"Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it." - Matthew 16:24-25
I once found myself in a bit of hot water when the Pastor asked me if I could end the service with prayer. Among others, the one thing I prayed for was that the Church in the "West" would be subjected to persecution and tribulation. After the service I had a few brothers who were a little hot under the collar because I had prayed for this, and I share this with you today to hear your input.
In the "free" world we have, as Christians, become very complacent. There is so much that we take for granted. I actually wrote an essay on this titled "A religion of comfort". In a nutshell, many Christians in the "west" are happy to be "Christians" as long as the ride is smooth all the way. We love being comfortable and we love convenience. I have seen this many times. The slightest inconvenience so easily manipulates our decision making. As an example: you wake up on Sunday and get ready for the service. When you get to the car the tyre is flat. How many people do you suppose would change the flat and still go to service? How many would use this as an excuse not to go? We have things too easy in the west. We take for granted that we are able to attend sunday service. We even take the Bible for granted.
One of the first things I noticed when I started reading the Bible is how the early Church and Apostles were persecuted. Stoned, hung, decapitated, crucified. In spite of this punishment, the Church grew and if you had to go through history, you will find that Christianity prospers when they are under persecution. The Word says to love and bless our enemies, and I believe that this is the reason so many come to salvation; it is when they witness first hand the persecution of Christians and then see those same Christians respond with love and with kindness. Is it any wonder then that the countries with the biggest Christian converts (in percentage) are countries where Christians are severely persecuted? Nepal (Hindu), China (Communist), UAE (Muslim), Saudi Arabia (Muslim), Qatar (Muslim), Oman (Muslim), Yemen (Muslim), Mongolia (Buddhist), Cambodia (Buddhist), Bahrain (Muslim).
In the "West" where we are "free" to live out our faith, our numbers are dwindling. In Countries where owning a Bible can get you executed, the faith is growing in numbers. Just something to think about...
I once found myself in a bit of hot water when the Pastor asked me if I could end the service with prayer. Among others, the one thing I prayed for was that the Church in the "West" would be subjected to persecution and tribulation. After the service I had a few brothers who were a little hot under the collar because I had prayed for this, and I share this with you today to hear your input.
In the "free" world we have, as Christians, become very complacent. There is so much that we take for granted. I actually wrote an essay on this titled "A religion of comfort". In a nutshell, many Christians in the "west" are happy to be "Christians" as long as the ride is smooth all the way. We love being comfortable and we love convenience. I have seen this many times. The slightest inconvenience so easily manipulates our decision making. As an example: you wake up on Sunday and get ready for the service. When you get to the car the tyre is flat. How many people do you suppose would change the flat and still go to service? How many would use this as an excuse not to go? We have things too easy in the west. We take for granted that we are able to attend sunday service. We even take the Bible for granted.
One of the first things I noticed when I started reading the Bible is how the early Church and Apostles were persecuted. Stoned, hung, decapitated, crucified. In spite of this punishment, the Church grew and if you had to go through history, you will find that Christianity prospers when they are under persecution. The Word says to love and bless our enemies, and I believe that this is the reason so many come to salvation; it is when they witness first hand the persecution of Christians and then see those same Christians respond with love and with kindness. Is it any wonder then that the countries with the biggest Christian converts (in percentage) are countries where Christians are severely persecuted? Nepal (Hindu), China (Communist), UAE (Muslim), Saudi Arabia (Muslim), Qatar (Muslim), Oman (Muslim), Yemen (Muslim), Mongolia (Buddhist), Cambodia (Buddhist), Bahrain (Muslim).
In the "West" where we are "free" to live out our faith, our numbers are dwindling. In Countries where owning a Bible can get you executed, the faith is growing in numbers. Just something to think about...