. 25 00:02:40.930 --> 00:02:45.159 Philippians one, not one hundred and twenty nine, tells us that it's granted 26 00:02:45.360 --> 00:02:50.080 to us like this is part of the royal grant that is given to us 27 00:02:50.680 --> 00:02:58.319 by our King John Fifteen. Mean when Jesus kneels down to watch the feet 28 00:02:58.439 --> 00:03:05.310 of his disciples. This remarkable event tells them it can the servant be better 29 00:03:05.430 --> 00:03:08.629 than the master? If I'm going to wash your feet, surely you should 30 00:03:09.069 --> 00:03:13.659 UN wash the feet of others? Well, this is a command to love, 31 00:03:13.780 --> 00:03:16.620 but it extends in other ways. The servants are to follow after the 32 00:03:16.740 --> 00:03:22.340 master. If he is to suffer, they are to suffer as well. 33 00:03:23.419 --> 00:03:27.490 There's a moment when two of the disciples come to Jesus and they say, 34 00:03:28.810 --> 00:03:30.530 when you're in your glory, can we sit on your right and your left 35 00:03:30.569 --> 00:03:35.650 hand side? And he says you don't know what you're asking for. Can 36 00:03:35.729 --> 00:03:39.610 you drink the cup which I will drink? And they say yeah, yeah, 37 00:03:39.729 --> 00:03:45.000 we can do it. They're excited, they're positive, they're very encourage 38 00:03:45.120 --> 00:03:47.439 that they will be able to do with the Lord whatever the Lord calls them 39 00:03:47.520 --> 00:03:53.719 to do. Interestingly, Jesus doesn't say well, actually, you can't. 40 00:03:53.520 --> 00:03:57.590 He still says you don't know what you're talking about, but you will. 41 00:03:58.629 --> 00:04:01.710 This Bitter Cup of Wrath, the trials, the suffering that he will face 42 00:04:01.830 --> 00:04:06.909 before he enters into his glory as something that is disciples will face too, 43 00:04:09.389 --> 00:04:14.219 not exactly the same way, because we follow after him and we find our 44 00:04:14.300 --> 00:04:19.060 source and our strength in him. Jesus doesn't find his source of strength in 45 00:04:19.139 --> 00:04:25.529 anything but himself. I'm Jesus is not following after what anyone. He is 46 00:04:26.089 --> 00:04:30.529 the one who is. He's leading. But in all these ways we see 47 00:04:30.649 --> 00:04:35.209 that we as Christians are called to suffering and, in particular, to persecution. 48 00:04:36.610 --> 00:04:42.240 Later, after John Fifteen and John Seventeen, Jesus gives some specific reasons 49 00:04:42.319 --> 00:04:46.480 for this. He says you're not of this world, he says in John 50 00:04:46.560 --> 00:04:49.720 I, says my kingdom is not of this world and the world will not 51 00:04:49.959 --> 00:04:55.670 like you, the world will despise you, the world will fight against you. 52 00:04:58.310 --> 00:05:01.949 It's a reality of belonging to the Kingdom of Heaven that we are going 53 00:05:02.110 --> 00:05:09.500 and being here in this world. That means we are going to come to 54 00:05:10.220 --> 00:05:15.779 blows. There is a kind of fight that is going on, but the 55 00:05:15.899 --> 00:05:19.699 fight is in different ways than people often expect. Gee, Peter, when 56 00:05:19.819 --> 00:05:24.769 the Lord is being taken to be crucified, takes out a sword and starts 57 00:05:24.850 --> 00:05:31.410 fighting, and Jesus doesn't say where the rest of your swords guys, I'm 58 00:05:31.490 --> 00:05:35.319 coming into my glory. No one steady tells Peter, put your sword away, 59 00:05:36.399 --> 00:05:43.639 it's not time for that kind of thing. He tells Peter in this 60 00:05:44.240 --> 00:05:48.000 and all these other ways that we are to expect persecution. It's not just 61 00:05:48.120 --> 00:05:54.110 something that we endure either. It's a part of our life's as the king, 62 00:05:54.310 --> 00:05:59.910 as citizens of the Kingdom of God. So what does that mean? 63 00:06:00.110 --> 00:06:04.939 What is persecution mean? Well, persecution, then, and this scriptural sense, 64 00:06:05.060 --> 00:06:10.339 doesn't just mean people giving you a hard time. It's not just people 65 00:06:10.459 --> 00:06:15.220 being mean to you or finding frustrating situations in your life, and it certainly 66 00:06:15.379 --> 00:06:20.410 doesn't mean receiving punishment for things you've done wrong. I'm if you're not being 67 00:06:20.610 --> 00:06:26.889 persecuted, if you're receiving justice, if you steal something from the store and 68 00:06:27.649 --> 00:06:30.930 you spend a little time in shale from it, that's not being persecuted, 69 00:06:31.529 --> 00:06:39.600 that's justice. Or somebody going to your yard and knocking down all the fruit 70 00:06:39.639 --> 00:06:42.879 off your tree just because they happen to be there and felt like being mean. 71 00:06:43.000 --> 00:06:47.350 That's not persecution, it's just someone being mean to you. Persecution, 72 00:06:47.589 --> 00:06:54.350 though, is this, this moment of conflict when the Kingdom of this world 73 00:06:55.509 --> 00:07:00.310 comes into contact with the Kingdom of God and despises it and hates it and 74 00:07:00.470 --> 00:07:09.139 wants nothing to do with it, when Satan comes into contact with you and 75 00:07:09.420 --> 00:07:15.540 sees your heavenly citizenship and hate you and to vises you and attacks you. 76 00:07:15.730 --> 00:07:21.689 That's persecution. So getting in trouble for being late to work isn't persecution. 