An interesting "conversation:" take three: TOP TEN WAYS TO AVOID PERSECUTION

This should be my final post relating to our friend the "conversationalist." And seriously, I'm glad that we had the "conversation."

He brought up a solid point about persecution. Persecution will exist for believers. Jesus said that folks weren't fans of him, so folks would not be fans of his followers. Obviously some folks were fans of Jesus-they would clicked "become a fan of Jesus" links on Facebook, if they had Facebook or internet for that matter back then-and so some folks will be fans of Christians. Non-Christians can be our fans. I've shared the gospel with friends who are still my friends. So its not ONLY evangelism that causes persecution.

But we cannot ignore what Jesus says, though we often play the out-of-sight-out-of-mind game with scriptures we don't like.

To say that we'll be persecuted the same way in the U.S. as in Asia is the other side of ludicrous. People aren't allowed to sell our kids to slavery, throw us in jail, and beat us senseless (at least this is not normal practice here). So instead of focusing on what it would look like, I'd like to reflect upon "how" we may get that point of persecution. Or rather, "how not" to get to that point.

So here is my Top Ten ways NOT to get legitimately persecuted for your faith (as opposed to methodology or personality.) BTW-These sound angry, but I'm not angry at all. Most of them I put down because I've experienced them personally or "a guy I know" has struggled with them.

1o.) Don't ever point out sins in other professing Christians. Keep quiet and pretend you are just loving them.
9.) NEVER intentionally direct conversations toward anything which could eventually lead to the gospel
8.) Always stay shallow. If you only talk about Fishing and Football, you'll be safe and never offend anyone.
7.) Be like Oprah. Agree with everyone, and don't ask others to question "questionable" things. If you disagree or question anyone, you could be labeled "intolerant" and will not be The Nice Guy everyone likes.
6.) Don't have any standards in who you date. As long as they have a pulse, it doesn't matter if they are Christian or non-Christian.
5.) Blend in with unbelievers. Behave just like them. Drink as much as them, use the same language as them, have the same aspirations and life goals.
4.) Don't love your neighbors, and for goodness sakes, don't seek out new relationships with unbelievers. If you love folks, you might actually enter into their lives and they could reject you. On the contrary, if you isolate yourself, no one can hurt you.
3.) Just live for the American dream. Don't care about missions or your local community.
2.) Don't ever invite someone to church, bible study, or give them a book to discuss.
1.) This is the most important one, on which all of the aforementioned hinge. Forget the security you have in Christ. If you forget the security you have in Him alone, you'll seek approval from others and always try to keep them happy. Impossible, but you'll do your best to hide any truth that they will need.