Persecution and Presence Promised (Mt. 10:16-25)

Here’s my sermon from August 13th, 2023 on Matthew 10:16-25). You can listen to the audio here.

It’s so important to have the right expectations. Right? As many of you know, two of the guys in our office just became dads within the last couple of months. I remember at least one time, Aaron walked into the office, clearly exhausted, and groaned, “This wasn’t what I expected.” Yeah, dude. I tried to warn you. Not gonna be easy. I’ll never forget, my now 20-year-old, then a newborn, in a bassinet right by our bed, screaming in my ear during the first night. And I turned to Amy, about to lose my mind, and shouted out, “You have got to do something about this!” Right expectations are important.

Well, here in Matthew, Jesus has just called these twelve, His disciples. And He’s getting them ready for gospel ministry. And they’re probably thinking, having watched Jesus work from a distance: “I can’t believe we get to do this. Life on the road with Jesus! This is gonna be so great!” But they have no idea. And here we see Jesus breaking the news to them. Soon, they’re gonna be doing some screaming.

Think about what we’ve seen in this book already. Jesus has been going about, working miracles, showing His authority, demonstrating that His kingdom has come. And the disciples think they’re getting to step right into that. They’ve got to be really excited. But wait… there’s definitely more.

Maybe you’re one of the millions in America that have watched the Netflix series Quarterback that features Patrick Mahomes, Marcus Mariota, and Kirk Cousins. We already knew Pat was awesome. But this has introduced more and more people to how great Cousins is. And we also get to see His faith in Jesus. We get to see it in action.

But they talk about this turning point in Kirk’s career, when he leads his team at the time, Washington, to this massive comeback win, and he runs into the tunnel, after the victory, and yells out these words. “You like that!” If you’ve watched much football at all, you’ve surely seen that moment.

In chapters 8 and 9, Jesus is casting out demons. He’s healing the sick. He’s raising the dead. He’s commanding the wind and the waves. He’s making the blind see. And the disciples witness it all. And, yeah, they like that! But what’s Christ’s about to share, beginning here in verse 16, they’re not gonna like it so much. We’re going to see, they can’t seem to grasp that He’ll die. The thought that they’d have to die. Really? No thanks. Jesus is going to guide them toward the right expectations.

Yeah, it would be the best of times. But the worst of times, too. Let’s jump into these verses. And think about what they could say to us today. I’ll zoom out, first, and we’ll talk about the big points Jesus is making. We’ll then talk about how all this might apply. Last, I’ll zoom in on a couple of confusing verses.

Troubles Will Come

First, if we follow Him on mission, troubles will find us. Jesus says, right off the bat, in verse 16, “Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves.” You’ve probably heard the talk, over the past several years, that we shouldn’t be sheep. As almost a call to arms, a cry to fight back. But isn’t this exactly what Jesus calls us? He’s the Good Shepherd. He sends us out, it says, on a mission. And what does He call us? “Sheep.”

Now much as been said about sheep not being the smartest animals on the farm, but it doesn’t seem like that’s the emphasis here - our intellect. Right? It’s way more our vulnerability. Don’t you think? He’s sending us out into danger. Fierce “wolves” are gonna come after us. It reminds me of Paul’s words to the elders of Ephesus in Acts 20:29 — “Fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock.” Not literal wolves. We’re not literal sheep. Jesus says, “Beware of men” in verse 17 - and yes, that also includes women. Bad people are going to try to take us out. Our persecution is promised.

Matthew here is writing it seems, mainly to Jewish believers, and the Lord makes it clear here, in verse 17, that their fellow Israelites are going to come at them. “For they will deliver you over to courts and flog you in their synagogues.”

But that’s not all it says. Jesus says in verse 18: “And you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them and the Gentiles.” Non-Jews, Gentiles, would also cause them to suffer. And in both groups, leaders are involved. The heads of the synagogue among the Jewish people. The Roman kings and governors. They’ll come to eat them up.

Now this is literally what we see unfold in the book of Acts - as the church goes out and does what Jesus asks. This also would have resonated with the readers in Matthew’s day, as they’re beginning to be looked upon with suspicion. This is starting to be played out among then.

