Many of us, when we encounter persecution in other countries, begin to wonder about our own freedom, security, and prosperity when others are suffering. How can we enjoy our freedom and painless Christian walk while others are suffering so much for Christ, we think? In some countries, some Christians enjoy freedom while others, in the same country, are being persecuted. We can only attribute this to God’s sovereignty and purpose. When it comes to suffering for the Lord, there is no randomness nor is it entirely the malevolent actions of evil men. God ordains suffering and if we are not suffering for Christ at the moment, it means that God has other plans for us.

There was a time when Christians would complain that we were ignored or misrepresented by mainstream media. That is no longer entirely true. The events in this world are so explicitly clear regarding the persecution of Christians that it is nearly impossible to ignore it, mainstream or backwater media. The idea, I suppose, was that in the past Christianity was so dominant in our culture that it was getting a lot of attention and now it is time to turn our attention to other religions, cults, and bizarre organizations in order to be equitable. But world events have not cooperated with this new attitude and mainstream media is forced to report the targeting of Christians for violence in many parts of the world. Unfortunately, it is taking radical acts of violence against Christians to get Christianity back into the news.

When we read the Bible we usually read only those passages that we think relate to our personal situation. We are often not aware that there are themes that run through the Bible that reflect its most basic and most essential teachings. The theme of ‘deliverance,’ for example, is an important theme that is very prominent in the Book of Exodus as Israel is delivered from the bondage of Egypt. It shows up again when Jews in captivity are allowed to go back to their homeland to rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple. It has a spiritual dimension when we are taught that we are delivered from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light.

The idea that someone or something suffers for the benefit or as a representative of another is a theme that runs through the Bible. In the Old Testament, animals were substituted for persons to bear the punishment for human sin. They represented the sinful human, vicariously suffering even though they were innocent because they could not make moral decisions. The suffering servant of Isaiah 53 introduces the idea of a person suffering on behalf of others. In the New Testament, Jesus becomes the ultimate sacrifice for our sin and our substitute. He was the Suffering Servant prophesied by Isaiah and suffered vicariously for us. He willfully went to the cross for us.

Paul connected his own personal suffering to his responsibility for fulfilling his call. That suffering would be a part of his calling was stated explicitly by God to him. Since Paul had been a persecutor of the church before his conversion, he knew best what was waiting for him.

Periodically as I read the Bible there are verses that pop out at me appearing as though I have never read them before. Reading through Acts 26, I was stopped-short by an amazing statement that never registered in my mind before. Paul said in verses 9-11: “I too was convinced that I ought to do all that was possible to oppose the name of Jesus of Nazareth. And that is just what I did in Jerusalem. On the authority of the chief priests I put many of the Lord’s people in prison, and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them. Many a time I went from one synagogue to another to have them punished, and I tried to force them to blaspheme. I was so obsessed with persecuting them that I even hunted them down in foreign cities.”

Religious fanaticism has a prominent place in recent news coverage. Those who are committed to proving that religion is by nature irrational and fanatical have more than enough examples to support their belief. Religious people are seen as lunatics, extremists who are willing to do almost anything to promote their cause and belief system. Unfortunately, there are those who, in the name of religion, are willing to do just about anything to promote their cause. They are inflexible and intolerant to the extreme. And there are those, in the name of irreligion, who are just as fanatical and capable of doing the same things.

In John chapter 11 we read that Lazarus is dead. Jesus tells his disciples that he needs to go to Bethany in Judea, and that he wants them to go with him. The purpose for going is for God’s glory but also so that the Son can be glorified through it. Jesus intended to raise Lazarus from the dead, but the disciples did not know that. All they knew was that the last time Jesus was in Judea there were those who tried to kill him. So Thomas, assuming that Jesus would go back to Judea and risk being killed, rallies his colleagues to go with Jesus and die with him.

Those living in freedom can be lulled into lethargy. The church in the free world is losing its passion for evangelism and for participation in the public square in conversation with society. It has either lost confidence or conviction to proclaim the faith publically, or it has withdrawn into its shell and agreed with those who think that faith is primarily an individual activity that has no relationship to public life.

“I see nothing” is the classic line of Sgt. Schultz from Hogan’s Heroes, the 1960s television series about prisoners of war. The line is funny and unforgettable. So what does it mean? It means to ‘turn a blind eye.’ If I can’t see it, it doesn’t exist, it hasn’t happened, and therefore I am not responsible for it. Schultz was hiding from reality—usually the antics of the prisoners of war that he was supposed to be guarding. It was a humorous statement from a character on TV, but in real life hiding one’s eyes (face, head) from reality is immature and irresponsible. It can be downright dangerous.