"Of the Church"

"Remember what I told you: 'A servant is not greater than his master'. If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also" ~ John 15:20

As followers of Jesus, when we face suffering, we sometimes fall into the "woe is me" attitude, which comes from a fundamental misunderstanding of the purpose of those hardships. Sometimes, hardship is brought on by our own sins or poor choices. Sometimes, it's brought on by the choices of others. And sometimes, it's a carefully chosen fiery dart thrown at us by the devil, who intends to destroy us, while God allows it as an opportunity for our faith to be tested and proven true. But even more important than understanding all of those things is knowing the reality that the primary reason why we face persecution in this world is that our Savior and Lord, of whom we are servants, faced it first. Part of the problem is our expectation that we should get through life and get to heaven the cheapest and easiest way possible, so that when we face suffering we are offended and blame God. To be His true followers, we must try to see the big picture and the plan that God has for how He will use our suffering. This week at Friendship, we'll look at the last phrase in the Tertullian quote: "The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church". This week's title is simply "Of the Church", and we'll look at how the early Church grew and strengthened from the seeds that were scattered as a result of the blood of the first martyrs. God had a plan, and through the early believers' obedience, the Church grew and thrived even as the persecution increased. Join us for a message that should encourage all of us!