The Hall of Faith

"Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us; looking unto Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

It's funny that Merriette just posted something about this verse; I had worked out what I wanted to say about it last night during my dad's Thursday Night Bible Study (and a lot of this comes from what he said, so I can't take full credit), and then when I logged on today I saw her post. Mine, however, is looking at a different part of the passage and is really something of a continuation of my last "real" post, 'No Walk in the Park.'

The premise of those thoughts was that following Christ is no walk in the park - it's a race, a marathon. The author of Hebrews addresses that poignantly in chapter 10, where he instructs the Christians in Rome to hold fast to their confession and endure and to have faith in Christ. Those people were facing a great deal of persecution - physical and verbal - and were tempted to go back to the old ways of the Jews in order to avoid that. The author's whole point is to show them that they must not fall back, but must persevere. "Do not cast away your confidence," he tells them, and adds that they "have need of endurance." Don't we all?

Some of the worst persecution comes from unbelieving family members and former friends in the early years of being saved. It's difficult and painful to have your loved ones turn on you and mock what you believe, and that's part of what the audience of the book of Hebrews were facing in Rome from other, unbelieving Jews. It's the kind of persecution that we usually face today; we don't get fed to lions or drawn-and-quartered or hanged or burned at the stake, but we do get laughed at and shunned because of our faith. The author of Hebrews, however, tells his listeners to remember those days when they were persecuted in that manner (verses 32-34) and take comfort from that. How?

There's a certain something that comes with remembering being mocked or ridiculed for the faith. They're often sad memories, and sometimes bitter ones as well. It's hard to take delight in remembering a time when your mother or father scoffed at you, or your best friend started making fun of you. And yet there's something else that comes as well, which is what the author was pointing to when he tells them to remember those times; because when you look back (or around, if you're still in that situation), there's a knowledge that it's worth it.

The bearing of your cross and the undergoing persecution in various ways, shapes, and forms is all worth it when you consider what will result from that. Would the persecuted believer rather have Christ as their Heavenly Brother, or keep the friendship they once had with someone at school? Would they rather have the acceptance of their parents, or the secure knowledge that God is their Father? Would you rather be comfortable in this world, or know that you are following in Christ's footsteps? That's really the main point right there. Even when you're in the persecution, there is a realization that Christ was also ridiculed, mocked, abused - by His own family, too. When a believer faces and endures persecution, they are sharing with Christ in that - and I have no doubt that they would rather share persecution with Christ than have worldly comfort without Him!

There is no greater honour for a Christian than to be persecuted alongside Christ. Paul, that great apostle, thought it so; so did Peter and John - and the writer of Hebrews. To be persecuted for Christ's name is to put you in the same category as Abraham, Moses, and David, those great men of God whom we look up to. It is to place you alongside the Puritans in England, the Reformers, and the early Christians. It is to deny the world and follow Christ, as He commanded. It is to have you say like the man Athanasius, "If the world is against me, then I am against the world." Those are but a handful of those who are part of the "cloud of witnesses" that the author of Hebrews talks about, that surround us and support us and, in a sense, cheer us on.

Persecution is not merely something to be pushed through and borne: it is something to be seen as a gift. It probably will not last forever, as the believer's Christian acquaintance grows and it is no longer necessary for them to spend so much time with unbelievers; but no matter in what form it comes or for how long it lasts, persecution is a blessing from God - even though it doesn't seem like that at the time.