Paul put it well. Look at this Paul said in

2 Timothy 3:12.

Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.

 I like Paul, he’s so clear yes and all who desire to live

Godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution all who desire

put your Bible on the top of your pile of books in the 70s at HLA high school and you will be mocked. Go to Ohio State University

and tell the Professor you believe the Bible’s true. He will make fun of you. God says if we raise the flag and not you know arrogantly in

their face. Just say I’m sorry no I can’t do that. Tell them I am a Christian and I believe that would not please the Lord say that. People will get angry Peter said.

They get angry because you won’t run with them after what they desire to do.

The famous Circus Maximus where they crucified and burned

Believers, some upside down like Peter. Others you know right side up and then the rest of them they put in the ground on the Arena floor and released animals to to kill them and 250,000 people died in the circus Maximus.

More Christians died in the first three centuries in the circus Maximus than any other Coliseum. They did the big stuff in the circus Maximus. It’s one of the most sacred spots in Rome. It’s a giant field where you walk your dogs,and that’s all they

do with it. It’s a massive area. It is wide open. Let’s read 2 Timothy 3 and let’s read

2 Timothy 3

Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,

Revelation 2:8

And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive;

and think about what happened here. How many of your brothers

and sisters saw Jesus face to face for the first time right here.

It’s amazing. I already told you this but hard times are coming from Christ Church.

Google covid-19 contact tracing that went on during this.

By the way this is a headline from Bloomberg this is not Christian this is Bloomberg financial news in New York City. You know Bloomberg one of the wealthiest people in the world. He runs all the financial services. His prognosis is that the government got three billion people’s contact information through

Covid. That is almost a third of the world’s population that they got their information.

They didn’t just know who you were. They know where you were and who you were near.

What happens when they have a database that knows who all the professed Christians are? They’re tracking where you’re going. That’s exactly what they do in China.

We will be looking for the security cameras kind of like Jason Bour Movie.

You will looking to find a spot where no security camera will be seeing us.

You will be talking and then you will have to move on. You will know that you will be constantly be tracked. Hard times are coming, but what should we do about it.

Well throughout history, God has used the persecution of his church to advance the gospel. Christians are not supposed to go get a bunker and get bullets and put up Barb Wire around their homes.

They’re supposed to be in there and keep sharing the hope. It’s kind of like we’re on a sinking ship and we’re trying to pass out as many life preservers as possible. We are not go get in the rowboat and get away.

We are to stay as long abd fight as long as can, as long as we can on the sinking ship.

Sharing the gospel. We are soldiers for Christ.

Let me show you what happened in Smyrna after Jesus wrote the letter in verse 10 of chapter 2 of Revelation.

Revelation 2:10-11

10 Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.

11 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the

 churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.

Do not fear any of these things you’re about to suffer. You know be

faithful unto death. They got that letter and they suffered. Their Pastor was alive and got that letter. We know his name his name was Polycarp.

He actually was a friend of John the Apostle on patmas.

Polycarp’s martyrdom is an amazing. He was 86 years old.

At the Agora through these arches there was a open Marketplace.

The Romans lined up the entire population of Smyrna while Polycarp was the pastor they had them come through the line walking right right to there. You would get up there and the secretary of the city kind of the recording secretary is

sitting there. They look at you and say tell us your name.

They look through and find your name on the list

of citizens. Right next to them is a

little pot of incense powder which kind of like looks like sugar only it’s dark.  Next to that is a little flame kind of like a an oil lamp burning a big flame and a soldier is standing right there.

Then another secretary is standing there.

Everybody in line behind you. So no one’s seeing what you’re doing and you tell them your name. Then you reach into

 the sugar and its incense. All you have to do is get any amount of incense and you sprinkle the incense.

When it hits the fire it goes and makes a little puff of smoke and behind that flame is a bust of the emperor. You have just offered worship through the incense and the fire in front of the Statue of the emperor and that’s enough by saying you offer

worship to the emperor. If you would do that the next station in the walk handed you a A libellus (plural libelli) in the Roman Empire

 was any brief document written on individual pages

 (as opposed to scrolls or tablets), particularly official

 documents issued by governmental authorities. Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 3929, a libellus from the Decian persecution.

It is a certificate that you were a good Emperor worshipping citizen and you were secure.

If you did not do that. The soldier standing there

would take you off into the arena and they executed you.

Then Polycarp the pastor came at the head of his church and he said Polycarp and they found him in the book. He said I cannot worship Doman. I will not give the incense.

They marked marched him out that very moment to the arena. They tied him in the arena to a stake. His words are still

in history he said 80 and six years have

I followed Christ. How could I not follow him now and they burned him alive at the stake.

You see it’s not easy to be a Christian. I mean we love it we’re

kind of in a Christian Nation and we can have our Christian songs and go to our Christian Schools.

There’s a Time coming when Christianity is not going to be legal and it’s not going to be safe. So we should all become

spiritual Preppers Jesus said make a choice. Prepare have you ever heard of Preppers. There’s a lot of Preppers especially in rural areas. I mean they’re prepping they’ve got gas and diesel generators’ and invertors.

They’ve got Hideaway places and they’ve got food. They’ve got guns and they’ve got gold. They’ve got everything and there’s nothing wrong with any of those things Diesel generators,invertors, guns, gold, bullets, and food is good but not if you’re doing that to escape society and protect yourself.

We were not left here to protect ourselves.

Yes we’re supposed to take care of our

family. Take care of our children and

protect them from Marauders but when all

of society is against Christ Christians.

We are not supposed to exit. We are

supposed to have a Live Hope and

share Christ. So how are you a spiritual

prepper? By saying make a choice to do

the most repeated negative command in

the Bible fear not.

Fearing is meditating on your problems and dangers.

So if you’re a fearful person. It means you’re good at meditating.

You’re just meditating on the wrong stuff. You’re supposed to meditate on the Promises of God.

That’s why I did the whole Book of Revelation study. This whole

whole study started in chapter 1 and completed

at Chapter 22. It is on our blog at: https://gracebaptistchurchgladwin.com/revelation-the-book-not-from-this-planet/

Which I studied and put together to help encourage my

Brothers and Sisters to grow strong in The Lord Almighty.

With all of the attributes we’re supposed to meditate

 on the truth about Christ.

Revelation 22:7