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In Nazi Germany no one spoke out against the evil regime until it was too late – it was the wrath of God (working through the allied forces) that brought the destruction upon the nation and its people.
By not speaking out against the evil that is destroying our nation (and world), we are no better than those that held their tongues in Nazi Germany; and God will likewise bring about the destruction of our nation unless we stand-up and speak-out against the spirit of the antichrist that is behind the current global agenda. Will we be persecuted for it? Absolutely – it has already begun with censorship and ostracization.
Standing Strong Through the Storm: What's Your Struggle?
Open Doors colleague, Ron Boyd-MacMillan, shares the following insight from his teaching, “Why I Need to Encounter the Persecuted Church”:
I’m often questioned about the main difference between a persecuted Christian and a Western Christian. My answer has not changed in twenty years. In the Persecuted Church, Christians realize they are in trouble, and go to God about it. In the Western church, Christians forget they are in a fight, and even if they do remember, never manage to find the time to go to God about it.
Persecuted Christians know they are in a fight. Every day they struggle. Not being conscious of a daily struggle may be sure sign that one is losing the battle of life. The ancient Psalmist looked at the rich elite of Israel and said, “they have no struggles.” They should have struggles if they wish to please God. But so many Christians in the world today seem surprised at the language of struggle today.
What struggles do the persecuted awaken us to?
There is, first of all, the struggle we are always in. Everyone that visits persecuted communities comes away with a renewed appreciation of the spiritual battle we are always engaged in.
Secondly, there is, the struggle we must awaken to. A persecuted Christian in Palestine said, “When you become a real Christian, you get reawakened to the fact that ‘the whole world lies in the hands of the evil one,’ and this reflects in your own culture.” She added, “What your culture worships, you have to struggle against.” In her case, it was a worship of extremist terrorists, who risked everything to kill Israelis. In standing out against that, she struggled to communicate to her neighbors who thought she was being “unpatriotic.”
We have to face up the same question. What is our culture worshipping? Is it, as Francis Schaeffer once said, “the god of personal peace and affluence,” where we don’t mind what goes on in the world so long as our space and prosperity is not affected?
Finally, there is, the struggle we must create. Brother Andrew tells the story of meeting Pastor Haik of Iran, who said to him in 1993, “Andrew, when they kill me, it will be for speaking, not for being silent.” Haik was killed in 1994. If he had stayed silent about the treatment of his Christian friend, Mehdi Dibaj, Haik would be alive. But he chose to enter, even create, the conflict. The fact is we can avoid struggle if we want. Each of us has to make a choice to speak up, defy the powers-that-be, and bring a struggle into being. Otherwise Satan wins.
Persecuted Christians are always in a fight. They struggle all the time, against their own sins, against idolatries in their own societies, and against the orchestration of the evil one who is out to take our worship away from God. Yet these struggles should mark our own lives and churches as surely as the devil does not live exclusively in China or Columbia. This world is the place of struggle. What’s your struggle? The persecuted force us to ask. Everyone ought to have one!
Response:
Today I will affirm and engage in the struggles I face in standing strong against the enemy.
Prayer:
Help me, Lord, not avoid the struggles the persecuted awaken in me.
___________________
“Standing Strong Through the Storm” is a daily devotional published by Open Doors USA (https://www.opendoorsusa.org)
Open Doors USA is a 501(c)(3) compliant organization and a charter member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability. All contributions are tax-deductible.
Open Doors USA, PO Box 27001, Santa Ana, CA 92799 US
The Freeing Beauty Of Forgiveness
Scripture Reading: Matthew 18:21-35
In Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, a street-witnessing team became involved in an extraordinary situation. A young Mexican called Samuel would walk for two hours each day to join them and act as an interpreter. They discovered that Samuel's mother and sister had been murdered and that he witnessed the killings but, despite trying to intervene, was unable to stop them. He said he knew the man who did it.
He had a desire to go and avenge the killings, but then became a Christian and his whole attitude changed. He began a Bible study group now attended by twenty people. On the final night of the meetings, he saw the man he believed had murdered his mother and sister go forward to receive Jesus Christ as his Savior. Samuel made his way through the throng of people and shook his hand and welcomed him “into the Kingdom.” Samuel was able to forgive him.
In Jesus’ teaching, there is little doubt that, as a Christian, I MUST forgive those who have wronged me. Then our human, time-bound minds cry out with the loud fleshly inquiry — “WHY?”
Again Philip Yancey points out that through the process of forgiveness we realize we are not as different from the wrongdoer as we would like to think. And we end up linked on the same side.
In essence, God linked Himself with us humans in the incarnation. Somehow God had to come to terms with these creatures He desperately wanted to love. On earth, living among us, he learned what it was like to be human — yet without sin. But He put Himself on our side. God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us.
Forgiveness is a key component of the victorious overcomer. This is the way of the cross to becoming “more than conquerors.”
As a young Christian in Cambodia, Cham witnessed a Khmer Rouge soldier — a youth he knew from school — bludgeon his mother to death by hitting her repeatedly over the head with a wooden board.
Cham suffered from severe depression over memories of that incident for many months. But eventually the Lord helped him gain victory over it.
Ten years later, Cham was walking down the main street of Phnom Penh and saw that young man who had killed his mother. The young man was very fearful of revenge when he recognized Cham approaching him. With moist eyes Cham looked at him and said, “In the name of Jesus, I forgive you!” Cham was free.
Response:
I accept today that forgiveness is a must for me as a follower of Jesus.
Suggested Prayer:
Thank you, Lord, for so many rich examples of the freeing beauty of forgiveness.
___________________
~ Standing Strong Through The Storm, a devotional published by Open Doors USA PO Box 27001 Santa Ana, CA 92799 US
~ Open Doors USA is a 501(c)(3) compliant organization and a charter member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability. All contributions are tax-deductible.
