Peace is not the absence of trouble but the presence of Jesus!
It is not easy to live faithful to religious convictions under an earthy power the is opposed to those convictions. That was the struggle of the Hebrews in Babylon. Babylon overpowered their holy city, they destroyed the temple, and plundered the sacred furnishings. And they took them as captives to their pagan city. In Babylon, even the food they were given to eat violated their religious convictions.
Their religious trouble seemed to be resolved when the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar admitted that their “God is the god of gods” (Daniel 2:27). Daniel and his friends may have felt some religious freedom when the king promoted them to positions of rulership over the province of Babylon (Daniel 2:48-49).
Then the king got an idea. He liked that identity as the head of gold and he made a 90ft tall image of gold (Daniel 3:4). He called the Babylonian officials together and commanded them to bow and worship the image when they heard the music. The Hebrews couldn’t do that. They worshipped a God who commanded them to worship nothing else. But it got even worse! The decree added, “Whoever does not fall down and worship will immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace.” (v.6).
That is a worship service very different than what we enjoy today. There is no religious freedom. They had options, bow or burn. We can choose if and when and where we worship. In our world today and in our history, this religious freedom is rare. And we can imagine it being taken away when we see mandates closing church buildings and worship service limitations. These are small losses of freedom. We can imagine greater losses of religious freedom that would place us in a situation like the Hebrews on the Plain of Dura.
The Hebrews had to choose between obeying God or obeying earthly powers. Obedience to one was disobedience to the other. Loyalty to heaven made them lawbreakers on earth. Faithfulness to God resulted in persecution from man. How far are we from being faced with that decision?
The fiery furnace got the attention of the people. The music played, the fire burned, the people bowed, the Hebrews didn’t. And people noticed and told the king (v.12).
The king was, “furious with rage” (v.13). He called for them, asked them if it was true, then reminded them of the command and the fire. He ended with the question, “Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?” (v.15). The devil likes to throw that one out there to suggest that the persecution is bigger than our God. The Hebrews didn’t fall for it.
They replied, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” (Daniel 3:16-18).
What a reply! When we are persecuted, we don’t need to defend ourselves! God is able to save! The “even if he does not” phrase reminds us that God doesn’t always deliver us from the persecution. The goal is not comfort or safety or preservation of life! It’s faithfulness. God’s faithfulness to us is not dependent on him preventing bad stuff from happening to us. And our faithfulness to God is not dependent on us getting good things from him.
Notice, the attitude of someone who doesn’t fear persecution says, “we want you to know.” If they care about their life, they should not want the king to know that are disobeying him. We don’t have to turn ourselves in, but we should be unashamed about our love for Jesus.
The kings “attitude toward them changed” (v.19). Before he was furious but gracious enough to give them another chance. After their response the chances were over. The fire was heated seven times hotter than usual, hot enough to kill the soldiers who threw them in (v.22). But the Hebrews weren’t burned.
Nebuchadnezzar gets to say the punchline of the drama. God used the lips of a persecuting power, 2,600 years ago, to speak the truth we need to hear today. A reality that can free us from the fear of persecution.
Listen to this awesome reality from the lips of King Nebuchadnezzar.
He leaped to his feet and asked, “Weren’t there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?” They replied, “Certainly, Your Majesty.” He said, “Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.” (Daniel 2:24-25).
Nebuchadnezzar’s threat of persecution spoke fear into the people on that day. Nebuchadnezzar’s observation of God’s presence speaks peace to us today.
When we go into the fire Jesus goes with us! God did not stop the persecution and he didn’t leave them to face it alone. He didn’t put out the fire. He didn’t even call them out of it, Nebuchadnezzar did. Instead, he went with them into the fire.
Peace is not the absence of trouble but the presence of Jesus!
Let’s talk about the trouble and let’s talk about the presence of Jesus.
REALITY OF PERSECUTION
Peace is not the absence of trouble but the presence of Jesus!
One way to ease our fear of persecution is to say it won’t happen, but that would be a lie. God doesn’t appreciate lying prophets who speak peace when he has spoken trouble (Jeremiah 23:16). Religious persecution is a reality that should be expected for those who are faithful to Jesus.
(Click here for an informative message by Conrad Vine on the reality of religious perfecution in our world today.)
How does this help with my fear? Talking about the fearful thing could make us fear it worse. But knowing what to expect can correct our misunderstandings and help us to prepare.
