THE FAITHFUL CHURCH PERSECUTED

If, by God’s grace, the church may grow, it shall never go unnoticed by the powers of evil. This was especially true with reference to those who might have a leading part in the development of the church at the time after Pentecost.

One of these leaders was a man whose name was Stephen. He was a man who had received a God-given faith, and who remained a faithful servant of his Lord in Heaven. This man by his witness to the Gospel, by the deeds of love and kindness which he showed men in the name of Christ, and by the pattern of his life irritated Satan terribly. This was too much! This was too clear of a testimony! So one day the mob was aroused; Stephen was dragged out of the city and outside of the citywalls, and there they stoned him to death.

This act of fury began a chain reaction, and it is of this violence that Luke speaks of in Acts 8 when he writes: “And at that time there was a great persecution against the church.” Once the persecution began, it could not be contained. Satan was no longer content merely to have killed Stephen, he was going to use force to stifle, to suppress, and to destroy God’s church at its very beginning.

When we look in this historic fact and remember the hour and the day in which this happened then it will become clear to us that the time when the church is, by grace, faithfully following her Saviour, when it is growing spiritually, that is the time when the devil is the most angry. When God’s children are asleep, he is quite content to let it be so. He will not disturb their false rest. As long as the church is not doing God’s work, he is perfectly happy to let it do whatever it wants. When thousands go to church, in this sleeping condition, when thousands are active in all sorts of ways and engage in all manner of social activities, believe me, this does not bother Satan at all. He would be glad to let us go on our life in this condition. But there is one thing he cannot tolerate, and that is a true witness to the truth that God sent His only begotten Son into this world to suffer and die for helpless sinners. This is the message which interferes with the program of hell. The devil hates to see someone who may learn, by grace, that he or she is a lost sinner and needs One who has the power to save him or her. Everytime the Lord brings a sinner to conversion the armies of darkness lose a member, and the living church will be enlarged. Oh, that is the time when the devil undertakes his evil work wholeheartedly. Don’t forget: Satan is the evil one.

Persecution does not always take the same form, nor does the opposition of the enemy always manifest itself in exactly the same manner. Sometimes it may be by violence, as it was in the case of this early church; on other occasions Satan may operate in a much more discreet and subtle manner. Satan also works by creating divisions in the church, this is one of his favourite devices. If he can be successful in having the Christians within a church cutting one another’s throats, then he does not have to worry: they are doing his work for him. He may also work by causing people to arise within the church who preach something which is quite contrary to the old proven truth. This is a device which he has used with great success at different times in the history of the church: both in the days of the Old Covenant, as well as in the days of the New Covenant. He may also allow the influence of the world around the church to gain an ever-growing power over the lives of individuals within the church. This can be a process so subtle that his job may have been completed before people even realize that it is taking place. This is probably the greatest danger threatening the church of Christ today, certainly the greatest in our country.

You and I are living at at time in which the influence of the world in which we live is making increasing inroads upon us. You may discover how great this influence is and how much you are a Christian in name only and how little you are a Christian in reality. If you ask yourself a few questions. Why do I think as I do? After whom do I pattern my life? Am I by grace a follower of King Jesus? Or am I following the world which is about me and which is influencing me? How do I spend my time. How do I spend my money? What is of value to me? May the Lord give us altogether self-knowledge and more self-knowledge! Don’t forget our text of New Year’s Eve: Romans 13, verses 11 and 12: “And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to AWAKE out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand; let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light!”

When persecution came upon the early church in Jerusalem, there were, of course, some serious consequences. The immediate result was that “they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.” God’s children, not waiting to be killed as Stephen had been, fled to other places.

A great persecution against the living church was now enacted. Earlier, the apostles only were the targets. Remember the suffering of Peter and John; but now the hatred broke loose against the entire church. The enemies of free grace in Christ Jesus stoned Stephen. Yea, not only the children of God in Jerusalem, but also at Damascus came into great danger. The apostles who recently had been treated as criminals deserving the death sentence, had now received the desire of their heart, to remain where they were, namely in Jerusalem. They didn’t run away. They had to do the Lord’s work there. It is as if we hear them say, “Whether you like it or whether you don’t, do what you want. So far as we are concerned, we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard”.

What do you think the result would be if violent persecution were to come upon us? Oh, we have to ask ourselves: Would we be faithful unto death? A number of people would certainly change colours very quickly, and try to help themselves in their present distress. Oh, if the Lord would not give strength we all would deny that we believe the old proven truth. I suppose today, as at that time, a good many of us would get out. We would strive to save our lives if we could. Only by grace from heaven would we be enabled to remain stedfast in those trying circumstances.

What was the result of the persecution after the violent death of God’s servant Stephen? “They were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria.” When you reflect on this fact, then you discover that the devil was not as clever as he thought he was. Afterwards he may have been thoroughly disgusted for having made such a fool of himself. What did take place? When these children of God were scattered abroad, they became agents of God! If the devil had been wise, he would never have acted in this way. When he drove these people of God out of Jerusalem, he only spread the Gospel further. As long as the early Christians were confined within the walls of Jerusalem and consisted of a small, closely knit group, they were not going to affect much of the world. But, when they were driven out, they began to tell of the wonderful work, suffering, death and resurrection of Christ wherever they went. The old saying that “the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church” began here and has proven true continually throughout our church history. When you study the history of God’s church, you will discover that God has often operated in times past as He did with His early church in Jerusalem. The Christians were driven out. The devil thought he had beaten them. But God used their dispersion for the spreading of the Gospel and the building of His church.

In comparison with the number in the world, God’s church may be small. The power of the enemy may seem to be overwhelming and irresistible. O, the work of God’s servants may at times seem to become ineffective and meaningless. But King Jesus, the Head of His dearly paid church, said: “It is My church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it!”

Congregations, you and I profess to be baptized or confessing members of the church. What if persecution came to us as it did almost two thousand years ago to the church at Jerusalem? But regardless of the behaviour of individual church members, the church will remain until the end of the world. That is not our promise, but it is Christ’s promise. Don’t forget, never in the history of the world did the devil think that his victory was so close as when he stirred up the people of Jerusalem against the Saviour of His people, and Christ was nailed to the cross. But, though Jesus died, He did not remain in the grave. He arose; the clear victory belonged to Christ. The devil was never so defeated.

We need grace to understand what the Lord Jesus told His disciples in the Gospel of John, chapter 15:20: “Remember the word that I said unto you, the servant is not greater than His Lord. If they have persecuted Me, they will also persecute you!” The root of persecution is that they hated God’s Holy Child Jesus. I wish with my whole heart that the Lord will teach us all to follow in His blessed footsteps. Then we shall also remember God’s children who are persecuted in this very day.

We do not know what will happen in the future. May there be a prayer in our heart, by grace, to be faithful unto death. And if we fear for the future, let us seek our comfort and strength in Him alone, Who has said to the congregation of Smyrna: “Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer; behold, the devil shall cast some of you in prison, that you may be tried; and you shall have tribulation ten days; Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.” Rev. 2:10.

Rev. A.W.V.
Chilliwack

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