The Signs of the End of the Age
“Master, tell us,” they asked, “when exactly will this happen? Can You tell us what warning sign to look for when it is about to take place?”
“Jesus responded, “Deception will run rampant and many will appear on the scene, saying I have sent them, or saying about themselves, ‘I am the Messiah!’ These doomsday deceivers will say, ‘The end of the age is now here!’ But listen to Me. Don’t let any of these imposters fool you.”
“There will also be many wars and revolutions on every side, with rumors of more wars to come. Don’t panic or give in to your fears, for these things are bound to happen. This is still not the end yet.”
“Jesus continued, “There will be upheavals of every kind. Nations will go to war against each other, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be terrible earthquakes and seismic events of epic proportion that result in famines in one place after another. There will be horrible plagues and epidemics, cataclysmic storms on the earth, and astonishing signs and cosmic disturbances in the heavens. But before all of this happens, you will be hunted down and arrested, persecuted by both civil and religious authorities, and thrown into prison. And because you follow Me, you will be on trial before kings and governmental leaders as an opportunity to testify to them in My name. Yet determine in your hearts not to prepare for your own defense. Simply speak with the words of wisdom that I will give you that moment, and none of your persecutors will be able to withstand the grace and wisdom that comes from your mouths.”
“You can expect betrayal even by your parents, your brothers and sisters, your relatives and friends — and yes, some of you will die as martyrs. You will be hated by all because of My life in you. But don’t worry. My grace will never desert you or depart from your life. Stand firm with patient endurance and you will find your souls’ deliverance.”
~ Luke 21:7-19 (TPT)
The Lord is My Shepard...
Beat, Raped, and Left for Dead": The Persecution of Christians, May 2021
by Raymond Ibrahim
June 27, 2021 at 5:00 am
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/17504/persecution-of-christians-may
The boy eventually met up with his mother, and they went searching for Pastor Thomas. According to the wife, "As we continued doing the search, we found my husband in a pool of blood, beheaded and his tongue removed." His tongue was likely cut out as punishment for "speaking against Islam."
Although Azerbaijan claims to be repairing the damage it caused the cathedral, subsequent pictures and video footage suggest that they are defacing it more.... In the same area of Shushi where the cathedral is being profaned, Azerbaijan is preparing to build a "victory" mosque.... Finally, Azerbaijan is using gravestones from Armenian Christian cemeteries as building material.
Muslim men raped a Christian child and molested another. On May 2, Muhammad Awais, "beat, raped, and left for dead" Anum Bibi, an 8-year-old Christian girl, after he caught her trying to retrieve water with her 9-year-old brother. — Pakistan.
A group of Muslims attacked a Christian family and destroyed their home in an effort to seize their farmstead. "Muslims destroyed our mud house," the mother explained. "They stole our tin roof, took the rice, food, everything of value. They also beat me and my husband with a stick, even my children."... As a result, police failed to respond or make any arrests and instead asked for money from the victims. — Bangladesh.
Although Azerbaijan claims to be repairing the damage it caused to the Ghazanchetsots Cathedral (pictured), subsequent photographs and video footage suggest that they are defacing it more.... In the same area of Shushi where the cathedral is being profaned, Azerbaijan is preparing to build a "victory" mosque.... Finally, Azerbaijan is using gravestones from Armenian Christian cemeteries as building material. (Photo by Aris Messinis/AFP via Getty Images)
The following are among the abuses inflicted on Christians by Muslims throughout the month of May 2021:
The Slaughter of Christians
Uganda: On May 3, hours after Pastor Thomas Chikooma engaged in a public debate about Islam and Christianity, Muslims severed his tongue and beheaded him. The well-known pastor, father of 11, had planted 50 churches in eastern Uganda. During the open-air event, to which Muslims had invited him, he used the Bible and Koran to make his points. He won over several people — including six Muslims, who went on to convert to Christianity — prompting angry Muslims in the crowd to cry "Allahu Akbar," prompted the pastor and his young son to rush away from the event.
"Two motorcycles carrying two Muslims each and dressed in Islamic attire speedily bypassed us," his son, a minor, later explained. "When we were 200 meters to reach our house, the two motorcycles stopped at the junction opposite Nalufenya primary school and the road near our house." The pastor told his son to wait while he went to confront the four men. "Immediately some commotion began as the men started talking about the open-air debate, and soon one of them slapped my father," said his son. "I got scared and fled ... and arrived at home." The boy eventually met up with his mother, and they went searching for Pastor Thomas.
According to the wife, "As we continued doing the search, we found my husband in a pool of blood, beheaded and his tongue removed." His tongue was likely cut out as punishment for "speaking against Islam."
Separately, Muslims poisoned and killed a Christian pastor over his land: whether a church or mosque would be built over it. Initially, Muslims in the area urged Pastor Yolonim Oduchu to sell them his land, so they could construct a mosque on it. According to the pastor's brother, Francis:
"Aliasa Opeduru and a number of [other] Muslims had approached my brother to sell them the piece of land several times, but my brother declined because their offer was small, and he also wanted to have part of the land set aside for constructing a church structure. Later my brother received a threatening message from Opeduru saying he would not negotiate with him again."
Eventually the Muslims "found a sponsor in Turkey to fund the construction of the mosque." Now the problem became that the Muslims did not want a church near their mosque, but Pastor Yolonim began clearing his parcel of land in preparation of construction. Then, one day, after eating at a hotel owned by a Muslim, "my husband," said his wife Mary, "took a motorcycle and arrived at home complaining of severe stomach pains, diarrhea and started vomiting. We rushed him to a nearby clinic, and he succumbed to poisoning." Soon after his burial, his brother saw blood sprinkled atop the pastor's grave with papers with Arabic writing.
"We then sought assistance from police, who came with a sniffing dog that directed the mourners up to Opeduru's home, where we found the suspect inside the house sleeping. When police asked him about the blood, he admitted to pouring the animal blood there because the pastor didn't respect him."
