According to Fox’s Book of Martyrs, almost all the twelve apostles of Jesus died torturous and painful deaths. Run down the following list:
Andrew was crucified
Bartholomew was beaten then crucified.
James, son of Alphaeus was stoned to death.James, son of Zebedee was beheaded.John, exiled for his faith; died of old age.
Judas (not Iscariot) was stoned to death.
Matthew was speared to death.
Peter was crucified upside down.
Philip was crucified Simon was crucified.
Thomas was speared to death.
Matthias was stoned to death.
How did they do it? What motivated them to do it? I believe these amazing men of God loved God more than their lives. They had been with Jesus, they knew deep in their hearts that it was a worthy cause. They were willing to pay the price to see the advancement of the work of God.
Today, we are living in this world that is hostile to the gospel. We live in a world that sin is glorified. Lust, pride, abuse, rage, perversity, hatred and violence thrive. Many believers are nominal, some of us may profess to be Christians but our lives are not any different from unbelievers. We are prone to compromise when they are tempted. On the other hand, there are millions and millions of believers on this earth who are steadfast and immovable in Christ. If you will dangle a million dollars in their face, they will not be moved. These are the people who would boldly declare that they would rather have Jesus than anything this temporal can offer because Jesus is irreplaceable. Lord, please help us to be strong in You at all times
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