I know.  Me too.  The last thing I want to think about is a 2021 that might be worse than 2020.  But what if it happens?  How will the church respond?  The American church has long been a church that has prayed for ease, comfort, favor, and for the hardships of life to simply pass us by in the name of Jesus.  At the same time, our spiritual brothers and sisters in the Middle East, in China, in Indonesia, in parts of Africa, and other places have undergone the most severe persecution, including torture and death.  We have had favored status in America so long that we believe comfort and acceptance of Christianity is the norm and what we should expect Christianity to look like.  When life becomes hard, we are tempted to feel betrayed by God.

However, the church was born in adversity.  Before Jesus was two years old Herod tried to murder him and Mary and Joseph had to flee to Egypt.  His family returned to Israel after the death of Herod, but essentially still hid out in the little town of Nazareth in Galilee far from Jerusalem.  John the Baptist was opposed by religious leaders and was killed for speaking out against sin and corruption in government.  Jesus and the twelve were conspired against by the religious ruling class of Israel and Jesus was crucified. After Jesus returned to the Father, those who preached the gospel were opposed, imprisoned, beaten, slandered, and scattered for the sake of the gospel. Jesus clearly said that in this world, we would have trouble and that if the world hated him, it would surely hate those who followed him.

I’m not saying that there have not been seasons of peace and even favor for believers throughout history but there has also been hardship and persecution – especially in these latter days.  There is more world-wide persecution against Christians now and more believers being martyred now than at any time in history. The church, by nature, is always counter-cultural unless an entire nation has been discipled.  If we stand with God, the culture will be offended.  If we stand long enough, the culture will either be converted or hate us.  There is clearly a war on Christianity brewing in this nation as we live in a culture that calls good evil and evil good. Whenever the church compromises with culture to keep the peace and curry favor with the powerful, the door is opened for the enemy to enter and he will.  

We may need to begin to consider how we will respond if our culture continues to align itself with Satan instead of Jesus. If our mindset is that God owes us comfort and safety, then we may surrender much of our faith to stay comfortable and safe (although not spiritually safe).

I’m not saying that we should reject the blessings of peace and favor when they come, but we must always be ready for conflict and willing to stand with God when the enemy rises.

The truth is, we learn more about faith and about God in seasons of hardship than we ever do when everything is going our way.  The fledgling church of Jerusalem quickly faced great opposition to their preaching. In Acts 4, Peter and John were threatened by the Sanhedrin and commanded not to speak in the name of Jesus any longer. Instead of compromising with the Sanhedrin in order to avoid persecution, they replied, “Which is right in God’s eyes: to listen to you or to him?… As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard (Acts 4:18-20). 

Peter and John returned to their little band of believers and reported on the threats.  The response was instructive. “Now, Lord. Consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness.  Stretch out your hand to heal and perform signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant, Jesus (Acts 4:29-30).  They didn’t pray for comfort, favor, or even protection.  They prayed for great boldness and world-shaking miracles in the name of Jesus.  

A lot of churchmen today would have counseled the church to soft pedal things for a while or adjust their stance on Jesus just a little to demonstrate more tolerance, etc.  That is not what the Jerusalem church did and the response from heaven was clear.  “After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken.  And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word boldly” (Acts 4:31).  

I don’t know what 2021 holds for the followers of Jesus, but we may want to decide now how we will pray then, if we find ourselves in a culture even more hostile to the faith than it is now.  We will have to decide which is more important – safety and comfort in this world or eternal life and glory with the Father.  We may not be able to have both.  

Blessings and boldness in Him.