In Matthew 5:10 Jesus said, “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake”. Most of us would have to ask, “Why would anyone be happy because they are being persecuted?” Actually, Jesus is not saying that we should be happy because of the persecution itself but rather because of what that persecution implies. If we are being persecuted “for righteousness’ sake” it means that we are doing our job as Christians. There is an old saying that goes, “no one kicks a dead dog”. The meaning is this, if the dog is dead it isn’t doing anything that would bring about a need to “kick” it. If, on the other hand, it is alive and active, it may be a problem for those around it. In the same way, we as Christians can be a problem for those around us if we are spiritually alive and active. In 1 Peter 4:3-4 the Apostle Peter said, “For we have spent enough of our past lifetime in doing the will of the gentiles-- when we walked in lewdness,lusts, drunkenness, revelries, drinking parties, and abominable idolatries. In regard to these, they think it strange that you do not run with them in the same flood of dissipation, speaking evil of you.” Thankfully, we don’t have to deal with the same level of persecution that the early Christians did, but if you haven’t been kicked lately, you might want to check your pulse.