Dealing with a hostile world

1 Peter 2:4-5

“As you come to Jesus, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”

It’s interesting how Christians in America “suddenly” feel subjected to dismissal, denigration, and even overt hatred—certainly true of any who dare to live out a biblical worldview. Yet such antagonism, which has hardly reached the level of persecution here in the U.S., has existed for thousands of years elsewhere.

According to Open Doors:

“Over the 30 years of the Open Doors World Watch List reporting, the global phenomenon of Christian persecution has grown exponentially. Today, more than 360 million Christians suffer high levels of persecution and discrimination for their faith. In 1993, Christians faced high to extreme levels of persecution in 40 countries. This number has nearly doubled to 76 countries in 2023.”

“High,” “extreme”—this doesn’t describe casual disagreement but intentional persecution, and there hasn’t been a time since the Church’s inception in the early 1st century A.D. that biblical Christians have not somewhere in the world been persecuted for their faith.

So, what’s going on here in America?

American culture is merely catching up to the rest of the world. Europe is already a post-Christian society, as we will be in short order. Not that we should retreat into sequestered communes or cease speaking the truth in love—we remain ambassadors of Christ and therefore must also accept God’s word that tells us (get ready…) it only gets worse:

“Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing, and following their own evil desires. They will say, ‘Where is this ‘coming’ He promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation’” (2 Peter 3:3-4).

“But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God—having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people” (2 Timothy 3:1-5).

“For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short” (Matthew 24:21-22).

Discouraged? Don’t be. For while the world around us crumbles we endure as part of a building process that will ultimately transcend this world. Look again at the passage that began this article:

Like Jesus, we (i.e., authentic, biblical Christians) will face increasing opposition—if not personally then corporately against our fundamental beliefs. Along with Jesus, who is the cornerstone and foundation of God’s kingdom (Psalm 118:22; Isaiah 28:16-17; Ephesians 2:20; 1 Corinthians 3:11), we are part of God’s eternal plan and set apart to “…offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”

What does that mean?

The phrase “spiritual sacrifices” (from the Greek pneumatikos thusia) means, “freely given offerings of belief and behavior that please God.” Not simply material offerings, but a steady life trajectory that honors and illuminates God regardless of the cost—thus, a “sacrifice.” Being part of the Church, the Body of Christ, we are both resident in and set apart from the secular world. As Jesus prayed:

“I have given them Your [the Father’s] word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one” (John 17:14-15).

Do you see the scenario? We are like soldiers sent into battle with the Holy Spirit as “air cover” for our operations. Facing a hostile world means that despite its hostility we face it in allegiance to the Lord, confident in His ultimate victory and our vindication, relying on His grace to see us through to the end. In this context, let’s look again at the last phrase in 2 Timothy 3:1-5:

“Have nothing to do with such people.”

Verses 1-4 describe “such people” as “…lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love…” (etc.). To avoid everyone like this it seems we should retreat rather than advance, yet notice the phrase that precedes “…avoid such people”:

“…having a form of godliness but denying its power.”

In essence, rooted in the spiritual realm there are two hostile worlds we face as representatives of Christ; the ungodly who hate biblical Christianity, and the religious who corrupt biblical Christianity. Yet it’s the latter, the ones “…having a form of godliness but denying its power” from whom we are to distance ourselves—self-professed Christians who reject God’s word in favor of prevailing self-interests. Paul asserted this earlier to the church in Corinth:

“But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one” (1 Corinthians 5:11).

Not that we disassociate from fellow believers, like ourselves, who imperfectly follow Christ, but rather from those who have joined the world in its disdain for God’s word. We must also remember that this rejection of us as biblical Christians is ultimately a rejection of the Lord:

“If the world hates you, know that it has hated Me [Jesus] before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will also keep yours. But all these things they will do to you on account of My name, because they do not know Him who sent Me” (John 15:18-21; cf. 1 Samuel 8:7).

Thus, it matters not that we are increasingly rejected by the world, but that we rise as an answer, a sanctuary, to those who come to understand the futility of that world and seek hope. What must we do to maintain this perspective? Fundamentally, we must believe:

God remains in control (nothing is a surprise to or more powerful than Him)
God has our back (what can man do to us?)
God will supply our needs (from material to spiritual provision)
God’s kingdom will prevail (it matters not how bad things get but how good things will soon be)

Putting our trust in Him enables us not only to face an increasingly hostile world but to do so with joy, for even in the cacophony of that hostility there is always the one person pining for God. For the sake of the “one” looking for hope in Christ, as we once were, we persevere!