Martyr (n): 1. One who chooses to suffer death rather than renounce religious principles. 2. One who makes great sacrifices for a cause (The American Heritage Dictionary, pg. 519).
During the first century, members of the body of Christ were persistently chased, captured, and tortured due to their refusal to deny their faith in Jesus as the Son of God. The ecclesiastical historian, Eusebius of Caeserea, documents accounts of horrific tortures he witnessed the brethren endure because of their mighty faith in the promises of Christ (Maier, Eusebio: Historia de la Iglesia, pp. 289-319). These “champions,” as Eusebius fondly calls them, embraced their deaths at the violent hands of the Roman empire because they understood the true meaning of following Jesus. In the letter written to the Hebrews, the author boldly states that “the world was not worthy” of them (Hebrews 11:38). Upon realizing the level of devotion these disciples had to the Master, every true Christian must meditate upon the importance of these actions and try to discover and emulate the source of their steadfast faith. In his second letter to the Corinthians, the apostle Paul quotes king David’s words as a means of describing the secret behind their bravery. “Since we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, ‘I believed and therefore I spoke,’ we also believe and therefore speak” (2nd Corinthians 4:13). To begin processing this illumination on behalf of the apostle, let us first note that Paul is quoting Psalm 116. This Psalm is written by king David to profess his gratitude to God for His deliverance from the hands of death. In it, the king expresses how it was that “the pains of death surrounded me and the pangs of Sheol laid hold of me” (Psalm 116:3). Observe how, in his description, David illustrates himself cornered and convinced that his life was at an end. However, no matter how impossible his survival may have seemed, it was in this precarious situation that the king “called upon the name of the Lord: ‘O Lord, I implore You, deliver my soul‘” (Psalm 116:4). The king was aware that both life and death dwell in the hands of God, therefore he submits himself to the will of God. Although he “implored” God for deliverance, he was also ready to accept death if that was what God had chosen for him. David acknowledges that “precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints” and soon after vows to always call upon Him as God (Psalm 116:15-17). David makes it abundantly clear that he was willing to sacrifice his life for God, but also understood that his life had been spared so that he could “walk before the Lord in the land of the living” (Psalm 116:9). In other words, in that moment his death would not have served a higher purpose. Once more, let us observe and understand that God esteems as “precious” the death of His saints. The immediate context of the verse the apostle is quoting reveals that God has in high esteem the death of those who hold true to their faith upon Him. Before Paul quotes this Psalm he states the condition he and all the true followers of Jesus found themselves in:
“8We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; 9persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed – 10always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. 11For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus’ sake, that the life of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh.” (2nd Corinthians 4:8-11)
After revealing this to his readers the apostle makes his connection to the Psalm, teaching that it is in these circumstances where faith is proven to be true or false. Both David and Paul realized that accepting God’s will, whether it meant death or life, is what God defined as “His saints.” We must not forget that the word saint means to be separated; distinguished from the crowd. Upon receiving this knowledge, what we begin to understand is that true faith will distinguish us from the rest of the world. Inspired by the Holy Spirit, both men seek to instruct us that our faith will prove its worth when it sustains our spirit with the endurance to accept whatever trial is put before us. However, both men further explain why these trials are necessary. Paul gives the following explanation, similar to the one David has already given: “Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day” (2nd Corinthians 4:16). When king David made his supplication to God, he implored “deliver my soul” not “my life.” David’s focus was, as Paul stated, on his “inward man” meaning his soul and not his “outward man” which refers to his physical, material life. The lesson being taught by both men is that one will be willing to give his life in full sacrifice to God when he understands and accetps that “the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal” (2nd Corinthians 4:18). The revelation of this Divine promise is what prompted many Christians to willingly offer their lives for the Master. We mentioned that David understood that his life had been spared because it would not have served a “higher purpose.” To explain this, first let us unveil what the word martyr in Greek truly means. The Greek word is martus or martur and when correctly translated it means “one who bears witness by his death” (Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, pg. 1237). Therefore, a martyr in it’s Greek origin means witness. Only that this person holds his testimony to be true even if it means his death. His conviction, or faith in his belief, is made evident in his willingness to give his life for it. The same Paul who makes this observation to the Corinthians is the same one who recognized Stephen’s martyrdom served as a witness to him that he had approved the death of one of the Lord’s saints (Acts 22:19-20). These martyrs are recognized to be “heroes of faith” because they allowed the realization that an eternal and far better life waited after death. They chose to grant strength to those believers who were present to witness their unmovable belief that these promises are true. They also aimed to prove their unwavering dedication to Jesus by allowing their death to serve as a testimony that He is Lord. The spilled blood of these martyrs became a witness to all, as they refused to deny Christ or His doctrine because they held His promises as far more precious than life here on earth. It is the reason why, says Paul, they spoke despite the fact that it meant their death. They believed that their death would be held as “precious” by the Master and therefore spoke vehemently for the cause of Christ. This unwavering faith that eternal glory overshadows any tribulation was the secret to the martyr‘s victory. The undeniable truth is that we must voluntarily give up the things that are seen, to attain those that are eternal.