After being interrogated by angry residents, the hotel owner confessed that "Muslims had given him poison and instructed him to put it in Pastor Oduchu's food." The pastor is survived by his wife and eight children, ages 2 to 16.
Pakistan: A group of Muslims abducted, beat, and poisoned a Christian man, before leaving him for dead in the middle of a street. Thirty-two-year-old Arif Masih's crime was that he had tried to defend his younger sister from sexual harassment. According to the report, on May 20,
"Rehana Bibi, 18, had gone to the bazaar to buy some milk. Returning home, two young men, Muhammad Tariq and Muhammad Majid, began to harass her. The girl tried to escape and took refuge in the house. The two broke into the house and got into a fight with Arif [her brother]. The two young men also took the girl and dragged her to the bazaar, tore off her clothes and mocked her."
Although the family registered a complaint with police, the police failed to act. Instead, Masih began to receive threats from the two accused men to drop the complaint, or else. Then, on May 23:
"both perpetrators went to Arif's home and attacked him. They loaded him onto their motorcycle and then beat and poisoned him, throwing him on the street. Local people informed the family that their son was lifeless in the middle of the road."
He was rushed to two different hospitals but, "due to his injuries and the poison, he died." Because they could not get justice, Masih's family took his body and exhibited it in the middle of a road, stopping vehicles and begging for justice (picture here).
Germany: During court proceedings, it was learned that a Muslim migrant from Syria murdered his sister's boyfriend for being Christian. According to the May 18 report,
"[H]e had killed his sister's boyfriend because, as a Muslim, he would not tolerate his sister's relationship with her Christian boyfriend. According to the verdict, the man waited more than an hour in the backyard for the victim in January 2019. When the 25-year-old got out of the car, the defendant fired shots from close range. The man died in the hospital from his gunshot wounds."
Democratic Republic of Congo: The Allied Democratic Forces, designated by the U.S. as an Islamic terror group, massacred between 50 and 57 people in the Christian majority nation, and torched 25 homes between May 29 and 30. The group is committed to creating an Islamic Caliphate in Central Africa.
Burkina Faso: On May 18, Islamic terrorists attacked a Christian baptismal ceremony, where they massacred 15 Christians. "People are shocked and many are running," a native in contact with town residents reported at the time. It is the fourth such attack in the nation's Sahel region. According to the report:
"Violence linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State extremists has left thousands dead in the West African nation over the last several years. In recent weeks, attacks have spiked in Burkina Faso's Sahel region and in the country's east. Two Spanish journalists and an Irish conservationist were among more than 50 people killed during one week in April. The violence has displaced more than 1 million people, and aid groups say it's also brought tens of thousands to the brink of starvation by disrupting aid operations to those in need."
South Sudan: On Sunday, May 19, a group of Muslims attacked and killed more than a dozen Christians. The attack and other forms of "senseless violence" have been taking place in the most northern part of the nation, particularly in Abyei, "an area that experiences Islamic encroachments followed by harassment, intimidation and frequent attacks carried out by Arab Islamic militias," said the Episcopal Church of South Sudan in a statement. Of the most recent attack, the Bishop of Abyei, Michael Deng Bol, said that the village of Dungob-Alei, had been "barbarically attacked by militiamen of Sudan since around 5.30 am on Sunday 16 May, killing 13 people and wounding eight others. "
"The fighting is still continuing up to now [late Monday night]... This is not the first attack of its kind. In 2020 Kolom village, 12km away from Abyei town, and Mabok Diil village, 18km east of Abyei town, were also attacked in the same way with 38 killed and 22 wounded, together with the abduction of 17 children and burning down of 77 houses including our prayer centres and medical facilities."
Nigeria: Some of the massacres of Christians at the hands of Fulani Muslim herdsmen reported throughout the month of May:
May 23: "Fourteen Christians were butchered to death, including children," a survivor from a raided village wrote in a communique. "Eight members of one family have all been killed. This is beside an additional six other Christians killed by the herdsmen in the village." More Christians were killed in another village on or around that same day, for a total of 37 dead. Survivors heard the attackers shouting the jihadist war-cry, "Allahu Akbar." Discussing the fate of her brother, one woman said,
"The armed Fulani herdsmen spotted him and shot him dead. I feel very sad about the way my brother was killed in cold blood. Why must we live in fear every day, not knowing the evil that awaits us as Christians in this country?"
May 21: Some Muslims shot to death a missionary pastor, Leviticus Makpa, 39, and his three-year-old son, Godsend (picture).
May 21: Fulani herdsmen killed two Christian men — both of whom left behind young families. The same day, a young Catholic priest's body was found thrown in the bush. "Sokoto Diocese has been struck again by another set of blood-sucking demons," church member Emmanuel Albert wrote in a text. "The Rev. Fr. Alphonsus is gone but will never be forgotten. He died because of his Christian faith, and as he has gone to meet his Maker, may eternal rest be granted to his soul." Another church member said, "My aging mother's wailing when I broke the news to her over the phone is jaggedly ringing in my soul... We pray for other priests and good people in captivity that God will bring them back home."
May 20: Muslim herdsmen killed two Christians, 21-year-old Ladi Jeffrey, mother to a 16-month-old child, and her nephew, during a nighttime raid on the family's home.
May 19: Fulani herdsmen murdered eight Christians and burned down a church.
Finally, according to another report published on May 12, between January and April of this year alone, 1,470 Christians were hacked to death by Muslim Fulani. On average this comes out to about 368 Christians killed every month for four months straight.
