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1 Peter 4 Living for God 4 Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because whoever suffers in the body is done with sin. 2 As a result, they do not live the rest of their earthly lives for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God. 3 For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do—living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry. 4 They are surprised that you do not join them in their reckless, wild living, and they heap abuse on you. 5 But they will have to give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead. 6 For this is the reason the gospel was preached even to those who are now dead, so that they might be judged according to human standards in regard to the body, but live according to God in regard to the spirit. 7 The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray. 8 Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. 9 Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. 10 Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. 11 If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen. Suffering for Being a Christian 12 Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. 13 But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. 14 If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. 15 If you suffer, it should not be as a murderer or thief or any other kind of criminal, or even as a meddler. 16 However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name. 17 For it is time for judgment to begin with God’s household; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who do not obey the gospel of God? 18 And, “If it is hard for the righteous to be saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?” 19 So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.
We live in a society today that's focused on self-gratification. Our advertisements, tv shows, hobbies, restaurants - everything we see and do appeals to our flesh. However, if we're followers of God, we should not be walking according to the flesh, but according to the spirit. Our life shouldn't look like everyone else's. But what exactly should it look like? If we claim to follow Jesus, our life should conform to His, which includes His suffering. He bought us with a price, our life no longer belongs to us. He died so that He could live through us. We repay Him for His sacrifice by living for Him.
In John 12:24-26 Jesus says that we must hate our life in order to gain eternal life and be His disciples. If we do whatever we want to do, we can't say that we hate our life and we probably aren't following God. I believe living in America today makes it hard for us to apply this passage to our lives because everything is so easily accessible to us and no one is really persecuting us for our faith. We've gotten comfortable and seemingly put God on a back burner. In other countries, this is not the case. People's lives are on the line because of their faith and they have no choice but to cling to God and submit to His will, or deny Him entirely.
This is a story of a family that really had to pick up their cross daily - A story of choosing the narrow path amidst a constant temptation to give up their faith.
My in-laws emigrated to America from Ukraine. They grew up in the Soviet Union which was openly against Christianity. Back then, the government did everything they could to tarnish the reputation of Christians. The KGB spread political propaganda that spit on God and on those who followed Him. They harassed Christians every opportunity they got. Christians were bullied, framed, thrown in jail and even killed.
My in-laws were not well off financially. The biggest reason for this was that it was extremely hard for them to find and keep a job due to religious persecution. The father was highly sought in his profession, however, as soon as he was hired, the KGB would get involved and pester his bosses with questions and regulations. They tried to bribe them into persecuting the father of the family. Some bosses didn't have a personal problem with Christians but simply to avoid the hassle would ask the father to leave voluntarily. Others were not so gracious. They took bribes from the government and looked for opportunities to set him up. Sometimes they would try to create an accident, making it look like it was his fault, to ruin his reputation and brand Christians as a burden to society. Other times they would hire coworkers to set up fatal accidents hoping to take his life. These "accidents" included gas poisoning, machine combustion, factory explosions, anything that would cause harm or take his life. As always, God was a step ahead. When an accident was set up to take his life, God would warn him and preserve his life.
Life was not easier for the children either. The kids were bullied in school for their faith daily, by students and teachers alike. The students were encouraged to make fun of, fight with, steal lunches and spit into the food of known Christian students. The were no consequences or disciplinary action taken. In fact, the children were praised by the staff for it. Teachers would suspend or send Christian students to detention for no real reason, simply to hinder their learning. They purposely taught on a topic that was not covered in the textbook so that the student couldn't catch up on the material on their own. The next day, the teacher would ask the student what was taught the day prior, knowing that they would not be able to answer correctly simply to humiliate them and portray an image that Christians were stupid and had no interest in learning. Homework was assigned on this material as well hoping to flunk these students out of the class.
