SUNDAY, MAY 12
Scripture: Matthew 10:14-15, Revelation 2:8-17, 3:7-13

In all my years growing up in the church, including my experience in seminary, I never heard these two critical verses that identify our call as Christians. Matthew 10:14-15 say, “And whoever will not receive you nor hear your words, when you depart from that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet. Assuredly I say, to you it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!” The fruit of being a plumbline is making people choose life or death and then declaring it over them! What a statement that is! What if God demands the church transition into a walking plumbline forcing people to choose. What can we say about that? As we walk in righteousness and obedience in our calling, God chooses to use us to force a choice. That choice will bring either life or death. That all happens as Son of man, which is the way Jesus walked His eternal path. Will we follow our Elder Brother all the way to death speaking what culture rejects? What an amazing season this is, to see this start to develop! It is obvious for the first time in many, many years that a great number of vocal, influential people in America hate Christians. In some cases that hatred is to the point that elected leaders are trying to incite their followers toward violence. Look at the animosity that is coming against our current president for standing up for the church. We can truly say that the God-haters, God-mockers, and God robbers are choosing a political party and rising up in an attempt to rule in America and they are the leading opposition. It appears they will do anything and say anything including lying and cheating to advance their evil purposes. The sons and daughters of the devil have their own party. This Scripture is being lived out in front of us. The question to the church is, are we really ready for this level of persecution? Two of the seven churches stand out in purity and righteous, therefore qualifying as a type of the two witnesses in Revelation 11. The one thing both churches have in common is persecution, because of the Word they preach. Does our church preach enough Word to attract persecution? If not, we better find one that qualifies, or we could miss the promise to the Philadelphia church, “Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth!” Revelation 3:10.