Now skipping over a couple of verses - that we’ll get back to in a few - the pain is also going to hit close to home, Christ says. Verse 21: “Brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death.” We’ll talk about this more in the weeks to come. But allegiance to Jesus is going to trump allegiance to mom and dad and sister and brother. It’s going to divide families. Even our closest relatives will persecute us. Even kill us.   

And Jesus takes it further - and sums this all up. Verse 22: “And you will be hated by all for my name’s sake.” This isn’t saying every single person. This is all kinds of people. Not “all” without exception. “All” without distinction. We’ll get omni-directional hate if we’re following Jesus. Not just these disciples here. All disciples - including us. Wolves will come at us - from what seems like everywhere. This is what Jesus wants us to expect.

And He gives us this warning, this encouragement. “But the one who endures to the end will be saved.” I say it’s a warning. Only those who endure will be saved. We’ve got to hang on. But it’s also an encouragement. We will be “saved.” He will rescue us. That is, if we patiently endure.

This is the first thing Jesus promises. It’s probably not your favorite promise in the Bible. But this is what He says is coming. To them, to us. This is meant to be our normal. Sheep, being pursued by wolves, enduring persecution.

But our Lord also explains why this is the case. Listen to verses 24 and 25.

Matt. 10:24 “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master.

Matt. 10:25 It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household.

Speaking of the quarterback, for the past several years, as the Chiefs have fallen behind in a game, I’ve turned to the kids, and have yelled out loud, “Don’t forget. We’ve got Pat. They don’t.” With number 15 as our leader, we can pretty much count on a comeback. With Jesus as our leader, yeah, we’ll win out in the end. But right now, before His final return, we’re assured that we’ll suffer.  Where He goes, we go. He’s our teacher. We’re His disciples. He’s our Master. We’re His servants. If it happens to Him, it’s going to happen to us. Or we can be sure, we’re not really following, we’re not really obeying. We’re not His people - at all.

The point of a “servant,” the point of a “disciple” is to what? He reminds us in verse 25. To learn our leader’s ways. To look and act like Him. That’s the point. And with Jesus, it means we’ll undergo trials. And He makes this strange statement here, to close this section out. “If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household.” “Beelzebul?” Now that’s a term that literally means “head of the house,” but there’s a certain house they have in mind.

Again, there’s more of this as we flip ahead in this book. But they’re calling Jesus  Satan. Yes, the One who heads up the household of God. They claim He’s in charge of the house of hell. And Jesus is saying, “If they’re saying this about me - they’re calling me the devil - you better be sure they’re gonna say that about you.”

Back in the Beatitudes, in chapter 5, verse 11, Jesus said this: “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.” We’ll suffer on account of Him. Because of our identification with Him. Our troubles for Christ show that we belong to Christ. As Peter puts it over in 1 Peter 4:14: “If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.” If we follow Him on mission, troubles will find us. That’s the first thing we find here in this passage for today. His ministry had struggles. Indeed, so will ours.

He’ll Be With Us

Here’s a second thing, though. In the midst of trials, He won’t leave us hanging. Let’s look back at verses 19 and 20 once again.

Matt. 10:19 When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour.

Matt. 10:20 For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.

In the midst of our trials, at the hour of our deepest need, He’ll come through for us.  That’s what Jesus says to them. And to us. He encourages here, “Do not be anxious.” Don’t fear. Specifically, “how you are to speak or what you are to say.” Why’s that? Our words will be given to us. How? By the Spirit of God, it says. He’ll bring words to mind. He’ll speak through us. That’s our promise. That’s how we’ll endure. He wouldn’t leave them hanging. He won’t abandon us.

That’s Jesus’s promise to sheep. He doesn’t say, “Stand up for yourself. Fight the powers that be.” He says, you’ll be persecuted. But I’ll rescue you. I’ll even speak through you. That’s a far cry from what some “Christians” are saying today.