77 00:07:21.730 --> 00:07:28.889 Or having a bunch of ants in your sugar bowls isn't persecution, but being 78 00:07:29.250 --> 00:07:34.439 but suffering for the sake and the name of Christ. That is persecution and 79 00:07:34.600 --> 00:07:41.240 it can happen in all kinds of ways. I've known people who have been 80 00:07:41.439 --> 00:07:46.589 yelled at for being Christians, lost jobs for being Christians, been put in 81 00:07:46.670 --> 00:07:51.550 jail for very for being Christians. I haven't known anyone in this country who 82 00:07:51.589 --> 00:07:57.310 suffered that, but in other countries you can expect all kinds of things, 83 00:07:58.149 --> 00:08:05.220 all kinds of persecution for having the name of Christ teasing, maybe, bullying, 84 00:08:05.980 --> 00:08:16.930 embarrassment, having your reputations slandered, legal problems, physical danger. And 85 00:08:16.050 --> 00:08:20.449 if history is instructive, we can see that this has been the experience of 86 00:08:20.569 --> 00:08:24.810 our mothers and fathers and brothers and sisters who have gone before us. Now, 87 00:08:24.930 --> 00:08:31.279 sometimes you get a job because you're a Christian. Being a Christian isn't 88 00:08:31.279 --> 00:08:37.039 always suffering, it isn't always a persecution, but it varies in time, 89 00:08:37.279 --> 00:08:43.309 intensity and geography. But we see that it never goes away, it never 90 00:08:43.549 --> 00:08:50.309 is entirely gone. In the early church there were there was never a time 91 00:08:50.470 --> 00:08:58.179 when when every single person and every single Christian was being persecuted, but there 92 00:08:58.259 --> 00:09:03.700 were certainly places and periods where it was happening enough that you always kind of 93 00:09:03.899 --> 00:09:09.220 felt it, even if you particularly weren't suffering at you perhaps knew of someone 94 00:09:09.299 --> 00:09:13.250 who was, or perhaps your mother and father suffered in a great way. 95 00:09:13.289 --> 00:09:16.409 It was sort of always present, and it's that way in our time as 96 00:09:16.529 --> 00:09:22.889 well. And so, for all these reasons, if you are Christian, 97 00:09:22.929 --> 00:09:26.320 this is something you should not be surprised at. It's something that you should 98 00:09:26.320 --> 00:09:31.879 expect. Doesn't mean you need to ask for it, but it does mean 99 00:09:31.919 --> 00:09:35.039 you should notice it and, as Paul points out, here in Romans twelve 100 00:09:35.799 --> 00:09:41.830 respond to it rightly. How do we respond to it? How do we 101 00:09:43.029 --> 00:09:48.750 respond to this aspect of our lives as citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven who 102 00:09:48.750 --> 00:09:56.659 are pilgrims and resident aliens here in the world? The Apostle of God speaks 103 00:09:56.779 --> 00:10:07.649 clearly bless those who persecute you. Bless and do not curse them. What 104 00:10:07.730 --> 00:10:13.769 are these two words mean? Bless and curse? Bless has several different meanings 105 00:10:13.809 --> 00:10:18.090 in the Bible. Here it means invoking God's blessing on a particular person. 106 00:10:20.250 --> 00:10:22.519 Now that may or may not be expressed in words, it might come out 107 00:10:22.519 --> 00:10:30.679 in your prayers or your actions, but it's the operating principle of the heart. 108 00:10:31.000 --> 00:10:35.149 Means that when this person is persecuting me, I am instead of going 109 00:10:35.269 --> 00:10:39.429 instead of cursing them, I'm going to bless them, I am going to, 110 00:10:39.509 --> 00:10:43.710 at the very least in my heart, desire that God would pour out 111 00:10:43.870 --> 00:10:50.059 his blessing on him or her. That's what it means to bless someone who 112 00:10:50.100 --> 00:10:56.340 persecutes you. It means to invoke, to pray, to desire God to 113 00:10:56.659 --> 00:11:05.370 give them good things, to show them his grace and his goodness. In 114 00:11:05.490 --> 00:11:09.450 other words, blessing someone who persecutes you isn't just being nice to them. 115 00:11:11.009 --> 00:11:16.809 It's not just not being mean or being nice. It's seeking something much bigger. 116 00:11:18.570 --> 00:11:22.879 When someone persecutes you for being a Christian, blessing them means seeking, 117 00:11:22.120 --> 00:11:26.360 in prayer, in word and indeed, that the Lord would pour out His 118 00:11:26.639 --> 00:11:33.350 grace and his goodness on that person. It's much stronger than being nice, 119 00:11:33.389 --> 00:11:37.309 isn't it? And it also shows us the inward nature of it as well. 120 00:11:37.269 --> 00:11:41.710 In other words, you can't just sort of see under the surface, 121 00:11:41.110 --> 00:11:45.830 hate the person, under the purpose and then do an outwardly nice thing. 