Persecuted for Righteousness Sake

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

This final beatitude is perhaps the most sobering and searching of them all. The spiritual character quality spoken of here is a willingness to suffer joyfully for the sake of righteousness.

The righteousness of which Christ is speaking is a moral righteousness of character and conduct that comes from knowing Christ as our Savior and following Him as our Lord. Most immediately, Jesus is referring to the righteous spiritual qualities that He has outlined here in the Beatitudes.

Men, when you pursue Christ and His righteousness at work, home, and among the church family, you won’t always be the most popular person. At times, Christ’s way of life attracts people to Him and they end of up coming to Him in faith and glorifying their father in heaven (v. 16). But more than not, you will experience some degree of persecution (see also, Phil. 1:29; II Tim. 3:12). You may not think of it as persecution—you won’t be beaten or thrown into jail, at least not at this present time in our country, but you may be laughed at, harassed, overlooked for a promotion, have to deal with your angry teen, or some other form of persecution, because you have chosen to do what you believe is right according to Christ’s standard.

To encourage your faithfulness to Him and His way of life, Jesus urges you to “be glad and rejoice” when you suffer persecution. Why? Two reasons. First, your reward will be great in heaven. You may suffer material loss here, but what God has in store for you in heaven will more than make up for any earthly loss. The second reason is that you are in good company with the prophets of old when you suffer for righteousness’ sake. God’s Old Testament spokesmen suffered for righteousness’ sake—Isaiah, Jeremiah etc..., so from God’s perspective you are in good company.

· What “persecutions” do you face that challenge you to “be glad and rejoice”?

· Are there areas in your life where you fear possible persecution and you could use encouragement from your brothers to be faithful?

Being God’s kind of man—that is, being like Jesus Christ as He outlined in the Beatitudes—requires a commitment. Guys, it’s a commitment worth making because yours is the kingdom of heaven!

The Redeemer Men’s Ministry is here to help foster such a commitment so that each man will grow to be more like Christ. Let’s be zealous in this effort for Christ’s sake!