Attacks on Apostates, Blasphemers, and Evangelists
Pakistan: Another Christian nurse was falsely accused of blasphemy. Sometime in early May, Sakina Mehtab was shocked to see videos of her Muslim colleagues marching on hospital premises while shouting Islamic slogans and accusing her of blasphemy. Soon thereafter she began to receive anonymous threatening messages to "maim and kill" her — which prompted the Christian nurse to go into hiding. Her "crime" was to have shared a video on WhatsApp of a Pakistani Muslim in France criticizing the response of Pakistan to an EU resolution. "There was no religious element in it, but a group of nurses spread lies that the video was anti-Islamic and accused me of blasphemy," said Sakina, who was set to retire from the Punjab Institute of Mental Health in Lahore in two years. "My life has been put at serious risk with this false allegation, and I don't know how I'll be able to resume work at the hospital with the fear that someone might attack me from nowhere. My fear is not unfounded." According to the report:
"Hours after she shared the video, a large group of Muslim nurses and paramedical staff, some armed with clubs and sticks, staged a protest rally. Witnesses said the protestors intimidated Christian workers in hospital wards and repeatedly tried to provoke them into fights. There are about 345 Christians in the 600-strong workforce."
The Muslim mob then stormed into a hospital auditorium that Christian staff members and patients used as a church for worship and prayer. They "desecrated Bibles and other property and asserted that there would be no more Christian prayer gatherings there"; furthermore, they "took over the church and threatened their Christian colleagues with blasphemy cases if they failed to raze the church and convert to Islam."
Speaking on condition of anonymity, another Christian nurse said that such false blasphemy charges are part of a systematic plan to "replace them [Christians] with Muslims.... The administration's bias towards Christians is evident, because no action has been taken against the persons who brought the false charge against Sakina and put her life at risk." This is the third instance this year in Pakistan of Christian nurses being falsely accused of blasphemy. Earlier:
"On April 9, two Christian nurses complying with a supervisor's orders to remove stickers at a government hospital were arrested in Faisalabad after a Muslim employee attacked one of them with a knife over the removal of a sticker bearing Koranic verses.
"Nurse Mariam Lal and student nurse Navish Arooj were charged under Section 295-B of Pakistan's blasphemy statutes against 'defiling the Koran' after an Islamist mob demanded 'death to blasphemers' inside Civil Hospital... Conviction under Section 295-B is punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment and/or a fine.
"The two Roman Catholic nurses are in judicial custody while their families have gone into hiding out of fear of Islamist mobs.
"On Jan. 28, Tabeeta Gill, a nurse at a Karachi hospital and a gospel singer, was slapped, beaten and locked in a room by a violent mob after a Muslim co-worker baselessly accused her of blaspheming Islam. Police initially cleared her of denigrating Muhammad but later succumbed to pressure of an Islamist mob and charged her with insulting Islam's prophet, punishable by death under Section 295-C. Gill has reportedly fled the country to avoid arrest."
Uganda: After beheading Kanifa Namulondo's husband some years back, some Muslims burned down her and her children's recently reconstructed home on May 2. Earlier, when the Muslim family had converted to Christianity, local Muslims responded by beheading her father in 2015, prompting Kanifa and her children to flee. On April 25, though, with the help of friends, the apostate family had moved back into the same home.. On May 2, Kanifa noticed that the Muslim calls to prayer were unusually early. Then, "around 4 o'clock [in the morning] I heard people talking near the door," she later recounted. "The husband betrayed our religion," One of the voices said. "We should do away with the entire family." She responded by hurriedly waking up her children, escaping through the backdoor, and breaking into her neighbor's home, where she and the children locked themselves in the bathroom. She soon saw flames through the window and realized that her home had been set on fire by the would-be murderers. As last reported, she and her children were "living in great fear in temporary quarters ... and must relocate far away, again."
In a separate incident, a Muslim motorcyclist intentionally targeted and struck Hassan Muwanguzi, a former Muslim who converted to Christianity and was long known for helping other persecuted converts from Islam. After he was struck and suffered a leg injury, passersby surrounded both men and prevented the attacker from fleeing the scene. "The mob wanted to beat him," the victim explained, "but he shouted, saying, 'This man has been a trouble-maker to our Islamic religion,' Soon the police arrived and arrested him." The Muslim was later released on bail. Before that, Hassan had been receiving threatening messages from Muslims. A recent one said:
"You have been converting Muslims to Christianity. We have been warning you about this several times. But you have refused to heed to our directive, so be ready with whatever action we are going to take."
Attacks on Churches
USA: Ali Alaheri, a 29-year-old Muslim man, went on an anti-Christian and anti-Jewish crime spree in Brooklyn, NY, until he was finally arrested and charged with hate crimes. During his rampage he knocked down and destroyed a large crucifix that had stood for eleven years outside of St. Athanasius Church in Bensonhurst, and burned the American flag on the premises. The damage was discovered on May 14. "It was a terrible morning," said Monsignor David Cassato. "It was probably the saddest day in my life, to see this desecration of a cross of Jesus and the desecration of the flag." Alaheri also deliberately set fire to a yeshiva and synagogue on 36th Street in Brooklyn. Surveillance video shows him piling and lighting garbage bags alongside the building. Firefighters responded in time to extinguish the flames. He also "allegedly attacked a man wearing traditional Hasidic garb."
Turkey: In the same village where Christians were earlier persecuted, the Marta Shimoni Church in eastern Turkey was desecrated and vandalized on May 11. A year earlier, the elderly parents of a Chaldean priest were kidnapped. The wife was later found dead; the husband remains missing. According to the report,
"Marta Shimoni is a cave church built into the mountains, and thus cannot be destroyed in the same way as other churches. Video footage ... shows that the destruction was primarily against the Christian items and relics inside the church. Crosses, pictures of Jesus, and rosaries were strewn across the path leading away from the mountain church's entrance."