122 00:11:46.870 --> 00:11:50.019 No, God asks for something much, much more difficult. He wants you 123 00:11:50.100 --> 00:11:58.620 to take this person who's doing something unfair and unreasonable and sinful, and treat 124 00:11:58.740 --> 00:12:05.330 them from the heart, with love and a desire that God would pour out 125 00:12:05.409 --> 00:12:13.169 His grace and his goodness on them. Perhaps it'll help to understand blessing by 126 00:12:13.210 --> 00:12:16.879 looking at its opposite, cursing. Cursing does the opposite. Cursing seeks, 127 00:12:18.279 --> 00:12:22.320 in prayer and Word and indeed, that God's justice and his wrath would be 128 00:12:22.440 --> 00:12:28.200 put on this person, that God would abandon this person, that God would 129 00:12:28.360 --> 00:12:31.830 remove his favor from them, that he would destroy them pour out his wrath 130 00:12:31.950 --> 00:12:39.590 on them. So you see, God isn't saying don't persecute them in return, 131 00:12:39.669 --> 00:12:45.460 although that would be a bad thing too. I suppose it wouldn't really 132 00:12:45.460 --> 00:12:48.899 make sense of our definition either. If being persecuted is suffering for the sake 133 00:12:48.940 --> 00:12:52.580 of Christ, this person is not doing anything for the sake of Christ. 134 00:12:52.580 --> 00:12:58.809 They're doing something against Christ. He's not saying don't be mean to that person 135 00:12:58.929 --> 00:13:03.929 or don't get back at that person. He's not a he's also not saying 136 00:13:05.529 --> 00:13:11.049 he's not saying don't be cruel or something like that. What God wants is 137 00:13:11.250 --> 00:13:18.159 this. Instead of desiring justice for that person, God wants us to desire, 138 00:13:18.440 --> 00:13:22.720 pursue and invoke God's grace for that person. You can put it this 139 00:13:22.799 --> 00:13:28.429 way. If someone were to do something to to if someone were to persecute 140 00:13:28.470 --> 00:13:33.669 and a Christian, that, of course, is a bad thing. They're 141 00:13:33.710 --> 00:13:37.629 railing against the Lord and the things of the Lord. It's a sinful thing 142 00:13:37.830 --> 00:13:43.100 to persecute a Christian. It's an unjust, unrighteous, terrible thing to prove 143 00:13:43.179 --> 00:13:48.259 persecute a Christian. It's to go against God and the things that he loves. 144 00:13:48.379 --> 00:13:52.019 So it would, on one hand, seem to make sense that we 145 00:13:52.139 --> 00:13:56.690 would want justice for that. The thing that they are doing something that is 146 00:13:56.850 --> 00:14:01.929 wrong. So wouldn't it make sense to pursue justice in a situation like that? 147 00:14:03.330 --> 00:14:07.210 Well, of course it does, and God does promise that one day 148 00:14:07.370 --> 00:14:13.080 justice will be had. But right now, in the in between times between 149 00:14:13.159 --> 00:14:16.200 Christ's first and second coming, what does he want for us? What he 150 00:14:16.320 --> 00:14:24.990 says is specifically this. Don't pursue justice when you're persecuted. Instead, pursue 151 00:14:24.429 --> 00:14:30.990 grace. That's what he means by by saying bless them and do not curse 152 00:14:31.110 --> 00:14:35.549 them. You can see this especially in the sermon on the Mount in Matthew 153 00:14:35.590 --> 00:14:39.100 Chapter Five. If you can, you can turn there with me. I'm 154 00:14:39.100 --> 00:14:41.580 going to read a couple passages to help you see this and hear this from 155 00:14:41.580 --> 00:14:46.139 the Lord's words there, from the sermon on the Mount, which could be 156 00:14:46.220 --> 00:14:52.860 called the sermon on the Kingdom of God, because that's its topic. So 157 00:14:52.009 --> 00:14:56.090 first, Matthew Five, verse eleven. These is the last of the several 158 00:14:56.250 --> 00:15:01.490 beatitudes, as we call them. Here. God is pronouncing, Jesus is 159 00:15:01.690 --> 00:15:07.200 pronouncing on his people, this royal favor. Happy are you, a favor 160 00:15:07.240 --> 00:15:13.759 upon you, peace to you, and he goes through these various categories of 161 00:15:13.879 --> 00:15:18.200 people in his kingdom. The last one is verse eleven, Matthew Eleven, 162 00:15:18.240 --> 00:15:26.269 when he said blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you, another 163 00:15:26.309 --> 00:15:31.789 utter all kinds of evil against you, falsely on my account, rejoice and 164 00:15:31.909 --> 00:15:37.899 be glad, for your reward is Great in heaven, for so they persecuted 165 00:15:37.980 --> 00:15:43.299 the prophets who were before you. Just as a side comment, a remarkable 166 00:15:43.460 --> 00:15:46.740 thing on the hero that shows to us the unity of the scriptures that Jesus 167 00:15:46.820 --> 00:15:52.809 says that the prophets were persecuted on account of Jesus, just as we are 168 00:15:52.970 --> 00:15:58.450 persecuted on account of Jesus. Wonderful way in which we see the Old Testament 169 00:15:58.490 --> 00:16:02.610 scriptures pointing to our Lord