I have noticed in my own life that the more time I spend with the Lord, the more my heart and my desires align with Christ. My attitude changes, my behavior changes, and all of it is evident to other people. I remember when I first became a Christian, the transformation of my character and person was so radical that people who I wasn't even that close to noticed. The Christians in my life were happy, and the non-Christians didn't really care. It wasn't until I came to college that really faced opposition for my faith.
Three years after I became a Christian, I had my first sort of faith "epiphany," after I realized that many of the struggles and fears I was facing in life were a direct result of placing my hope and trust in things that weren't God. I suppose that up until that point I had been vaguely aware of the "false Gods" in my life, but wasn't motivated to do anything about it -- until I was. I reached a point where I decided to just be "all-in" with my faith, and I jumped: I began seeking God more aggressively, made an effort to spend time in His word on a daily basis, began phasing out some of the negative influences on my life and behavior, and focused on my prayer life. Evidently, the change in me was noticeable once again. This time around, though, when some of the non-Christians in my life noticed, they were displeased, and they let me know it.
I was shocked when this happened to me, but I shouldn't have been. The bible clearly states that the more Christlike we become, the more the world will hate us.
John 15:18 "If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first."
It's strange to think that someone might hate us for embracing a lifestyle of love and truth, but after pondering the issue for some time, I've come to realize why someone might be offended by my faith. Here are a few reasons I came up with:
- Conscience: Living righteously is noticeable in our age, when discord and immorality are running rampant. People, simply after seeing someone quietly abstain from objectionable behavior, might become defensive about their own actions. Without a humble spirit, people can become angry simply because a Christian isn't doing what everyone else is doing.
- Conviction: Sometimes people are perfectly comfortable in their sin. When they are convicted by a Christian's behavior or words, they realize that actually changing their behavior would cause them discomfort. Again, cue anger. It's like being interrupted while reading a good book - my first impulse is to yell at the person who interrupted me (until I reign in my frustration and try to be calm...)
- God has laws: Today's society values flexibility and relativity when it comes to morals and values, right vs. wrong, etc. There's an attitude of "What's right for you might not be right for me," and people argue that "there are no absolutes." God's clearly-defined, exclusive and absolute truth goes against this ideology, and some people will take offense to that.
- The enemy: Satan will use any and every tactic to keep people from coming to Christ. He twists people's words and manipulates minds to increase divisions among people. People who don't have Christ as their savior are especially vulnerable to the devil's tactics.
Sometimes it might be easy to forget that the king of the world was ridiculed, beaten, spit on, mocked, slandered, abused and moreover rejected in every way imaginable. People who rejected Him also hated Him, and they looked for ways to destroy Him.
According the John 15:18, we can expect the world to do the same to us, with increasing aggression as we become more and more like Christ. We are promised this, but also that God will not let us be overcome by the objections: 2 Corinthians 4:8-9 "We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken, struck down but not destroyed."
We also are equipped with the ability to forgive the people that hurt us, oppose us, and attempt to bring us down. We are commanded to forgive, but also equipped to do so by the Holy Spirit because when we accept Christ, sin loses its power over us. (Romans 6:14). Amazing, isn't it?
So, my closing message is this: take heart. You will be slandered, abused, harassed, mocked and tried. Use the objections as a reason to draw closer to God. Jesus says it himself, "You will be hated by everyone because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved." -Matthew 10:22
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