Thursday; November 29

          What do we do when people make fun of our beliefs?  Folks, I have to be honest that I don’t see a lot of the criticism the world seems to heap onto believers, but I am not going to belittle what others feel – and that leads us back to the original question.  When people make fun of us (or even show bias against us) because of our faith, how do we react?  Do we sulk and pout?  Do we launch a social media rampage against them?  Do we seek to get even (or even get ahead) by criticizing their beliefs?  While these options are available to us, none of them seem to be a mature response!
          When many of the First Century Christians faced opposition because of their faith – is wasn’t merely people saying catty things about them, it also involved economic and physical abuse.  So, if they were going to face hardships, what were they supposed to do?  The New Testament offered this direction, “For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” (Hebrews 12:3).  When the first Christians faced tough times because of their beliefs they were supposed to think about Jesus and how He dealt with them.  Jesus didn’t pout, He didn’t retaliate, He didn’t give up.  What Jesus did was stay committed to His God and focused on His purpose – to offer salvation to the world.
          I don’t know what will happen to Christians in the next few years.  I can’t imagine that there will be a worldwide validation of our beliefs nor I don’t see us overwhelming other religious (and non-religious) movements.  The bottom line is that we are going to have to find a way to deal with the world’s treatment of us.  Are we prepared to withstand all we need endure to be faithful?  That’s what Jesus would do ... in fact, that is what He did!
          Think About It!

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