and Savior. Now, if you continue on in 170 00:16:02.649 --> 00:16:07.279 Matthew, Chapter Five, Jesus takes up this topic again in Verse Forty Three 171 00:16:07.000 --> 00:16:15.200 and the chapter. And notice what he says. He is changing in a 172 00:16:15.320 --> 00:16:22.710 way the ethic of the Kingdom of God, quoting a very prominent and important 173 00:16:22.830 --> 00:16:30.750 phrase in an idea in the old covenant, Jesus Changes It. He turns 174 00:16:30.789 --> 00:16:34.139 it around. In Verse Forty Three he says, you have heard that it 175 00:16:34.299 --> 00:16:40.740 was said you shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. Where do they 176 00:16:40.820 --> 00:16:44.460 hear that in the Bible? This is what they were supposed to do. 177 00:16:44.620 --> 00:16:48.490 They were supposed to love their neighbors and hate their enemies. But I say 178 00:16:48.570 --> 00:16:52.610 to you, Jesus says, Love Your enemies and pray for those who persecute 179 00:16:52.610 --> 00:16:56.450 you, so that you may be sons of your father who is in heaven, 180 00:16:57.570 --> 00:17:00.480 for he makes his son to rise on the evil and on the good 181 00:17:00.799 --> 00:17:04.559 and sends his reign on the just and the unjust. For if you love 182 00:17:04.640 --> 00:17:07.680 those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the 183 00:17:07.799 --> 00:17:11.400 tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what 184 00:17:11.599 --> 00:17:15.349 more are you doing than others? Do not even the gentiles do the same? 185 00:17:15.869 --> 00:17:25.390 You therefore must be perfect as your heavenly father is perfect. In the 186 00:17:25.470 --> 00:17:27.950 Old Testament, in the old covenant, there were very, for the most 187 00:17:29.029 --> 00:17:34.539 part, very strict divisions between the friends and enemy, and friends of the 188 00:17:34.619 --> 00:17:38.140 Lord and the enemies of the Lord. The Friends of the Lord, the 189 00:17:38.220 --> 00:17:41.940 loved ones of the Lord, were tied to this very particular family, Abraham 190 00:17:42.019 --> 00:17:47.289 and his people. Outside of that people were enemies. That's why they fought 191 00:17:47.329 --> 00:17:49.849 against them, that's why they conquered them, that's why they went against them. 192 00:17:49.890 --> 00:17:53.650 They went against them. It was much like the same way God will 193 00:17:53.650 --> 00:17:57.880 do at the end of time when judgment comes and he goes out against his 194 00:17:59.000 --> 00:18:03.519 enemies, vanquishing them, just as Israel did when they went into Canaan. 195 00:18:06.440 --> 00:18:11.839 In the society there was a very strict principle of justice, an eye for 196 00:18:11.920 --> 00:18:15.710 an eye, a tooth for tooth. You know, we've heard that phrase 197 00:18:15.869 --> 00:18:19.910 made fun of. You know, if the whole world see if I get 198 00:18:19.910 --> 00:18:25.309 it right, if the whole world. Eye for an eye, tooth for 199 00:18:25.390 --> 00:18:27.339 the tooth. The whole world would be blindless and blind and toothless. There 200 00:18:27.380 --> 00:18:32.259 we go, you know, you've heard the phrase before. The point of 201 00:18:32.299 --> 00:18:36.180 the phrase, though, isn't go do this crazy thing and everyone start beating 202 00:18:36.220 --> 00:18:40.900 each other up. It's a principle of justice, of fairness, of retribution. 203 00:18:41.019 --> 00:18:45.089 If somebody takes five dollars from you, it's only right that you get 204 00:18:45.130 --> 00:18:49.130 five dollars back. Five, four, five. Somebody makes ten dollars from 205 00:18:49.170 --> 00:18:53.809 you, it's not fair for somebody to give you five dollars back. That's 206 00:18:53.849 --> 00:18:57.480 not fair. It's also not fair if somebody takes five dollars for you and 207 00:18:57.559 --> 00:19:03.640 you say now give me a million. That's not justice either. Justice is 208 00:19:03.119 --> 00:19:07.359 fairness. Eye for an eye, tooth, thir tooth. This is one 209 00:19:07.400 --> 00:19:11.190 of the ways that the Old Testament expresses this principle three different places, and 210 00:19:11.589 --> 00:19:17.990 Exodus, in Leviticus and in Deuteronomy God expresses this. And this is what 211 00:19:18.069 --> 00:19:21.990 Jesus is getting at, he says. You've heard it said. This is 212 00:19:22.150 --> 00:19:26.900 how the kingdom before Jesus came was carried out, the basic principle being a 213 00:19:27.059 --> 00:19:33.579 principle of of justice, and he says there's good in that, of course, 214 00:19:33.660 --> 00:19:38.410 but it doesn't. But there's something more that he wants. Tax Collectors 215 00:19:38.529 --> 00:19:45.049 love each other, he god. Tax Collectors love each other, gentiles love 216 00:19:45.130 --> 00:19:49.529 each other. He wants something more. He wants us to love enemies. 217 00:19:51.009 --> 00:19:55.480 And in order for that Hath to happen, grace has to extend or be 218 00:19:55.640 --> 00:20:00.160 extended. In other words, it can't just be about justice. If the 219 00:20:00.200 --> 00:20:04.240 Kingdom of God is to expand, if people are going to be brought in, 220 00:20:04.279 --> 00:20:11.109 a new principle has to be in place, a principle of grace. 