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Living
Hope Fellowship Church
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Sermons
From the Pastor
PERSECUTED
Training
Material
by Pastor Kevin Badgley
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PERSECUTED
Preface
(trials)
The Lord is doing a mighty work. However, you can expect
scribes, Pharisees, and hypocrites to try to persecute you
and even destroy you.
By the grace of God I encourage you not to give up! Don’t
quit believing God for miracles. God has sent forth His
Word, and He has healed, delivered and saved many.
God is going to do a mighty work in spite of those who fight
against it! It doesn’t matter if they believe it or not,
God is still going to bring it forth!!
PERSECUTED
by Pastor Kevin Badgley
Acts 4:1-3 says, “And as they spake unto the people, the
priests, and the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees,
came upon them, Being grieved that they taught the people,
and preached through Jesus the resurrection from the dead.
And they laid hands on them, and put them in hold unto the
next day: for it was now eventide.”
Many times we find in the Word of God that whenever miracles
were being performed, or preaching or teaching was being
brought forth by the Word of the Lord for signs, wonders,
and miracles, persecution was evident. When there was
preaching about mighty revival that God was about to send in
the land, we find that persecution came inevitably upon
those who were preaching it.
We see continuously throughout the Bible that persecution
came from the “church world”. It happened every time the
disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ began to preach, teach,
prophesy, and let the world know that Jesus was alive and
well, still doing miracles, and bringing revival.
It was not out of the secular world, nor of the government,
or somewhere else (though they might have participants in
it), but rather from the church world that persecution
arose. Persecution arose from the very ones who professed
to be following God! This is a strange twist that we still
see in the world today.
Some are obeying God and are preaching and believing God for
signs, wonders, and miracles, as Jesus said in Mark 16:17,
“And these signs shall follow them that believe. . . .” He
said that the signs will follow the believer. They will
cast out devils, heal the sick, raise the dead, and they are
to freely give this, because the believers have freely
received this power from on high.
Now, if you cannot believe God for the power from on high to
do these miracles, how can you believe Him to receive the
same power to be saved? The same spirit that raised
Jesus Christ from the dead dwells in those who believe.
The Bible says this in Romans 8:11, “But if the Spirit of
him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that
raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your
mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.”
If the Spirit of the Lord God that raised Christ from the
dead dwells in you, that same Spirit will quicken your
mortal body. What happens when this happens? The Bible
declares that you shall be endued with power from on high.
Jesus promised this, and we know that God’s Word is true.
What Jesus said is still the same today, just as it was
yesterday. Hebrews 13:8 says, “Jesus Christ the same
yesterday, and to day, and for ever.”
God wants us to know that we are going to be persecuted when
we speak out in faith, and even greater when we begin to act
upon that faith. Still greater persecution will come when
we begin to manifest the signs, wonders, and miracles of
that faith by the power of God that we are living in. The
pace of persecution begins to step up.
Rebuttals, mockery, and the fiery darts of the wicked that
were predicted in the Bible will come against the true
believers of God. It begins to come against them as they
take a stand for God. Search out the scriptures! God is
trying to let the world know that there is a true and
righteous way, and a holy God in heaven. It’s not by
forms and rituals, or tied up with man-made religion or
denominationalism, but rather it is an anointed work of
God!
The bride of Christ, the remnant that is left in the world
today is a people coming out of a people, whose beginnings
were no people. God is still Lord. He is still King
of Kings and Lord of Lords. He is still on the throne
ruling and reigning in the earth. Now, I doubt very
seriously that anybody in their right mind, at least in the
church world, would deny that Satan’s power is manifest in
the world today through witchcraft and sorcery. Through the
news media we hear what is taking place in the world, and we
know that there are wars and rumors of wars. It’s easy to
see the power of the devil working in the world.
The atrocities that men are committing against other men is
horrible, as well as the butchers of millions of babies in
these last years since 1968 when it was legalized. It is
called abortion. God is angry at all this. He wants the
church to rise up and demonstrate the power of God, because
anyone can recognize the power of Satan and his prevalence
in the world today.
A few are preaching, teaching, or admonishing that God’s
power is not gone, not dead, has not diminished, and has not
left the world. Why is it that every time someone preaches
this, we hear those that are supposed to be wise in the
scriptures (having great respect from people) say that it
shouldn’t be preached? They say you shouldn’t bring up some
great expectations in the people, lest they fall.
We see this in the book of Acts, Chapter 4. Peter and John
had been praying, and they were believing God for revival.
They laid hands on a man, and God healed him. It was a
marvelous miracle, and people could not deny it. The
Sadducees, the Pharisees, and even the captain of the temple
who was in the religious hierarchy couldn’t deny it.
The Bible says in the Acts 4:14, “And beholding the man
which was healed standing with them, they could say nothing
against it.” They couldn’t say anything against it; it was
a miracle. Why is it that they became so viciously angry at
what Peter and John had done?
A wonderful work had been done! They hadn’t done it in the
name of the devil. They had done it in the name of the Lord
Jesus Christ. They had not only exalted His name, but they
had proven that His name was still alive and well!
