“You yourselves know, dear brothers and sisters, that our visit to you was not a failure. You know how badly we had been treated at Philippi just before we came to you and how much we suffered there. Yet our God gave us the courage to declare his Good News to you boldly, in spite of great opposition. … And then, dear brothers and sisters, you suffered persecution from your own countrymen. In this way, you imitated the believers in God’s churches in Judea who, because of their belief in Christ Jesus, suffered from their own people, the Jews.” (1 Thessalonians 2:1-2,14, NLT)
Angel Falls in Venezuela are the tallest waterfalls in the world. From the flat-topped mountain Auyán-tepui, the Churun River hurdles off a 3,300 foot escarpment, creating the 3,212-foot waterfall which plunges into the “Devil’s Canyon” below. Can you imagine how terrifying it would be to have the thunderous waters of Angel Falls plummet upon you at the bottom in El Canon del Diablo? From such a tremendous height?
Actually, people who dare to climb to the foot of the mighty falls are in no danger whatsoever. Instead of being crushed by the many tons of plunging water, they only get a fine spray and mist upon them. You see, that’s all that’s left of the falling river after strong updrafts have blasted it over its nearly one kilometer drop – nothing but a fine spray. Oh, the people at the bottom do get wet. But it’s nothing like the crushing weight of water which they expected.
This has a spiritual application. God makes no guarantees to His children that they will never suffer persecution for the sake of Christ. Quite to the contrary, Jesus said we should expect it (Matthew 10:16-39) and Paul said were are destined for it (1 Thessalonians 3:3-4). Yet, God will never allow us to be tested beyond our breaking point (1 Corinthians 10:13). The will of God will never take us where His love cannot uphold us.
The adversity of Satan is sometimes pictured as a flood of water by which he seeks to overwhelm us. But God promises in His word that when we pass through the waters He will be with us and when we pass through the rivers they will not overwhelm us (Isaiah 43:1-3). Isaiah 59:19 states, “When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD shall lift up a standard against him.” In Revelation 12:15-16 the devil is once again pictured as creating a great flood by which he hopes to sweep away the people of God. But God causes the earth to open its mouth and swallow up the flood of water in order to deliver His people. What the strong updrafts of wind do to the crushing waters of Angel Falls – breaking them up into a fine spray – so the Spirit of God will do to the adversity of Satan. Oh, we’ll get wet. But we won’t be crushed.
REFLECTION
- Do you ever fear that you might deny Christ in the face of persecution or under the threat of death? But if you are faithful to Christ in all the other seasons of life, won’t He prepare you for its stormy season also?
- Isn’t our preservation in persecution a credit to God’s power rather than to ours’s?
- As we reach out to God for strength in persecution, He’ll strengthen us.