In Acts 14, we see Jews from Antioch in Pisidia and Iconium have followed Paul to Lystra. As a reminder, Paul was well received in Antioch in Acts 13, but the Jews got jealous of the big crowds and drove them out.
Earlier in Acts 14, Paul and Barnabas are in Iconium and many believed here. They preach boldly and perform miracles, but they face opposition and the city is divided.
These are the people who ultimately come and stone Paul in Lystra, leaving him for dead outside the city. The man whom God saved, whom God called, and whom God sent to preach the gospel, was thrown out like a bag of trash.
While faith-based persecution may be rare in the United States, it is rampant in other parts of the world. According to the OpenDoors.org World Watch List, Christians face “extreme levels” of persecution in North Korea, Somalia, Yemen, Libya, Sudan, Eritrea, Nigeria, Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan, India, Saudi Arabia, and Myanmar. In total, 310 million Christians face very high or extreme levels of persecution and discrimination for their faith.
4,476 Christians were killed for faith-related reasons last year. The majority of them were in Nigeria. In India alone, 1,629 Christians were detained without trial and another 547 were sentenced to prison.
In 2 Timothy 3:10-17, Paul specifically references the persecutions he faced in Antioch in Pisidia, Iconium and Lystra. He explains that everyone who wants to live a Godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, and he urges Timothy to lean on what he’s been taught in Scripture to get through it.
In Philippians 3:4-11, Paul lists some of his life’s achievements, but explains that knowing Christ is of far greater value. This is ultimately the question for us who want to live a bold life for Jesus Christ – is knowing Christ worth more than anything you might lose?
In Luke 14:25-33, Jesus explains to the multitude that there is a cost to discipleship, and he warns them to count that cost before deciding to follow him. Is there anything in your life worth more than Jesus? Is there anything of greater importance?
Living boldly for Jesus doesn’t simply mean, “you’re going to have to give some things up.”
It means the value of whatever you might have to give up is far less than the value of being a disciple of Jesus.
“He is no fool who gives up that which he cannot keep, to gain that which he cannot lose.” Phillip Henry, 1662
