September 11, 2001 has often been compared to December 7, 1941.
Both were sneak attacks which brought the United States into war, and both were acts of terrorism.
“Terrorism” is the word most often associated with 9/11, and it is certainly appropriate.
But I’d like to suggest that there might be a related word which could take us into another level of consideration.
I know that it’s not exactly the same thing, but 9/11 was also an act of “persecution.”
I may be totally off base with this, but I’ll throw this at you and let you mull this over for a while:
But “persecution” is usually a religious word.
People might be persecuted for other things, but we usually use that word in a religious context.
We see it even in the first family and Genesis 4.
It seems like every second or third page of the Bible we find another example of persecution.
There were different circumstances surrounding every case, but the root cause was someone’s hatred of the truth that these men were preaching.
Why was the Lord Jesus crucified?
But He was delivered by the Jewish priests to the Roman government because He was a threat to their corrupted religion.
I thought about calling this message: “The Biblical Doctrine of Persecution,”
But by adding the word “Biblical” it leaves the impression that the Bible approves of persecution.
Persecution is examined, revealed and discussed in the Bible, but so are a lot of other sins.
Despite believing the truth, defending the truth, and promulgating the truth, Christians are forbidden from persecuting for the truth.
Our Saviour-King has told us: “Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.” – Matthew 5:44.
I think that it would be beneficial to take a look at that monster as revealed in Acts 4.
Let’s consider the persecutors, their reasons, the method and the results.
I was wondering about the fact that we don’t have a reference to the Pharisees in this verse, so I made a brief study of the word.
Did you know that “Pharisee” is found only once after the Book of Acts?
Once it is said that Gamaliel, Paul’s teacher, was a Pharisee.
The other 5 references only speak about the differences between the Sadducees and Pharisees.
Pharisaical attitudes still persist today, but in the Book of Acts, they had become an impotent nonentity.
The spiritual leadership of Israel had for some time been held by the Sadducees rather than the Pharisees.
The high priests for several generations had been Sadducees.
Acts 23:6-9 highlights the difference between those two parties:
And when he had so said, there arose a dissension between the Pharisees and the Sadducees: and the multitude was divided.
For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, neither angel, nor spirit: but the Pharisees confess both.
And there arose a great cry: and the scribes that were of the Pharisees‘ part arose, and strove, saying, We find no evil in this man: but if a spirit or an angel hath spoken to him, let us not fight against God.”
They were a somewhat defeated people, because the Lord Jesus taught them what the Bible actually said.
They too should have had their mouths shut by the logic of Jesus’ teachings,
But since they rejected the scripture, they refused to follow the Lord’s Biblical arguments.
But let’s take a step back and think about this persecution more generically.
The persecution came from people in power.
It came from people whose religious opinions were challenged.
And as a result it they were people of jealousy.
You’ll see these things as we move along.
They were troubled, angered, peeved and annoyed that . . .
Peter and John were preaching something which they had arbitrarily determined was heresy.
Let’s say that someone told you that 1 plus 2 was 4.
You, however, were taught years ago that 1 plus 2 equals 3.
But now here is some fool telling you that your long-standing opinion was wrong.
You could argue with the man that your teachers and parents wouldn’t lie to you so 1+2 must = 3.
You could punch the man in the face, call the police, or scream intellectual rape or theft.
In other words you could reason with him, and hopefully convince him with his own logic.
When Peter began preaching that afternoon, he pointed to the former crippled man and said,
“Look at the miracle which God did to glorify His Son Jesus.”
He also said, “the God of our fathers raised up His Son Jesus from the dead.”
He was buried, as you all well know, but after 72 hours He came out of the grave, and 500 of us have spoken to, fellowshipped with, and shared food with Him.
So instead of arguing points which were impossible to win, they switched to persecution.
One of the lessons which comes out of this is right here:
“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”
“But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear.”
You and I should never have to resort to violence, because we hold in our hands the truth.
I can’t guarantee that the Sadducees of the 21st century are going to listen to that truth,
But I can guarantee that you have no right or reason to become the persecutor yourself.
The man was still berating us, so Bro. Johnson stopped and kicked his shoe at the edge of the porch.
It was a symbol which was probably lost on that lost man, but I’ll never forget it.
And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear you, when ye depart thence, shake off the dust under your feet for a testimony against them. Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city.
And they went out, and preached that men should repent.”
Another reason that the priests were furious with the Apostles that day was because they were jealous.
The Apostles were winning disciples, and the Sadducees were losing disciples.
The Apostles were winning supporters and the Sadducees were losing support.
Nothing makes a politician, even religious politicians more angry than losing their power base.
First they made the disciples stop preaching.
That was the job of the captain of the temple guards.
He was responsible to see that nothing went on in the temple that didn’t have the priests’ approval.
He and his men were to keep Gentiles and infidels out.
They were to make sure that the women stayed in the court of the women.
They were ordered to keep the handicapped parked in the proper stalls.
They did the bidding of their employers, the priests.
And they laid hold on the two apostles of Christ and kept them from doing any more preaching that day.
So Peter and John were put in hold until the next day.
This doesn’t mean exactly the same thing as Acts 5:17-18:
And laid their hands on the apostles, and put them in the common prison.”
They were not thrown in the hold, but simply held.
And when I went to visit a Calgary man who had been arrested, I went to the Remand Centre rather than the county jail.
Ultimately it meant the defeat and the end of the Japanese Empire.
There is a sense in which terrorism and persecution NEVER accomplish their intended purpose.
The terrorism of the IRA has not freed Northern Ireland from English control.
The terrorism of the PLO has not, and will not, drive the Jews out of Palestine.
And the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center certainly hasn’t stopped American Imperialism or whatever the Muslims want to call it.
In the case of the persecution in Acts 4 it just increased the embarrassment of the establishment.
When they had to resort to arrest or violence, it just amplified their weak arguments against the truth.
And then furthermore, when Peter and John were arrested, there were 5,000 saved.
The language of the scripture seems to tie together the salvation of those people and the persecution:
The Bible doesn’t say that these people were saved because of the arrest of Peter and John, but that arrest certainly didn’t hurt the truth.
And for this reason, persecution should never be practiced by the children of God.