DEVOTION
THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MARK
STANDING FIRM
Mark 13:9-13
NIV
Once again, we cannot take the whole of what Jesus says for it is much
and we need to garner some truth from each of the points that he is making. It
does seem as though some of what he tells his disciples is directly related to
them and what will happen in their personal lives rather than for all of us
believers. It does not seem feasible that we would be handed over to councils
and flogged in synagogues. On the other hand, it might seem possible that we
might stand before important people and be required to be witnesses to them.
The one thing that does appear, but we cannot be certain is that the gospel has
reached every nation, or is preached in every nation. There are nations today that
absolutely ban any mention of Christianity. If it is to be preached it must be
done on the down-low, in secret, and we doubt that is what Jesus means. Still,
as long as the gospel has reached all nations, perhaps once, and now is banned because
of the rise of some false religion such as Islam, the gospel was once there so
that the requirement may have been met. But then Jesus may have meant the
nations that were known at the time of speaking these words. We have to come to
terms with whether this is all already been accomplished or it has not all happened. It is possible some has and some is still to come as we also need to see
the words of Jesus as timeless in the sense that in reality, He is timeless, and
He only inserted himself into time for our benefit, that we might be saved and
that we might have the full knowledge of His will. Although some of his
disciples were arrested and brought to trial, we too have seen believers throughout
the world today arrested and given a trial, perhaps a false one, just to be
condemned to death. We may someday have to endure the same thing within our
country. Perhaps not death at the hands of leaders, but we are on trial in a
certain sense, by non-believers. They watch us, they judge us, they are
critical of our behavior and our words, that is if we have made it clear that
we are followers of Jesus, born again, bible toten, spirit-filled Christians, and
not just this average run of the mill somewhat religious person who believes we
are Christian because we go to church once in a while. Being a full-blown all-out follower of Jesus can and in some cases, cause division in our family.
Again, we have seen in other religions, when someone becomes a follower of Jesus,
their family considers them as dead to them. They turn their backs on them as
if they were no longer a member of the family. In our country where Christianity
is more or less accepted, we still are divided within families when we become
this all-out follower of Jesus. Sometimes we are divided by doctrinal issues,
sometimes by the sheer refusal by our family to see Jesus as their Lord and
Savior and the need to repent of their sin and be born again. They may still
believe they are Christians but not like us. On a personal note, I think of
my family and how mixed up it was, a father who never cared about God, a mother
who was deceived by false religion, and a sister who incorporated Jesus,
although not as divine, Allah, Buddha, and Gandhi and some others into some sort
of self-developed system of belief. There was still love, but also a great
chasm that was never crossed. I preached the gospel, I witnessed, but there was
no acceptance, no crossing over from the darkness into the light of Jesus.
Although I may think I know their fate, it is not up to me to decide.
Still, there is a pain in my heart when I think about them, but I know one thing
for sure and that is I will endure unto the end. I will stand firm in Christ.
It does not matter if I am not well-liked or even hated because of my faith, I
will stand firm to the end.
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