¤ ¤
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In late July of 1944 Adolph
Hitler was furious. There had
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just been an assassination plot
on his life, while he was in his
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steel headquarters the Wolf's
Lair in what was code-named
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Operation Valkyrie. A bomb in
a briefcase was detonated in a
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conference room. Hitler was
meeting there with 20 of his
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most senior officers. However,
Hitler survived with only
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relatively minor injuries and he
came out looking for blood. In
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the aftermath the Gestapo
arrested more than 7000 people
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and executed 4990 of them. Among
them was the prominent German
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theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer.
How did he get caught up in this
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Well today Bonhoeffer is
considered a modern martyr. He
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chose so suffer with his people
and to actively oppose evil.
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He did it because of his
Christian faith and he paid for
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it with his life. Real
persecution and martyrdom aren't
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something that most people
in the west are familiar with.
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Bonhoeffer's fascinating story
gives us insights into how the
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issues around persecution aren't
necessarily simple. Join me as
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we follow his story and find out
what it takes to make a martyr.
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¤ ¤
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I'm here beside the Sea of
Galilee where Jesus gave us the
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Beatitudes. The center of Jesus'
teachings about the kingdom of
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God is the sermon on the mount.
And at the very heart of the
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sermon on the mount are the
beatitudes. So if we want to
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really know what it means to be
a follower of Jesus and to live
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as a citizen of the kingdom
of God then we must understand
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Christ's teaching in the
beatitudes. But the beatitudes
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aren't just spiritual principles
for Christians. They're arguably
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the body of principles that has
been most influential in shaping
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Western civilization as we know
it today. The word beatitude
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is an old fashioned
religious sounding word that not
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many people recognize today.
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It refers to being
blissfully happy. When
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Jesus calls people blessed
in the beatitudes that's exactly
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what he means. He means that if
you display these qualities you
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will be blissfully happy. This
is the happiness that belongs
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only to God and that can come
only from God. In other words,
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when in your life you display
the qualities Jesus described in
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the beatitudes you will share in
the joy of heaven here on earth.
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It's the only way to truly live.
Jesus sat on a hill so that the
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large crowd could hear him and
he taught the people the most
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radical and influential set of
principles for living that this
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world has ever heard. And among
the beatitudes he said this in
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Matthew chapter 5 and verse 10:
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Like each of the beatitudes
there is a great truth hidden in
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this radical contradiction
and this great truth can be seen
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played out in the life
of Dietrich Bonhoeffer.
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In the modern world when we hear
the word martyr we most often
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associate it with radical
religious fundamentalists who
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believe it their duty to die in
the process of murdering as many
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people as possible who oppose
their personal beliefs. But
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that's not what the Christian
Bible teaches that martyrdom is.
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To be a martyr means to stand
up and witness for the love and
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truth of God even at the cost of
your own life. There have been
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countless millions of martyrs
for God throughout history. We
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know the names of a few but the
names of most have today been
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forgotten by us, but not by God.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer is a modern
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day martyr and we want to
share the story of Dietrich
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Bonhoeffer to illustrate the
meaning of this beatitude. His
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life illustrates that it's
not easy to tread the path of
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persecution. Now you may think
that what I've just said is
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obvious but it isn't because
being persecuted because of
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righteousness is not simply a
matter of what others do to you.
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It's the intensely
personal inner conflict and soul
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searching that
goes along with it.
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Dietrich Bonhoeffer's path
in life was set when at the
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age of 12.
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he shocked his family by
announcing that he wanted to
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become a theologian, a
Bible scholar, an expert in
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Christianity and religion. From
an early age Dietrich had shown
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great musical talent on
the piano and his aristocratic
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family was convinced that he was
headed for a glittering musical
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career. That's why his family
was so taken aback when he told
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them of his decision to study
theology and the Bible. Dietrich
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was as good as his word. When
he was 21 years old he earned
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his first doctorate graduating
Suma Cum Laude. In Germany it's
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a requirement for academics to
complete two doctorates before
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being qualified to hold academic
positions. That's why three
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years later he went on to
complete a second doctorate in
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theology. In between doctorates
Dietrich spent time in Spain
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working as a youth pastor
to German expatriates. After
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completing his second doctorate
Dietrich was still too young to
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be ordained as a pastor so in
1930 at the age of 24 he went to
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the United States to do further
postgraduate studies and to
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teach at the Union Theological
Seminary in New York. At that
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time Union Theological Seminary
was a hotbed of liberalism and
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modern thought and Bonhoeffer
was not impressed. There's no
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theology here, he wrote. However
through his friendship with
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African American pastors
Bonhoeffer began to see the
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gospels from the low as he
called it, from the perspective
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of those who suffer oppression.
