I am reading about the Reformation and have learned that there were many persecuted non-Romanist Christian groups known for their belief in the priesthood of all believers, joined by their common personal experience of regeneration. Some of these people were known as: Albigenses, Waldenses, Paulicians, Bogomiles, Beguines, Paterini, Humitiati, Brethren of the Free Spirit, Lollards, Beghards, Picards, Fraticelli, and many more. In university I wrote an essay about the Waldenses and interestingly, most of the research information I found about this group was recorded by their Roman Catholic inquisitors. While studying WWII in university, I also learned about the Jewish holocaust primarily through German film and documentation. So, in many instances we would know little about persecuted groups aside from their persecutors.
Paul, one of the apostles of Jesus, wrote: “That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death.” Philippians 3:10. Paul along with the other Apostles, shared in the fellowship of Christ’s sufferings. In Jesus’ sermon on the mount, He taught us that, “Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so they persecuted they the prophets which were before you.” Matthew
5:11-12.
We had a family from China that preferred to return to their country in order to suffer alongside fellow believers, believing the words of Jesus that they could rejoice and be exceeding glad. In large part North American Evangelicals don’t appreciate suffering for Christ’s sake and given its essential place in Scripture are we greatly missing out on what should be a hallmark of the Christian pilgrimage? What does it say about how salty we are? Maybe the place to start is to ask why am I not asking, why I am not suffering more?
