Recently, when looking up a Bible passage to encourage a brother in Christ who was being persecuted for his faith, I noticed a connection between it and the verse that follows it that I had never seen before. Perhaps I had never noticed it because many versions of the Bible place a subtitle such as "Salt and Light" above the verses that follow it. These subject titles were not a part of the original inspired text. Usually they are helpful, because they provide a handy reference which makes it easier for us to find a passage, and they provide a break that makes reading less tedious. But sometimes they have the unfortunate consequence of preventing us from seeing the connection between two passages.
Here is the passage I was looking up to share with my brother:
"Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets before you." (NIV, Matthew 5-11-12.)
And here is the subtitle and inspired text that follows it:
"Salt and Light
You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its savor, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a basket. Instead, they set it on a stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven."
The connection I had never before seen was, if there is ever a time in which we are most prone to lose our saltiness or "savor,” or to stop shining our light before men, it is when we are being persecuted!
In effect, the message for us is this: Don't allow persecution to rob you of your joy, courage, or confidence in the Lord. Continue to be a witness. Continue to boldly shine the light of Jesus before those around you. Continue to share your faith and do good deeds as before. In fact, Jesus explains to us that we should be even more joyful when we are being persecuted, because God will give us great reward for enduring persecution.
Don’t lose your joy or cover up the light of Jesus within you when you are being persecuted.
Do you remember the words that Jesus spoke to the believers at Ephesus in the book of Revelation? They were enduring being persecuted for their faith, which is commendable, but despite that, Jesus had to criticize them because they were allowing this to cause them to lose their first love:
"Without growing weary, you have persevered and endured many things for the sake of My name. But I have this against you: You have abandoned your first love. Therefore, keep in mind how far you have fallen. Repent and perform the deeds you did at first. But if you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place." (NIV, Revelation 2:3-5)
These days, unbelievers are starting to call things that God has labeled as evil to be good. They are also calling things that God has declared as good to be evil. But why?
They are doing this because they want to be able to break God's commandments without any social consequence. The very existence of people who obey and teach God's commandments is a threat to them! If they can pressure you to agree with them and join them, that makes them look not so bad.
For this reason, persecution against Christians is stepping up. Right now, in the USA, Christians are being "cancelled" and accused of being "hateful" because they do not approve of things that God has declared are sinful. Imagine accusing the very people who seek to obey the command of Jesus to "love your enemies" of being haters, when it they who are trying to get us fined, fired from our jobs, and even thrown into prison! It is obvious who is really being hateful.
But they are willingly ignoring the fact that loving someone means wanting that person to stop destructive behavior. Your love for your alcoholic friend can cause you to want her to stop drinking. Your love for a friend who is destroying himself financially because of an addiction to gambling can cause you to want him to stop. Your love for a friend who is having promiscuous sex can cause you to want her to stop before she ends up with a venereal disease and a heart broken in many places.
This increasing persecution is just a sign of a world that is beginning to rebel against God. But as a result of it, many professing Christians are placing their light under a bushel and hiding it. Many people are losing their saltiness. Many are losing their joy. We must not let this happen to us. Don't lose your saltiness! Don't lose your joy; rejoice even more, because there is great reward waiting for you in heaven.
But how can we be joyful when we are being persecuted? This command to rejoice when we are being persecuted is like the command of Jesus that we should love our enemies. It is not something we can do with our own strength. Remember that love and joy are the first two fruits of the Spirit:
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control." (NIV, Galatians 5:22-23)
In the midst of "cancel culture," appeal to the Holy Spirit to give you joy and a love for your enemies. Continue to love them and let your good deeds shine before men so that "they will see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven."
You may be the only witness and light that some people have. The Holy Spirit will enable you to do what you are not able to do in your own strength. So be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might! As the world grows darker, people will desperately need Christians who are lights like never before.