221 00:20:11.630 --> 00:20:15.789 And so that's why Jesus speaks in this very strong way, and that's why 222 00:20:15.829 --> 00:20:19.269 you and that's why Paul says what he says in Romans twelve. Don't curse 223 00:20:19.390 --> 00:20:23.259 your enemy, even though they're an enemy of the Lord, at least they 224 00:20:23.259 --> 00:20:27.019 seem to be. Instead, bless them, because now we are in this 225 00:20:27.180 --> 00:20:33.180 time when God is extending His grace out into the world in this new and 226 00:20:33.420 --> 00:20:40.450 marvelous way. It will not be easy, it will be very difficult, 227 00:20:41.089 --> 00:20:45.769 but this is what God wants. We are going to be persecuted for the 228 00:20:45.849 --> 00:20:48.730 sake of the king and his kingdom, but when we do so, we 229 00:20:48.849 --> 00:20:55.519 are to demonstrate that king and that kingdom by acting in a way that is 230 00:20:55.599 --> 00:21:00.839 an accord with the cross, by acting in a way that goes willingly for 231 00:21:00.000 --> 00:21:08.349 suffering in order to display his grace to others. So that's what Paul is 232 00:21:08.509 --> 00:21:15.349 after now. Understanding all this is one thing and doing it is another. 233 00:21:15.390 --> 00:21:22.099 John Murray, one of the founders of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church and a professor 234 00:21:22.140 --> 00:21:29.019 at Westminster Theological Seminary, one, said that no practical exhortation places greater demands 235 00:21:29.140 --> 00:21:36.690 on our spirits then to bless them that persecute us. As I've been thinking 236 00:21:36.730 --> 00:21:41.450 about this verse and in as I've been thinking about this verse, meditating on 237 00:21:41.609 --> 00:21:45.369 it, it strikes me that it's something that's very easy to affirm in the 238 00:21:45.490 --> 00:21:51.680 abstract as sort of an idea. I find it very easy in my own 239 00:21:51.680 --> 00:21:55.799 heart to say yes, of course right, that's the ethic of the Kingdom 240 00:21:55.839 --> 00:22:02.430 of Heaven, but then when it happens to you, even in a way, 241 00:22:02.470 --> 00:22:04.710 when it's not happening but you sort of expect that it will happen, 242 00:22:06.029 --> 00:22:15.900 it's very, very difficult to put into place. We are fearful of telling 243 00:22:15.980 --> 00:22:22.460 people that we are Christians and even the smallest ways, having a Bible nearby 244 00:22:22.339 --> 00:22:26.619 that might be seen, that might be connected, even without us saying anything. 245 00:22:27.180 --> 00:22:33.529 Why do we fear that? Because of persecution. We don't want to 246 00:22:33.650 --> 00:22:37.730 get into conflicts, we don't want to have trouble, we don't want to 247 00:22:37.250 --> 00:22:44.599 be ashamed, made fun of, bully, leader or worse. We fear 248 00:22:44.680 --> 00:22:48.839 it. We're afraid of it and when it's happening, it is unfair. 249 00:22:48.960 --> 00:22:56.759 It is unreasonable. How can the someone who is law and sinful and and 250 00:22:56.920 --> 00:23:04.309 an enemy of God, have any right to go and attack, physically or 251 00:23:04.509 --> 00:23:10.430 by words or in any other way, the Kingdom of God? It's an 252 00:23:10.470 --> 00:23:15.380 unreasonable thing, it's a foolish thing, it's a written so it makes sense 253 00:23:15.460 --> 00:23:21.700 for us to not like it, to be frustrated by it. And of 254 00:23:21.779 --> 00:23:26.170 course it's complicated too. If your neighbor comes over and gives you a hassle 255 00:23:26.289 --> 00:23:30.250 because you're getting in the car to go to church, how do you deal 256 00:23:30.329 --> 00:23:33.930 with that? What if he does it every Sunday? How do you deal 257 00:23:34.009 --> 00:23:38.329 with that? What if he also happens to be your boss? What if 258 00:23:38.450 --> 00:23:44.480 his daughter also babysit your kids from time to time? What if your lives 259 00:23:44.519 --> 00:23:49.160 are integrated and interwoven in all kinds of ways. This is normal life. 260 00:23:51.279 --> 00:23:55.910 It gets complicated, it's challenging. It's hard to know what to do when 261 00:23:55.950 --> 00:24:00.910 we're persecuted. It's hard to know how to bless people. Well, we 262 00:24:00.990 --> 00:24:03.910 hear these kinds of exhortations, these very hard ones. I find that, 263 00:24:03.990 --> 00:24:07.950 at least I do. When I hear a heart exhortation like this, bless 264 00:24:08.029 --> 00:24:12.339 them that persecute you, I find that my mind always jumps to these sort 265 00:24:12.380 --> 00:24:18.500 of nearly impossible ethical scenarios to know how to figure out our answer. Well, 266 00:24:18.539 --> 00:24:22.460 how can that be true if this crazy thing were to happen or this 267 00:24:22.700 --> 00:24:27.369 crazy thing were to happen? It's true that we face a difficult challenges. 