Calling the American Church to Action

By Rev. Samuel Rodriguez Published on July 9, 2025

In recent years, there has been increased clamor within the global Church about religious discrimination and persecution. We continue to witness a rise in spiritual hostility towards fellow brothers and sisters in Christ — including recent heartbreaking stories from Nigeria and Syria.

This rising persecution is not new. It is a continuation of a persistent thread seen throughout the history of God’s people. Persecution is not a product of today’s culture but rather a reality for believers.

In Genesis, we read that Cain murdered Abel because God favored Abel’s sacrifice. If you read the Psalms, you will find David’s heartfelt cries to God about being hated without cause and good being repaid with evil. God’s word makes one truth abundantly clear: His people will face resistance.

Expect It

Jesus — the sinless, spotless Lamb of God — was falsely accused of a crime He didn’t commit and crucified in a political power play. That catalyzed one of the most intense periods of persecution, in which churches were destroyed, people were exiled, and some were even killed.

None of this came as a surprise to the early Church. Jesus told His followers in John 15:18-20 that the world would hate them because they followed Him. But Jesus goes a step further, continuing to say that the world will actively persecute His disciples because they persecuted Him first.

This presents us with an uncomfortable reality: Persecution is a promise. It is something we should expect. In fact, it may even indicate that we are living lives that look beautifully different from the world around us. The world hated Jesus because He lived an upside-down, Kingdom-oriented life. If we’re really doing the same, we should expect the same treatment.

But Do Something About It Now

But take heart. We are called to be agents of peace and reconciliation in this world — while acknowledging that true wholeness and redemption will not be realized until Jesus comes again.

The reality of Christian persecution should move us to compassionate action within our spheres of influence. To advocate for those living out the heartbreaking cry of Psalm 44 echoed in Romans 8:36, which says, “for your sake we face death all day long.” Can you imagine what would happen if Christians across the nation committed anew to leveraging their skills and positions to fight for those suffering around the world?

Things would change. So that is what I want to call the Church to do. Act. Speak out. Use the gifts God has given you to see His Kingdom come. Too often, we wait to step out in faith, expecting God to intervene in a supernatural way. To be sure, He can and does do so.

But more often, He gives us an invitation to join Him in what He’s already doing. He asks us to be His hands and feet in the world.

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I am convinced He is extending that invitation now. He is asking all of us to remember that we are a global community united by our dedication to Him, which must always overflow in love and concern for others — especially those who belong to the family of believers.

As persecution continues to rear its head around the world, we must not sit by while our brothers and sisters in Christ suffer for their faith. Both here in America and across the world, we must follow Christ faithfully and work toward peace and justice, even as we pray, “Come Lord Jesus.”

Rev. Dr. Samuel Rodriguez is president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, executive producer of Breakthrough with 20th Century Fox and author of From Survive to Thrive: Live a Holy, Healed, Healthy, Happy, Humble, Hungry, and Honoring Life (Charisma House). CNN and FOX News have called him “the leader of the Hispanic Evangelical movement” and TIME magazine nominated him among the 100 most influential leaders in America.