Hard Pressed
By
John Lysaught
“We are hard pressed on every side,
but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair;
persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.
We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that
the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body” (2 Corinthians
4:8-10).
You ever feel pressed, perplexed, persecuted, or
struck down by people? I have. It’s
hard. It seems like some days are just too hard, too much working against us in
our walk with Jesus. Satan attacks us
from every possible angle you can imagine. He is always there waiting to pounce
on us, to tear us away from Jesus. He is always there to keep people away from
Jesus using every trick he has in his handbag to keep people from coming to
Christ and being part of the plan of Salvation.
We are pressed on all sides. We must be strong in
these end times. The enemy is working harder than ever to keep people from
Christ. The world is pressing on us in every possible way. Satan is using the
world and worldly people against us to keep us from our calling; to be with
Jesus. Satan uses the world to entice us away through media, through unsaved
people, and anti-Christ’s that twist the word of the Lord to try to make us
think that the Word is irrelevant and useless in today’s world.
We are pressed but not crushed. We can overcome the
wiles of Satan by being strong in Lord Jesus. Through our faith we can overcome
the pressing of evil that is upon us. We can overcome anything that Satan
throws in our path. To do this we need to pray always, seek the Lord daily, and
renew our relationship with Jesus every day, every hour, every minute of our
lives. By doing this, keeping Jesus and
his commands in the forefront of our minds, we can overcome and not be swayed
by the tricks and turns that Satan throws at us. Jesus is stronger than Satan
and His promises of overcoming the world and Satan are true. We need to just
put our trust in Christ and hold on to our faith.
We face persecution. It may be subtle, or it may be
obvious, but we are all facing persecution of the Church today. We are being
marginalized by the world as a fringe group of fanatics that won’t conform to
what the world is saying is now normal: gay marriage, abortion, worshiping
other god’s (entertainment industry, hobbies, etc.). When things are happening in our country, in
our communities, in our churches that are contrary to what the Lord has written
in His Word; that is subtle persecution of us true believers and followers of
Jesus Christ. When the government says that gay marriage is now the law of the
land, we are being persecuted. When late term abortions are part of the norm,
we are being persecuted. This is because when we disagree with these types of
government policies and law, we are considered in a negative way and are told we
are bigots or hateful.
Then there are the obvious persecutions we face.
When we are treated differently (negatively) because of our faith, such as when
we proclaim to others what we believe and are put down because of what we
believe, we are being persecuted. It isn’t so bad in this country because we
are not being killed or sent to prison for our faith, yet. Nonetheless, when we are being treated
negatively or marginalized for our faith, we are still being persecuted, just
not to the level that some face in other countries. How long will it be until
us true believers are marginalized in this country to the extent that we face
imprisonment or bodily harm. Just look at the military and how they now say us
Christians are a threat to the military’s good order and discipline and expressing
our beliefs to others can lead to prosecution in the military. How long until
that spreads to mainstream America? I hope the rapture come before it gets that
bad here.
Know though that we are not abandoned. Christ is
with us always, even in the face of persecution, whether subtle or obvious.
Christ is our rock that we can stand on to be assured that we are saved with
Salvation through Grace to eternity.
Christ in you works with you to help you through the persecutions you
face. Regardless of if it is a bigoted attitude towards Christians, or being
killed or imprisoned for our faith, Christ is with us and we are assured of our
Salvation. There is nothing to fear then because He is with us always and will
be the blanket wrapped around us to protect and be with us in times of trouble.
We will face trouble, but be assured Christ is with us during those times.
Being struck down is tough. I think we have all had
a situation where, because of our faith, we have been knocked down emotionally
and spiritually. This is especially true when we try to share our faith with an
unbeliever. It is not our job to change their hearts, but we are called to
introduce Jesus to the unsaved. The vileness of some people can be very hurtful
and disheartening. Most people not
interested in Jesus are nice about it to me, but I have heard the vileness of
some people that curse the name of Jesus because of their cold hearts. We are
human and we hurt when we are turned away or shunned because of our faith. God is with us though even in these
situations.
Don’t lose heart because even if you feel you are
struck down, beat down, or set apart because of your faith, we cannot be
destroyed if we are in Christ. People cannot destroy us, nor can Satan working
through the world and unbelievers destroy us. They may hurt our feelings but
they cannot destroy our faith and hope in Christ Jesus. Jesus is stronger and more powerful than any
evil force in the universe. We should not lose heart because we are struck down
at times by others, but we should be made stronger in our faith when we face
adversity.
Adversity is part of being a Christian. This is
something we should embrace, for it will make us stronger in Christ Jesus. For
the unbeliever, if you are not for Christ then you are against us. If you are
against us, then you are of the world and support the works of Satan. You can
switch teams, so to speak, and be on the side of Jesus and eternity with Him in
heaven.
To be with Jesus is not easy in the world we live
in, but the troubles we face are minimal as compared to the trouble you will
have if you choose the world (and Satan) and spend eternity in hell instead of
heaven with Jesus.
Jesus is the promise of Salvation through Grace.
Believe in Him, commit yourself to Him, and follow Him, and your eternity will
be heaven, not hell. What you, as an
unbeliever, may not know is that God sent His only Son, Jesus, into the world
to be the sacrifice for all humanity’s sins. That means He was sacrificed to
cover my sins, your sins, and everyone else’s sin for those that believe He is
the Son of God that died on a cross for us.
This may be hard to grasp, but it is truth and can be counted on as
truth. If you believe in Jesus and put your trust in Him (heart, soul, mind)
then when judgment comes, you can be assured that your sins are already
forgiven and heaven awaits your soul.
If you choose not to believe in Jesus, you will die,
just like everyone else, but the difference is that you will be accountable for
your sins and will not have an advocate for you when you face the judgment seat
of God. You will go to hell. This may sound harsh to you, but it is truth:
Jesus equals eternal life in heaven, and no Jesus means eternal damnation in
hell.
Choose Jesus my friends. If you are playing church
and don’t really believe in Jesus, it is time to choose. If you don’t go to
church but want eternal life in heaven, now is the time to accept Christ as
your Lord and Savior. You cannot earn heaven, for it is a gift of God that was
given by Grace through the sacrifice of Christ if you believe on His name, His
life, His death, and His resurrection.
Find a church that teaches the foundations found in
the bible. Study the bible and seek the Lord for yourself. More importantly,
pray to God for revelation and assurance that Jesus is the real deal. Cry out
to the Lord that you want eternity with Him in heaven and pray for Jesus to be
part of your life, the main part of your being and life.
Being part of the world (and Satan) is easy. With
Jesus, you will face trouble in the world, but eternity with Him is worth it. I
pray that those reading this that are not saved are touched by the Holy Spirit
and gain a desire to seek the Lord and to learn about and accept Jesus as their
Lord and Savior.
Choosing Jesus is a journey worth the trip. You will
be changed and will see the world differently as you do now. You will see the world with Satan for what
he is: a deceiver. With Jesus you will feel a love that is indescribable.
Choose wisely, for your eternity is at stake.
God
Bless
John
Lysaught
John_lysaught@yahoo.com
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