If
you are a follower of Jesus Christ and living with integrity, you can
expect to be slandered. Someone who doesn't like you (perhaps is jealous or feels threatened by you) will twist the facts to make you look bad. They think that by ridiculing you it will make them look better.
Jesus told His followers they would be hated by unbelievers, “I chose
you out of the world, therefore the world hates you . . . If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you”
(John 15:19-20). But He also said that persecution can come from religious
people: “They will make you outcasts from the synagogue, but an hour is coming
for everyone who kills you to think he is offering service to God” (John 16:2).
Sometimes the religious crowd can be harder on His disciples than unbelievers in
the world.
The
apostle Paul tells us that we will experience a deeper walk with God through
“the fellowship of His sufferings” (Phil. 3:10). No one in their right mind
goes searching for ways to experience pain. No one wants to suffer. In fact, we
usually avoid it at all costs. Yet, as we seek to know God in a more intimate
way, the forces of hell are unleashed upon us through evil people who hate us.
Can you imagine how Jesus must have felt
as He walked in total obedience to His Father, yet was constantly hated and
slandered throughout His ministry?
You
cannot learn “the fellowship of His sufferings” by reading books. You’ll
only learn this level of anguish when people hate and slander you when you haven’t
done anything wrong. People will gossip about you, and sometimes only you and the Lord know that you are blameless. What are you to
do when you are hated and falsely accused?
1.Keep your
integrity. If you are blameless, don’t take the bait and
react in an ungodly way. This is what Satan wants you to do. When David was verbally attacked, he said,
“Let integrity and uprightness preserve me” (Ps. 25:21).
2. Remain silent
before your accusers. I’m not talking about if you are falsely accused of a
crime. In that case, you should present evidence that you are innocent. But
in most cases, it’s best to keep your mouth shut. You’ll wear yourself out
trying to defend yourself to everyone. “Do not answer a fool
according to his folly, or you will also be like him” (Prov. 26:4). Even though
many false witnesses lied about Jesus, He kept silent before them (Matt.
26:60-63, Acts 8:32). Always remember that God knows the truth and will bring justice on your accusers.
3. Draw near to God. As you go through this painful experience, you
will understand exactly how Jesus, the apostles, and the prophets felt when they
were hated and slandered. Not many people are willing to walk down this lonely
road, but the Holy Spirit will teach you deeper truths as you join in “the
fellowship of His sufferings.”
4. Rejoice because
your reward is great in heaven. Jesus said, “Blessed are you when men cast
insults at you, and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely,
on account of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is
great, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Matt.
5:10-11). Notice that these are false accusations, not truthful charges that you
have actually done. God will make it up to you on the Judgment Day when you are rewarded. Jesus said to “leap for joy” (Luke 6:23) because you will receive a great eternal reward for being
persecuted. www.kentcrockett.blogspot.com
*******************************Are you worried about the future? Read The Sure Cure for Worry
