ESOCS Devotional 11 April 2021
TEXT: JOHN 16:1-15
MEMORY VERSE: “These things have I spoken unto you, that ye should not be offended.” John 16:1 KJV
Offended – means to stumble; trip up; to cause to lose faith in people or churches or Christians.
Jesus is awesome—Christianity is awesome – some of God’s people aren’t so awesome … and they offend us and we offend them. Have a realistic mindset about Christianity because you will be offended. Christianity is people and people rub people the wrong way at times.
In our text, we find our Lord delivering a remarkable prophecy. He tells His disciples that they will be cast out of the Jewish Church, and persecuted even to the death–“They shall put you out of the synagogues–yes, the time comes, that whoever kills you will think that he does God service.”
How strange that seems at first sight! Excommunication, suffering, and death, are the portion that the Prince of Peace predicts to His disciples. So far from receiving them and their message with gratitude, the world would hate them, despitefully use them, and put them to death. And, worst of all, their persecutors would actually persuade themselves that it was right to persecute, and would inflict the cruelest injuries in the sacred name of religion.
How true the prediction has turned out! Like every other prophecy of Scripture, it has been fulfilled to the very letter. The Acts of the Apostles shows us how the unbelieving Jews persecuted the early Christians. The pages of history tell us how our holy Reformers were burned at the stake for their religion, by men who professed to do all they did from zeal for pure Christianity. Unlikely and incredible as it might seem at the time, the great Prophet of the Church has been found in this, as in everything else, to have predicted nothing but literal truth.
Let it never surprise us to hear of true Christians being persecuted, in one way or another, even in our own day. Human nature never changes. Grace is never really popular. The dimensions of persecution, which God’s children have to suffer in every rank of life, even now, if they confess their Master, is far greater than the thoughtless world supposes. They only know it, that go through it. Those words shall always be found true – “All who will live godly in Christ Jesus, shall suffer persecution” (2 Tim. 3:12.)
Let us never forget that religious earnestness alone is no proof that a man is a sound Christian. Not all zeal is right – it may be zeal without knowledge. No one is as mischievous as a blundering, ignorant zealot. Not all earnestness is trustworthy. Without the leading of God’s Spirit, it may lead a man so far astray, that, like Saul, he will persecute Christ Himself. Some bigots imagine they are doing God service, when they are actually fighting against His truth, and trampling on His people. Let us pray that we may have light as well as zeal.
Read yesterday’s ESOCS Devotional here
CHALLENGES
Do you get offended because of persecution in Christ Jesus?
PRAYER POINT
Ask God to help you not to be offended in Him and grace to suffer for His name sake.
FURTHER READING:
John 15:21-25; Acts 7:52–60; 8:1
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ESOCS Devotional 11 April 2021
