Thursday, February 26th

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February 26

Enduring in the Face of Opposition

The people of the city were divided; some sided with the Jews, others with the apostles. There was a plot afoot among the Gentiles and Jews, together with their leaders, to mistreat them and stone them. But they found out about it and fled to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding country, where they continued to preach the good news.

—Acts 14:5-7

Charles Joseph Coward was born in 1905 in England, and by all accounts he had an ordinary life . . . for the first three decades or so. In 1937 he joined the British army, and three years later, he was captured by Nazi forces. Over the course of the next several years, he was sent to one German prisoner of war camp after the other.

But during this time he wasn’t focused on himself and how to save his own skin. Instead, Coward defied his name, devoting himself to rescuing Jews from Auschwitz, one of Germany’s dreaded concentration camps in World War II. His most daring feat of courage, however, was when he exchanged clothes with a prisoner and smuggled himself into Auschwitz for a night. There was someone he thought he might be able to rescue, but the only way to find him was to go behind bars himself. While many prisoners were making desperate attempts to smuggle themselves out of the concentration camp, this man, later dubbed the Count of Auschwitz, put his life on the line to get in.

His attempt was unsuccessful—he was never able found the prisoner he was looking for—but his brave actions serve as an example for us of being willing to face hardship to do the right thing. When we take a stand for Christ, we will sometimes find ourselves standing against the crowd, just as Charles Joseph Coward did.

During their time in Lystra, Paul and Barnabas learned just how fickle popular opinion can be. Shortly after they arrived, the people thought they were gods (Acts 14:11-13). And then, just a few verses later, the Jewish leaders arrived and turned the crowd against them until they took the drastic action of stoning Paul (Acts 14:19).

When we look to the crowd to affirm us or define our worth, we will struggle to endure the opposition we face. But when we look to Jesus as our cornerstone for truth, we will be able to remain faithful until the end. Even if, like for Charles Coward, that means being smuggled into enemy territory.

When are you most tempted to listen to the crowd? First Corinthians 10:13 says, “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.” Write down this verse somewhere you’ll see it to remind you whose voice to listen to.

—Stephanie Rische