Overcoming 7 attacks against us; persecution & famine: part 3

April 26, 2017

The number 3 in the bible represents completeness.

In part 3, your’re going to see the whole picture of Romans 8:35 with several infographics that will give you new insights to overcome the 7 types of attacks against us [especially the second pyramid].

Romans 8:35
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?

3. Persecution:

Strong’s Concordance #1375
diógmos: persecution
Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine
Phonetic Spelling: (dee-ogue-mos’)
Definition: chase, pursuit; persecution.

HELPS Word-studies
Cognate: 1375 diōgmós (from 1377 /diṓkō, “follow, pursue”) – properly, pursuit (chase); persecution – literally, “the hunt to bring someone down like an animal,” trying to suppress (punish) their convictions. See 1377 (diōkō).

1375 /diōgmós (“religious persecution”) literally refers to those seeking to punish God’s messengers with a vengeance – like a hunter trying to conquer (obliterate) someone as their “catch.”

[1375 (diōgmós) is used in ancient and biblical Greek for persecution (hostility) shown by confused, spiritual “leaders.” For example, it applies to the Roman Emperor, Decius (ad 250-251). He killed thousands of Christians who refused to offer sacrifices in his name.]

A perfect example of this is the apostle Paul before he got born again.

Philippians 3:6
Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless

Its important to note that the persecution is coming from the religious leaders. Paul was a Pharisee after all.

Isn’t that a bit ironic and hypocritical?

Acts 8
3 As for Saul, he made havock of the church, entering into every house, and haling [dragging] men and women, committed them to prison.
4 Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word.

Havock means: to affix a stigma to, to dishonor, spot, defile; to treat shamefully or with injury, to ravage, devastate, ruin.

Imagine that – putting people in prison for speaking the truth, while the guilty ones are falsely accusing us of evil!

That never happens in our society, does it???

You may remember from part 2 that distress was basically a more intense version of tribulation, so where does persecution fit in?

The 7 attacks start off with mental pressure and end in death, with everything else somewhere in between.

How to conquer:

First, we need to understand that no matter what we think, say or do, we may still encounter persecution.

Some people say that because you screwed up, you are being persecuted.

That can be true in some situations.

If we are habitually breaking sound biblical principles in our life, we will receive what we have been sowing.

Galatians 6
7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
8 For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.

Colossians 3:25
But he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: and there is no respect of persons.

If we are volatile, and don’t control our thoughts, emotions, words or actions, we may stir up a lot of people against us that could lead to persecution, but if we exercise self-control [one of the 9 fruit of the spirit] and use God’s wisdom, then many potentially bad situations can be avoided altogether.

On the other hand, Jesus Christ was a perfect man who lived perfectly for God, but was persecuted more than anybody else I know, so whether or not we are persecuted is not a guaranty that we are responsible.

If we are a spiritual couch potato, never doing anything against the devil, then why would the devil even attack us?

Figuratively, if we are in a boxing ring against the devil, we’re going to get bruised a time or two. It’s simply the nature of the fight.

We just can’t avoid persecution 100% of the time.

Psalm 119:161
Princes have persecuted me without a cause: but my heart standeth in awe of thy word.

II Timothy 3
10 But thou hast fully known my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, charity, patience,
11 Persecutions, afflictions, which came unto me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra; what persecutions I endured: but out of them all the Lord delivered me.
12 Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.
13 But evil men and seducers shall wax [grow] worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.

Why?

Because the devil is the God of this world and his whole purpose is to steal, kill, and destroy.

II Corinthians 4
3 But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:
4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

John 10:10
The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

Strategies to overcome stress and persecution

There are offensive and defensive strategies we can use to defeat persecution, which points back to the stress flowchart we saw in the last article.

In any given situation, we have 2 options at our disposal: problem-focused or emotion-focused.

The 2 ways of how to overcome stress.

Both can work, depending on variables.

So here are just a few of the verses that we need to be aware of and can use to our advantage.

Problem-focused verses: change the situation itself

Leviticus 26:8
And five of you shall chase an hundred, and an hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight: and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword.

Joshua 1
6 Be strong and of a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them.
7 Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper withersoever thou goest.
9 Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.

Joshua 23:10
One man of you shall chase a thousand: for the Lord your God, he it is that fighteth for you, as he hath promised you.

2 Samuel 22:30
For by thee I have run through a troop: by my God have I leaped over a wall.

Psalms 7:1
O Lord my God, in thee do I put my trust: save me from all them that persecute me, and deliver me:

Remember that God’s deliverance is past, present and future.

Acts 8:4
Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word.

We can go on the offensive by speaking the word of God.

God’s light dispels the spiritual darkness.

Romans 8:37
Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.

I Corinthians 15
57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.

As we keep the hope of Christ’s return in mind, knowing that we have rewards waiting for us, we can stand stedfast and unmoveable in the work of the Lord.

Remember, if we’re rooted and grounded in God’s love, we can be steadfast and unmoveable.

2 Corinthians 4:13
We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak;

II Corinthians 10
3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:
4 (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)
5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

Ephesians 6
10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.
11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

16 Above all, taking the shield of faith [believing], wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:

18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;
19 And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel,

20 For which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.

James 4:7
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Romans 8:28
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

We can rest in the confidence that God will deliver us, no matter what attack is thrown against us.

No Fear!

Finally, as a spiritual athlete, it’s important to not be afraid because it will just make matters worse.

Job 3
25 For the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto me.
26 I was not in safety, neither had I rest, neither was I quiet; yet trouble came.

Psalms 34:4
I sought the Lord, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.

Look what the apostle Paul did when he was captured and locked up in prison!

Acts 16
24 Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.
25 And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.
26 And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one’s bands were loosed.

Paul & Silas’ believed that God would rescue them out of this bad situation and he did according to their believing.

Emotion-focused verses: change relation to the situation

We all know that the past can’t be changed. Therefore, the problem-focused strategy is not an option to fix past problems because it attempts to change situations that cannot be changed.

So for issues in the past, the only option is to use the emotion-focused strategy that can change the relation to the situation; in other words, we can change the meaning of the past and/or our attitude about it.

All those horrible things you went through long ago take on a life-changing new perspective with God’s deep spiritual insights.

For example, suppose you were abused as a child. The precision of God’s word can bring great relief to many people because:

We know that it was not God punishing us because we were unlovable or unworthy
We know that we are not to blame [many child molesters blame the victim or manipulate them into feeling guilty or being shamed]
We can rejoice knowing that the devil considered us worthy opponents, [even as a child!] in the spiritual competition [Acts 5:41; II Thessalonians 2:5]
We can smile knowing that we will be getting rewards in heaven for looking forward to Christ’s return

The parable of the sower and the seed sheds new light on how to overcome persecution.

Matthew 13
5 Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth:
6 And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away.

20 But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon [King James old english = immediately] with joy receiveth it;
21 Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth [endures] for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by [right away] he is offended.

Verse 21, definition of offended:

From the Greek word skandalon; to entrap, i.e. Trip up (figuratively, stumble (transitively) or entice to sin, apostasy or displeasure) — (make to) offend.

If we stumble and fall, then we can’t walk for God. We must learn from our mistakes and get back up again so we can walk for God again.

Proverbs 24:16
For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again: but the wicked shall fall into mischief.

Ephesians 5
2 And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.
8 For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light:
15 See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,

If we’re rooted and grounded in God’s love, we will be able to survive and thrive during in any attack of persecution.

Ephesians 3
16 That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;
17 That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,
18 May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height;

A tree that’s got a deep and strong root system can withstand a storm or drought, but one with a shallow root system will die when circumstances are against them.

Jeremiah 17
7 Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is.
8 For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful [anxious] in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.

The largest tree by volume is believed to be a giant sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum) known as the General Sherman Tree in the Sequoia National Park in Tulare County, California. Only the trunk is used in the calculation and the volume is estimated to be 1,487 m3 (52,500 cu ft).

Matthew 5
10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

Acts 5
40 And to him they agreed: and when they had called the apostles, and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go.
41 And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name.
42 And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ.

James 1 [amplified bible]
2 Consider it nothing but joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you fall into various trials.
3 Be assured that the testing of your faith [through experience] produces endurance [leading to spiritual maturity, and inner peace].
4 And let endurance have its perfect result and do a thorough work, so that you may be perfect and completely developed [in your faith], lacking in nothing.

Remember, the trials are not from God, but are from God’s enemy instead.

During persecution, there is great comfort knowing that God’s justice will be done in the future.

II Thessalonians 2
4 So that we ourselves glory in you in the churches of God for your patience and faith [believing] in all your persecutions and tribulations that ye endure:
5 Which is a manifest token of the righteous judgment of God, that ye may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which ye also suffer:

6 Seeing it is a righteous thing with God to recompense [repay] tribulation to them that trouble you;
7 And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels,

8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:
9 Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;

Verse 5 again states our worthiness, establishing it.

In verse 7, we have rest with the other saints who were persecuted also.

II Corinthians 12:9
And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

II Corinthians 9:8
And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:

God’s grace is defined as unmerited divine favor. That’s an unlimited supply!

My mom always said that everything will come out in the wash. This saying has 2 basic meanings:

1. used for saying that people will always find out the truth about something

2. used for saying that you are sure you will find a solution to the problem that you have

When you combine them, you come up with the conviction that you will discover the truth and that everything will be OK as a result.

Hebrews 4
15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.
16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

Famine:

There is no fancy definition here, so we go to a regular dictionary.

noun
1. extreme and general scarcity of food, as in a country or a large geographical area.
2. any extreme and general scarcity.
3. extreme hunger; starvation.

The word “famine” is used 87 times in the KJV of the bible.

Why are there famines?

When there is a disaster such as famine, ask yourself these questions:

Is this a man-made problem, despite what the news says?

Many crisis you hear on the news are either lies or man-made crisis that originate from the treacherous dealers we learned about in the last article.

Are famines an act of God?

We often see the phrase “acts of God” in insurance policies, letting you know that the insurance company won’t cover you in such circumstances.

Satan, the accuser of God’s people, works through the systems of the world to falsely accuse God of what he is guilty of himself.

If there is a drought that results in a famine, sure, there may be geological or meteorological [weather] related things going on, but don’t exclude the spiritual factors.

Genesis 1
14 And the Lord God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:

The devil is cursed more than any other living thing and so are his children [the treacherous dealers].

17 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;
18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;

Cursed ground produces thorns and thistles, which don’t produce fruit.

Genesis 4 [amplified bible]
11 And now you [Cain, the first son of the devil in the bible] are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s [shed] blood from your hand.
12 When you cultivate the ground, it shall no longer yield its strength [it will resist producing good crops] for you; you shall be a fugitive and a vagabond [roaming aimlessly] on the earth [in perpetual exile without a home, a degraded outcast].”

The spiritual reason there are many desert areas around the globe that don’t produce good crops is because of the spirituality of the people of the land.

Is there actually a shortage of food, or is it a distribution problem?

Numerous good quality sources on the internet clearly say it’s a distribution problem.

How to conquer:

God will supply our need as we trust in him

Job 5
19 He shall deliver thee in six troubles: yea, in seven there shall no evil touch thee.
20 In famine he shall redeem thee from death: and in war from the power of the sword.

21 Thou shalt be hid from the scourge of the tongue: neither shalt thou be afraid of destruction when it cometh.
22 At destruction and famine thou shalt laugh: neither shalt thou be afraid of the beasts of the earth.

Psalms 33
18 Behold, the eye of the Lord is upon them that fear [reverence] him, upon them that hope in his mercy;
19 To deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine.

20 Our soul waiteth for the Lord: he is our help and our shield.
21 For our heart shall rejoice in him, because we have trusted in his holy name.
22 Let thy mercy, O Lord, be upon us, according as we hope in thee.

