Persecution

This is a radio program called Finding Emet, which focuses on understanding and living the truth of the Bible from a Hebrew perspective. The host, Brother Daniel Rindleman, shares teachings and articles on their website, emetministries.com. He tells a story about a husband and wife at a fair, highlighting the importance of knowing when to speak and when to be quiet. He goes on to talk about how as believers, we may face persecution for our faith, but we should remember that we are victors, not victims. He references biblical stories like Cain and Abel and the Israelites in Egypt as examples of persecution. Hello and welcome to the Finding Emet radio program. Emet is the Hebrew word for truth. This program will help you understand and live the truth of the Bible from a Hebrew perspective. The Finding Emet radio program features the teaching ministry of Brother Daniel Rindleman of Emet Ministries. Prepare your heart to receive the Emet, the truth of the scriptures. More audio lessons and teaching articles are available at the www.emetministries.com website. Please visit our site to find all things spiritual, including a free online Bible search program, or submit your prayer request. That's www.emetministries.com or www.findemet.com. CD copies of this teaching are available for free by submitting a request at the website. Let's welcome our teacher Daniel Rindleman as he helps us find the Emet. So the story is told of a husband and his wife and they went to the state fair every year. And every year the man would say to his wife, I want to ride that airplane. I want to take a ride in the airplane. And the wife would say, I know honey, you want to ride in the airplane, but the airplane ride costs $10. And $10 is $10. And that's expensive, right? So one year they went to the fair and the man said to his wife, he said, I am 71 years old. And if I don't ride the airplane ride this year, I am never, never, ever going to get to ride it. I may never get another chance. So his wife said, honey, the airplane ride costs $10. And $10 is $10. That's a lot of money. Well, the pilot overheard their conversation and he said, folks, I'll tell you what, I'll make you a deal. I'll make you a deal. I'll take you both up for a ride. And if you can stay quiet for the entire ride and not say one single word, I won't charge you a dime. But if you say one word, it'll cost you $10 each. So the husband and wife agreed that they would do this. They could do it. The pilot takes him up and guess what? He wants his money. So he does all types of tricks and barrel rolls and he flies upside down and inside and twists and turns and dives. Not a word is heard the whole time. He does all these tricks over again. Still not a word. He does them a third time. Finally, they land. The pilot turns to the husband sitting in the back. He says, by golly, I did everything I could to get you to say something. But you didn't. You don't have to pay. The husband said, thank goodness. He said, I was going to say something when my wife fell out of the plane, but $10 is $10, right? There are times when it's good to talk. There are times when it's good to be quiet. However, our lives, as we share the faith, we share what Yahweh says. There are those who receive it and they receive it openly. However, everybody say however. However, the majority of people reject our message. And the closer we get to a Hebraic lifestyle and a message of the Bible or a lifestyle of the Bible, guess what? More people reject it. Yeshua did not run a popularity contest and as we become more like him, that happens to us. So, turn with me to Matthew chapter 5 and we're going to see a little bit of what Yeshua said. He says in Matthew chapter 5, verse 10, he said, Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the Malkuth Hashamayim. Theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when they make fun of you and persecute you and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for my name's sake. Verse 12, Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven. For so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. Now, many times we read those words as part of the Beatitudes and we just kind of skim through it and we read it. But we're going to kind of pick these verses apart a little bit today as we're going to talk about the turning point of persecution. The turning point of persecution. When someone questions your beliefs, that's not persecution. When someone disagrees with you, that's not persecution. Persecution is a malicious attack against someone because of what they believe. People are persecuted because they will not compromise or turn from their principles. However, we're going to find out that those who may disagree with you may not openly persecute you, but many times, guess what they do? They do it behind your back. They do it behind your back. But I want to tell you this and I want to begin with this. Even in persecution, you and I are not victims, but we are victors. Everybody say this. I've got the victory. I've got the victory. Oh, man. The history of the biblical faith is scattered with stories of believers facing all types of punishment and persecution. You can pick up the Bible pretty much anywhere and there's something going on about somebody getting hurt because of what they believe. Especially in the Bride HaDashah in the Newer Testament. As far back as Cain and Abel, as far back as Cain and Abel, we see a separation between those who do the will of Yahweh and those who do not. That far back. So if you take a look at Genesis chapter 4, Genesis Bereshit chapter 4, it tells us about Adam and Abel having Cain and Abel. Abel was a guardian of sheep. He was a shepherd. And Cain was a tiller of the ground. And Cain brought the fruit of the ground as an offering to Yahweh. It tells us in Bereshit 4 verse 3. Now in verse 4, Abel brought the firstborn of his flock and of its fat. And Yahweh had respect for Abel and to his offering. So we have one person who brought an offering and it was not received. And we have one person who brought an offering and it was received very well. And it tells us in verse 6, And Yahweh said to Cain, Why are you so angered and annoyed? Why is your face displaying hate? If you do well, shall you not be accepted? If you do not do well, sin lies at your door, and its desire is for you, but you should rule over it. Cain talked with his brother, Let us go out into the plain. And guess what happened? And it came to pass when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother and killed him. And Yahweh said to Cain, Where is Abel your brother? He said, I don't know. Am I my brother's keeper or guardian? This is the first story really of a sibling rivalry of people. One who follows Yahweh and does what is acceptable. One