On the Run!

Friday, January 28, 2022

“But thou hast fully known my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, charity, patience, Persecutions, afflictions, which came unto me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra; what persecutions I endured: but out of them all the Lord delivered me. Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution” (2 Timothy 3:10-12 KJV).

Read this sobering statement from a Christian living in the Middle East: “Because we don’t have a church building to gather in, we have to keep our groups small, not more than five or six people. We constantly change days, times, and locations to avoid getting caught.” These are current affairs, friends, reminiscent of the days when the early churches had to hide from Roman authorities or risk death!

Although anti-Christian voices have greatly multiplied and increased in volume in recent years here in the United States, we still have our constitutional rights that protect spiritual liberty… for now. Compared to what Christians are undergoing in other countries, we Americans have it good. Dear friends, never take the Holy Scriptures for granted. Be appreciative of them—especially thankful for those saints who died through the centuries just to make sure we had a copy. This cannot be emphasized enough!

It is so tragic we who have the greatest “religious freedom” in the world are usually the ones most spoiled to the non-spiritual. We bicker about the stupidest matters on social media, sit in front of our television and computer screens several hours a day for amusement, and talk and text message and play games on our smartphones the rest of the time. Meanwhile, Christians in other nations are literally being hunted down, imprisoned, tortured, and executed for God’s Book that sits on our shelf collecting dust. Oh, it is a terrible commentary regarding our beloved nation, but it shows just how shallow in the Scriptures we have been all these centuries. Now, our corporate attitude can no longer be hidden because the culture behind the façade has bulldozed through its shell.

Dear saints, if you are suffering for Jesus Christ’s sake today, remember, “Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong” (2 Corinthians 12:10). God’s grace is sufficient—even when you are “on the run!” 🙂