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Luke 21:10-19
Jesus continues His teaching about the things to come that had begun with His comments about the destruction of the temple. Jesus tells of nation rising against nation, earthquakes, famines, pestilences, and tells that other greater signs from heaven will take place. Jesus tells His disciples that they will be persecuted and that some will be imprisoned, even killed, but they should not worry about what to say when these things happen because He will give them the words to speak when the time comes. Jesus tells His disciples that they will be hated by all, even by their own families because of their association with Him.
This is a promise of things to come.
Following Jesus is something that the secular world looks down on. The persecution is felt on a daily basis by those who stand up for Jesus and share their testimonies. To follow Jesus is not to escape persecution, but that we take up our cross and seek His will for our lives each day striving to please Him. He will see us through all persecution if we keep our focus on Him. Jesus teaches us in John 14:18-25 that the world will hate those who belong to Him because the world first hated Him. But it is very important to note in John 14:25 that this is a fulfillment of prophecy of the world hating Jesus without a cause.
Dear Lord,
It is tough to stand up strong in our defense of our faith in our Savior Jesus sometimes when we know persecution is coming. But as we learn to take up our cross for Jesus, You strengthen us more and more each day through Your Holy Spirit living in us. Through these trials and tribulations, You grow our faith in You as our Sovereign God and Savior, which deepens our relationship with You and gives us more and more strength to stand up for Jesus each day. There is no greater feeling than to experience Your blessings in our lives because we have obeyed You. Thank You so much for giving us these times of personal growth in our relationship with You. In Jesus name I pray, amen.