Thursday Thoughts for Parents | "In the Presence of Your Enemies"
This post is based on C.J. Mahaney's sermon, In the Presence of Your Enemies, given on July 16, 2017.
Suffering persecution came with the calling of Christian in the early church. In today’s culture, we are no less confronted with persecution than our brothers and sisters of previous centuries. So what comes to your mind when you think of ways we should retaliate? How angry should we get? How upset should we act? How are we called to get back at those who hurt us? Wouldn’t it be great if we were given a spiritual inoculation to deaden the pain of persecution? Sometimes we may wish we could wield a sword like Peter did in the garden (Jn. 18:10). But our retaliation looks profoundly different. In the text from this week’s sermon, Peter gives us the radical counsel informed by the gospel we need to please God when we respond to hostile taunts from those who hate us because of our love for Jesus.
Read 1 Peter 3:9-12
- When you think of personal enemies, CJ asked, “Who comes to mind?”
- How did Peter command us to respond to persecution in verse 9? What will be our reward when we follow his counsel?
- According to verse 12, what hope does the gospel offer when we are faced with persecution?
- Write a prayer of confession asking the Lord to forgive those who have mistreated you, and ask for a genuine affection for those who have persecuted you.
- Prepare yourself for the next interaction you have with them by asking the Lord to stir a holy affection for them in your heart.
- Parents, this command can be broadly applied in the family as children seek to love their siblings or friends when they have been sinned against. We can prepare our kids to bless those who sin against them through persecution by forgiving those who antagonize them now.
[post written by Tyson Ziegler]
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