Now this is what we see happening in the life of the early church. As we see Christ’s disciples testify with boldness. But this is our promise, as well. It doesn’t mean we shouldn’t prepare for those days. That we shouldn’t know our Bibles and have words ready on our lips. But in the darkest of trials, it won’t be all up to us. Don’t worry. He’ll give us the words. His presence is promised.

Maybe you can relate. I’ve been in hard ministry situations, and have faced some pretty hard conversations. And I’ve prayed. And I’ve been met with God’s help. I’ve felt the Spirit’s presence during those times. How much more will the Spirit of God show up and show out in times of really intense pain! Yes, persecution is promised. But His presence is, too. And that’s so much comfort. Am I right?

These Promises and Our Problems

But here’s the problem that I want us to just say out loud. Don’t these verses feel miles away from us? Don’t these promises feel outside our experience, here in the U.S. of A?

I want you to picture something with me. We’re together in a park, with all our Christian friends, relaxing, having fun. And we see a cave over under a few shady trees. We tiptoe over there. We take a look inside. It looks dark and scary. It’s some sort of tunnel. But we hear Jesus calling us in there. There’s this sense from the Spirit. We’re supposed to enter. But there’s so much unknown. What could be on the other side? We just have the promises of God. Things will get very hard. But I’ll protect you, even then. I’ll be with you!

Well, we look back at the park, with longing for what we see. We feel in control over there. We like having power and privilege. We do. Being in charge. Having the say.

We don’t want to say these verses don’t apply. So we exaggerate the suffering we endure. Persecution is what Starbucks does or doesn’t put on cups. Or what Target does or doesn’t hang on its racks.

We have this nagging feeling that our comfort and ease says something about us. But we try to push it back. We stuff it away. We’re not disobedient. We’re not compromised. Look at how we serve our church. At the charities we support. So we flee back to the picnic tables. And avoid what Jesus calls us to do.

But what if there’s something breathtaking - waiting for us on the other side? Yes, suffering. But also so much blessing. Maybe something that looks like the book of Acts. Getting in trouble. Praying big prayers. Seeing God show up. And then watching our boldness increase. We’re growing in our faith. People are coming to know Jesus. Maybe, just maybe, that is on the other side. A renewed church prayerfully making disciples. On the other side of the passageway. But we end up staying here. In today’s American church. Lukewarm and not doing much at all.

Friends, the days of a Christian nation - if that every really even was the case. That’s long gone. We’re going the way of Europe. To a post-Christian society. We can follow Jesus on this mission. Or we can hang out in the park, raging at the world around. We can reminisce at the way things used to be. Or we can follow Jesus through the tunnel. We can be a prophetic minority, proclaiming His good news, living it out, and seeing Him show up in our pain. What do you want to choose?

I’ve really enjoyed John Starke’s book, The Secret Place of Thunder. He talks about in hard times how we tend toward two different directions. One is despondency. We sink in our depression and move toward despair. The other is nostalgia. We long for the way things used to be. We try to find a way to go back. Starke says this is when we need to “be still” and know that He’s God. And wait for Him to act. To watch Him show up. And rescue His people. And glorify His name. Church, could this be what God’s calling us to here? But it’ll be found on the path of pain. But also the one of joy. Staying in that park, in the place that’s safe, we also miss out on His blessing and power.

This week I was talking to our brother Gbenga. Maybe you’ve heard about the terrorist group in his homeland, Nigeria, called Boko Haram. They kidnap children. They shoot up - they burn down - churches. Gbenga remembers as a kid, living in serious fear. When believers’ cars and homes were being burned. And Christians were being hunted out and killed. He remembers a pastor and family he knew having to hide. From people coming to slice them up. His mom about getting attacked by an unruly, angry mob. And he talks about Boko Haram taking his city under seige. He had to hide for multiple days in his home. While bombs were going off in the city. That was his childhood. Fear because they were Christians. And that’s still what believers are facing there today.

Now where we’re at here in America - this isn’t the experience of the church throughout history. And it’s not the experience of so many in our world today. Persecution is real. And His Spirit is at work. That place in that park. Of comfort and ease. It’s a mirage. It’s passing away. And it is the way that leads to death. Will we follow our Shepherd where He leads? That is where life is found.

