Growing up in Canada, I quickly noticed that religious liberty was a big deal to Americans. Not that we didn’t enjoy or appreciate religious liberty in Canada, but it wasn’t on our radar in the same way. Then after I became a pastor and moved south of the border, it was common to hear prayers that expressed gratitude for freedoms enjoyed, including religious liberty. Over time my own prayers reflected this sentiment as I didn’t want to take it for granted. However, in recent years, there has been a bit of a change. If I heard a lot of, “God thank you that we can worship freely,” I was now hearing, “God give us the strength to be faithful to you in this hostile world.”
This shift has been ever so subtle, but there is no denying that things have changed. That is not to say that most Christians in America live in fear of persecution, but it is to say that the mainstream culture is no longer favorable to biblical Christianity in the way it once was. I lament over this cultural drift; however, it is not all bad. In fact, in many ways, it is necessary and something that God will use to strengthen his people and spread the gospel.
The Bible promises that those who are in Christ will be persecuted. Jesus said, “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you” (John 15:18-19). The apostle Paul said, “Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Timothy 3:12). According to the Bible, persecution is not something out of the ordinary, but something to expect and be prepared for.
Recently I started reading a book to my children called Jesus Freaks. The book looks at Christians from around the world who suffered greatly for their faith, some even dying as martyrs. It is riveting, powerful, and informative, and a reminder for us that following Jesus is not always easy. In fact, it is hard (really hard at times!) and may even cost you your life (Mark 8:31-38). Christians in other lands (what we call the “Persecuted Church”) have always known this, but for many Christians in America, this is new.
Suffering for the believer comes in many different shapes and sizes (1 Peter 4:12-19). Persecution is just one of the many things that make being a disciple of Jesus hard. What will sustain you in your Christian walk? How will you endure all the flaming darts of the evil one (Ephesians 6:16)? How will you persevere when everything seems to be set against you?
The answer is–God! He is able to keep you from stumbling (Jude 24). He is able to present you holy and blameless, in Christ Jesus. The sustaining grace of God is able to keep you to the very end, no matter what comes your way. Your job is to trust Jesus!
That is the short answer to the question, but I want to give you another “short answer.” Joy! The joy of the Lord is what will sustain you in your Christian walk.
I recently picked up a book that I haven’t read for years, Desiring God by John Piper. Piper has blessed the global church in many ways, but perhaps his greatest contribution is what gets unpacked in this book. His thesis is as follows: “The chief end of man is to glorify God by enjoying Him forever.” This of course, is the language of the Westminster Shorter Catechism, question 1, but Piper tweaks it slightly. He substitutes the word “by” for “and.” God is glorified by our enjoyment of him. As Piper explains it in another way, “God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him.”
When I first discovered this “Christian hedonism” many years ago, it revolutionized not just my theology, but my relationship with the Lord. Joy was a duty! It was something noble to pursue! The Psalms started to resonate with me in a new way. “Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice!” (Psalm 32:11). “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him” (Psalm 34:8). “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart” (Psalm 37:4).
But is this not the teaching of the whole Bible?
Over and over the Bible points us to the person and work of Jesus Christ. “Looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2) Our Lord endured the sorrows and sufferings of the cross only through the joy that was set before him.
This same joy fueled the apostles in their ministry. After being beaten and warned by the religious authorities not to speak in the name of Jesus, the apostles left “rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name” (Acts 5:41). Just so you know, that’s not normal. Rejoicing in the midst of suffering does not typically jive with human nature, but it is in line with Scripture and the Christian’s new nature.
James exhorts his readers to “Count it all joy...when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing” (James 1:2-4). Remarkable as it sounds, we can truly rejoice in our sufferings knowing that God is at work in our lives.
One further illustration will suffice. If there was ever a group of downtrodden, impoverished Christians, it was the first century churches of Macedonia. And yet, they were characterized by joy. As Paul explains:
We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia, for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord, begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints (2 Corinthians 8:1-4, emphasis mine).
Extreme poverty was not a hindrance to generosity, nor to joy. These believers gave with heartfelt joy, even though they were deeply impoverished.
By now it is clear that joy serves as a powerful catalyst in the Christian life. Things that were weird and strange (like giving when you don’t have much to give) become normal and natural. Jesus came to give his people joy and Christianity is all about living in the fullness of that joy (John 15:11). The true Christian begins to see Jesus as supremely valuable (Matthew 13:44-46) and devalues everything once held near and dear (Philippians 3:8).
How will you persevere in your Christian walk, especially in the midst of trials and tribulation and even persecution? Only through the sustaining grace of God. And where grace is present, you can be sure that there will be an abundance of joy overflowing from your life.
Daniel Stegeman (D.Min., Gordon Conwell Seminary) is pastor of Pine Glen Alliance Church in Lewistown, Pennsylvania. Daniel blogs at www.pastoral-theology.com. Daniel and his wife Stephane have four children.