And after that many days were fulfilled, the Jews took counsel to kill him. Acts 9:23
If you were to discover that someone, or a group of people, were plotting to have you killed because of your beliefs and your testimony, your first thought would be to get word to the local police as soon as possible. You trust the police to provide you with the protection that you need, and you trust them to arrest those people with murderous intentions toward you. And your trust would generally be well placed. Our laws make it a very serious crime to plot murder. And the government makes sure that those laws are well enforced. But what would it be like if it was the local government that was behind the plot? What would you do? What was Saul of Tarsus to do when that happened to him?
The next verse tells us that Saul escaped from the plotters by being let down in a basket over the wall of Damascus. He had little choice but to flee from the danger. In fact, for much of the rest of his life, he was on the run from those who sought to take his life. The enemies of the Gospel and its heralds never gave up on their cruel intentions. They have also not given up today. Those who oppose Christ and His Gospel are doing their worst to the Christians in many parts of the world. They have to be much more sneaky about it here in North America, but they are working at it. For example, a number of businesses run by Christians in different areas of the United States have been slapped with huge fines and have been forced out of business because of their refusal to bake wedding cakes or make wedding dresses for same-sex couples. Ignoring the constitutional rights of the Christians, liberal judges have sided with those who are promoting and practicing their abominable lifestyle. And like the Jews who sought Saul’s life, they appear to have the law on their side. Is it right? Of course not! But it is what the devil has done to have the Gospel silenced and to have those who obey the Word of God harrassed.
As far as we know, our lives as Christians are not in any danger from the enemies of the cross. At least not yet. But the devil is working to discredit Christians and to dispose of the Bible as an influence on our society. I can see the day coming – and coming faster than I would like – when the homosexual movement will have the Bible banned from public sale and from public reading, even in churches, because it condemns them. I can also see a day coming when preachers will be jailed for publicly uttering the words ‘sin’ and ‘sinner’, and for applying the Bible’s description of the depravity of the human heart. What will we do then. Can we run underground like the saints in moslem and communist countries? Will we forfeit our freedom, and our lives, for standing up for the truth?
We may be called upon in our day to experience life-threatening persecution for our Lord. Are we ready for that? -Jim MacIntosh