Church, we have to embrace and endure persecution and pain, trusting in His presence and power. But what will have to change for this to be something that seems a little more near? It’s simple. We have to be the missionaries Jesus calls us to be here. In verse 18, Christ talks about His disciples bearing witness before both Gentiles and Jews. Testifying to what He’s done. That’s what we’re to do when persecution comes near. But it’s also what causes the suffering in the first place. And I think that witness comes down to basically two things. Two things we see Christ doing here in Matthew. Speaking the truth. Walking in love.

Now in the world of this passage, and also in the days of Acts, Caesar was King. He was Lord. His empire was expanding across the globe. And people were taking that message far and wide, more often than not by force. You could believe in any god you wanted. There was no problem with that. But if you said there was just one way. And that someone else was Lord. Now that could get you killed.

Friends, that world is not that far away. What does Christ ask us to do? To go proclaim that He is the King. That we must submit our lives to Him. To go proclaim that He’s the only King. That He is the way, the truth, the life. Him and Him alone. To go proclaim His coming kingdom. He’ll return and judge, and make everything new. He’ll vindicate His children. He’ll judge all rebels.

And the only way to flee the wrath to come is to run to His cross. This is what we proclaim. We speak the truth. And that’s not easy.

But we also walk in love. Jesus goes around listening and healing and holding children and welcoming the outcasts. He tells us to love our neighbors as ourselves. We go and seek to meet needs. We serve in word and deed. We care for souls and bodies.

We welcome people into our homes. We eat meals with people others neglect. We don’t just proclaim truth. We live in love. Breaking stereotypes. Confusing many we come to know. We say some hard words. But we do some kind deeds. And many are drawn to us. But also many get really mad. As we bear witness.

The early church got wrath from all sides. From Gentiles and Jews. From relativists and legalists. If we seek to faithfully live out God’s word - here in our city - we’re going to get anger from all directions, just as Jesus predicts here.

If on one hand, we did all we could to care for children - for the unborn and for orphans. And on the other, we stood up against racism - and called out all the evils across our land. If on one hand, we modeled God’s vision for sex and held out His good design for marriage.

And on the other, we welcomed the immigrant, and the refugee, we’d get grief from both sides. And we would need the Spirit of God, for sure. This is the way the early church lived. And they were turning the world upside down.

Now I love the ampersand. I’ve always told my kids - most things are both/and. I hate being backed into a corner. But I’ve been reading recently through this book by a guy named Chris Watkins. And he has a better way to put it. He urges toward what he calls diagonalization. You just don’t have race over here and the unborn over here, and say we’re a people that cares about both.

No, we have a way of looking at the world that cuts through both of them - on the diagonal. A faith that takes everything upward. A view that values life, because we’re made in God’s image - from the womb to the tomb - and in all its diversity. From every tribe, tongue, and nation. The gospel gives us something that transcends even both perspectives. It’s even more glorious. But it’s also something that tends to make people on both sides really, really mad.

Today, we’re more likely to make people upset, as they look at the way we act. But as Dave Adamson has put it, “If the world hates you because of Jesus, that’s expected. If the world hates Jesus because of you, that’s a problem.” Other times, we offend people because we’re bowing down to another king - to money, to sex, to power. To a political party. And then talking about Jesus.

But so much of the time, we’re just living in fear. We’re not hated at all. Because we’re controlled by the approval of others. And we don’t share or live out what Jesus teaches at all.

Let’s abide in Jesus. Let’s draw near to Him. And look more and more like Him. And that will carry us away from a place of comfort and ease. But toward a life of joy and blessing. I love these words from David Platt:

“Everyone who wants a safe, carefree life free from danger should stay away from Jesus. The world responds with hostility to Him. So as we are conformed to Christ more and more, the world will respond to us more and more as they responded to Him. If you want to avoid being betrayed, hated, or persecuted, then don’t become like Christ! We are so prone to sit back and settle for religious routine and comfortable Christianity, because it’s safe.