His experiences abroad helped
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turn the gospels from mere words
to reality. After his time in
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New York Dietrich returned
to Germany in 1931 where he was
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ordained as a pastor and took up
the position of lecturer at the
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University of Berlin at just
25 years of age. At around this
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time it became clear that
Dietrich had undergone somewhat
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of a personal conversion. He had
gone from being mainly attracted
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to the intellectual side of
Christianity to becoming a man
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of faith who was dedicated
to carry out the teachings of
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Christ as he found them revealed
in the Gospels. ¤ ¤ This was a
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time of great upheaval in
Germany. A new leader, the
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charismatic Adolph Hitler, was
emerging and he seemed to be the
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nations answer to prayer.
Hitler's rise to power was
00:09:01.97\00:09:06.11
welcomed enthusiastically
by most parts of German society
00:09:06.14\00:09:10.45
including most of the Lutheran
Church, the dominant church of
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the nation. One pastor wrote at
this time: Christ has come to us
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through Adolph Hitler. However
Bonhoeffer opposed Adolph Hitler
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from the very beginning. Just
two days after he was elected
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as Chancellor in January
1933 Bonhoeffer made a radio
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broadcast criticizing him
warning of the idolatrous cult
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of the Fuhrer and Nazism
that was sweeping Germany. His
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broadcast was cut off mid-air.
Bonhoeffer was also the first
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religious voice to call for
Christian resistance to Hitler's
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persecution of the Jews. In his
opposition to Hitler's policies
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Bonhoeffer also courageously
went against his own church.
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Bonhoeffer felt disillusioned
by the witness of the church
00:10:03.43\00:10:08.20
in opposing the evils of Nazism
and in the autumn of 1933 he
00:10:08.24\00:10:14.28
accepted a two-year appointment
to pastor a German-speaking
00:10:14.31\00:10:18.01
protestant church in London.
While in London Bonhoeffer was
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offered a well sought after
opportunity to study non violent
00:10:23.28\00:10:26.99
resistance under Gandhi in India
However, Bonhoeffer turned down
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the opportunity because
he'd already made up his mind to
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return to his Germany. That was
because he felt called to return
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and share in his homeland's
struggles despite the bleak
00:10:41.30\00:10:45.27
situation there. So after
two years in London Bonhoeffer
00:10:45.31\00:10:50.55
returned to Germany. On his
return to Germany Bonhoeffer
00:10:50.58\00:10:55.08
found himself pronounced as a
pacifist and as an enemy of the
00:10:55.12\00:10:59.35
state. In 1936, he was forbidden
to teach and his books were
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officially banned. For two years
Bonhoeffer conducted underground
00:11:05.49\00:11:10.53
seminaries, traveled throughout
the country secretly teaching
00:11:10.57\00:11:14.70
pastors. He would change
location constantly to stay one
00:11:14.74\00:11:19.21
step ahead of the dreaded
Gestapo. During these two years
00:11:19.24\00:11:24.28
while he taught and ran from the
Gestapo Bonhoeffer wrote a study
00:11:24.31\00:11:29.48
on the sermon on the mount which
is called in English The Cost of
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Discipleship. In it, Bonhoeffer
argued true discipleship really
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costs. In fact, it costs
everything. Bonhoeffer attacks
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cheap grace as a cover
for ethical laxity. Instead
00:11:45.77\00:11:51.74
Bonhoeffer preached costly
grace This is what he wrote:
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By now Bonhoeffer was becoming
more and more worried that he
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would soon be arrested. So
in June 1939 he left Germany for
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the safety of the United States.
The plan was for Bonhoeffer to
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safely sit out the war abroad.
But as soon as Bonhoeffer
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stepped off the ship in New
York City he knew that he didn't
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belong there. His place was
back in Germany. He didn't feel
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relieved to be safe. All he felt
was guilt for not having the
00:12:52.17\00:12:57.21
courage to practice what he
preached. Bonhoeffer's personal
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mantra was:
00:13:02.08\00:13:03.41
Within a month Bonhoeffer
was back in Germany in the full
00:13:17.53\00:13:22.83
knowledge that he was stepping
right back into persecution.
00:13:22.86\00:13:26.23
Then surprisingly Bonhoeffer did
something that no one expected
00:13:26.27\00:13:32.54
he would do. Incredibly
he managed to join the German
00:13:32.57\00:13:37.81
Secret Service. But here's why.
He joined as a double agent.