Armenia/Azerbaijan: Azerbaijan continued to abuse the Christian heritage of the ancient Armenian territory of Artsakh, which was recently appropriated by its Muslim neighbor. In October 2020, for example, Azerbaijan shelled and damaged Ghazanchetsots Cathedral in Shushi. Although Azerbaijan claims to be repairing the damage it caused the cathedral, subsequent pictures and video footage suggest that they are defacing it more. Angles that sat atop the pillars of the main entrance are now gone, as are its domes. According to Nagorno-Karabakh Ombudsman Gegham Stepanyan, Azerbaijan is seeking to alter the cathedral's appearance: "We have seen many times how Azerbaijan actually treats Armenian cultural values, and it is already clear what is hidden under the 'restoration work.' The goal is to eliminate traces of the Armenian presence." In a statement, the Armenian Foreign Ministry said that "Azerbaijan carries out actions related to the church without consulting the Armenian Apostolic Church, which clearly violates the right of Armenian believers to freedom of religion." UNESCO experts have also been denied access to Armenian cultural heritage sites.
In the same area of Shushi where the cathedral is being profaned, Azerbaijan is preparing to build a "victory" mosque. On May 12, the same day Azerbaijani troops entered Armenian territory, President Ilham Aliyev laid the foundation for the new mosque on ancient Armenian land. Further underscoring that it is meant to be a "victory" mosque, the new structure was commissioned to resemble the figure 8, because Shushi was conquered on November 8, while its two minarets will represent 11, for the month of its conquest.
Finally, Azerbaijan is using gravestones from Armenian Christian cemeteries as building material. During a May 10 interview, Foreign Minister of Artsakh, David Babayan, said,
"There is evidence showing that the Azerbaijani are demolishing the Hadrut cemetery.... This is another manifestation of cultural genocide and barbarism with a political purpose. They are not only completely destroying the Armenian trace, but are also using it for economic purposes."
The gravestones, he said, are being used for the construction of the Hadrut-Shushi road, thereby allowing Azerbaijan to save money on construction material.
Indonesia: On May 31, police arrested 11 Islamic militants accused of plotting the bombings of several churches in the Christian-majority Papua province. The accused are members of a terror group affiliated with Islamic State and that has previously carried out several suicide bombings in Indonesia. Among the items confiscated during police raids were jihadi literature and bomb-making manuals, chemicals for explosives, and modified air guns capable of firing real bullets.
General Attacks on Christians
Pakistan: Muslim men raped a Christian child and molested another. On May 2, Muhammad Awais, "beat, raped, and left for dead" Anum Bibi, an 8-year-old Christian girl, after he caught her trying to retrieve water with her 9-year-old brother. She was later found unconscious in the field and taken to a hospital. Two days later, on May 4, Christians protested on learning that an 8-year-old Christian girl was sexually harassed by her teacher's brother. According to the girl's mother, "Muhammad Amir, the Muslim culprit, attempted several rounds of wrestling with my daughter to fulfill his sexual desire; however, he did not succeed. Jemima started shouting and crying very loudly. Finally, she managed to escape from Amir's arms and ran into the street." "The assaults," the report adds, "are only the most recent examples of the vulnerability of Christian women and girls who are targeted by sexual predators in Pakistan..."
Separately in Pakistan, after a petty dispute between some Christian youths who were cleaning their church, and their Muslim landlord — who accused them of throwing dust on them — a Muslim mob consisting of some 200 persons, on May 15, formed and terrorized the eighty Christian families living in the same village. Eight Christians were seriously injured and 15 Christian households ransacked. "They were armed with glass bottles, stones, axes, batons and bricks," recalled one Christian, who lost a thumb in the attack. "Others used stairs to climb to our roofs and started breaking our furniture. We pleaded to spare the women, but the attack continued for half an hour."
"They broke the locks, grabbed our hair and pulled us out one by one," another female survivor said. "Young girls were assaulted and left with torn clothes." The boys accused of dirtying their Muslim landlord were especially sought out and punished. "The weakness on the part of the administration encourages such attacks on religious minorities," said a local clergyman. "The culprits are usually let off scot-free. Religion is used to settle personal scores. The locals fear another attack."
Bangladesh: A group of Muslims attacked a Christian family and destroyed their home in an effort to seize their farmstead.
"Muslims destroyed our mud house," the mother explained. "They stole our tin roof, took the rice, food, everything of value. They also beat me and my husband with a stick, even my children." The attackers are from the same village, which contains only two Christian families; everyone else is Muslim. As a result, police failed to respond or make any arrests and instead asked for money from the victims. "Being Christian and a minority is a problem," the mother continued. "If Muslims want to, they can take over our land, occupy it quickly and easily. But let us not lose hope. We shall fight to keep our land." Although her family has been living on land that has long belonged to her ancestors, the Muslim attackers acquired land adjacent to the Christians' and want to absorb it.
A regional clergyman confirmed that the Christians "have valid property documents," but "those Muslims want to seize their land illegally. It's an injustice."
Raymond Ibrahim, author of Crucified Again and Sword and Scimitar, is a Distinguished Senior Fellow at the Gatestone Institute, a Shillman Fellow at the David Horowitz Freedom Center, and a Judith Rosen Friedman Fellow at the Middle East Forum.
About this Series
While not all, or even most, Muslims are involved, persecution of Christians by extremists is growing. The report posits that such persecution is not random but rather systematic, and takes place irrespective of language, ethnicity, or location. It includes incidents that take place during, or are reported on, any given month.
Previous reports
April, 2021
March, 2021
February, 2021
January, 2021
December, 2020
November, 2020
October, 2020
September, 2020
August, 2020
July, 2020
June, 2020
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April, 2020
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January, 2020
December, 2019
November, 2019
October, 2019
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April, 2019
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January, 2019
December, 2018
November, 2018
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January, 2018
December, 2017
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January, 2017
December, 2016
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January, 2016
December, 2015
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January, 2015
December, 2014
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January, 2014
December, 2013
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Recent Articles by Raymond Ibrahim
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14 Reader Comments
Charlene Roray • Jun 28, 2021 at 13:43
Salem witch trials were about stealing land.
Reply->
Bull Herman • Jun 28, 2021 at 13:13
These articles are the most difficult to read. I wish US government and those in EU would have imported Christians instead of the Islamists.