Religious persecution is a major human rights issues in our world today. Our world just doesn’t talk about it as much as other human rights issues. Let’s not think of persecution as something only of the past or the future, it is a reality today! I encourage you to learn more about religious persecution in our world by checking out online resources such as persecution.com, persection.org and opendoorsusa.org. On opendoorsusa.org I read that there are an estimated 340 million Christians being persecuted for their faith right now. That is more than the population of the US. We enjoy religious freedoms, most of the world doesn’t. In many countries the persecution is not illegal, it is the faith that is illegal, and the persecution is just law enforcement. The storm is raging, it just hasn’t blown our way yet.
Even in free America we can hear the music start to play and feel the fire start to burn. On Thursday (February 25, 2021) the House of Representatives passed the Equality Act that bans discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. I risk losing you when I mention a controversial issue. I am for equality. Christians should be the most loving of all people. But love doesn’t mean compromising convictions. Let’s love people in radical, self-denying ways. But don’t miss what is happening here! What does that act do to the religious freedom of a Christian business owner? What precedent does set in America for legislation against religious freedom? This sets a precedent in America of putting personal preference over religious liberty. One article I read this week called the act the “most comprehensive assault on Christianity ever written into law.” Catholic League Calls Equality Act ‘Most Comprehensive Assault on Christianity Ever Written Into Law’ (theepochtimes.com) Our culture is moving away from religious freedom and the laws are following our culture.
GENERAL PERSECUTION– A BRIEF OVERVIEW
Where does it come from?
We face general persecution as enemies of Satan!
1 Peter 5:8 Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
We know where the persecution comes from! It is from Satan, not God. God is not the one with anger issues. The Bible does speak of bowls of God’s wrath (Revelation 16). Those are from God, but they are not directed toward his people. God is not the one who throws you into the fire, he is the one who goes with you into it. I’d rather endure Satan’s wrath with God than God’s wrath with Satan.
In Revelation 12 we read that Satan came to this earth because he stared a war in heaven (v.7). Now that he is here, he seeks to lead “the whole world astray” (v.9). He is filled with fury (v.12), the same emotion that consumed Nebuchadnezzar when he threw the Hebrews into the fire. And He has made war against those who love God (v.17).
We see religious persecution in the first generation born in sin. Cain killed Abel. Why? Because Abel’s obedience to God in worship made him upset. Religious persecution has continued ever since. Jeremiah was imprisoned (Jeremiah 20:2) and cast into a miry dungeon (Jeremiah 38:6). Why? Because he was faithful to speak the word of God. Daniel was thrown into the lions den. Why? Because he prayed to God (Daniel 6).
What does it look like?
Satan persecutes in many ways. Through family members, government power, business practice, religious institutions, demonic harassment…
Why does he hate us?
There is a reason we are hated, and it’s not because we have bad breath or because we are jerks. The devil hates us because the hates the Jesus we follow.
John 15:18-21 “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the one who sent me.
Jesus was mocked, beaten and crucified. His motivation was to save sinners but his persecutors were motivated by his refusal to conform to their false religion.
If we will follow the Lamb wherever he goes we have to be willing to follow him to the slaughter.
“You will be hated by everyone, because of me.” (Matthew 10:22; Luke 21:17; Mark 13:13).
Jesus was right. His followers followed him right into trouble. Stephan preached the truth, and it got him killed (Acts 7).
Should we expect it?
Paul’s list of persecutions included being beaten, lashed, stoned, and much more (2 Corinthians 2:24-27). Speaking from experience he told Timothy that “all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Timothy 3:12).
We hear the martyrs cry out, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” (Revelation 6:10). The answer they receive is not encouraging.
Revelation 6:11 Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been.
From the viewpoint of the 5th seal in Revelation, persecution is not over!
Persecution shifted from church to state.
During the early years of the Christian movement the devil used the corrupt Jewish religious system to persecute the Christian church, soon he started using the secular government. A great fire burned Rome in 64 AD and Nero blamed the Christians. Persecution broke out. Paul and Peter were killed. Emperors after Nero created their own waves of persecution.
In all of that trouble it is good to know that peace is not the absence of trouble but the presence of Jesus!
Side Note- When Constantine adopted Christianity, persecution flipped. He stopped persecuting Christians and stared persecuting pagans. This is what Nebuchadnezzar did.
Daniel 3:29 “…who say anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego be cut into pieces and their houses be turned into piles of rubble, for no other god can save in this way.”
If we are interested in religious freedom, we must be interested in everybody’s religious freedom. We care about the Moslem being free to worship because we want that freedom ourselves.
