Prayer for the Persecuted

We are reminded of our relationship with our brothers and sisters in Christ once again in Hebrews 13:3. It states, “Remember those in prison as if you were their fellow prisoners, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering.” This verse is speaking of the Christians who had been imprisoned for their faith. The author of Hebrews was reminding the church to not ignore those believers or to be concerned with “guilt by association” (from The Believer’s Bible Commentary).

It says to recall them in your memory, just as if you were in prison with them. This is strong language. To me, it means that those Christians were to be mindful daily of the hardships and struggles that the imprisoned believers were experiencing. When I first began to think on this, it seemed as if there wasn’t much application for us today. Are there really that many people in jail for Christ? I did not think so. Until I read a story of a young believer in China (see link below.) There are many online just like the above.

Persecution is not a thing of the past for Christians. It is an ever-present reality. The fact that we do not know it here in the US (yet) enables us to become apathetic and lackadaisical. Yet we have a command from the Bible, “remember those in prison.” This is something truly new for me. I hardly ever think about prisons around the world and the followers of Christ that they contain. Each one of us may seek to remember them in different ways but certainly the most obvious way is through prayer.

The last part of the verse speaks of those being mistreated, which also reminds us of imprisonment, and other forms of persecution. We are instructed to think about them as if we ourselves were suffering. Imagine what you would feel if you or a family member were beaten and abused for the cause of Christ everyday. There would be deep pain and sorrow, even though there is victory in Christ. Pray that these believers would sense God’s grace, His love, and His victory everyday.

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