These narratives are extremely painful but very necessary, that all may know.
Reply->
cammo99 • Jun 28, 2021 at 06:41
Are there religious Muslims who uphold the values of peace? Certainly. But there are elements of its teaching and in places like Afghanistan where local Imams read to illiterates selected passages that endorse these sorts of horrors because the make literal some passages. Christians and Jews have been accused of the same sorts of theological distortions. The history of Christianity is replete with wars over some issues like how to make the sign of the cross.
We do not cast stones blindly. But we must acknowledge our past to have a better future.
I find that better future in Jesus the Christ who died for our sins. Today's marginal church turned ugly under socialism, in Germany it became the German Positive Church and tried to erase the Jewish heritage of our faith, Jesus the Aryan. Yet many radicals have sympathetic chords with the Nazis and Hitler remains a cult hero in some Islamic nations not because they share a common faith but common hatreds.
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Cedar • Jun 28, 2021 at 06:07
If we look at the big picture, we can clearly see that across the Middle East, there has been an ethnic cleansing of virtually all the smaller groups which used to make the region such a rich tapestry of cultures.
Afghanistan lost its last remaining Jew recently. There are barely any left outside Israel, as they were expelled - without compensation or right of return - from Arab countries, & those few are old and afraid. The Yezidis were massacred, raped, enslaved, and their culture will not recover, With the exception of the beleaguered Copts, & a small but growing population in Israel, Christians are now in danger of extinction in the region where they've lived for 2000 years, and from which the religion emerged, The Kurds are repressed and killed in Turkey, their leader and their MPs imprisoned or murdered. The Turks are bombing Kurds in Iraq, and in Syria, crushing them under tanks and letting loose jihadis to rape and massacre. The Women's Village, built by women for women to rest and recover from the traumas of war, has been destroyed. That Sunnia and Shi'a detested each other used to be some protection for minorities, but now, thanks to Qassem Suleimani, Hamas & Hezbollah are allies.
In the UK, the national curriculum has been challenged and modified as a concession to the homophobia of Islam. At Batley Grammar, the 3 Religious Studies teachers are in hiding and the headmaster read a grovelling apology for their offence, dictated by the mob outside the school. Gay men were murdered in a park for their transgression of Islamic rules. And all the government, the trade unions, and the local authorities ever do is offer constant appeasement. The former MP for Batley, now the West Yorkshire mayor, supported the mob, not the teacher who had to flee because his home address was posted on the Net. The Scottish Justice Minister, Humza Yusaf, recently almost succeeded in making criticism of Islam illegal, even inside private homes. He will try again. For the frogs, the water is coming close to boiling.
Reply->
Bull Herman Cedar • Jun 28, 2021 at 21:43
It is truly chilling to read this.
Is Canada as bad yet? If you know, please answer. As Trudeau hates guns the upcoming street battles will appear as modern-day crusade wars.
And yet here in US, so many refuse to see The Squad for the dangers now and the grave threats to our future freedoms.
The UK is under occupation.
We in US are still in the soft jihad stage.
Reply->
Tershia • Jun 27, 2021 at 13:47
If it weren't for Mr. Ibrahim's faithful reporting on Islamic crimes against Christians, few people would know of their plight.
Most nations seem not to care, even though persecution is spreading and increasing in Western countries, often with the enabling of local governing bodies. This is the consequence of rejecting God which in turn opens the door to the man of lawlessness to create chaos.
This is evident in Canada where the covid "pandemic" has given the government in all provinces the opportunity to close down churches who chose to obey God rather than Caesar. Those pastors have been arrested and jailed, after the RCMP humiliated and in some cases brutalized them in front of their children. In some cases police helicopters were used to attempt to flush out churches who had gone "underground" by continuing their Sunday worship in the woods.
Sadly a Muslim family out for an evening walk recently, was deliberately mowed down by a young man, killing four of five family members. I am not criticizing the national outrage and vigils held, with even Justin Trudeau in attendance, but rather pointing out the double standard when a Muslim commits a similar crime on ordinary Canadians, as has happened, the Muslim is excused on the grounds of "mental illness".
I wonder if the young man's anger or hatred towards Muslims was fuelled by Trudeau's frequent preferential treatment of them in Canada? We who don't fawn over Islam are now officially regarded as "Islamophobes."
Please be aware that June 29th is the commemoration of the Day of Christian Martyrs.
Reply->
chris • Jun 27, 2021 at 13:17
And while this is happening, the west continues to allow millions in from these countries - Christians are not prioritised, though.
Reply->
Ron • Jun 27, 2021 at 12:38
Every month without fail, we receive Raymond Ibrahim's deeply disturbing report of the world-wide persecution of Christians by Islamists. The grisly details of the wide-spread torture and murder of Christians by Muslims completely contradict the popular, politically-correct myth that is promoted by Islamists and their apologists in the west who claim Islam is the religion of peace. There is nothing peaceful about a religion that contains verses that unequivocally command the faithful to forcefully convert, enslave, or kill infidels wherever they are found. As a result, Islam desperately needs to be reformed to bring it into full compliance with the values of modern democratic societies.
Attempts to reform Islam have consistently failed and will continue to do so until Islamic scholars undertake a massive overhaul of its doctrinal framework to make all of its teachings theologically consistent and completely supportive of the values of western, democratic societies with the goal of transforming Islam into a genuine peace-promoting ideology that protects the human rights of everyone and requires the faithful to always demonstrate tolerance for the beliefs of non-Muslims. Until then, the slaughter of innocent unbelievers that began with Muhammad's war on infidels approximately 1,400 years ago will continue.
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Elizabeth • Jun 27, 2021 at 11:05
I read with grief all the horror and death inflicted on ordinary, innocent men, women and children by the blindly mad followers of an ideology from a primitive and brutal historic past. My one question is why are these atrocities not severely punished by the government leaders in these countries? Those who carry out these evil deeds are violent criminals, and yes, it is my firm belief that Turkey, Iran, Qatar and all those committed to the growth of this horrifying ideology are actively funding, promoting and encouraging this lunacy.