Can you believe for miracles in the name of Jesus? How can
you believe for the greatest miracle, which is salvation in
the name of Jesus? The Bible says in Romans 10:13, “For
whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be
saved.” They shall be delivered. If you can’t call upon
the name of the Lord to see revival, and know that it is
going to take place, how can you believe for salvation?
If you can’t call upon the name of the Lord, and know that
God will deliver and heal, then how can you call upon the
name of the Lord, whom you have not seen, and believe to be
delivered from the bonds of hell, and made ready to go to
heaven, a place that you have not seen?
The greatest miracle in the universe is when Jesus Christ
made an atonement for fallen man who was headed for hell
just as hard as he could go. The Bible says in Romans 3:23,
“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.”
Jesus made a way to get to the glory of God by giving his
blood for an atonement for our souls freely on Calvary. He
rose again on the third day to show us that we can die to
self and rise again with new life in Him. Now He’s sitting
on the right hand of God, the Father, making intercession.
Why would anyone be upset with all the side
benefits of signs, wonders, and miracles, and great revival
that comes through the salvation experience?
This is beyond our understanding. Perhaps there is another
motive behind the persecution. Notice that it doesn’t
always come from the sources that you would expect. Rather,
they come through those who are professing Christ, but are
not manifesting the glory of God.
The Bible says in 2 Timothy 3:5, “Having a form of
godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn
away.” They deny the manifest signs of Jesus. They deny
not that they did take place, but that they are
taking place now, and that they will take place in
the future until Jesus comes.
They are telling the people, No, don’t believe God. No,
don’t expect all of this, because you are going to get your
hopes up, and God will let you down. Romans 10:11 says,
“For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall
not be ashamed.”
We are not going to be disappointed. We are not going to be
let down, because God is not a liar. However, a man who
would try to turn the Word of God into foolishness and vain
words is a liar. Men would like to turn the Word of God
into merely a profession, and not a walk and life in
Christ. Those who have merely a profession have nothing
more than the devil has. The devil can profess and claim
the name of Jesus. He does it all the time to religious
leaders to keep them from finding the true Christ. They are
too proud, stubborn, and lifted up in themselves and their
own will to admit that they are no better than the
prostitute on the street, except by the grace of God.
Jesus turned to this kind one day and said in Matthew 21:31,
“. . . Verily I say unto you, That the publicans and the
harlots go into the kingdom of God before you.” He was
talking to the religious leaders. He was talking to the
ones who were seeking to stop the people from believing on
Christ’s miracles, on Christ in person, and on His manifest
presence by His Spirit in the world today.
I believe God is going to do a mighty work in spite of those
who would preach against it! It doesn’t matter if they
believe it or not, God is still going to bring it forth.
Back then they didn’t want to believe in Jesus, yet he was
standing there looking at them, and reading off their sins.
The people should have rejoiced.
Beloved, when you are warring and fighting in the Spirit,
and some by false counsel try to steal the Word of God, and
the hope that’s been placed in you, remember what Jesus went
through. When you are trying to make a decision, Is this
real, or is it not real? remember what Jesus and the
apostles went through.
Jesus made a statement about those who would war against
us. In Matthew 23:13 it says, “But woe unto you, scribes
and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of
heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither
suffer ye them that are entering to go in.”
They don’t want to go into the fullness, and they don’t want
you to go into the fullness, because they know that if you
get into the fullness they can’t pastor you anymore, or
teach you. They can’t tell you what you should be doing,
according to their way of thinking or schooling. They won’t
have control like they had. They don’t have your tithes and
offerings like they had. You are liable to go someplace
that preaches the truth, the Word of God, and where signs,
wonders, and miracles come forth. They would be without a
flock, so they are going to lie, cheat, steal, or whatever
else it takes, and stand against God himself.
When you stand against the truth, you are not standing
against preachers only, but against the Truth, which is the
Word of God, the Lord Jesus Christ. There is no wisdom or
counsel against the Lord, the Bible declares.
Beloved, know that you are going to be tried and
persecuted. Know that you are going to come up against the
enemy at every hand when you step out by faith and believe
God. However, by the grace of God I encourage you not to
give up! Don’t quit believing God for miracles. God has
sent forth His Word, and He has healed, delivered and saved
many, but He is going to do a greater work. You shall see
it by and by, not many days hence. The Lord is doing a
work, and He is preparing people to believe Him again. Just
expect scribes, Pharisees, and hypocrites to try to
persecute you and even destroy you.
Today, be set free and, “. . . come out from among them, and
be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean
thing; and I will receive you,” as 2 Corinthians 6:17 says.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
PASTOR KEVIN BADGLEY
LIVING HOPE FELLOWSHIP, P. O.
BOX 111, GRAND CHAIN, IL 62941
CHURCH / FAX (618) 634-2541
E-mail
livinghopefellowship@lazernetwireless.net
These condensed Bible
studies have been published to help new Christians in their
new walk with the Lord. Kevin Badgley, the author, is the
pastor of Living Hope Fellowship Church.
This is a Living Hope
Fellowship publication.
©
Living Hope Fellowship, Inc.
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