By Pastor Greg...
April 20th, 1999, two
armed gunmen entered Columbine High School in Colorado. 12 students and one teacher were killed. Most famous was a girl named Cassie Bernall
whom witnesses say was asked if she believed in God just before she was shot to
death. She was killed, some people say, because she said yes.
If the exchange between this
teenage girl and her killer are true, then
she would be what is considered a Christian Martyr.
History is filled with individuals
who were killed in cold blood because of their faith. There were godly men and women killed during Old Testament times. And Christians like Stephen or Apostles like
James were killed in New Testament times. For thousands of years, violent people have
been killing believers because of their
faith in the Lord.
And the Lord knows each of them by
name.
A lot of people are killed by
violent, cruel individuals. And not
every Christian is killed because of their faith. But some are.
Some are asked to denounce their faith in Jesus or recant their beliefs
while staring at the end of a gun or the edge of a sword. Some Christians are forced to renounce their
faith while fellow believers are tortured (consider the events depicted in the
2016 movie Silence). What’s troubling is that this is going to
continue. Christians are going to be
martyred up until the day Jesus calls all believers to Heaven. And, even after the rapture, men, women, and
children who finally believe in Jesus will be killed because of their faith.
When will it end? When will the world stop killing people
because of their faith in Jesus? When
will Jesus make this wicked world pay for spilling the blood of innocent
believers? That is a question these
martyrs will ask Jesus one day.
Remember that Scroll God gave to
Jesus – the one with the Seven Seals?
Every time Jesus breaks one of those seals, a specific End Time event
unfolds. The first four events focused on what the Antichrist will do
to the world. However, this fifth seal
takes us back to heaven, and the throne of God.
9 When the Lamb broke the
fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of all who had been martyred for
the word of God and for being faithful in their testimony. 10 They
shouted to the Lord and said, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before
you judge the people who belong to this world and avenge our blood for what
they have done to us?” 11 Then a white robe was given to each
of them. And they were told to rest a little longer until the full number of
their brothers and sisters*—their fellow servants of Jesus who were to be
martyred—had joined them
[1]
(Revelation 6:9-11).
In his previous visions, John had
not seen these martyrs. But now they are
present; men, women, and children who had been killed because they would not renounce their faith. They were not seeking revenge, but they did
wonder how much longer God was going to tolerate the presence of evil. It sure seemed that God was condoning the wickedness of humanity. Good people were being killed, and the wicked
were not being punished. It made God
appear indifferent or uncaring.
In response, God gives each of
these martyrs a white robe. That’s
significant. Although the world condemned them for their faith, the Lord
commends
them. He dresses them in a spotless white gown; not just forgiving their
sin, but treating them just as if they
had never sinned. They are justified.
I wonder, will the only Christians
permitted close to God be those who were
killed because of the faith? What kind
of gown does the rest of us get to wear?
I doubt most of us will be killed
because of our faith… although it has happened in our nation. But nevertheless, this world makes living
like a Christian quite difficult. It may not kick in the front door and shoot
us with a gun, but it does pester and nag and tempt us all the time. And, let’s face it, sometimes we slip. Sometimes we feel our Christian witness slipping away.
Sometimes we “soil” ourselves with wicked thoughts or careless
actions. What must the Lord think of
us? Will we
find ourselves standing off and alone wearing old tattered rags stained
by sin?
The Bible repeatedly teaches that
even those Christians who die a natural death will be honored for their
faith. God will take away those soiled
clothes and dress us in festival robes (Zechariah 3:4). He will cover
us in a “garment of salvation” (Isaiah 61:10).
The truth here is that a person does not need to be killed to receive a
white robe. They simply need
Christ. The image of these martyrs
symbolizes their “right” to join Jesus in judging the people of this world
(Revelation 20:4). But each of us will radiate
the glory of the Lord when we get to heaven.
For the first time in our life, we
will be spotless and blameless; without blemish or wrinkle. We will be holy and without fault (Ephesians
5:27).
You and I may never have our blood shed because of our faith, but we will
face daily temptations to “quit the race” (compare Hebrews 12:1). Don’t give up. Keep holding on to what you have been taught. Fix your eyes on Jesus (Hebrews 12:2). Today, we may not be perfect. Today, we may stumble. Today, we may sin. But we still press on toward the goal.
“Brothers and sisters, I can’t consider myself a
winner yet. This is what I do: I don’t look back, I lengthen my stride, and 14 I run straight
toward the goal to win the prize that God’s heavenly call offers in Christ
Jesus” [2]
(Philippians 3:13-14).
[1] Tyndale House Publishers.
(2007). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (3rd ed., Re 6:9–11). Carol
Stream, IL.
No comments:
Post a Comment