Reply->
Shirley Rosenhohn • Jun 27, 2021 at 09:55
But the "politically correct" woke ideology-indoctrinated's silence concerning these atrocities is deafening.
Reply->
Agnes • Jun 27, 2021 at 09:08
Why do I neither hear nor read the Vatican/Pope voice their horror, protestation, disgust and indeed their DEMAND that such atrocities cease. Then take action if it does not.
Or does the Pope want martyrs? Why?
Reply->
Cedar Agnes • Jun 28, 2021 at 06:15
The Christian authorities, Catholic and Protestant, have been shamefully silent. They could at least have argued that immigration should favour those whose cultures align with those of the West, and who deserve asylum because those individuals, & their entire people, are the subject of genocidal attacks.
The West is post-ChrIstian. That's irretrievable. But I had hoped that we were firmly in favour of secular democracy, for which our ancestors struggled for centuries. But we are a fragmented culture of narcissistic libertarians, and have no way of resisting a strong & repressive ideology which threatens to impose itself by force if we don't surrender voluntarily. So we make one concession after another, & imperil ourselves still further with every step.
Reply->
Homero Agnes • Jun 28, 2021 at 18:09
Very good and serious questions here. I hope my answers here will not sound terrible. But I see the present Pope as someone quite different to others before him. He has allowed the great popular pressure of "woke ideas" to influence him. True of so MANY others in power nowadays. IT IS POSSIBLE he fears losing power (as head of the Roman Catholic church) if he takes much action against the atrocities we read about here.The killers full of hate against those who think differently---they have put all the "declared Christian world" in the same boat---as enemies. They hope to see the total number of Christians become absolute ZERO one day. They outdo Hitler and Stalin for hate against the Jews as well. It takes courage to stand against the tyrants here. Courage that HE LACKS. A modern version of Pilate and Neville Chamberlain.
Reply->
Hamish MacDonald • Jun 27, 2021 at 05:51
Thank Raymond, you again for the coverage; eventually the public will wake up.
Reply->
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God Answers Prayer
"If you remain in Me and My words remain in you [that is, if we are vitally united and My message lives in your heart], ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you." ~ John 15:7 (AMP)
In the mid-1990’s, my Canadian co-worker, PJ, and I were leading a ministry trip of Canadians and Americans to Iran. This was the first trip with a sizable group of Americans so there was a lot of excitement about it. And as expected, it took us right to the wire (two hours before our air flight) to secure their visitor visas.
As we finally relaxed on the long air flight, we realized we’d been so busy with travel details we’d had no time to shop for gifts for the brothers and sisters we’d be meeting. So on the airplane, we bought every box of chocolates that were on the duty-free carts.
On arrival in Iran, our women were all conservatively dressed in their black chadors allowing them to travel anywhere in the country and be accepted. It also enabled many discussions with other women on the street. Only their shoes gave them away as Westerners.
One of our tasks was to deliver some funds for widow support for the several Christian widows of martyred pastors in the country at that time. We channelled this through Sister Takoosh who was the widow of well-known Pastor Haik, the leader of the evangelicals in the entire country until his untimely murder.
We sent our group of chador-covered ladies to meet Takoosh at night at her home. They were received with the traditional great hospitality of the Persian culture and Christian community. They drank tea together and enjoyed wonderful fellowship in Jesus after sharing the financial and other gifts they brought.
Just before leaving, one of the Canadians remembered something. She reached into her large purse and pulled out a box of chocolates. She handed it to Sister Takoosh and said, “The two Pauls sent this as a gift for you.”
Unexpectedly, Takoosh began to weep. She then wiped her tears and said, “I really love chocolate. And when I get any, I cut it into small pieces to make it last as long as possible. Just yesterday I ate my last piece. And I said to the Lord, ‘I know this is a very selfish request, Lord, but would You please bring me some more chocolate!’”
God is concerned about even the small things in our lives. Talk to Him about them.
Response:
Today I will talk to God about every detail of my life and trust Him with the answers.
Suggested Prayer:
Thank You, Lord, that You care about my every need. I will trust You to take care of every detail. In Jesus' name, Amen.
_________________
~ excerpt from: "Standing Strong Through the Storm", a daily devotional published by Open Doors USA PO Box 27001 Santa Ana, CA 92799 USA
~ Open Doors USA is a 501(c)(3) compliant organization and a charter member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability. All contributions are tax-deductible.
Please the Lord or Appease the World?
There is no middle ground.
Loving Your Enemies
"I say to you, love your enemy, bless the one who curses you, do something wonderful for the one who hates you, and respond to the very ones who persecute you by praying for them. For that will reveal your identity as children of your heavenly Father. He is kind to all by bringing the sunrise to warm and rainfall to refresh whether a person does what is good or evil. What reward do you deserve if you only love the lovable? Don’t even the transgressors do that? How are you any different from others if you limit your kindness only to your friends? Don’t even the ungodly do that?" ~ Matthew 5:44-47
After preaching the Beatitudes, Jesus tells us to love and pray for those who persecute us. But that can feel like an impossible task: Why are evil, broken people — especially those who harm blameless believers for professing faith — deserving of our prayers?
Nonetheless, we should be encouraged to pray, knowing that both Jesus and Stephen did so for the people who caused their deaths:
"While they were nailing Jesus to the cross, He prayed over and over, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they’re doing.” ~ Luke 23:34
"He [Stephen] crumpled to his knees and shouted in a loud voice, “Our Lord, don’t hold this sin against them.” And then he died." ~ Acts 7:60
Think of their words as a reminder that even persecutors are created and known by a God who loves them just as much as He loves us. Remember, the Lord can radically and miraculously change the heart of anyone, even someone who seeks to wound His church.
Think About It:
• Jesus said, “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you” (Luke 6:27-28). How can we do that in today’s world?
