Thursday, July 8, 2021

Suffering for Christ

“Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution” (2 Timothy 3:12).

“Unto you it is given, in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on Him, but also to suffer for His sake” (Philippians 1:29)

Most of us don’t know much about physically suffering for Christ. However, in the measure in which we reflect Christ in our lives there will be reproach connected with it. It is not that we go out and look for opportunities to suffer, but if we are true to Him, we will have plenty of opportunities. The young man Timothy was told, “Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ” (2 Timothy 2:3). Or as another translation puts it, “Take thy share in suffering as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.”

The real secret to suffering for Christ is to have the heart’s affections centered in Him.

• The more I love Jesus, the closer I shall walk with Him.

• The closer I walk with Him, the more faithfully I shall imitate Him.

• The more faithfully I imitate Him, the more I shall suffer with Him.

As you can see, it all flows from love to Christ.