His words really cut to my heart, but I should have expected that reaction from the world. It cannot be otherwise, for when we decide to follow Jesus, we WILL provoke the world to insult, violence, and slander. Jesus said as much in Matthew 5:11.

Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. [Matthew 5:11 KJV]

Are we greater than our Master [1]? All those who proclaim the name of Jesus CAN expect persecution and slander, guaranteed. Many think that wusses and namby-pambies follow Christ. This author says and believes just the opposite. How many of us stand up in a crowd and proclaim the name of Jesus without being a little intimidated, scared, or afraid of rejection? Following Christ separates us from the world [2]. We can expect the persecution.

When they persecute us for the sake of Christ, does Jesus need defending? Absolutely not. The Bible says not to recompense [3] evil for evil [4]. Any reciprocity or defense of Christ would seem retaliatory. However, I think it’s high time that we Christians come out of our closets and turn on some light. Our light is why they hate us.

The darkness can’t stand the light and the world is too comfortable in their sin [5]. We, as Christians, are not only to shine the light on a dying world [6], but Christ Himself has mandated, just before His ascension, that we should tell the world about Him [7].

Remember how each Beatitude had a condition and a result? The result of the ninth Beatitude [8] is located in verse 12 of Matthew five.

Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. [Matthew 5:12 KJV]

What an awesome result. Hallelujah! It looks like we are in great company. Suffering for the sake of Christ is an honor to me [9]. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain [10].

Thanks for reading along as we visited this condensed look at the Sermon on the Mount. Will the world continue to persecute us, slander us, revile us, and say all manner of evil toward us because of Christ? Absolutely, but Rejoice. . .for great is your reward in heaven. So fasten your safety belts; the road to our glory in Christ may get a little bumpy. Until then, stay in God’s Word, talk to Him daily [11], and remember who you represent as you listen to all the reproaches directed at you for the sake of Christ.
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[1] Matthew 10:24; John 13:16; John 15:18-25
[2] John 15:18, 19; 2 Corinthians 6:17, and others
[3] Return
[4] Romans 12:17
[5] John 3:20
[6] Matthew 5:14-16
[7] Matthew 28:19, 20
[8] Many say that there are only eight Beatitudes as they group verse 10 and eleven as one, but because they are different, they cannot count as such. It is irrelevant and not worth the schism in the body
[9] 1 Peter 4:12-19; John 15:18; 2 Timothy 3:12; Galatians 2:20, and many more
[10] Philippians 1:21
[11] 1 Thessalonians 5:17 Pray all day by just talking with God and including Him in everything.