2 Peter 2:12-15
"12 But these, like unreasoning animals, born as creatures of instinct to be captured and killed, using abusive speech where they have no knowledge, will in the destruction of those creatures also be destroyed,
13 suffering wrong as the wages of doing wrong. They count it a pleasure to revel in the daytime. They are stains and blemishes, reveling in their deceptions as they feast with you,
14 having eyes full of adultery that never ceases from sin, enticing unstable souls, having hearts trained in greed, accursed children;
15 abandoning the right way, they have gone astray, having followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved the reward of unrighteousness;"
Matthew 5:10-12
"10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets before you."
2 Chronicles 36:16
"But they mocked the messengers of God, despising His words and scoffing at His prophets, until the wrath of the LORD against His people was stirred up beyond remedy."
Don't worry about any of this, God's got this, no one will go unpunished for their abuse of the born-again believers except and unless they repent and become born-again.
When a persecutor is repentant and is born-again they become our brothers and sisters, their sin is forgiven if they desire forgiveness and we can carry on together as though the mocking never happened.
We pray for those who hate us so that they can realize the same joy and peace that we have, which only comes from being changed into a new creation by Christ.
When a persecutor becomes born-again they are no longer the same person, we no longer see the old person, we are looking at a brand new person who does not persecute others anymore. They are so different that those who knew them in the past are astonished at the change, its' authentic and humble, something the friends of this new person never saw before. That all by itself is a witness to their friends and family that Christ did a miracle and lives in the new person.
There are those who claim to be Christians who do not like the new person because this miracle never happened to them. They are jealous of the new nature of the born-again believer. Those who do not like the change have never been changed themselves. They thought they would decide to be Christians and do the best they can to be a better person so as to be seen as good by others but in their heart they had no desire to be changed by Christ.
How do we recognize the pretenders who do not have the power of the Holy Spirit living in them?
Those who are pretenders begin hot and heavy about Christ and then over time they burn out, tired of having to keep up the pretense they slide back into their anger and disobedience, but only so far so as to be able to hide the real self inside. As these people grow older they become more like the old man again and never come back from it, they no longer see a need to hide what they are, they thunder along in resentment without any of the fruit of the Spirit to guide them.
Galatians 5:22-23
"22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. "
All born-again believers have this fruit and all born-again believers get better as they grow older.
Those who seem to lose their Christianity as they grow older and closer to their eternity were never born again.
Hebrews 12:6-12
"6 For whom the Lord loves He disciplines,
And He punishes every son whom He accepts.”
7 It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline?
8 But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.
9 Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits, and live?
10 For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness.
11 For the moment, all discipline seems not to be pleasant, but painful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterward it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness."
God will not allow a born-again believer to be in sin without a spanking to bring them back to obedience. Those who have been changed by Christ are growing in holiness, changing all the time little by little over time becoming better.
I do not believe a born-again believer backslides permanently growing worse as the years go by. Another evidence that a pretender was never born again is their hostility toward correction with the Word of God. Those who fight against the word of God hate Him.
Proverbs 15:31-33 "…31 He who listens to life-giving reproof will dwell among the wise. 32 He who ignores discipline despises himself, but whoever heeds correction gains understanding. 33 The fear of the LORD is the instruction of wisdom, and humility comes before honor.…"
Proverbs 13:18
"Poverty and shame come to him who ignores discipline, but whoever heeds correction is honored."
Proverbs 15:5
"A fool rejects his father's discipline, but whoever heeds correction is prudent."
A pretender has lots of feelings but only for himself. Pretenders lack empathy toward anyone else, they also lack compassion when others are in trials. This is another evidence of a pretenders.
Proverbs 29:11
"A fool gives full vent to his spirit, but a wise man quietly holds it back."
Proverbs 1:7
"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction."
Proverbs 1:5
"Let the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance,"
Proverbs 12:15
"The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advice."
There are pretenders in the churches who seem to have many right words but mix those words with the devil's lies. These are the ones who are hostile when confronted. Confront them anyway, watch what comes out, and prove to which ilk they belong, authentic or pretender, it won't be hard to discern.
1 John 4:1
"Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world."