Things did not get better after grade school. Christians were prohibited from pursuing a higher education such as going to university. While a low-level trade school was allowed for jobs like farming, they were not allowed to hold any respectable positions or occupations in society. They were constantly kicked out of preferred seats and sometimes entirely off of public transportation, often making them late to school and work. The goal was to portray Christians as lower class citizens. The only way to attain a higher level job or education was to publicly deny God.
On top of constantly looking for decent work, the family was fined every time they attended church. The fine was about as much as an average monthly salary. However, this did not stop them from going. They somehow made ends meet by growing produce and raising animals. They would sell their eggs and vegetables in order to buy bread and other groceries. They worked hard constantly, but they didn't give up on their faith.
Occasionally the father would travel to Moscow to file a petition to emigrate from the country because of the severity of the religious persecution. On his way, he would meet up with other Christians to collect Bibles and other Christian literature to distribute in his local church community. The police were surveilling him so they knew about these trips. They would track him and wait at the bus stop, hoping to catch him with the contraband literature. Aware of their schemes, the father would take the back roads instead and walk home. When he didn't get off the bus, the police would come to the house and listen on their surveillance equipment in their vehicles, hoping to hear some incriminating evidence since they legally could not take any action without proof of illegal activity. The children were strictly warned to watch what they said as not to incriminate their father.
Oftentimes, strangers would approach the children and question them. They would ask if they were forced to go to church and participate in religious activities. They would also ask if the children were spanked at home. If the child answered "yes", social services would come and take the children away. These children were placed in homes where they were miserable, hoping to separate them from the faith of their parents and any teaching about God. The goal was to make them bitter towards God.
Since the father of the family seemed the survive all the attempts the KGB made on his life and refused to deny his faith, they decided to focus on his children. One day the eldest son's friend asked him to give him a ride to a party. His father pleaded with him not to go, but the son insisted that he would just drop his friend off and come straight home. An innocent favor quickly turned into a tragedy. As soon as he arrived, cops flooded the scene and arrested everyone present for a group rape and murder. However, when it came to trial, the son was the only one convicted of the crime, everyone else had been released. The court told his father that they would let his son go, if he would publicly deny God. It was obviously a setup, and as much as it broke the father's heart, he could not renounce his faith and the son was sentenced to prison for a crime he did not commit. Years later, the "friend" that had asked for a ride finally confessed that he had been approached by the KGB and offered a bribe if he could just get the son to that party. It was too little, too late. The son still had to serve his undeserved time.
There are many more stories of religious persecution that this family and many other Christians in the Soviet Union endured, but the point is - all these hardships could have easily been avoided if they had just denied their faith in God. One public statement could have made all their problems disappear.
This is what it means to hate your life. Willingly choosing to follow God no matter what it takes. Picking up your cross daily. This life of following God could cost you friendships, relationships with family - all because you're so intimate with God that all you care about is what He wants you to do, not what you or anyone else wants.
Jesus, our Lord and Savior, is a perfect example of this. He left a heavenly throne, immortality, riches, glory and power. He humbled himself and came to the earth to serve us. I'm sure this was not a decision that He loved - although He loved the people He died to save. No one would love to get beaten beyond recognition for people who won't even acknowledge, much less appreciate what He did for them - but His purpose was to do the will of His Father. If He loved His life, why would He ask "Father take this cup from me"?
Likewise, many disciples suffered and died for the gospel. Some were sawn in half, others crucified upside down. Paul was shipwrecked, imprisoned, and whipped on multiple occasions. Stephen was stoned to death. Even in the Old Testament, Daniel was thrown in a lion's den. Shadrach Meshach and Abednego were thrown in a fiery furnace. When we decide to follow God we are not signing up for a life of "fun". At least not by the world's standard. Jesus promised that trials and persecutions would come. However, our fun is that if we survive the test, we will join Him in heaven. Jesus' fun was to do the will of God. We are to consider it pure joy when we face these trials because we know what comes afterward if we remain faithful.