Matthew 10:24-25 (ESV)
[24] “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his
master. [25] It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and
the servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house
Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household.
I
recently read an article by a well-known pastor in which he argued against the
idea of a rapture for believers before the tribulation. I have many friends who
would agree with him and I love and respect them. While I would disagree with
them on this issue, his primary criticism of the position was correct. He
pointed out that it doesn’t prepare people for facing difficulties and
tribulations in life as believers. My own experience has been that when people
ask me to teach on the End Times or on the book of Revelation, all they really
want to know is whether they must go through the tribulation. That is a valid
criticism, and a sad commentary on our faith.
Whether we go through The Tribulation or not, Jesus clearly said that believers
will go through tribulation. They will be accused of being evil. They will be
accused of being hate mongers. False accusations will fly. Opposition will
increase. Even trusted family members and friends will turn against us, yet God
calls us to faithfulness. We must guard against the teaching that being a Christian
means that everything will turn out good for us. We must guard against the teaching
that bad things won’t happen if we have enough faith. Jesus said, “Brother will
deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise
against parents and have them put to death” (Matthew 10:21). I recently read
that biography of a young believer in the Russian army in the 1970s who was
imprisoned, tortured, and killed for his faith. His own brother turned against
him, rejecting the faith, and buying into the soviet lie.
Do we trust that God is faithful even if we are called to face that kind of
opposition? Jesus warned, “Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst
of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves” (Matthew 10:16). It is
time that we stop attacking our brothers in Christ for holding different theological
position and understand that it is unity, not perfect theology that honors God
and convinces the world that what we believe is true. We have an enemy, and he
is not us.
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