The Reality Of Christian Persecution (Part 2) Series

THE REALITY OF CHRISTIAN PERSECUTION

(Part 2)

Acts 4:1-4

Here in America we are blessed to possess religious freedom. For the most part, we are able to share the Gospel without the fear of being imprisoned for doing so. However, when we are faithful to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ, we will face opposition and maybe even persecution.

The Apostle Paul declared that “all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.” (2 Timothy 3:12). Knowing this reality, we are able to be bold witnesses of Jesus with full assurance that the rewards far outweigh the risks. We may endure trials and tribulations when we are faithful to our responsibility to be witness of the Savior, but we can be certain that any hardships that we face will certainly be worth it if God is glorified and His Kingdom is advanced.

We must never lose sight of the fact that eternity is on the line and there are multitudes of lost people who need to hear the life changing message of salvation through Christ. This was certainly the case for the Apostles. For the remainder of their lives they would be opposed, seized, arrested, persecuted, exiled, and even killed for their service to Christ. However, because of their faithfulness, the Kingdom was advanced and the number of the Church increased considerably.

Last week we began to examine “The Reality Of Christian Persecution”. Today I would like to continue to consider that subject. In this passage, Peter & John are arrested as a result of peaching Jesus to the crowd that had gathered at Solomon’s Colonnade. This crowd had gathered in response to the miraculous healing of the lame man at the Beautiful Gate. (3:11-26) When the religious leaders learned of the work of the Apostles, they were furious, and they persecuted the servants of Christ.

- In part 1 of this message, we saw that:

CHRISTIANS WILL FACE OPPOSITION & PERSECITION AS THEY MINISTER FOR THE LORD

- Persecution is a reality for many faithful Christians. This passage reveals:

A. THE SOURCE OF CHRISTIAN PERSECUTION

In those days, the Sadducees were the leaders of the Jews and the Apostles’ message blatantly contradicted their stated beliefs. The Sadducees resented the fact that the apostles were teaching the people at all; they felt that this was their responsibility. The message that Peter & John preached also infuriated the “captain of the Temple”. “The priests, Sadducees and the Captain of the Temple” were not only upset that they were teaching, they were furious because what they were teaching.

- This leads us to:

B. THE REASON FOR CHRISTIAN PERSECUTION

Verse 2 says that they were “greatly disturbed that they taught the people and preached in Jesus the resurrection from the dead.”

If the message that Peter & John preached was true, then the Sadducees were incorrect in their teaching concerning the resurrection of the dead. Furthermore, if the Apostles’ message was true, then the religious leaders were indeed guilty concerning the death of Christ. Because of this, the authorities “laid hands on them, and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening.” v3

- We also saw that:

THERE ARE VARYING DEGREES OF OPPOSITION & PERSECUTION AGAINST CHRISTIANS

- When considering the entire context of the book of Acts, we can learn much about Christian persecution. We see that:

A. SOMETIMES PERSECUTION IS VERBAL

After the Sanhedrin convened the next day, they decided to threaten the Apostles verbally. Their threats did not intimidate the Apostles and they continued to preach Jesus to the crowds in Jerusalem. It would not be long before they were summoned to stand before the council once again. This time, they would be beaten as a result of their service to Christ. This shows us that:

B. SOMETIMES PERSECUTION IS PHYSICAL

In the remainder of chapter 4 and on into chapter 5 we are told that the Gospel continued to spread and multitudes were converted. This did not escape the attention of the religious rulers; in fact, it infuriated them; so much so that they persecuted them physically.

Christians all over the world face verbal and physical persecution; Furthermore, many of them have (and others will) lose their lives as a result of their stand for Jesus. This leads us to the fact that:

C. SOMETIMES PERSECUTION IS FATAL

Since the early days of the church, millions of Christians have been persecuted to the point of death in an effort to suppress the Gospel message. However, in many instances Christian persecution has served to advance the Kingdom of Christ. This shows us that:

GOD IS SOVEREIGN IN THE MIDST OF CHRISTIAN PERSECUTION

Because of the faithfulness of the Apostles, many Jews were converted. - v4 However, many of those who heard the word believed; and the number of the men came to be about five thousand.