TUESDAY, JUNE 7

Tuesday, June 7, 2022

Persecution

John 15: 20 & 21 (NLT)

        Do you remember what I told you? ‘A slave is not greater than the master.’ Since they persecuted me, naturally they will persecute you. And if they had listened to me, they would listen to you. 21 They will do all this to you because of me, for they have rejected the one who sent me. 

Sometimes Jewish authorities persecuted early Christians. This usually occurred on a local level and consisted primarily of beatings, expulsion from synagogues, and shunning within the Jewish community. Occasionally these persecutions related in death.  As you read about a few of these events, not what the concerns or issues were, how Jesus’ followers suffered, how they used the opportunity to teach about Jesus, and what impact their example had on others.

Acts 4: 1 -21; 5: 12 – 42

Acts 6: 8 – 15; 7: 54 – 58

Acts 17: 1 -13

Acts 21: 27 – 22:1; Acts 22: 22 – 25

In the following accounts, note what was behind the persecutions, what the officials were trying to accomplish, and the impact on the local community and the community of believers.

Acts 12: 1 – 19

Acts 16: 16 – 40

 Acts 19: 23 – 41