Dying vs. Perishing
"But not a hair of your head will perish" Luke 21:18.

Tom and Will sprinted along the beach. Nearing the end of their two-mile jog,
the two brothers couldn't resist racing each other. When Tom, though
short-winded, wheezed a few bars of the theme music from "Chariots of Fire,"
they burst into laughter and collapsed on the sand.

After catching his breath, Tom said, "Will, you are one tough long-distance runner."

"After three years of serving refugees and sharing the Gospel in Cote d'Ivoire," said Will, "I say you are the tough one."

"Thanks," said Tom.

Suddenly Will acted as though he were getting up, "Come on, let's run
another two miles!"

"Are you crazy?"

"Not any crazier than you," Will said. "When you returned from Africa six
months ago, I was so relieved. But now you've accepted an even harder
missionary assignment in Guinea, working among Muslims who aren't
going to be pleased with you preaching there. Plus, you never know when you
might get caught in the crossfire of an African civil war. I believe the
Gospel as much as you do, Tom, but your line of work is just plain dangerous!
Why take any more risks?"

They both fell silent. With his finger, Tom began to draw in the damp sand. At
first, Will paid no attention because Tom was always sketching. After a
couple minutes, Will looked down and saw two faces in the sand: one
Caucasian, the other African. Both heads sported a lot of hair.

"What's with the hair?" Will asked.

"In Luke 21," began Tom, "Jesus promised His witnesses that some of them
will be put to death. Then the Lord promised, 'All men will hate you because
of Me'" (v. 16-17).

"How comforting!"

"Perhaps not comforting, but Jesus was being honest about the danger. Then,
He said something so beautiful, it inspires me to take the risk of returning
to Africa. He promised, "But not a hair of your head will perish. By standing
firm you will gain life" (Luke 21:18-19).

Will objected, "How can Jesus say in one breath 'they will put some of you
to death' and in the next say, 'but not a hair of your head will perish?'
Don't you hear the contradiction?"

"Don't you hear the distinction, Will? Death and perishing are two different
things. Even if I return to Africa and die there, I won't perish, 'For God
so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes
in Him SHALL NOT PERISH but have eternal life'" (John 3:16).

Will eyed the drawing in the sand again for a moment. Then he said, "This is
hard for me to swallow, but I now see your point. The people you are trying
to reach with Christ's love are perishing eternally. But because you and I
have been freed from the peril of perishing, we don't have to worry about
dying."

1. Who do you know that is enduring tribulations to proclaim the name of
   Christ?
2. Identify all the promises in Luke 21:12-19. Which honestly describe the
   difficulties of confessing Christ? Which grant us hope to confess Him boldly?
3. Some people joke that the gift of martyrdom can only be used once. Is this
   a correct understanding of martyrdom? How might the courage to face martyrdom
   be used again and again while living? Read 2 Cor. 4:8-18.

• Visit www.voiceofthemartyrs.org.