The Answer to Pressure is Perseverance

When anyone comes to faith in Christ, their faith is going to be challenged and tested. For some of us, it happens almost immediately. That was Emily’s and my experience. We were thrown into all kinds of difficulties from the moment we asked ourselves, “Now what?” Relational challenges. Work issues. While this testing is inevitable, it’s unlikely for Western Christians will experience persecution.

At least, not the overt persecution experienced by the early church (and in many places in the majority world today).

Consider the experience of the churches in Thessalonica (Acts 17:1-9; 1 Thessalonians 2:13-16). These Christians experienced overt persecution because they believed the gospel. And that persecution came at the hands of Jewish religious leaders, the same sort who opposed Paul everywhere else he went—and who opposed Jesus himself. They riled up a mob and sent them out to cause chaos. They even dragged a man named Jason and some of these Christians before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also!”

Where the Gospel Went, Persecution Followed

There is a sense in which the persecution that erupted wasn’t a surprise. After all, these sorts of rabble rousers were very much a thorn in Paul’s side, following along wherever he went. But it wasn’t because they hated Paul that they did it. They persecuted Christians because they hated the gospel. They hated Jesus. The gospel—the death and resurrection of Jesus—is a triumphal message. Light has come into the world, shining into the darkness; and darkness will not overcome it (John 1:5). But even though it won’t overcome the light, darkness is always going to push back when confronted by the light.

We live in a world opposed to the gospel, ruled by “powers and principalities” that are enemies of Christ (Ephesians 6:12). Those who persecuted these Christians were, in a sense, agents of these powers, even as they heaped judgment upon themselves (1 Thessalonians 2:16).

But despite the persecution they faced, the Thessalonians persevered. Their faith did not falter; they followed the example of those who had also been persecuted for the sake of Christ (1 Thessalonians 2:14). They did not shrink back from the truth, even though doing so would have meant a much easier life. They understood that Christ is better than any trial or persecution. Their faith was proven genuine in its testing. The Lord was faithful to them in their trials.

Testing as Pressure Instead of Persecution

Now, again, here’s the thing. Most of us in the West have never experienced this kind of overt persecution. But even so, we do experience testing and trial. And the world’s hostility to the gospel is just as prevalent today as it was nearly 2000 years ago.

The testing we face in this context—especially in the United States and Canada—is going to look less like persecution and more like pressure.

For many of us, it’s going to be in aiming to faithfully address the cultural hot potatoes of our moment. What Christians believe about gender and sexual ideology is out of step with current social orthodoxy. And deviating from that orthodoxy usually results in being called fundamentalists, bigots, or something ending in phobic. The pressure we face is to compromise our convictions—to reject the goodness of God’s creation of human beings as male and female, and his intended design for marriage and sexual expression.

But we’re also going to be tested by distortions to the gospel that come from those who add criteria to salvation that the Bible doesn’t. This is especially dangerous for us in the perpetual dumpster fire of a seemingly endless election cycle. Many Christians cannot in good conscience vote for one party or another. But some go too far and claim that who a person votes for determines the validity of their faith. The pressure we face here is to compromise and accept the heresy of elevating a situational choice to a standard of orthodoxy.

Perseverance in the Pressure

With pressure coming from all sides, we need to recognize that, in these moments, our faith is being tested. We are being tempted to respond in ways that are contrary to our faith—to simultaneously compromise our love for God and our love for our neighbor.

The answer to our testing and trials—the answer to the pressure we feel—is perseverance. We need to stand firm in our faith and refuse to compromise ourselves in either direction. We need to follow the examples of those who came before us, who refused to forsake Christ for comfort, convenience, or acceptance. Let’s counter the pressure we feel not with the words of men—with empty philosophies—but with a message of good news for the whole world. The truth, the word of God for all people: That Christ died for our sins, Christ was buried, and Christ rose again in victory over Satan, sin, and death itself. And everyone who believes this will be saved.

May we not shrink back. May we stand firm as our faith is tested. Because it is in its testing that our faith is proven genuine.

Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash