The Destroyer of The Gods
CONSECRATED No. 72 - 1 Thought. 2 Quotes. 3 Verses.
1 THOUGHT
Around 156 AD, a letter was written by the church at Smyrna which has become known as The Martyrdom of Polycarp. It is the oldest known account of Christian martyrdom outside of the account of Stephen in the book of Acts.
Polycarp was the bishop of Smyrna and was a disciple of the Apostle John. At 86 years old, Polycarp was burned alive for being a Christian. The Martyrdom of Polycarp recounts the story.
The are many incredible pieces of the testimony. One of my favorites is when Polycarp has been brought into the arena and is being told to renounce Christ. When he refuses, a ferocious uproar rises from the crowd in which they say, “This is the teacher of Asia, the father of the Christians, the destroyer of our Gods.”
The Destroyer of our Gods. What at title.
How would you like the nickname on your tombstone to read, “The Destroyer of False Gods”? Not bad.
But one of my favorite, subtle lines from the letter comes near the very end.
The paragraph reads,
Now the blessed Polycarp was martyred on the second day of the first half of the month of Xanthicus, the seventh day before the kalends of March… And he was arrested by Herod, when Philip of Tralles was High Priest, when Statius Quadratus was Pro-Consul, but Jesus Christ was reigning for ever…
It lists ruler after ruler. Position of power after position of power. And ends with, but it is Jesus Christ who is the true ruler of the nations. In other words, all these men who think they are ruling are being ruled. All these men who think they are in control are simply puppets of the sovereignty of our Lord and Christ.
What enabled these early Christians to face persecution and gruesome deaths? The unshakable conviction that Jesus Christ was reigning with absolute sovereignty over the nations of the earth.
And two thousand years later, this is still true.
I love the words of that great Messianic Psalm, Psalm 2:
Why do the nations conspire
and the peoples plot in vain?
The kings of the earth rise up
and the rulers band together
against the Lord and against his anointed, saying,
“Let us break their chains
and throw off their shackles.”
The One enthroned in heaven laughs;
the Lord scoffs at them.
He rebukes them in his anger
and terrifies them in his wrath, saying,
“I have installed my king
on Zion, my holy mountain.”
Jesus Christ is still ruling the nations with a rod of iron. He is sovereign over the affairs of the earth.
When you’re tempted to worry about the wars and rumors of wars that fill the headlines, the news of disease and destruction, they news of persecution and perils, remember that of our day it will be said,
“This took place when Donald Trump was President of the United States, when Keir Starmer was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, when Vladimir Putin was the President of Russia, but Jesus Christ was reigning forever.”
2 QUOTES
“For eighty and six years have I been his servant, and he has done me no wrong, and how can I blaspheme my King who saved me?”
- Polycarp (as he was about to be burned alive)
“He who fears God has nothing else to fear.”
- Charles Spurgeon
3 VERSES
“But [Stephen], being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and said, ‘Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!’ Then they cried out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and ran at him with one accord; and they cast him out of the city and stoned him… And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
Acts 7:55-59
“Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John replied, ‘Which is right in God’s eyes: to listen to you, or to him? You be the judges! As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.’”
Acts 4:18
“I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”
Philippians 1:20-21
A RESOURCE
Here is a direct link where you can download a PDF of The Martyrdom of Polycarp. It’s a very short read—only about 20 pages.
