Intellectual persecution of Christian students in the classroom
What exactly is intellectual persecution for a Christian student? Intellectual persecution is not material or economic hardship that you experience  in the course of your university education. It is not about sexual harassment by lecturers, students or other members of the intellectual community. Nor is it related to racial, ethnic or ideological conflicts. You can understand intellectual persecution better by relating it to general Christian experience of persecution. Christians in every walk of life are persecuted when they take an uncompromising stand for the Lord Jesus Christ in what they do and how they live.

This persecution develops an intellectual dimension for Christian scholars and students when they take seriously the implications of their biblical convictions for how they think and do academic work. They see their intellectual activity as an expression of their faithfulness to the Lord Jesus Christ.They are determined to subject their rationality to the guidance of the Holy Spirit in order to ensure that in every discipline of knowledge, their assumptions, methodology and conclusions are consistent with the truth of the Bible. For these reasons, they are persecuted.

Intellectual persecution is part of a bigger spiritual war that you are engaged in as a follower of Jesus Christ. Satan knows that he is eternally  doomed. He decides, within the time and power allowed for him, to play the role of a spoiler in the grand design of God for all creation. He calls up an army of other rebels described by the Bible as principalities, powers, the rulers of the darkness of this age, and spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. (Ephesians 6: 12) Their single objective is to frustrate the purposes of God for humanity and all creation. They use every strategy at their disposal to distract your attention from our full status and privileges in Christ. This is the heart of  the conflict that we are engaged in daily as Christians. On the intellectual front, you contend with a diabolical army whose intent is to corrupt and subvert true knowledge.

Human agents of intellectual persecution
Satan employs human agents for intellectual persecution of the Christian student.In the classroom, intellectual persecution of Christian students often takes the form of derogatory and irresponsible remarks by non-Christian lecturers that are calculated to discredit your faith. Some lecturers and tutors make explicit personal attacks on your faith, beliefs and lifestyle. Some lecturers use their institutional authority to force on you the idea that your Christian faith is not compatible with a rigorous intellectual tradition. Sometimes, lecturers deliberately teach courses in ways that don’t tolerate your Christian worldview. In the natural sciences, such lecturers advocate beliefs and theories that clearly contradict  biblical authority without exposing you to conflicting alternatives. In humanities and arts, you are likely to encounter lecturers who design and teach courses in ways that are offensive to Christian principles and  morality.

Today, intellectual persecution of Christians is severe in countries that claim to protect freedom of intellectual expression and in countries that don’t. Regrettably,  Christian students and intellectuals are denied public expression of their commitment to the Lord Jesus in State-financed institutions in many influential Western democracies.

On your response in the classroom

As you prepare your responses, let’s dismiss a source of fear from your mind. Some Christian students feel troubled by a possibility that the basis of their faith may not stand rigorous intellectual scrutiny. As a result, they lack the confidence and freedom to publicly identify with Christ in the intellectual world. This fear is baseless. The truth is that the foundation of your faith  is easily defensible as the basis of true rationality and true scholarship. The weight of true  reason is on your side. As you become more intellectually skilled, you will be thrilled to know that you have been right all along by simply believing what God said about things.

Intellectual persecution comes with different forms of provocation that may tempt you to react like non-Christians. Don’t misinterpret  intellectual persecution as no more than academic harassment or an infringement of your human rights and freedom of speech. Otherwise, you may be tempted to depend entirely on human strategy or human institutions.

Intellectual persecution is spiritual conflict, and  must be fought with spiritual weapons. The Lord has made available a full system of defensive and offensive  weapons with which you can resist ungodly forces in the classroom. A summary of the weapons that are available for your use at all times is found in Ephesians 6:10-20.

A direct and practical response in the form of evenhanded scholarly debates would be ideal in an intellectual environment. Christians who are skilled in reasoned defence of the faith welcome such intellectual engagements with non-Christian ideas. However, this option may not be your best response at this stage of your intellectual career. The level of rigour and time  required to confront some of these beliefs is way beyond the scope of undergraduate-level work.  What is important at the present time is that you understand clearly the issues and points of disagreement in your specific areas of study. Hold firm that the Bible is true, and that all philosophies and conclusions that contradict the Bible must be wrong. The Holy Spirit will guide you to adopt correct Christian attitudes in specific classroom situations— when, what and how to respond, how to answer specific examination questions prepared by professors who are less than friendly to your faith, and your general reactions as a Christian witness to your professors and colleagues.

Implications for your studies
If you hold faithfully to a biblical Christian worldview as a student, you will experience intellectual persecution. Intellectual persecution is designed to do more than hurt or embarrass you. It aims to make you cast doubt on, and if possible,  abandon your commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ. The goal is to suggest to you that God is not there, that the Bible is not true and that faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is not central for your  intellectual formation. These attacks can be embarrassing and hurtful, especially since,  as a student, you don’t usually have a similar platform to present a response.

You are not alone as a Christian student in your determination to learn as a Christian. Many Christian students in different parts of the world currently face similar challenges. Other believers who understand the weight of pressure on your shoulder in the classroom are praying for you. No intellectual or any other form of persecution is able to separate you from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. The Lord Jesus Christ achieved decisive and comprehensive victory for us in this conflict. We inherit this victory as Christians. However, in God’s time table, this victory is yet to be fully celebrated in the lives of all believers. This is why you experience the pleasures and pains of an active participant in this conflict.. Sometimes you think you’ve lost out and wear a long face as you walk away from the lecture hall. Many other times you experience a clear win and the satisfaction of a victor.