“Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 10:32–33
The news has been full of horrific and barbaric acts against professing Christians around the world simply because of their faith in Jesus Christ. Evil knows no bounds and it seems the “birth pangs” of the end times as expressed in the gospels of Matthew and Mark are becoming more and more intense. Thankfully, those brave and committed Jesus-followers did not waver in their conviction of where their eternal security lay. God’s Word writes of “the 21” and many others martyred for the faith in Revelation 20:4b: "And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God."
Have you ever imagined what you would do if you were confronted with a life or death decision such as this? It would be common sense and our natural instinct to protect our lives and even the lives of others by “playing the game” and verbally recanting our faith just to appease our captors. After all, the Lord “knows my heart” and will understand this detour so “I can continue to serve Him” in the days ahead.
The fact is, the Lord does know your heart all too well and that kind of thinking should give us pause. This scripture is the very word of Jesus and is certainly not conditional. Think about the huge impact on the world these martyrs have made because of their unwillingness to deny their Savior. Continuing “good deeds” would not have had this kind of effect from such strong conviction as to lay down one’s life. But we don’t have to be facing a physically threatening situation for an opportunity to deny Jesus. What about not speaking a positive word for Jesus at our workplace or neighborhood when conversation invites it? What about willingly participating in un-Christlike actions or events? It’s something to think about.
Our goal should be to honor and confess the Lord in all we do. It is then we identify with Jesus, and He with us as He presents us before the Heavenly Father as “Yes, Father, they are truly Mine.” Paul encouraged Timothy " For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day."
Now that you know, act and live it.
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