Friday, December 5, 2025

Rejoice in Suffering for Christ
Acts 5:40-42; 1 Peter 4:12-19

The apostles left the Sanhedrin "rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name." This isn't masochism—it's perspective. They understood that suffering for Jesus united them with Christ Himself and confirmed their authentic faith. Most apostles were eventually martyred; only John died naturally, after exile and hardship. They lost everything by worldly standards but gained everything that matters eternally. Peter, who wrote about suffering's refining purpose, would later be crucified. Paul, who declared Christ's sufferings as privilege, was beheaded. They rejoiced not in pain itself but in the honor of being identified with Jesus. Today, reframe your opposition. Job loss, mockery, rejection, or persecution for righteousness—these aren't signs of God's absence but of your faithful presence in a world that rejected Him first. Count it joy.