SPECIFIC PERSECUTION (SATAN’S END-TIME STRATEGY)
We have seen the general persecution we face as enemies of Satan. But if you have been around the Adventist Church very long you have probably heard someone talk about the Pope as an end-time persecuting power. We all have different levels of familiarity with this Biblical idea. For some of you this will be a very introductory review and for others this may be new. It would be good for all of us to be aware of the basic ideas here so that we can be prepared for the persecution that is coming. (Here are some resources for a fuller study on the topic)
Right here in the book of Daniel we see foretold the rise of a specific persecuting power that the devil will use in the last days. When we follow the parallel lines of prophesy in Daniel 2 and 7 we are taken to the fall of the Roman Empire. Daniel 7 describes a persecuting power called the “little horn”. In verse 21 we read, “As I watched, this horn was waging war against the holy people and defeating them”. Verse 25 adds, “He will speak against the Most High and oppress his holy people and try to change the set times and the laws. The holy people will be delivered into his hands for a time, times and half a time.” The papal power did the persecuting work of the “Little Horn” in Daniel 7.
When we see this fulfillment of the “little horn” power in the papacy we need to be very careful about what conclusions we come to. The Antichrist is the spirit of Satan. It existed before the pope and it is expressed beyond the pope. Papal power is one platform Satan is using to advance his Antichrist agenda. We are not speaking against Catholics. Many of them will be in heaven. Many of them will be persecuted alongside of us for their faithfulness to Jesus. The Catholic Church has done much good and still does today. (Click here for a fuller video study from John Bradshaw or click here for a written study guide on the Antichrist.)
Let’s be cautious about the wrong conclusion we can come to but let’s also be aware. God’s gave us these identifying characteristics. Let’s not ignore them. Scripture and history present compelling correlations that should help us see what is coming.
Notice, Saul was one of his persecutors. He was transformed from Saul the persecutor of the church, breathing out murderous threats, to Paul, the evangelist who was persecuted for his faith in Jesus. The persecutors are not our enemies. Our enemy is the spirit that possesses them.
Scripture tells a specific time period that this power will engage in intense persecution. The period of 1260 years is mentioned seven places in scripture by various names (“time, times and half a time” Daniel 7:25, 12:7, Revelation 12:14; “forty two months” Revelation 11:2; 13:5; “1260 days” Revelation 11:3, 12:6).
We see in history a corresponding time, from the early 6th century to the end of the 18th century, when political power was mixed with religious power to apply religious persecution. Politics was mixed with religion when Constantine adopted Christianity into the Roman Empire. When Constantine adopted Christianity, he corrupted it. But it’s corruption was advanced when Justinian became Emperor (527 AD) and worked to reform the legal system. He developed such a robust system of law that the influence of it is still seen in European law today. He worked to unify the empire by unifying the church and that meant the persecution of heretics.
One section of the Code of Justinian said, “We order all those who follow this law to assume the name of Catholic Christians, and considering others as demented and insane, We order that they shall bear the infamy of heresy; and when the Divine vengeance which they merit has been appeased, they shall afterwards be punished in accordance with Our resentment, which we have acquired from the judgment of Heaven.” If that doesn’t make sense, I’ll translate. It means that he wrote persecution into law.
The papal church combined religious and political power to form a persecuting power for the 1260 years predicted in the Bible. The papacy declined in strength until the Pope was captured during the French Revolution. In 1798 the French General Berthier took the Pope Pious VI captive to France where he died 6 weeks later. (Click here for an article with a study of more on the specific dates for the 1260 years)
For the next 6 months there was no Pope. And when the office of the papacy was filled it did not return to the power it had for the 1260 years.
Wound Healed
Revelation 13 is the chapter about the beast. Actually, there are two beasts who work together. Three times this chapter speaks of the beast’s deadly wound being healed. Our brief moment of religious freedom is made possible because the beast was wounded. But the wound is being healed. When a wound is healed it allows us to operate like we used to. If the track star has a wounded leg he doesn’t run. But when the wound is healed, he goes back to the track and runs. When the beast’s wound is healed. He goes back to doing what the beast does. Speaking boastfully, blaspheming God, messing with God’s law, seeking worship, and persecuting the saints. (Deadly Wound Healed Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5ANsV-wl_8)
A couple quotes from the book Great Controversy:
This one is from the first paragraph of Chapter 35 (Liberty of Conscious Threatened). “Romanism is now regarded by Protestants with far greater favor than in former years. In those countries where Catholicism is not in the ascendancy, and the papists are taking a conciliatory course in order to gain influence, there is an increasing indifference concerning the doctrines that separate the reformed churches from the papal hierarchy; the opinion is gaining ground that, after all, we do not differ so widely upon vital points as has been supposed.”
