我們繼續昨天提到的話題：遭世界逼迫表示我們是主耶穌基督的真門徒。很多基督徒覺得很難接受逼迫這件事，因為他們一直都不明白那些拒絕基督的人同樣會拒絕跟隨基督的人，所以他們會被困在協調和妥協之中糾纏不清。

倘若你以前從未有過這樣的經歷的話，我希望你現在能正視一下這種情況，那就是當你認同耶穌基督的時候，世界便會逼迫你。不同的基督徒面對不同程度的逼迫，但不管怎麼樣，世界總是會以敵意和鄙視的態度來對抗你。你一旦明白這一點，就大概能夠克服那令很多基督徒乏力的恐懼──為主作見證的恐懼。

我信主後不久，一位年長的威爾斯礦工給了我一些忠告，大大幫助了我克服對被拒絕所產生的恐懼。他說：「總要記著一個事實：拒絕基督的人也會拒絕你。你越像基督，世界便越憎恨你。也要謹記，他們拒絕你的時候，他們針對的不是你個人，而是活著的基督，因為他們在你裡面看見祂。」我永遠都不會忘記那些話給我帶來的釋放。當我明白認同基督就會與世界發生衝突的情況以後，我就能夠坦然自若的去面對這無可避免的事實，脫離了恐懼的威脅。今天，那曾經發生過在我身上的事情同樣可以發生在你身上。

We continue from where we left off yesterday in saying that persecution is one of the proofs that we are true disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ. Many Christians find great difficulty in coming to terms with this issue of persecution, and because they have never understood that those who reject Christ will also reject those who follow Christ, they become entangled in such things as conciliation and compromise.

If you have never done so before, face the fact right now that when you identify yourself with Jesus Christ, the world will persecute you. The degree of persecution differs from one Christian to another, but in one way or another the world will react against you with hostility and contempt. Once you recognise this, you are nine tenths of the way toward overcoming the fear which cripples so many Christians - the fear of witnessing.

Not long after my conversion, an elderly Welsh miner gave me some advice that greatly helped to overcome my fear of rejection. He said: "Keep ever before you the fact that those who reject Christ will reject you. And the more like Christ you become, the more the world will resent you. Remember also that when they do reject you, it is not you personally whom they are against, but Christ who is alive and who is being seen in you." Never shall I forget the release that came through those wise words. Once I understood that becoming identified with Christ meant I was on a collision course with the world, I came to terms with the inevitability of this fact and was set free from fear. And what happened to me can happen to you - today.