Faithfulness In Adversity

“Behold upon the mountains the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace! O Judah, keep thy solemn feasts, perform thy vows: for the wicked shall no more pass through thee; he is utterly cut off.” (Na 1:15 AV)

This verse is quoted in the New Testament.  In the book of Romans, Paul uses this verse to encourage others into the calling of preaching.  The context and use of it are different than used in our passage today.  The motive for preaching the good news and keeping the law is the permanent removal of the wicked from the place of service to God.  This is obviously a millennial passage.  Israel has yet to experience the total eradication of the wicked from their land.  But we want to look at this verse from a slightly different angle this morning.  One of an unfortunate reality which the truth preachers must face.  One that will not change until the LORD comes back.  A truth since the preaching of Enoch and Noah.  That is, preaching good tidings is always done in a hostile environment.

This week is the state fair in our state.  The state fairgrounds are only a mile from my home.  This gives unique opportunity to share the good news of Christ with a lot of people.  It is estimated that several million people will come through the gates of the fair.  There are several voices of witness in and around the fair.  There is ample opportunity for any faithful witness to share the good news of Christ.  We had the opportunity to work a booth in the expo center of the state fair.  In the time we were there, there must have been thousands of people who walked by our booth.  With a crew of four, over a period of five hours, one would think there would be non-stop conversations about the LORD.  But there wasn’t.  A thought which I have often enough passed through my mind.  Why do not people take a simple minute to contemplate eternity?  It is the one inevitability of life.  We will all die.  Why not at least think about it?  More times than not, there was a turning of the nose.  There was a look of distain thrown our way.  There were the occasional conversations, but by and large, they were for the purpose of arguing.  I remember one such person that rounded the corner.  The person was of a particular persuasion.  She looked at our booth, cast her eyes downward, frowned and shook her head in disgust.  Why?  Being there didn’t bother her.

The point is, there will always be opposition to what the LORD has asked us to do.  That is the reality of the world.  This will never change.  And to be honest, it makes it all the more difficult to remain faithful.  Not just in our preaching and sharing, but even in our daily walk with the LORD.  The flesh is constantly attacked and enticed.  The battle is real and constant.  The battle cannot be avoided.  It is in our face and relentless.  If we can simply stop the temptation of looking for perfect situations before we will serve in faith, we just might see more results.  Take up the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God and serve him against all odds.  Israel is told perfection will come that makes service much easier.  We can certainly hope for that.  But let us not wait idly for it.  There is much opportunity.  There are still souls searching for answers.  Let us work until the day is done.