Standing Firm

Standing Firm – 210107SUam

Reading: Matthew 24: 1-14

During the days of Communist rule in Russia, it was very dangerous to be a Christian. Churches had to be very careful to keep their meetings secret, so that the authorities would not shut them down and send their leaders to prison or to the labour camps in Siberia.

One church was just beginning its service when two soldiers burst in brandishing their automatic rifles. They lined the terrified congregation up against the wall and cocked their weapons. “Right,” said one of them. “Are you all Christians here?” The people nodded. “So, does that mean you are willing to die for your faith? We’ll give you one chance only. If anyone here is not willing to give your life for your faith, you can leave now.” Several people stepped forward and hurriedly left, not looking at anyone.

The soldier ordered the pastor to step forward and aimed his gun at him. “Are you sure that all these people left here are willing to die for your Jesus?” “Yes they are,” said the Pastor. “You won’t get them to deny their faith even if you shoot them. They are true Christians.”

“Good,” replied the soldier. “So are we. We wanted to find a church where we could worship safely with true believers who would never turn us in. Now you know which of your people you can no longer trust.”

This occasion turned out well for that group of believers. But for many thousands of others the knock on the door led to torture and imprisonment and forced labour and death. And still today in many parts of the world, churches meet in secret and Christians know that if they are discovered it could mean jail or even execution on a trumped up charge. In fact it has been estimated that more people have died for being Christians in the past century than in all the 1900 years before. Only this week we have been celebrating the release of a Christian singer who had been imprisoned in a container like the one at the back of the church for more than two years. But we have no word of what has happened to the women held there with her just because they were followers of Jesus.

Of course it could never happen here, could it? We can keep on coming to church and worshiping in safety with no worries about being arrested and imprisoned and executed.

But the world we live in is changing fast. We think we live in a Christian country. A majority of the people of this land would claim to be Christian. But most of them have not even the most basic understanding of what it means to believe in Jesus. The numbers attending church each Sunday have been falling fast for many years. Generations are now growing up for whom Christianity is totally irrelevant. The story is told of the boy who went to a Carol service for the first time and asked why Mary and Joseph named their baby after a swear word. It’s sad to think of just one boy having so little knowlege of the gospel but now much of our society is in the same position. In our country, the church has been becoming more and more marginalised. We are have become a minority group.

And at the same time, the media is constantly telling people that it is stupid to believe in God. And they are followed by militant atheists like Richard Dawkins who are explaining to people that Christianity is not merely wrong – it is dangerous. If he had his way, it would be illegal to teach children about Jesus. And although many of his arguments are ridiculous, people are listening to him. It would not take much to create a backlash against the church in this country.

In our reading today Jesus warned his disciples that there was trouble ahead. He told them, “You will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me.” And that is exactly what happened. It wasn’t long after Jesus returned to his Father that the authorities in Jerusalem turned on this rapidly growing group of believers and began to imprison them and beat them and kill them. But the effect of this was to strengthen the church. We read in Acts chapter 8 how most of them had to leave Jerusalem and they scattered in all directions taking the good news of Jesus with them. And as the church grew, so did the persecution. Because Christians declared that Jesus is Lord, and would not accept that Caesar is Lord, a number of Roman Emperors tried to round them up and exterminate this faith from their empire, using the most horrific methods in order to discourage people from following Jesus. But through it all the church of Jesus continued to grow.

And still today we can see how persecuted churches still thrive and grow. During the first half of the 20^th century, churches sprang up across China as Chinese Christian leaders carried the gospel across that vast land. And then the Communists took over. They tried to tame the church and subject it to their domination. Any church leaders who stood up to them found that the authorities undermined them and found members of their congregations who could be persuaded to falsely testify that they had committed crimes for which they were jailed for years – often for life. And yet through all this the church grew faster than it ever had in the years when it was free to worship openly.

Could it happen here? In I Peter chapter 4, Peter tells his readers not to be surprised at the painful trial they are suffering. The implication is that they were not expecting persecution and were asking Peter why it was happening to them. We don’t expect persecution either – we would like to think that the church will carry on roughly as it is for the foreseeable future.

But in the passage we read from Matthew 24, Jesus is telling his disciples about what is going to be happening in the last days as well as what is going to happen to them. And who is to say that we are not living in those last days before Jesus returns. The Bible tells of some of the things that must happen before the Lord returns. And many of those are being fulfilled in our lifetimes. I remember when I was at school, a minister telling us that we were not yet in the last days, because the Bible said that one of the things that must happen first was for there to be peace between Israel and Egypt and that there was no chance of that happening in our lifetime. But within 15 years, after two more wars, Israel and Egypt signed a peace treaty after the Camp David talks. We don’t know when Jesus will return, but again and again, Jesus tells us to be ready.

We want to be blessed by God. We want to receive the good things he says he has for us. But are we aware of what we are asking for when we ask for his blessing? In Matthew 5:11 Jesus says, “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” Jesus’ disciples discovered the truth of this. In Acts we read how they considered it a privilege to suffer disgrace for Jesus. They received the blessing.

The Church today needs to wake up. We need to stop playing at Church. OK so it is good to come to church – we enjoy the worship and the fellowship. But we need to get real. Jesus says in our reading, “He who stands firm to the end will be saved.” He is telling us that being a Christian is not simply about having a good time in church. It’s about standing up for him – in the face of ridicule, opposition, threats, attacks, persecution, whatever the world and the devil throw at us. And it is no good waiting for it to happen and then complaining that it has taken us by surprise. We need to start getting ready now, being aware that when we pray for God’s blessing it comes to us in the trials of life rather than the easy times. The church in this country has had it easy for many years. And as a result it has grown weak, it has lost its commitment and is is rapidly declining not only in numbers but in its influence and its power. We are at a turning point. The world sees a declining church that presents little challenge to its ways. A church that effectively reaches out with the good news of Jesus is going to bring down the fury of the evil one on its endeavours.

It has started. The difficulties of the Christian students at Exeter University is just the tip of the iceberg. I can understand what they are struggling against – when I was a mamber of the Christian Union at Essex University 40 years ago we were faced by exactly the same situation. We won that battle but the forces of post-modernism that want to make us accept that Christianity is just another religion with no right to claim the truth are going to make it harder and harder for the church to exist without being forced into confrontation.

Over the coming months we will look at some of the ways in which we can be prepared for the time when the church in this land faces opposition. If you want to think some more about this during the week or in your home group, you’ll find in your In Touch another passage from Matthew to read and some questions to start you thinking. If you come up with some answers or come up with more questions, do please pass them on to me so that we can work together to build one another up.

3 weeks ago we held our Covenant Service. We stood up and committed our lives to God for the coming year, telling him that he could do whatever he wanted with our lives. Did we mean it? Really? Are we ready to stand firm when we are asked if we would be willing to die for our faith in Jesus?

Jesus is looking for people who will stand firm for him. People who will let him prepare them for whatever lies ahead. People who have learned to trust him in every situation and so will trust him when the tough times come.

Because we don’t stand alone. He stands with us. He knows what happens when you stand firm against the world. It took him to the cross. But he overcame death. His Spirit is with us today, tomorrow and in every situation. He loves us and wants to give us all the resources we need to face the future. Are you ready to stand firm with him?

Let’s stand and sing together the hymn that many of us know as the Boys’ Brigade hymn – “Will your anchor hold in the storms of life…We have an anchor that keeps the soul steadfast and sure while the billows roll.”