who does something else that is not acceptable. And what happens? The one who does what is right gets killed. And it goes downhill from there the rest of the Bible. In this passage, we not only see a separation, but a storyline that has been repeated millions of times over and over and over. Both were sincere. I believe that. But one of them was sincerely wrong. People can be sincere and they can be sincerely wrong. However, it is usually those people who are sincerely wrong who get all offended at the person who is right. Can they get an amen? Can they get an oh me? Oh yes, that's right. People do. And they take offense to it. And what does he do? But he kills him. He kills his own brother. It's a pattern of persecution. It's been continued for thousands of years. Nimrod persecuted those who called upon the name of Yahweh. Think about Esau. Think about Ishmael. Think about what happened to Jacob. Joseph. I mean, Joseph was sold into slavery by his own brothers. His own brothers turned his back on him and they sold him into slavery. And we think everything is going to go well for us? Oy. Think about Pharaoh in the Hebrews. Let's look at that example. Turn with me now to Exodus 1. Again, our teaching is called The Turning Point of Persecution. Exodus 1. And here's how it goes. This is how it works. Because the rabbis have told us that what happened to the patriarchs, what happened to the people in the Torah, happens again and again and again. It repeats. History repeats itself. It's in a circle. Now, the Greeks and the worldly mindset is history or the world has a time line. It's a straight line. But in a biblical point of view, everything repeats. What did they say? There's nothing new under the sun. So take a look. This is how the story goes. Shemot, Exodus chapter 1, verse 7. And the children of Israel were fruitful and increased abundantly and multiplied and became exceedingly mighty and the land was filled with them. You're doing well. Things are going good. You're multiplying. You're not just adding. You're multiplying. Things are going well. You're being fruitful. I mean, that's a key concept for us as believers is to have the fruit of the Spirit, is to have fruit in our lives. You know, everything's going well. And then verse 8. Now, now there rose up a new king over Egypt who did not know Joseph. King James, it says, who knew not Joseph. Is that you two? Is that you two? Come on. Think about this. You're doing well. You're being fruitful. Everything's going all right. And then comes along somebody who doesn't really know you. OK. They think they may know you. I mean, he sees them being fruitful. And it says here, and he said to his people, verse 9, the people of the children of Israel are more and mightier than us. Come, let us think wisely with them and deal wisely with them, lest they multiply. And it come to pass, when there comes upon us any war, they join with our enemies and fight against us and leave the land. So here's what happens. Pharaoh, who is scared of the growth of Israel, decides out of his fear that he's going to attack the Israelites. Many times, people become cruel and harsh, and number one, it's because they don't really know us. They don't really understand us. And the other time, it's because they're envious of us. Because of our growth. Because of our life. The Israelites... Think about what happened. Think about what happened. Think about what happened here. It says that they sent over them masters who afflicted them with burdens, and they built Pharaoh the treasured cities. Does that feel like you sometimes? Like you got a master? Maybe it was someone you knew, someone you thought you could trust, and now they're lording over you? They persecuted them. Persecuted them. The word here where it says, in verse 12, where it says, they afflicted them, is the word radof in Hebrew. Radof. It means to follow after earnestly, to pursue. To persecute in a hostile sense. To put up a fight, to put up a fright. To be driven away, to be pursued. That's what happened to them. They had someone who they could work well with, but he moved on. And then this new ruler comes up, who begins to persecute them. But look at verse 12, it says, but the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew. That is Yahweh's word for us today. That the more the enemy afflicts us, the more people afflict us, the more we're going to multiply and grow. Praise Yahweh. Because we all face persecution, and if we're not facing persecution, we've got a problem. Think about it, the Israelites rebelled against Moshe, they ridiculed his faith. He's leading them through the desert, and they're saying, we want to go back to Egypt. You know what I'm talking about? Remember who persecuted Elijah? Jezebel. Hmm. Who persecuted Eliyahu, Elijah? But Jezebel. Who persecutes us many times? Levi. Messiah came. He was persecuted by the religious people of the day. Can you imagine religious people persecuting each other? Wow. Let's turn to Yochanan, John, chapter 15. John, chapter 15. Verse 18, it says, If the world hates you, you know that it hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own. But because you are not of this world, but I have chosen you out of this world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the words I've said to you. The event of a slave is not greater than his master. If they have persecuted me, if they have redoffed me, then they will also persecute you. If they have guarded my words, they will also guard your words. But all these things will they do to you for my name's sake, because they do not know him that sent me. If the world hates you, then it's going to hate him. Do you see that? It's pretty clear. The apostles, the early believers in Yeshua faced rigid, harsh persecution by the Romans, by the others, by the Jews. The true faith was hunted down and was outlawed here, and yet we know that that's what's happening today. Think for a minute about Jewish persecution. What our Jewish brothers and sisters have faced for thousands of years, over and over again. History tells of Jewish persecution and vicious anti-Semitism. Pure hatred for the sacred seed. Now we think of Hitler, we think of Nero and many others. 70 A.D., in 70 A.D., 100,000 Jews were killed in 70 A.D. when the temple was destroyed by the Romans. With the Bar Kokhba rebellion, 500,000 Jews were killed. That's in 132 A.D., while thousands of others were sold into slavery. Constantine the Great, in 315 A.D., established Christianity as the state religion, and he issued many Jewish, anti-Jewish laws. In 613 A.D., the persecution of the Jews in Spain occurred, and all children 7 years old and over were taken from their Jewish parents and given to Christians so they could have a Christian education. The Crusades began in...