00:13:37.85\00:13:44.09
Bonhoeffer worked secretly
behind the scenes to save as
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many Jews from the death camps
as possible. As part of his work
00:13:48.82\00:13:53.36
as a double agent Bonhoeffer
also made contact with some
00:13:53.40\00:13:58.20
military officers who
were secretly part of the small
00:13:58.23\00:14:01.50
German resistance opposed
to Adolph Hitler. Through them
00:14:01.54\00:14:07.18
Bonhoeffer also had information
about various assassination
00:14:07.21\00:14:11.65
plots to kill Hitler. However
it was during a rescue attempt
00:14:11.68\00:14:16.58
trying to help some German Jews
escaped to Switzerland that led
00:14:16.62\00:14:21.12
to Bonhoeffer's arrest. One
April afternoon in 1943 two men
00:14:21.16\00:14:28.53
arrived in a black Mercedes, put
Bonhoeffer in the car and took
00:14:28.56\00:14:32.60
him to Tevu prison. Bonhoeffer
spent two years in prison. He
00:14:32.63\00:14:38.41
spent his time writing letters
to his friends and family as
00:14:38.44\00:14:42.18
well as being a pastor to his
fellow prisoners. His letters
00:14:42.21\00:14:46.48
and writings were smuggled out
by sympathetic guards. Here's
00:14:46.51\00:14:50.92
something he wrote during
his years in prison: It shows us
00:14:50.95\00:14:55.06
what encouraged him during his
dark years of suffering. As we
00:14:55.09\00:15:00.23
read them notice the echoes of
the writings of the apostle Paul
00:15:00.26\00:15:05.13
On the 20th of July 1944
there was a failed bomb plot to
00:15:38.73\00:15:47.44
assassinate Hitler. It was the
closest any attempt had come to
00:15:47.48\00:15:52.01
killing him. The Fuhrer was
furious. Bonhoeffer and many
00:15:52.05\00:15:58.12
other who had resisted Hitler's
regime in any way whatsoever was
00:15:58.15\00:16:02.86
sentenced to death. So
Bonhoeffer was sent to the
00:16:02.89\00:16:06.83
extermination camp at
Flossenburg. Payne Best a
00:16:06.86\00:16:12.67
captured RAF pilot and fellow
prisoner wrote this observation
00:16:12.70\00:16:16.60
of Bonhoeffer:
00:16:16.64\00:16:38.06
At the break of dawn on April
9, 1945 Dietrich Bonhoeffer was
00:16:38.09\00:16:45.50
hanged. As anticipation for his
death he preached a final sermon
00:16:45.53\00:16:50.81
His words were remembered
and later retold by Payne Best.
00:16:50.84\00:16:55.58
He said:
00:16:55.61\00:16:57.18
Today Bonhoeffer is remembered
as a great modern martyr for the
00:17:03.79\00:17:07.29
message of Jesus Christ.
His principled resistance to
00:17:07.32\00:17:11.26
Hitler's regime became a source
of inspiration for other great
00:17:11.29\00:17:16.00
modern leaders such as Martin
Luther King. So what did Jesus
00:17:16.03\00:17:22.10
mean 2000 years ago when he said
right here, Blessed are those
00:17:22.14\00:17:27.71
who are persecuted because of
righteousness. When Jesus said
00:17:27.74\00:17:32.28
this the word for witness
and the word for martyr were the
00:17:32.31\00:17:36.65
same word. In other words when
you witness to the truth of what
00:17:36.69\00:17:41.39
you knew about Jesus you could
expect to be persecuted. It also
00:17:41.42\00:17:47.50
works the other way around.
Being persecuted and giving
00:17:47.53\00:17:51.57
up your life for the truth about
Jesus was the ultimate form of
00:17:51.60\00:17:55.47
witnessing for him. We know that
all of Christ's disciples were
00:17:55.50\00:17:59.71
persecuted and all except one
died a martyr's death. But it's
00:17:59.74\00:18:05.41
easy to think that this
beatitude was relevant to the
00:18:05.45\00:18:08.98
first centuries of Christianity
but not so much now. Well there
00:18:09.02\00:18:14.19
are two realities that should
make us rethink this. The first
00:18:14.22\00:18:18.86
one is that according to
the nonprofit organization Open
00:18:18.89\00:18:23.57
Doors last year alone there
were over 250 million Christians
00:18:23.60\00:18:28.37
living in places where
they experience high levels of
00:18:28.40\00:18:32.21
persecution. And 4305 Christians
were killed for their faith.