Psalm 37:25
I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.

Why are there famines, swords and pestilences?

There are 24 verses in the bible that contain the words “famine”[which can result in death], “sword” [representing war & death] and “pestilence” [disease, which can result in death also] because these go together.

The common thread is death.

Hebrews 2
14 Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;
15 And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

Here is why they occur:

Ezekiel 6:11
Thus saith the Lord God; Smite with thine hand, and stamp with thy foot, and say, Alas for all the evil abominations of the house of Israel! for they shall fall by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence.

What goes on in a land spiritually [evil abominations] will determine what goes on in the 5-senses realm.

War, famine and disease are common in many sections of the world right now, such as parts of the middle east or areas of Africa where idolatry in the land reign.

9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
10 As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.

Psalms 91
5 Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day;
6 Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.

Many diseases considered incurable today are because those diseases “walk in darkness” – their true cause and cure has been hidden by the lies from the treacherous dealers who are in the darkest degree of darkness.

But no matter what the cause is, we can be delivered from them all!

Pyramids and Romans 8:35

Now we are going to zoom out and see the whole picture of Romans 8:35 in light of the pyramid below.

Psychologist Abraham Maslow’s [1908 – 1970] famous hierarchy of needs pyramid enables us to get a better view of the overall picture, leading to new insights.

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs pyramid.

Physical realm: the bottom 2 layers – Physiological and Safety needs.
Psychological realm: the middle 2 layers – Love/belonging and Esteem needs.
Spiritual realm: the top, the pinnacle – Self-actualization needs [including the meaning of life].

Interestingly, all 12 characteristics of the self-actualized person that Dr. Maslow wrote about follow biblical and spiritual principles.

Mankind’s greatest and highest potential is spiritual and to become: a son of God; an athlete of the Spirit; to be redeemed, justified, righteous and sanctified in the sight of God; an ambassador for Christ; being seated in the heavenlies with Christ; receiving a brand-new spiritual body at the return of Christ.

On the scale of eternity, the tip of the pyramid actually represents our greatest need, as the bible reveals.

Job 23
11 My foot hath held his steps, his way have I kept, and not declined.
12 Neither have I gone back from the commandment of his lips; I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food.

Job had his priorities right.

Jeremiah 15:16
Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O Lord God of hosts.

Jeremiah depended upon the word of God to sustain him. So did Jesus.

Matthew 4:4
But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

So we need both physical food and spiritual food.

John 4
31 In the mean while his disciples prayed him, saying, Master, eat.
32 But he said unto them, I have meat to eat that ye know not of.
33 Therefore said the disciples one to another, Hath any man brought him ought to eat?
34 Jesus saith unto them, My meat [nourishment] is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.

Philippians 4:19
But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

God can supply all our need, which makes the spiritual top of the pyramid the most important.

The spiritual famine

Right now, there is a spiritual famine going on all around the world. Billions of people are unsaved and the majority of those that are saved have multiple major misunderstandings of God’s word.

For example, most Christians believe:

that you go to heaven when you die
that God caused the flood of Noah
that the trinity is of God, even though it violates the laws of logic and math that God invented
that God forsook Jesus on the cross
the gospels are written to them
believe the mis-called gifts of the spirit are not for them or are of the devil or haven’t been taught how to operate them in their lives or what the 18 benefits are
Jesus died on good Friday and was resurrected on Sunday morning, despite the fact that the bible says Jesus was in the ground 72 hours
that God caused the chaos and destruction in Genesis 1:2 or he simply wasn’t finished making the heavens and earth yet

The list is virtually endless…

Hosea 4:6
My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge…

Matthew 5:6
Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

The purpose of this blog & website is to teach people how the bible interprets itself and how to research the bible using sound logic, critical thinking skills and what resources we can use to verify the truth of the word of God.

Once you know how to study the bible and how to understand it, you will no longer be stuck in a spiritual famine.

Below is the pyramid of the hierarchy of human needs with a Romans 8:35 overlay.