Persecution Then and Now: There's a Difference

Peter Preaching in Jerusalem by Charles Poërson (France, Vic-sur-Seille, 1609-1667).

I’m working through the Acts of the Apostles and noticing there’s a difference between how we perceive persecution and how they did. We want our rights to be protected. We want to hold our beliefs without the fear of discrimination. It’s a defensive response. In contrast, they want to call their city to repentance and faith in Jesus.

In Acts 5 the new movement is spreading throughout Jerusalem and the surrounding towns and countryside. People are turning and putting their faith in Jesus and are added to the churches.

The pushback came from the High Priest and the Sadducees who control the temple. Peter and John refused to obey their command to be silent and filled Jerusalem with their teaching. So Peter and the apostles are seized and put in jail.

That night an angel freed them and told go them to the temple at dawn and defy the temple leadership again. They are arrested again and brought before the ruling council of Israel.

The apostles say, they will obey God, not man. These rulers had Jesus crucified, but God raised him from the dead. This Prince and Savior is calling the nation to repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

The apostles are not asking to be left alone so they can go about their lives unmolested. They are making disciples. Their message caused turmoil and division in their city and in city after city of the Roman Empire.

In Acts, the context for persecution is the proclamation of the gospel. They call everyone — even the leadership — to repent and believe in Jesus. They are adding new disciples to churches springing up all over the city and surrounding countryside.

Today we want to be left in peace to believe what we believe. In Acts, Peter and the apostles want to fill Jerusalem with the knowledge of Jesus.