00:18:32.24\00:18:38.61
Basically for saying that they
believe in Jesus Christ. And the
00:18:38.65\00:18:44.85
second reality is that the
Bible tells us this in 2 Timothy
00:18:44.89\00:18:49.29
chapter three and verse 12:
00:18:49.32\00:18:51.59
In other words and unfortunately
persecution is business as usual
00:18:59.13\00:19:05.74
in this world of ours. If you're
a follower of Jesus and you
00:19:05.77\00:19:10.25
aren't being persecuted then
thank God that you are living in
00:19:10.28\00:19:14.65
a tiny bubble of time and space
in which you are being spared.
00:19:14.68\00:19:19.39
The other thought that comes
from this verse is that those
00:19:19.42\00:19:23.73
who live godly lives won't look
for persecution; it will come
00:19:23.76\00:19:28.33
to them. If you are a follower
of Jesus then you should really
00:19:28.36\00:19:33.57
understand that most Christians
in the world don't have the
00:19:33.60\00:19:37.84
luxury you have. And you can
be sure that things will go back
00:19:37.87\00:19:42.31
someday to business as usual.
There were a number of reasons
00:19:42.34\00:19:47.05
why Christians were persecuted
in the first centuries of
00:19:47.08\00:19:50.49
Christianity. In the end they
all came down to the fact that
00:19:50.52\00:19:55.52
they were different. Christians
had different values to the rest
00:19:55.56\00:19:59.23
of their culture. At the core
Christians refused to worship
00:19:59.26\00:20:04.67
what the rest of their
world worshipped. In the first
00:20:04.70\00:20:09.20
centuries of Christianity,
persecution could take a variety
00:20:09.24\00:20:13.71
of forms ranging from being
socially ostracized to being
00:20:13.74\00:20:18.31
killed in the most barbaric and
prolonged ways possible. Today
00:20:18.35\00:20:23.59
persecution in some parts of the
world continues in these ways.
00:20:23.62\00:20:28.16
And in other more developed
nations is also continues in
00:20:28.19\00:20:32.99
more sophisticated and subtle
forms. The only weapon which
00:20:33.03\00:20:38.07
followers of Jesus can use
against persecution are the
00:20:38.10\00:20:42.50
intelligent presentation of
Bible beliefs and importantly
00:20:42.54\00:20:46.64
the loving demonstration of the
Christian life. But how is it
00:20:46.68\00:20:52.05
possible for Christ to say that
those who are persecuted are
00:20:52.08\00:20:57.15
supremely happy? Well William
Barclay puts it this way:
00:20:57.19\00:21:02.32
Persecution is also an
opportunity. It's an opportunity
00:21:31.45\00:21:36.86
to demonstrate loyalty, to show
that a person is not ashamed of
00:21:36.89\00:21:42.03
the gospel of Christ and that he
isn't afraid to show whose he is
00:21:42.06\00:21:47.24
and whom he serves. To be
persecuted is to walk in the way
00:21:47.27\00:21:54.18
of the greatest followers of God
But most importantly of all to
00:21:54.21\00:21:59.21
be persecuted is to walk in
the way of Jesus Christ. In his
00:21:59.25\00:22:04.49
beatitudes Jesus said this:
00:22:04.52\00:22:07.49
Over and over again the verdict
of history has been in favor of
00:22:14.76\00:22:20.40
the persecuted and not the
persecutor. So too God will
00:22:20.44\00:22:25.77
pronounce his verdict in favor
of his persecuted followers.
00:22:25.81\00:22:29.64
That's why the Bible says this
in 2 Timothy chapter two and
00:22:29.68\00:22:34.45
verse 12:
00:22:34.48\00:22:35.82
In fact, here is perhaps
the deepest thought of all about
00:22:42.09\00:22:45.96
those who are persecuted for
righteousness sake: The Bible
00:22:45.99\00:22:49.83
says that when we go through
this experience we are suffering
00:22:49.86\00:22:55.00
together with Christ. But what
could that possibly mean? Well
00:22:55.04\00:23:00.61
it's this. Those who accept and
endure persecution for the sake
00:23:00.64\00:23:05.31
of Jesus Christ are placed in
a special relationship with him.
00:23:05.35\00:23:09.78
They have followed the example
of Christ and walked in his
00:23:09.82\00:23:14.09
steps for the sake of
righteousness and love. When you
00:23:14.12\00:23:18.99
are being persecuted right
now you might not understand but
00:23:19.03\00:23:23.53
Paul, a man who was hounded
by persecution for the sake of
00:23:23.57\00:23:27.80
Jesus certainly understood
what Jesus meant when he said:
00:23:27.84\00:23:31.17
He understood how it was that
it was these people who were the
00:23:35.74\00:23:40.32
ones who were supremely happy.