The wound is healed as it gains popular opinion, influence and power.
Great Controversy, p.565 “The papal church will never relinquish her claim to infallibility. All that she has done in her persecution of those who reject her dogmas she holds to be right; and would she not repeat the same acts, should the opportunity be presented? Let the restraints now imposed by secular governments be removed and Rome be reinstated in her former power, and there would speedily be a revival of her tyranny and persecution.”
There is a distinct type of persecution in this power. It is not just Daniel in the lion’s den persecution. It is the three Hebrews in the furnace persecution. Daniel was persecuted for worshipping God. His three friends were persecuted for not worshipping a false god. Satan doesn’t just hate our worship of God he wants us to worship him. And this end time power specializes in that kind of persecution. Notice some similarity to the worship and persecution scenes of Daniel 3 and Relation 13.
| Daniel 3 | Revelation 13 |
| v.1 “made an image” | v.14 “to set up an image” |
| v.4 “all the nations and peoples of every language” | v. 7 “every tribe, people, language and nation” |
| vv. 4-5 “this is what you are commanded to do… you must fall down and worship the image.” | v.12 “made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast” v. 14 “It ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast” |
| v.6 “Whoever does not fall down and worship will immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace.” | v.15 “cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed.” |
As Christians there are some things we can’t stop doing. There are other things that we can never do. And both of those things will get us in a whole lot of trouble. Ultimately Satan’s persecutory rage is poured out on those who refuse to bow down to him.
Don’t miss what is going within the story of the great controversy. Satan has accused God of not being fair and loving. He has questioned God’s character. But the accusations Satan hurls at God are really descriptions of his own character. Our God offers religious freedom. Our God never uses force to gain worshippers. But Satan operates under force, coercion and manipulation. Satan will force people to worship him and kill those who refuse, the very thing he accuses God of doing. Don’t let Satan color your picture of God’s character. This whole persecution thing brings out the truth. Satan is the raging one, God is the faithful one who is with us in our trouble.
PRESENCE OF JESUS
If all of that seems scary to you, remember Peace is not the absence of trouble but the presence of Jesus! We will close by focusing on that fear destroying truth.
We have seen the magnitude of the reality of persecution. It is rational to fear. If we are to be rational in not fearing then the presence of Jesus must be more good than persecution is bad. We can’t calm our fear by decreasing the trouble that is coming. But we can calm our fear by increasing our awareness of the value of the presence of Jesus. Remember the question? Satan flexes his muscles and asks, “Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?” (v.15). We can answer with confidence that our God is with us through any trouble he sends our way and that God’s presence is greater than Satan’s persecution. It’s a presence so good it makes the fiery furnace not so bad.
We saw that Jesus was with the Hebrews in the fire and they did not get burned. Notice what happened when they got out. They crowded around them. “They saw that the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor was a hair of their heads singed; their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them.” (verse 27).
If we are honest, there are some hard things we have survived but we came out on the other end smelling bad. Our clothes were burned, and our hair was signed. The persecution might not have killed us, but we come out of it as grumpy Christians. We insist we that we have not fear, but we also have no joy. The presence of Jesus is something so good and so real that we can go through the greatest religious persecution and not stink on the other side.
God will never leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5). Jesus is with us always, even to the end of the age! (Matthew 28:20). We will be persecuted but never abandoned (2 Corinthians 4:9)!
Corinthians 4:8-9 “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”
John 16:33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
Let yourself feel the fearless victory of these words from Romans 8.
“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered. No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:35-39)
Scripture suggests that we can be happy when we are persecuted, “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” Not only is Jesus present with us in it, we have a reward of being with him forever. The reality of the presence of Jesus gives us peace. The hope in the presence of Jesus then can also give you peace now.
If you’re afraid of persecution you need to hear that peace is not the absence of trouble but the presence of Jesus!
Polycarp was a Christian, born a few years after Peter and Paul were martyred. He became the Bishop of Smyrna. Before he was martyred in 155 AD he was pressured to recant faith. He replied, “Fourscore and six years have I served him, and he has never done me injury; how then can I now blaspheme my King and savior?”
Jesus will not fail you. Don’t wait until the music plays and the fire burns. Start hungering today for more of the presence of Jesus in your life. That is what will get you through all the trouble to come. Peace is not the absence of trouble but the presence of Jesus!