Martyrs
Martyrs are those who like Paul echo, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” Galatians 2: 20
The word martyr is from the Greek word for witnesses. So these are those who gave their all for their testimony. Tertullian wrote that “the blood of martyrs is seed.” Jesus said, “If the world hates you, you know it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” John 15: 18, 19
He further added… “They will make you outcasts from the synagogue, but an hour is coming for everyone who kills you to think that he is offering service to God, and these things they will do, because they have not known the Father, or Me.” John 16: 2, 3
Matthew, the Apostle
Matthew AD60 Early Church and Martyrs Matthew was a man of an imperfect background. He was a tax collector and famous for his abusive style. He used excessive taxes to enslave people and control them. [...]