Faithful To The End

Introduction: I was in Surabaya last month when, at 3 a.m., I received the news that Charlie Kirk had been shot. It turned out he died. This news was truly shocking and left many wondering, "Why would anyone kill him?" Many reports claimed he deserved to be killed because he spread hatred, was a racist, a supporter of fascism, and so on. These accusations, of course, do not align with the facts. He was killed because of his faith and the truth he proclaimed.

Have you ever seriously considered that in America, you have the freedom to practice any religion, but why are you a Christian? Do you realize that being a follower of Christ is costly? The Lord Jesus, in John 15:20a, said: "Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also." Furthermore, in John 16:1-2, the Lord Jesus told His disciples: “All this I have told you so that you will not fall away. They will put you out of the synagogue; in fact, the time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God."

What Jesus said really happened. In Acts 7:57-58, we read about Stephen being stoned to death. Furthermore, in Acts 8:1b, it is said: "On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria." Therefore, they had to flee.

Eleven of Jesus' twelve apostles died by murder, for example: Bartholomew (skinned alive and beheaded)—James the Less (stoned and whipped to death)—Peter (crucified upside down)—Thomas (pierced with a spear)—and James the Greater (beheaded). The Apostle John was thrown into boiling oil, but survived. He was then exiled to the island of Patmos. In 2 Corinthians 11, Paul recounts the various persecutions he experienced. He was later executed by beheading in Rome, under the Roman Emperor Nero.

Did persecution of Christians or followers of Christ only occur in the early days of the church? No! You can see in the PP how churches and Christians in many countries were attacked and murdered because of their faith. It turns out that persecution, even murder, of God's children continues to this day. So what Jesus warned about is truly happening today.

According to "The 2025 World Watch List" from Open Doors, more than 380 million Christians suffer high levels of persecution and discrimination because of their faith.176,000 Christians are killed every year, or 482 people every day, or 1 person every three minutes. Nearly 100 million Christians were killed in the 20th century (World Mission Digest).

Praise God, they were faithful to Christ to the death! What about us? If there were persecution of Christians in California, would we remain faithful to Christ? If Boko Haram, ISIS, Al Qaeda, or other radicals were coming here and arresting, kidnapping, and even killing anyone who remained faithful to Jesus, would we remain faithful followers of Jesus (like those Christians)?

Many Christians, let alone being persecuted, become disappointed in God and even abandon Jesus simply because their prayers and wishes are not answered, or because they experience an illness that doesn't heal, or because their lives are difficult. Some abandon their faith because they want to marry an unbeliever.

In my home country, a growing number of Christians are abandoning Jesus because their faith is shaken when their friends ask them, "You say the Christian God is one, but how come there is a Father, a Son, and a Holy Spirit? One plus one plus one is three, right?" Or when asked, "Is there a verse in your Bible that records Jesus saying, 'I am God! Worship me!'" They then abandon the Christian faith because they can't find the answers.

Today, we will learn how we can remain faithful followers of Jesus amidst all difficulties and temptations, even when we face persecution.

Luke 9 recounts how, after Peter declared that Jesus was the Messiah, Jesus made a statement that shocked His disciples: that He must suffer, be rejected, and be killed. The word Jesus used, "must," means it was certain to happen. The disciples did not expect their Teacher to experience such a thing.

Although Peter said that Jesus was the Messiah, he still did not have a complete and true understanding of who Jesus truly was and what His mission on earth was. He thought that as the Messiah, Jesus would be a "Superhero" who would liberate the Jews from Roman rule, establish the Kingdom of Israel like in the time of King David, and that His disciples would become important officials under Jesus.

Therefore, Matthew 16:23 and Mark 8:33 record that when Peter heard Jesus' words, he took Jesus aside and rebuked Him. But Jesus firmly rebuked Peter with very strong words: “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.”