Suffering for the Gospel and His name's sake is one of the missional objectives, why? Because Christians are guided by the only spoken and written revelation of the living God. When you act out of obedience to faith in Christ, people see it. Some will love it, and those seeds will produce fruit unto righteousness and life. Others, however, will not like it when they see you obeying the Gospel's mission mandates to study, serve, suffer, share, and shepherd others in the faith. The difference they see in you is something they cannot get anywhere else but the Bible. This is hard for some to accept. They will lash out at you. Note also, this difference is seen by those inside the Church. Jesus tells us that the wheat and the tares are both in the world and the Church, be prepared to take the hits from those who profess the name of Christ, as well. Jealously runs rampant in all arenas of life. The Crown of LIfe will affect every area you walk in if you neither hide it, nor allow anyone to steal it from you.

Jesus warns those who are transformed by the word of God that if they bring their faith like a light in a dark place that they will be persecuted by the world, but did you know suffering for the Gospel also happens inside the church? Yes. Jesus draws upon the history of God sending prophets to His covenant nation, Israel. These prophets were rejected, and most were killed. Most people in today's world never bother to finish so much as one reading plan for themselves, so how are they supposed to have anything useful to say when they show up to church fellowship? You could interact with these types, but you would be casting your pearls to swine. Jesus warns that such people will trample on your pearls of God's word and turn and tear you into pieces. So count on suffering for the Gospel in the church, too. If you love God's word, and read it daily, and study it frequently, and love digging deeper into the meat rather than suckling at the milk of the word, what I call "Sunday morning quips," then be prepared to face the opposition of those who do not have that relationship with God's Holy Spirit. Why? The answer to that question lies in God's mystery of godliness (1 Tim 3:16): not every Christian desires their full reward from this life of devotion in the 5 Crowns. For some, having the last word is enough, for others, Sunday morning devotion suffices, and still others, owning a dusty Bible will do. Stay firm in the 5 Crowns of Reward, the Cross-'n-Crowns ministry, as we call it.

The Bible gives us many examples of suffering for the gospel: Jesus gave his life on the cross, 11 of the 12 apostles gave their lives, but what about those who are not in the position to do the same? What does suffering for the Gospel and His name mean? Jesus's first sermon outlines the many ways and the Apostle Paul capitalizes on that sermon in his letters. Firstly, Jesus identifies the mocking and persecution of the world toward his followers: ““God blesses you when people MOCK you and PERSECUTE you and lie about you and say all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers. Be happy about it! Be very glad! For a great reward awaits you in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted in the same way." (Mt 5:11–12, NLT). Secondly, Paul identifies the world's hatred for those who live godly lives: “Yes, and everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution." (2 Ti 3:12, NLT). What is a "godly" life? Pretty simple by our ministry's recollection: it means we are dedicated to living the 5 Crowns of Reward. Dedication means we devote time, effort, money, and resources. That is something the world will never understand apart from the insight of God's Holy Spirit revealing it to them. And the most offensive thing to those outside the Church is the Crown of Glory: teaching others to devote their lives to the godly agenda we have submitted ourselves to.

The modern street preachers are some of the most courageous, steadfast, and persevering Christians who are acting as modern-day apostles. The apostles suffered incredible tragedies. All of them but John, who wrote the Gospel and the Book of Revelation, suffered terrible deaths, some beheaded, some flayed alive, others thrown off the tops of buildings. Our ministry is eager to commission those who have a confirmed calling, but be wary, modern preachers are spit on, attacked, vandalized, property stolen and destroyed, and many local law enforcement are told to do nothing about it. STREET PREACHING

The Crown of Life promises rewards for suffering for the gospel or the name of Jesus Christ (Rev 2:10). Are you a street preacher? Tell us about your stories or others'. Are you an evangelist? A believer at your secular work? “God blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and say all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers. Be happy about it! Be very glad! For a great reward awaits you in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted in the same way." (Matt 5:11–12, NLT).