268 00:24:27.970 --> 00:24:30.890 It's hard for us to know how to act, but it doesn't mean that 269 00:24:32.089 --> 00:24:37.450 the rules needs to be put away. And, as I said earlier, 270 00:24:37.569 --> 00:24:41.039 it's not only difficult for these reasons, but it's also difficult to follow. 271 00:24:42.440 --> 00:24:48.400 Because Jesus doesn't want restraint, or merely restraint interactions, but he wants purity 272 00:24:48.480 --> 00:24:52.549 in our hearts. He doesn't just want us to hold our tongues, but 273 00:24:52.670 --> 00:24:57.710 he wants us to be filled with love. For this person who's hurting us, 274 00:25:00.109 --> 00:25:04.950 making us feel bad, taking our time, taking our money. Jesus, 275 00:25:06.349 --> 00:25:08.460 in speaking in the sermon on the mountain another place, he says when 276 00:25:08.500 --> 00:25:14.259 somebody, when somebody slaps you on one side of the cheek, turn the 277 00:25:14.380 --> 00:25:19.180 other. I've never been slapped. I hope I'm never slapped, but I 278 00:25:19.180 --> 00:25:25.769 would imagine it would be very difficult to do that, to simply turn and 279 00:25:25.849 --> 00:25:29.009 somebody says, give me your cloak and you give them another one. Go 280 00:25:29.130 --> 00:25:33.970 a mile and go another. Jesus says things in this strong way, not 281 00:25:33.089 --> 00:25:37.519 so that we can be black and white about every ethical challenge that comes to 282 00:25:37.559 --> 00:25:41.359 us, but so that we can have this very firm and straight course of 283 00:25:41.480 --> 00:25:48.119 action. We are to give ourselves freely willingly as an act of blessing and 284 00:25:48.400 --> 00:25:55.190 grace to other people when they are hurting us, for the sake of Jesus. 285 00:25:55.269 --> 00:26:07.940 It's very difficult, and so I want to conclude by building up your 286 00:26:07.019 --> 00:26:12.019 spiritual strength for this task. I want to bring to your mind a few 287 00:26:12.059 --> 00:26:18.609 things, for things from God's word to help you know and be strong for 288 00:26:18.849 --> 00:26:25.690 a this difficult task. The first thing you need to remember is that it's 289 00:26:25.809 --> 00:26:32.960 this very ethic of grace that saved you. Is that not true? You 290 00:26:33.440 --> 00:26:38.799 and I were enemies of God, persecutors of the Lord, when he displayed 291 00:26:38.880 --> 00:26:44.039 this grace to us. It wasn't fair that we were doing it, wasn't 292 00:26:44.079 --> 00:26:47.910 right that we were doing it. It was unreasonable and heinous and wicked. 293 00:26:48.309 --> 00:26:52.230 And yet, despite all of that, our Lord and Savior went to the 294 00:26:52.349 --> 00:27:02.140 Cross and died. He didn't just invoke God's blessing, he astablished and affirmed 295 00:27:02.339 --> 00:27:10.819 and gave to us God's blessing through this work, by his actions. It's 296 00:27:10.980 --> 00:27:15.369 by this kind of grace that we are saved. Jesus didn't seek justice when 297 00:27:15.410 --> 00:27:19.890 he went to the cross, and that might help us with another idea that 298 00:27:21.009 --> 00:27:25.970 sometimes people bring up. Sometimes people say, well, how can I do 299 00:27:26.329 --> 00:27:30.599 this thing? God certainly doesn't want me to be a doormat, so certainly 300 00:27:30.640 --> 00:27:34.279 they're supposed to be dignity in the human life and we shouldn't just be railroaded. 301 00:27:36.480 --> 00:27:41.000 That's true. God doesn't want you to be a doormat, but Jesus 302 00:27:41.160 --> 00:27:45.269 wasn't a doormat when he went to the cross. Jesus and wasn't spineless or 303 00:27:45.390 --> 00:27:52.230 weak. He wasn't simply of doing the easy thing. Jesus went with strength 304 00:27:52.309 --> 00:27:56.470 and power and authority to the Cross, as we considered over the last few 305 00:27:56.509 --> 00:28:00.460 Sundays, when Jesus went to the cross, he wasn't doing so because of 306 00:28:00.500 --> 00:28:03.539 an accident, because he didn't know what else to do. Jesus when so 307 00:28:03.740 --> 00:28:10.019 because he was going to inaugurate the Kingdom of God. And when we endure 308 00:28:10.220 --> 00:28:14.730 persecution, and even greater than that, when we bless those who persecute us, 309 00:28:15.289 --> 00:28:21.130 we are acting within and as emissaries of that kingdom. We are acting 310 00:28:21.250 --> 00:28:26.680 with strength and authority, with a spine, when we endure our own crucifixions 311 00:28:26.720 --> 00:28:33.319 or sit in jail or teasing or embarrassment or the loss of money or health 312 00:28:33.480 --> 00:28:37.400 or any number of other things. Now the world will look at us and 313 00:28:37.480 --> 00:28:40.119 say, well, if you are so powerful, if the kingdom is of 314 00:28:40.240 --> 00:28:45.069 God is so wonderful, why don't you show that, just as they said 315 00:28:45.109 --> 00:28:48.910 to Jesus, who is on the cross, if your king, why don't 316 00:28:48.950 --> 00:28:52.549 you call your angels to help you, to lift you up and to solve 317 00:28:52.670 --> 00:29:00.460 this problem? Jesus wasn't spineless, he was full of valor and courage. 