Persecuted is everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus, 2 Tim 3:12.
On Pentecost Sunday, five Kurds were baptized in the church where I serve. They had been receiving baptismal training for six months and now they were ready. We talked about the fear of reprisals from family and friends, but one said: ”It doesn't matter. Becoming Christians is more important to us than what others will think and say.” It was a powerful morning and a small taste of Pentecost's big baptism celebration.
Paul's phrase about persecution is both timely, challenging and comforting. Challenging for us because one might ask, do we really experience persecution? Comparing ourselves to David, Jeremiah, Paul or Jesus himself, we may think our lives are too easy. When we hear about the suffering of Christians in places like the Middle East and Asia, our whimpers of contempt and ridicule are put into perspective.
It is said that grief cannot be graded - it is as bad as it is experienced. Perhaps the same can be said of persecution. Paul goes on to talk about the danger of error and urges Timothy to maintain confidence in the Holy Scriptures. The assault on the Bible in the Western world is a challenge and one of the devil's powerful tools of persecution and error.
In this way, all Christians stand together shoulder to shoulder in persecution in different ways, which is why Paul's sentence is also a comfort. We should not be surprised at the persecution, hardship, delusion and doubt. It is all predicted, not only by Paul, but also by Jesus himself.
By Steen Frøjk Søvndal
Parish priest in Grindsted, Nollund and Urup
