Matthew 10:16-25
Persecution Will Come
16 “Behold,
I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. 17 Beware of men, for they will deliver you over to courts and flog you in their synagogues, 18 and
you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them and the Gentiles. 19 When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say
will be given to you in that hour. 20 For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. 21 Brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child,
and children will rise against parents and have them put to death, 22 and you will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. 23 When they persecute
you in one town, flee to the next, for truly, I say to you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.
24 “A
disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. 25 It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more
will they malign those of his household.
Jesus warns His disciples to expect persecution as they carry
out their mission of being His witnesses. This opposition to the Gospel is evidence of sin’s grip on the human heart. When we experience abuse because of our loyalty to Jesus, we have His assurance that the Holy Spirit will help us to speak the right
words. He will use our Gospel testimony to soften the hard hearts of unbelievers.
I pray: Holy Spirit, help me to stand firm to the
end and faithfully witness to Christ in word and deed. Amen.
Engelbrecht, E. A. (2009). The
Lutheran Study Bible (p. 1600). St. Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House.