Hebrews 10:23–25 (ESV) - Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. 24And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.


Mutual encouragement is a critical component of faithfulness in the Christian life!

Revelation 11:1-2 (ESV) - Then I was given a measuring rod like a staff, and I was told, “Rise and measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship there, 2but do not measure the court outside the temple; leave that out, for it is given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months.

Revelation 11:3 (ESV) - And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.” 4These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth.

Revelation 11:4-6 (ESV) - These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. 5And if anyone would harm them, fire pours from their mouth and consumes their foes. If anyone would harm them, this is how he is doomed to be killed. 6They have the power to shut the sky, that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying, and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague, as often as they desire.

God promises to us his children protection for salvation, but not safety.

God uses the witnesses to embolden those following Jesus.

Revelation 11:7-14 (ESV) - 7And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them, 8and their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city that symbolically is called Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord was crucified. 9For three and a half days some from the peoples and tribes and languages and nations will gaze at their dead bodies and refuse to let them be placed in a tomb, 10and those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and make merry and exchange presents, because these two prophets had been a torment to those who dwell on the earth. 11But after the three and a half days a breath of life from God entered them, and they stood up on their feet, and great fear fell on those who saw them. 12Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here!”And they went up to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies watched them. 13And at that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven. 14The second woe has passed; behold, the third woe is soon to come.

Matthew 10:28 (ESV) - And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.

Revelation 11:15-18 (ESV) - 15Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.” 16And the twenty-four elders who sit on their thrones before God fell on their faces and worshiped God, 17saying, “We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, who is and who was, for you have taken your great power and begun to reign. 18The nations raged, but your wrath came, and the time for the dead to be judged, and for rewarding your servants, the prophets and saints, and those who fear your name, both small and great, and for destroying the destroyers of the earth.”

Revelation 11:19 (ESV) - Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple. There were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail.

So what?
1. Pray for our persecuted brothers and sisters around the world.

2. Faithfully engage with other believers for mutual encouragement. We need to encourage one another all the more as we see the Day approaching (Hebrews 10:23-25).

3. Hold to the eternal hope that God’s kingdom will come on earth as it is in heaven.

Discussion Questions

1. Is there an obvious time you have experienced some kind of persecution for your faith in Jesus (maybe not prison or physical harm, but it could be having lost a job or your reputation was smeared)? How did you respond?

2. Do you take much interest in the stories of Christians who are persecuted today? Why or why not?

3. Should every Christian expect to be persecuted? Should every Christian expect to be martyred?

4. Why does the world rejoice at the death of the two witnesses? In what way do you see the same spirit today?

5. How does God promise to honor those who serve him unto death?

6. How does the certainty of the coming of God’s kingdom shape the way you live now?