WEBVTT 00:00:05.929 --> 00:00:08.689 Kia ora, and welcome to the St. Francis Church 00:00:08.689 --> 00:00:11.490 Sermon Podcast. We're so glad that you've joined 00:00:11.490 --> 00:00:14.789 us. Our prayer is that as you listen, you would 00:00:14.789 --> 00:00:17.690 encounter God's presence, be refreshed in your 00:00:17.690 --> 00:00:20.429 faith, and equipped for everyday life with Jesus. 00:00:21.109 --> 00:00:24.129 As a church, we are learning to faithfully follow 00:00:24.129 --> 00:00:27.760 Jesus by practicing His way at His pace. For 00:00:27.760 --> 00:00:30.760 more info about who we are and what God is doing 00:00:30.760 --> 00:00:36.500 among us, head to stfrancis .co .nz. Grace and 00:00:36.500 --> 00:00:44.140 peace. Good morning everybody. I present the 00:00:44.140 --> 00:00:52.840 following state of affairs to you. I live in 00:00:52.840 --> 00:00:55.630 a country where being a Christian... or owning 00:00:55.630 --> 00:00:59.829 a Bible is a serious crime and will be severely 00:00:59.829 --> 00:01:03.950 punished. If my Christian faith is discovered, 00:01:04.230 --> 00:01:09.129 I could be killed on the spot. If I am not killed, 00:01:09.409 --> 00:01:13.409 I will be deported to a labor camp and punished 00:01:13.409 --> 00:01:18.689 with years of hard labor that few survive. The 00:01:18.689 --> 00:01:20.890 authorities are likely to round up my extended 00:01:20.890 --> 00:01:24.659 family and punish them too. even if they aren't 00:01:24.659 --> 00:01:28.480 Christians. It's impossible for me to gather 00:01:28.480 --> 00:01:31.859 for worship or prayer, and even secret worship 00:01:31.859 --> 00:01:38.340 and prayer put us Christians at great risk. Unfortunately, 00:01:38.400 --> 00:01:41.560 this state of affairs is not a made -up story 00:01:41.560 --> 00:01:47.500 or one that existed many years ago. It exists 00:01:47.500 --> 00:01:51.530 today in North Korea. And similar situations 00:01:51.530 --> 00:01:55.670 exist elsewhere in the world. And these facts 00:01:55.670 --> 00:01:58.890 are recorded by an organization called Open Doors. 00:01:58.890 --> 00:02:02.569 And this is a non -denominational Christian mission 00:02:02.569 --> 00:02:05.510 that supports persecuted Christians throughout 00:02:05.510 --> 00:02:10.930 the world. And other facts recorded by Open Doors 00:02:10.930 --> 00:02:15.250 are as follows. It's said that around 70 million 00:02:15.250 --> 00:02:17.729 Christians have been martyred for their faith. 00:02:18.199 --> 00:02:21.520 during the last 2 ,000 years, more than half 00:02:21.520 --> 00:02:25.680 occurring during the last century. In recent 00:02:25.680 --> 00:02:30.000 years, an average of about 4 ,000 to 5 ,000 Christians 00:02:30.000 --> 00:02:34.080 worldwide are killed annually for faith -related 00:02:34.080 --> 00:02:38.860 reasons. Of the 10 countries with the most extreme 00:02:38.860 --> 00:02:42.120 persecution, seven are the result of Islamic 00:02:42.120 --> 00:02:47.599 oppression. Now today's reading, read by Belinda 00:02:47.599 --> 00:02:50.979 from Matthew, continues the instructions that 00:02:50.979 --> 00:02:53.419 Jesus gave to his disciples when he sent them 00:02:53.419 --> 00:02:57.599 out on their mission. And Matthew's gospel was 00:02:57.599 --> 00:03:01.379 in fact written some 50 years after Jesus' actual 00:03:01.379 --> 00:03:05.219 ministry. And so the instructions reflect the 00:03:05.219 --> 00:03:09.500 situation of the late 1st century AD. And by 00:03:09.500 --> 00:03:12.419 then, the Romans had brutally destroyed Jerusalem. 