Page 40 - Sarah's Children

day, in the temple and from house to house, they kept right on teaching
and preaching Yahshua as the Messiah.

The apostles kept on doing that which Yahshua commanded them, but they also
submitted to the punishment of wicked rulers. Not only did they submit themselves,
but they rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer for the name of Yahshua.

It will happen on occasions that a woman or daughter will have to suffer for their
obedience. A wife may be beaten even as the apostles were beaten. Many stories have
been told of a daughter or wife who committed their life to Yahshua in some Muslim
or Hindu nation and they were killed because they would not renounce their Savior.
The Heavenly Father may not always spare us the consequences of obedience, but
there is great reward to those who suffer in this way.

Matthew 5:10-12
"Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of
righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you
when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of
evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in
heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who
were before you.”

I suppose that we can really not imagine the reward that awaits those who suffer for
obedience in the name of Christ. There have been some awesome rewards given by
men to other men due to some act of bravery or great service. But all the rewards of
this earth pale in comparison to the reward that flows from the hand of the Creator
of the Universe. When He bestows honor and reward it is something of such far
surpassing value as to render the recipient speechless and to have them sink to their
knees declaring that they are not worthy. Such is the reward of the Overcomer.

There has been a tendency to look at the above scripture and to think that it only
applies to missionaries or evangelists or some Christian worker who is persecuted
for their testimony of Christ. The scripture states, “blessed are those who have been
persecuted for the sake of righteousness.” This is speaking of much more than
evangelism. It is speaking of any occasion when we choose obedience to God over
conformity to this world and the will of sinful man.

When a woman is put in a position of deciding whether to obey God or man, and she
chooses obedience to God, she is a candidate to receive the blessing and reward
spoken of here. Whenever suffering results due to a choice to remain faithful to
Yahweh, there will be reward.

In the preceding chapter I spoke of the tragedy of a young girl whose father sexually