Blessed Are They Which Are Falsely Accused
Matthew 5:11
Blessed are you, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for My sake.
Someone, somewhere, at some point in time is going to tell lies about you and your faith in Christ. It's already started, you know. We are hated for our intolerance against sin.
But we do not hate in return. We do not retaliate. We do not speak out against the people who are lying about us. We can hold our heads up and face the raging voices with honor and integrity, for we are Christ's. We are in Him and He is in us.
To be reviled is to be censured, criticized and condemned for the sake of Jesus' Name. To be persecuted is to be subject to hostility and ill-treatment. Understatements those are. Hostility is anything from a mean word to a weapon aimed in our direction. Ill-treatment can be rudeness, being ignored, and being cruelly afflicted.
In Christ we have become the righteousness of God and we are seen as enemies of this world and enemies of all the religions, gods, idols and idolatry which are practiced in this world. Which, in Truth, we are. For whoever is not with God is against God. [Matthew 12:30; John 15:23; Luke 10:16].
In Christ we are called to suffer for righteousness' sake. Before Christ ever took up His cross, He had already suffered tremendously for our sakes. It is only fitting therefore, that when we take up our cross and follow Him, we, too, should suffer for the sake of the cross. [Mark 8:34; 1 Peter 2:21].
2 Timothy 3:12
Indeed, all who desire to live godly lives in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.
1 Peter 4:13
But rejoice that you share in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed at the revelation of His glory.
It is a blessing to be counted among the sufferers for the sake of the gospel. It is a joy and a great reward to be numbered among the saints who lived by faith in The Word of God. We rejoice! to belong to God in Christ Jesus! Great is His faithfulness to us who believe.