318 00:29:00.980 --> 00:29:03.859 He was the great and divine warrior, King coming to save the world. 319 00:29:06.259 --> 00:29:12.809 He was strong, and we are too, and be attitudes. Jesus says, 320 00:29:12.849 --> 00:29:18.450 blessed are the meek. We don't use that word very much anymore. 321 00:29:18.049 --> 00:29:22.450 We often think of it as being a doormat, but it doesn't mean that. 322 00:29:23.559 --> 00:29:29.400 It means being gentle, means being lowly in spirit. It means giving 323 00:29:29.559 --> 00:29:36.000 yourself humbly to others just and that's what Jesus calls us to do here, 324 00:29:36.279 --> 00:29:38.230 and that, my point, is, is what Jesus did for you. 325 00:29:40.910 --> 00:29:45.750 That's how he saved you. Well, it's not only this very action that 326 00:29:45.950 --> 00:29:52.819 saved you, but, you know what, it's still saving you again, 327 00:29:52.859 --> 00:29:59.779 to quote John Murray, he says only the resources of the Omnipotent Grace, 328 00:30:00.019 --> 00:30:04.339 of Omnipotent Grace in Christ Jesus, are equal to the demands of the believers 329 00:30:04.420 --> 00:30:14.089 vocation. Let me read it again. Only the resources of Omnipotent Grace in 330 00:30:14.210 --> 00:30:22.359 Christ Jesus are equal to the demands of the believers vocation. The believers vocation, 331 00:30:22.640 --> 00:30:29.440 the believers calling, the believers charge the way of life that we are 332 00:30:29.440 --> 00:30:33.400 supposed to live out. Do you remember how Jesus put it? Be Perfect 333 00:30:33.440 --> 00:30:40.509 as your heavenly father is perfect. That's a high calling, my friends, 334 00:30:41.630 --> 00:30:47.230 perfection. How are we going to be perfect? How are we going to 335 00:30:47.309 --> 00:30:53.059 find perfection? How are we going to bless those who persecute us? How 336 00:30:53.099 --> 00:31:00.420 are we going to bless them and not curse them? Only the resources of 337 00:31:00.539 --> 00:31:06.329 Omnipotent Grace in Christ, Jesus are equal to the demands of the believers vocation. 338 00:31:07.890 --> 00:31:11.049 There's only one way that you can fulfill that and that is in and 339 00:31:11.289 --> 00:31:17.930 through the strength of Jesus Christ. You can't go into the world and purse 340 00:31:18.049 --> 00:31:23.799 and bless those who are persecuted persecuting you in your own strength. It's impossible. 341 00:31:25.359 --> 00:31:29.359 You won't be able to do it. And so to encourage you and 342 00:31:29.519 --> 00:31:33.630 remind you you don't have to lean on your own strength. Jesus doesn't say 343 00:31:33.630 --> 00:31:40.190 suffer from my name strength. Don't suffer for my name's sake by your own 344 00:31:40.390 --> 00:31:45.150 strength. He says suffer for me and I will take care of you. 345 00:31:45.069 --> 00:31:48.579 Remember what he says, for example, to the disciples. He says they'll 346 00:31:48.619 --> 00:31:52.339 going to drag you before courts and UNCILS, but don't worry, my spirit 347 00:31:52.420 --> 00:31:59.700 will tell you what to say. He says they'll put you to death, 348 00:32:00.500 --> 00:32:06.730 but don't worry. My spirit will bring you to life. They will tease 349 00:32:06.769 --> 00:32:13.329 you and make fun of you, but don't worry, your reputation is eternally 350 00:32:13.569 --> 00:32:20.599 strong in me. Your righteousness is my righteousness. Remember that it is by 351 00:32:20.799 --> 00:32:24.000 Jesus that you are saved, and it is by Jesus that you are still 352 00:32:24.160 --> 00:32:30.990 being saved. You can do this thing that he calls you to do because 353 00:32:30.029 --> 00:32:36.029 he's in you and working in you. He has called you to be an 354 00:32:36.069 --> 00:32:40.950 emissary and ambassador. He has granted you this royal calling. He is not 355 00:32:42.190 --> 00:32:47.339 going to just leave you hanging. He is not going to leave you, 356 00:32:49.660 --> 00:32:55.019 but he will sustain you. Finally, remember that two more things. Remember 357 00:32:55.140 --> 00:33:00.250 that this is part of the Royal Grant that you've been given. Persecution is 358 00:33:00.369 --> 00:33:06.849 not something that is just happens to us. In other words, it's something 359 00:33:06.970 --> 00:33:12.650 that is integral to us being a part of his kingdom. But that's hard, 360 00:33:14.039 --> 00:33:22.000 but it's also glorious. When a warrior puts on his armor, takes 361 00:33:22.079 --> 00:33:30.109 his weapons and runs out onto the battle field, that's hard. He might 362 00:33:30.230 --> 00:33:36.190 die, but when he's doing it as a soldier in the armies of God, 363 00:33:37.390 --> 00:33:40.619 well, that's wonderful. It's impressive. It's courageous, it's full of 364 00:33:42.140 --> 00:33:49.460 Valor and strength in glory, and that is what we do when we take 365 00:33:49.539 --> 00:33:57.609 up the Cross of Christ and follow after him. It is glorious, it's 366 00:33:57.690 --> 00:34:04.049 full of courage and