And the world likes us in that mode. As long as we live lives just like everyone else—going to church on Sunday and keeping our faith to ourselves—we will face little risk in this world. The only problem is that we will know so little of Christ. But when we do know Christ, and when we’re becoming like Him and proclaiming Him, things will not be easy for us. The more Christ is manifest in your life and in your family, the harder it will get for you in this world.” (David Platt)

Family, let’s do what He asks. And believe Him as we go. Let’s embrace and endure persecution and pain, trusting in His presence and power.

Two Strange Sentences

Now there are couple of strange sentences that probably stood out to you. They certainly did to me. And they help us get to a mindset we need as we go out on mission for Him.

First, there’s that line in verse 16 where Christ tells us to be “wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” As we go, we have be thoughtful. I love the book The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom. In Holland in WWII, Corrie and her family end up helping and harboring Jewish people who are in danger from the Nazis. But there’s this interesting dynamic between her and her sister Betsie.

Corrie will stretch the truth to keep the people there safe. But Betsie seeks to always tell the truth, trusting God to work it out. She would have given away the secret room rather than deceive the German troops.

Those two women give us a picture of the tension we see here. Serpents, of course, hearken back to Satan in the garden, when the fall in sin took place. Without the righteousness of Jesus, wisdom becomes cunning, it becomes deceit. And doves in the Hosea are called “silly and without sense.”

Without the wisdom of Jesus, innocence becomes naïveté. As we walk in this world, with “wolves” all around, we have to be perceptive. We have to be discerning, on one hand. And we also have to have integrity. We need to show vulnerability, on the other. We have to be very thoughtful.

Second, there’s that statement in verse 23. As we go, we need to be hopeful. “When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next, for truly, I say to you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.” We’re not called to go looking for persecution. If we encounter it, we’re even encouraged to flee. But what about the end of that statement? Was Jesus wrong? Should we doubt God’s word?

There’s more to it than that. Some have said this refers to Jesus coming back, resurrected from the dead. But others have pointed to God judging the Jewish people in 70 A.D. When the temple was destroyed, and those who weren’t killed had to flee. I lean toward that. The fall of Jerusalem back in that day.

That came true. The Christians were busy sharing the gospel. God came in judgment. And they had to flee the holy land.

But that also points ahead to our day. Or the one that’s yet to come. And gives us a lot of hope. One day our ministry will be interrupted - by the coming of Jesus. We won’t get to all the places we want go. And He’ll come back. Our suffering will end with the coming of Jesus. He’ll set up His Kingdom once and for all. So we should be hopeful people in this world in which we live. Thoughtful and hopeful. That’s the mindset we need.

Pain and Presence

Well, church, what if we read the gospels - along with the book of Acts - and actually believed it? And acted like it? We’d sure find pain. But His presence, as well. And Christ’s words here, in Matthew 10, would come to life.    

When I finished up seminary, my wife realized her expectations were a little out of whack. I started thinking about this thing called church planting. And she got nervous. She had this image of me taking this job at this cute church out in the country. And everything playing out like a Little House on the Prairie book. Well, heading into an established church has its whole list of challenges. But church planting is at a whole other level. Of course, I had no idea what I was getting into, either. But as I tell people all the time. It’s been the hardest thing. But the greatest thing, as well.

What are your expectations for Christian ministry? For what it means to serve Jesus in this world? Think about what Jesus says here again. You like that? Or do you want something else? In the coming weeks, as we keep rolling through Matthew, Jesus is going to keep telling us what it will all cost.

We’ll hear these well-known words in chapter 10: “And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it” (Matthew 10:38-39). It’s all worth it, family. We can’t forget that. Not only do we expect trials. And expect Him to meet us in the midst of them. We look ahead to a new heavens and new earth. Where all of this pain will cease forever.

This fall, we’re going to be talking about making disciples. Sharing our faith. Seeing people come to Jesus. Let’s devote ourselves to doing that, no matter the cost. And as we do, let’s pray that God would renew us. That He’d fill us with zeal to go out for Him, and that He’d give us boldness as we encounter abuse.  Let’s embrace and endure persecution and pain, trusting in His presence and power. Let’s pray.