00:03:13.710 --> 00:03:16.610 The rest of the Orthodox Jewish community bitterly 00:03:16.610 --> 00:03:19.889 resented the Christian community, and so many 00:03:19.889 --> 00:03:24.389 Christians had been martyred by that time. So 00:03:24.389 --> 00:03:27.409 the message that Jesus conveys through Matthew's 00:03:27.409 --> 00:03:32.689 words is a reality check to his disciples, that 00:03:32.689 --> 00:03:36.830 being a committed Christian can bring real danger 00:03:36.830 --> 00:03:42.310 and hardship. So Jesus says, and as you can see 00:03:42.310 --> 00:03:46.099 from that map, We can just go back. You can see 00:03:46.099 --> 00:03:50.400 the concentration in red. North Africa, Asia, 00:03:50.719 --> 00:03:53.719 Middle East is where the greatest persecution 00:03:53.719 --> 00:03:58.340 of Christians takes place. So what does Jesus 00:03:58.340 --> 00:04:05.479 say? How much more will they malign those of 00:04:05.479 --> 00:04:09.419 Jesus' household? Do not think that I've come 00:04:09.419 --> 00:04:11.539 to bring peace to the earth. I've come to bring 00:04:11.539 --> 00:04:15.300 a sword. all that persecution inflicted on the 00:04:15.300 --> 00:04:18.879 Christians. One's foes will be members of one's 00:04:18.879 --> 00:04:21.660 own household as in North Korea people betray 00:04:21.660 --> 00:04:25.480 their own family. Whoever does not take up the 00:04:25.480 --> 00:04:32.480 cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Now 00:04:32.480 --> 00:04:35.300 we in New Zealand are fortunate to live in circumstances 00:04:35.300 --> 00:04:38.899 very different from those of many of our persecuted 00:04:38.899 --> 00:04:42.689 brothers and sisters overseas. But I think that 00:04:42.689 --> 00:04:46.370 Jesus' message is relevant also to us. And if 00:04:46.370 --> 00:04:50.370 we look at the census statistics, 60 years ago, 00:04:50.550 --> 00:04:56.230 1966, some 90 % of the population in New Zealand 00:04:56.230 --> 00:04:59.709 identified as being Christian. In the most recent 00:04:59.709 --> 00:05:04.389 census, 2023, less than one third of the population 00:05:04.389 --> 00:05:10.649 identified as being Christian. 90 % to 30%. and 00:05:10.649 --> 00:05:14.290 yet we have the freedom to practice our faith 00:05:14.290 --> 00:05:19.310 openly. So a key message that I take from Jesus' 00:05:19.529 --> 00:05:23.029 message today, his gospel today, is that we carry 00:05:23.029 --> 00:05:27.189 a responsibility, the responsibility of exercising 00:05:27.189 --> 00:05:31.709 our religious freedom to be brave enough to express 00:05:31.709 --> 00:05:35.370 our beliefs openly and without embarrassment. 00:05:38.029 --> 00:05:41.910 I should be unafraid to express my commitment 00:05:41.910 --> 00:05:49.529 to a loving God, the values of Christ, a Holy 00:05:49.529 --> 00:05:55.110 Spirit at work, the sanctity of all life, the 00:05:55.110 --> 00:05:58.589 development of the spiritual life, and the hope 00:05:58.589 --> 00:06:02.810 of life after death. The Reverend Phil Austin 00:06:02.810 --> 00:06:07.879 said, people still prefer comfort, to challenge. 00:06:08.959 --> 00:06:12.319 People generally prefer the pipe and slippers, 00:06:12.660 --> 00:06:16.699 the comfortable and familiar, the lamington and 00:06:16.699 --> 00:06:20.060 tea approach to life, rather than speaking out. 00:06:20.519 --> 00:06:23.439 Speaking out for our faith in what we believe. 00:06:24.259 --> 00:06:29.560 We want the kind of peace which is vibrant, alive 00:06:29.560 --> 00:06:35.600 and ablaze with the glory of God. Peace is not 00:06:35.600 --> 00:06:38.839 the absence of trouble, but it is the presence 00:06:38.839 --> 00:06:45.740 of God. And meanwhile, there continue to be brave 00:06:45.740 --> 00:06:50.560 and committed Christians in North Korea and other 00:06:50.560 --> 00:06:54.860 countries. These Christian groups continue to 00:06:54.860 --> 00:06:59.879 meet in secret. They whisper their prayers in 00:06:59.879 --> 00:07:02.819 biblical texts because they cannot have anything 00:07:02.819 --> 00:07:06.399 in writing. found in their homes. Otherwise they'll 00:07:06.399 --> 00:07:10.720 be killed or severely punished. And these brave 00:07:10.720 --> 00:07:14.839 people, I think, hold fast to the promise that 00:07:14.839 --> 00:07:19.939 Jesus made to his persecuted and yet to be persecuted 00:07:19.939 --> 00:07:27.160 disciples. Because Jesus said, do not fear those 00:07:27.160 --> 00:07:31.600 who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Even 00:07:31.600 --> 00:07:35.850 the hairs of your head, are all counted. So do 00:07:35.850 --> 00:07:41.569 not be afraid. Those who lose their life for 00:07:41.569 --> 00:07:44.550 my sake will find it.