A Place for Liberty?

[Pard]

Is there a place for "religious liberty" in the life of a Christian? What does the Bible say about it? In the time of the New Testament the Christians were hated where ever they went. They were beaten, stoned, whipped, crucified, hung, burned, and many other like torments. But they took it with a glad heart, only ever preaching the name of the Lord Jesus, by which man could find salvation for all sin. They never appealed with a lawyer and demanded their rights be protected, they never even claimed any rights from the oppression.

How then should we take this in a country where we are free to believe whatever we wish and to preach whatever we wish? People may not like us, but the government is not going to sentence you to a beating! The government may suppress your religion if they find it infringes on the religion of another, but that is hardly the oppression our brothers in other lands are facing.

What does the Bible say on this? I'm not much interested in the feelings of man, but the teachings of God. I wonder because I am currently a Pre-Law major, but what place do such a profession as lawyering have in a Christian life? Protecting the christians from "oppression" because they cannot display a picture of Jesus on public land, when my brothers in China are being beaten for even breathing His name!?