That's why Paul wrote this in
00:23:40.35\00:23:43.95
1 Thessalonians chapter five:
00:23:43.99\00:23:46.42
If a Christian's greatest desire
really is to be united with
00:23:54.40\00:23:59.33
Jesus then that relationship
means that he or she will be
00:23:59.37\00:24:04.01
prepared to go through
both the good times and times of
00:24:04.04\00:24:07.64
suffering, even persecution.
In short, we must be prepared to
00:24:07.68\00:24:13.45
suffer together with Christ and
also to be raised up with him.
00:24:13.48\00:24:18.45
Remember Jesus said:
00:24:18.49\00:24:20.82
That means because of the
righteousness of Jesus. It means
00:24:27.53\00:24:32.03
for his sake not ours. It says:
00:24:32.07\00:24:35.10
Then there are those
followers of Jesus who know that
00:24:39.04\00:24:42.68
persecution will come and they
fear it. If that's you, then
00:24:42.71\00:24:47.95
Jesus is calling you to a
deeper relationship with him, to
00:24:47.98\00:24:52.49
experience a more perfect love
because as the Bible tells us
00:24:52.52\00:24:56.89
in 1 John chapter
four and verse 18:
00:24:56.93\00:25:00.33
When you love Jesus so much that
your greatest desire is to be
00:25:05.07\00:25:09.57
like him, loving, patient
and kind, you'll be ready for
00:25:09.60\00:25:14.48
whatever may come even
persecution. To enter into that
00:25:14.51\00:25:19.15
kind of love of the truth you
need to love God's word and hold
00:25:19.18\00:25:23.99
fast. It will draw you to Jesus.
It will draw you to the cross.
00:25:24.02\00:25:29.59
If you would like Jesus as the
focal point of your life because
00:25:29.62\00:25:34.53
of what Jesus did for you at the
cross, then nothing will be too
00:25:34.56\00:25:39.23
great a sacrifice for him.
If you want to accept Jesus like
00:25:39.27\00:25:44.04
that and follow him then I'd
like to recommend the free gift
00:25:44.07\00:25:47.94
that we have for all our
Incredible Journey viewers today
00:25:47.98\00:25:52.15
It's an easy to read booklet
Never Give Up. This small
00:25:52.18\00:25:57.39
booklet will only take you a
few minutes to read but it could
00:25:57.42\00:26:01.26
assist you to remain faithful
to Jesus and help you find the
00:26:01.29\00:26:04.79
right words to be a real
blessing and encouragement to
00:26:04.83\00:26:09.03
others. This booklet is our gift
to you and is absolutely free.
00:26:09.06\00:26:14.70
I guarantee that there are no
costs or obligations whatsoever.
00:26:14.74\00:26:19.21
So make sure you take this
wonderful opportunity to receive
00:26:19.24\00:26:23.58
the free gift we
have for you today.
00:26:23.61\00:26:26.92
Phone or text us at 0436-333-555
in Australia or 020-422-2042 in
00:26:26.95\00:26:38.16
New Zealand or visit our website
TiJ.tv to frequent today's free
00:26:38.19\00:26:44.87
offer and we'll send it to you
totally free of charge and with
00:26:44.90\00:26:48.20
no obligation. Write to us at:
00:26:48.24\00:27:02.88
Don't delay. Call or text us now
00:27:02.92\00:27:09.22
If you have enjoyed our journey
to Galilee in Israel and our
00:27:09.26\00:27:13.40
reflections on the beatitudes
and those who are persecuted for
00:27:13.43\00:27:17.70
their belief in Jesus and trust
in God then be sure to join us
00:27:17.73\00:27:22.04
again next week when we will
share another of life's journeys
00:27:22.07\00:27:26.91
together. Until then may you
find and experience the inner
00:27:26.94\00:27:31.78
peace and happiness that comes
to those who know Jesus and
00:27:31.81\00:27:36.35
trust in him. Let's pray.
00:27:36.38\00:27:38.99
Dear heavenly Father, we think
back in awe to all the martyrs
00:27:39.02\00:27:44.96
who gave their lives for you
and then we thank you for the
00:27:44.99\00:27:49.53
sacrifice of Jesus on the cross
for our sins. Father, we pray
00:27:49.56\00:27:55.20
for grace and mercy for those
who are being persecuted for
00:27:55.24\00:27:58.77
your sake today. Give us
the courage to be strong in the
00:27:58.81\00:28:03.98
circumstances in
00:28:04.01\00:28:05.65
which we are living today.
In Jesus' name we pray, Amen.
00:28:05.68\00:28:13.39
¤ ¤
00:28:13.42\00:28:25.17