Valor and goodness. We shine with the light of Heaven 367 00:34:04.930 --> 00:34:10.360 and people see that. People come to faith because of that. This is 368 00:34:10.679 --> 00:34:15.639 the testimony of history. Time and time again, when the Lord's people have 369 00:34:15.719 --> 00:34:22.000 been persecuted, what happens? People come to faith, they see the courage 370 00:34:22.039 --> 00:34:25.230 of people going to their deaths for the sake of the Lord Jesus Christ, 371 00:34:27.110 --> 00:34:31.190 and they can hardly believe it until they know the work of God in their 372 00:34:31.230 --> 00:34:37.510 own souls, and then they do the same. That, my friends, 373 00:34:37.670 --> 00:34:42.539 is a glorious thing. You should have that in your hearts. When you 374 00:34:42.619 --> 00:34:49.860 are being persecuted, don't be discouraged. You're doing the things of God for 375 00:34:50.219 --> 00:34:58.130 God, in the name of God. And finally, persecution is a temporary 376 00:34:58.530 --> 00:35:04.090 thing. The battles that we face, the trials that we suffer, they 377 00:35:04.210 --> 00:35:07.400 don't last forever. God tells us that. It is a part of the 378 00:35:07.519 --> 00:35:13.000 purification that's happening. It's a part of the Gospel as it goes out it's 379 00:35:13.000 --> 00:35:15.559 a part of the goodness of His grace that is being demonstrated in the world. 380 00:35:19.920 --> 00:35:23.869 It's an honor to suffer right now. It's an honor for us to 381 00:35:23.949 --> 00:35:30.909 be named after Jesus and to follow in his way, but there's a great 382 00:35:30.070 --> 00:35:39.820 reward that's coming. We received the Crowns of heaven and face suffering and persecution 383 00:35:40.539 --> 00:35:46.420 no more. We'll have to endure it and fight and suffer and strive for 384 00:35:46.539 --> 00:35:52.409 a time, but there's coming a day when there will be no more striving, 385 00:35:52.250 --> 00:35:59.690 no more fighting, no more suffering, and at that time is soon. 386 00:36:01.090 --> 00:36:04.289 For that reason, I have to tell you, if you are a 387 00:36:04.480 --> 00:36:08.679 persecutor of God's church, is people, if you are a mocker, if 388 00:36:08.719 --> 00:36:15.000 you are a reviler, then hear how the Lord is instructing you, or 389 00:36:15.039 --> 00:36:22.230 rather hear how the Lord is instructing those whom you desire to harm as you 390 00:36:22.670 --> 00:36:28.190 persecute the Lord and his church. What is he telling them to do to 391 00:36:28.309 --> 00:36:36.820 respond to you? He's telling them to show you his grace. Are you 392 00:36:37.059 --> 00:36:42.340 going to ignore that, when you see this kind of love and goodness and 393 00:36:42.500 --> 00:36:46.530 tenderness poured out on you, when you know that the Lord is withholding justice 394 00:36:46.570 --> 00:36:51.690 that will most certainly come when he comes to judge the world, but is 395 00:36:51.730 --> 00:36:57.170 withholding it now, restraining it now and giving you opportunities for repentance and mercy, 396 00:36:58.289 --> 00:37:02.880 will you really continue to persecute the church, to hate the church, 397 00:37:04.480 --> 00:37:13.960 to strive against the church, the Lord and his anointed? When Jesus called 398 00:37:15.239 --> 00:37:20.389 Saul, who was later called the Apostle Paul, to account, he said, 399 00:37:20.909 --> 00:37:28.909 why are you persecuting me? It wasn't just people or Christians that Paul 400 00:37:29.150 --> 00:37:35.380 was hurting. He was attacking the Lord and Creator of the universe themselves himself. 401 00:37:36.340 --> 00:37:40.579 He was attacking the very one who was extending to him the possibility for 402 00:37:40.699 --> 00:37:51.170 forgiveness, a righteousness that was perfect and rests forever from his sins. By 403 00:37:51.170 --> 00:37:59.639 the grace of God, Paul was brought to faith and to an understanding who 404 00:37:59.639 --> 00:38:05.239 Jesus was. If you are a persecutor, a Mocker, a reviler of 405 00:38:05.360 --> 00:38:08.880 God and the things and the people of God, then I pray that he 406 00:38:08.920 --> 00:38:15.590 will do this for you as well. The time is now to repent and 407 00:38:15.550 --> 00:38:22.389 to believe. And if you are persecuted, if you find yourself on the 408 00:38:22.429 --> 00:38:25.909 other side of that equation, know that you are being persecuted because you know 409 00:38:27.539 --> 00:38:32.420 the grace and goodness of God. Remember that this persecution that you face is 410 00:38:32.500 --> 00:38:37.179 not in vain. It is from the Lord ultimately, and appointed for you 411 00:38:37.380 --> 00:38:43.170 so that you might share in the honors and the glories of his name and 412 00:38:43.409 --> 00:38:49.090 his kingdom. The one day be consummated, the will one day be complete. 413 00:38:51.250 --> 00:38:54.449 The trials, brothers and sisters, that we face, they are temporary, 414 00:38:57.639 --> 00:39:00.639 but God is not. So let your trust always be in him. 415 00:39:00.639 --> 00:39:04.000 Let's pray