We see the headlines every day – beheadings, dissection of human limbs from living bodies – a disgusting display of hatred upon one group of people because of their beliefs. Persecution is nothing new. It’s man’s way of showing disdain for other human beings and accompanying their acts with words of justification because of their own distorted view of life. People try, many times in vain, to escape such persecution by fleeing their surroundings only to meet death along the way, or rejection from the country they’re fleeing too.
Romans 8:28 says,
“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”
How can any good come from such ugliness? How can we find purpose in such misery? How can a merciful God use people in situations like this as an impetus for good?
All of these are legitimate questions that we may never understand on this side of eternity, but God has used situations like this throughout history to bring His people closer to Him and to help spread His wonderful message of eternal life to all the world. He didn’t create the mess – we did.
We sit in front of our television sets and become enraged when we hear what’s going on in other parts of the world, but persecution is happening right in our own communities and we’ve almost blinded ourselves to it. This is America – the land of the free – where all can worship as they choose, but is it? Our rights as Christians are being undermined insidiously by the prince of darkness. Worldly views have infiltrated our walls and God is being mocked daily. It won’t be long before persecution here is on the same level as it is in other countries.
However, in the verse above, God assures us that all things have a purpose under God. Persecution in the early church, as well as persecution today, can be used as a vehicle for spreading the Gospel of Jesus, Christ.
Lord, help us remember that you created the universe. You have a finger on the pulse of the world. Evil is a result of man’s disobedience and the fall into sin, but you even turned that into an act of incomprehensible love, by sending your own Son to wash our sin away. Amen!
atimetoshare.me 
One thing persecution of the church surely, accomplishes is separating the tares from the wheat. It has always been easy to profess Christ in America but the times are changing…
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I know, right? It seems that’s how the devil works though. He wheedles his way in and before we know it, we aren’t the same as we once were. God wins in the end though. Thanks for reading.
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In and of itself, there seems to be no good which comes from these acts of persecution. However, those who are threatened with it for the sake of their Christian beliefs are blessed according to the book of Matthew. If we hold true in times of trouble, even to the point of bloodshed, we do well for the name of the Lord. There’s the blessing in persecution. Steve
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Thanks for your comment, Steve. God always turns bad into good, doesn’t he? Even when we sometimes blame him for our circumstances. I don’t know if my courage is strong enough to die for my faith. I pray for strength in that area every day.
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That’s an honest assessment to admit to. I’m sure several of us secretly wonder the same thing. Yes, it is something each person must pray about. At least in most of the world, we aren’t faced with that danger like the church of the first century was!
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I recently did a study of Philippians and the main focus was looking at suffering. A couple conclusions we drew: suffering is a sign that we do not belong to the world, phil 1:28; it’s evidence of a godly life, 1 Thess 3:2; evidence of future rewards, Matt 5:10; evidence we are being purified, 1Pet 1:6-9, James 1:2-3. It’s horrible to see what so many are having to face, the evil and persecution. But they will be greatly rewarded! I pray for their deliverance, but even more I pray for their strength to stand strong and fight their fight of faith til the end!
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Good points! I pray that I would have the courage to stand up for my faith even unto death. Have a great day.
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