• Are you able to consider those who persecute Christians as people God loves?
https://www.intouch.org/read/magazine/daily-devotions/loving-your-enemies
From the Pastor's Heart — October 2020
The ultimate example for us to follow in times of persecution is the Lord Jesus Christ who suffered more injustice than anyone.
We naturally want people to be attracted to Christianity by our witness and good example. But we have to face the fact: This world is under the influence of Satan, and his influence is powerful. Many people are hostile toward Christ. Instead of being admired, we may be treated unjustly, maligned, or even persecuted for our faith. This is nothing unusual — it has happened to believers for centuries. Even today many Christians around the world face severe persecution. We need to learn how God wants us to respond in case we too face hostility for our faith at some point in our lives.
Jesus said something about this issue that might seem contradictory:
“Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you” ~ Matthew 5:11-12
It’s difficult to comprehend how suffering for Christ could be a blessed condition unless we recognize that earthly life is like a puff of smoke compared to the blessings of our eternal home. When Peter wrote his first letter, he addressed the believers as aliens or sojourners, and that’s exactly what we are in this world. Yet sometimes we become too attached to this present life and think little about our eternal future. Persecution has a way of weaning us from earthly riches, pleasures, and concerns. It causes us to set our hope completely on the grace we’ll receive when Jesus is revealed:
"Therefore, with your minds ready for action,[a] be serious and set your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ." ~ 1 Peter 1:13
Peter’s letter included instructions to believers who were trying to live obediently and righteously under very difficult circumstances. They were dealing with slander, social ostracism, injustice, and persecution simply because they were Christians. So Peter reassured them, saying, “But even if you should suffer for the sake of righteousness, you are blessed” (1 Peter 3:14). Then he gave them four commands.
• First: “Do not fear their intimidation, and do not be troubled” ~ 1 Peter 3:14
In order to remain fearless and undisturbed by the attacks of people offended by Christianity, we need a biblical perspective of God’s care for us and sovereignty over our lives. Just a few verses earlier, we’re reminded that “The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous, and His ears attend to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil” (1 Peter 3:12).
Ultimately our persecutors will fail. Even if the Lord allows them to kill our bodies, they cannot destroy our souls because we belong to Christ (Matthew 10:28). And when we do what’s right, but suffer as a result, God’s grace encompasses us and strengthens us to patiently endure (1 Peter 2:20).
• Second: “Sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts” ~ 1 Peter 3:15
Responding to hostility in a godly manner requires devotion to Christ above all else and submission to His sovereignty over our lives — even when His will for us permits mistreatment, insults, or persecution. The Christian life is a journey to eternal glory, but the path includes temporal suffering. However, when we finally arrive in heaven, we’ll discover that our momentary suffering has produced for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison (2 Corinthians 4:17).
• Third: Always be “ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence” ~ 1 Peter 3:15
Keeping our eternal hope and living righteously while suffering injustice and hostility may open a door for us to share the gospel with our persecutors. We should always be ready to explain to them why we trust the Lord. Although we must be bold with the truth of the gospel, our attitude toward those who hurt us should be gentle and respectful.
• Fourth: “Keep a good conscience so that in the thing in which you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ will be put to shame” ~ 1 Peter 3:16
Although we may be tempted to compromise in order to avoid persecution or repay evil with evil to those who hurt us, this only leads us into sin and ruins our witness. All vengeance should be left to God who alone knows every detail and judges rightly. The only way we overcome evil is with good (Romans 12:17-21).
The ultimate example for us to follow in times of persecution is the Lord Jesus Christ who suffered more injustice than anyone. “While being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously” (1 Peter 2:23). Whether we face severe or relatively mild persecution for our faith, it is exactly what Jesus predicted: “If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you” (John 15:20). But God’s grace is always abundant in those times, and eventually all our suffering will end when we finish the course, having fought the good fight and kept the faith (2 Timothy 4:7-8). Then all that’s left is rejoicing because of our great reward in heaven.
Prayerfully yours,
Charles F. Stanley
P.S. If the thought of persecution makes you afraid, remember God doesn’t want you to worry beforehand. You might not feel His grace to endure right now, but it will be there the moment you need it. Trust Him, because He will never leave or forsake you.
https://www.intouch.org/read/from-pastors-heart/october-2020
God Is Often Most Visible When Things Are Most Awful
"As they plot their crimes, they say, “We have devised the perfect plan!” Yes, the human heart and mind are cunning. But God Himself will shoot them with His arrows, suddenly striking them down." ~ Psalm 64:6-7
During the tenth anniversary of the World Trade Center attacks of 9/11, many of the people who survived that fateful day were interviewed by the press. One was a man who lost his father to a heart attack as a young boy and outlived an IRA bomb blast in Britain as well as survived violent San Francisco earthquakes. Steve Gill was executive vice-president at Standard Chartered Bank and had just left his office in the World Trade Center for a breakfast meeting when he had to dodge the glass shards raining down from the North Tower after the plane had hit it. He successfully fled the scene on a ferry bound for Staten Island.
As a Christian, he has been repeatedly asked why God spared him but not thousands of innocent mothers, fathers, husbands, wives, brothers, sisters. He has no definitive answer. But when reflecting on lessons learned he says, “I saw that God is often most visible when things are most awful, whether it’s Christ on the Cross or the World Trade Center attack killing three thousand people…I don’t know why bad things happen. But I see that God is most present when things are at their worst.”
There are a number of biblical examples. Perhaps Joseph’s situation stands out most. Languishing in a jail on unjust charges, he is even forgotten by those he befriends and helps. At his lowest point, he is brought to Pharaoh to interpret a dream and becomes the second in command of the nation and saves his people and the Egyptian nation from starvation.
The Persecuted Church also testifies that God is most present in the worst of times. Pastor Wang Ming Dao spent over twenty-three years in prison in China for his faith. On his release at eighty years of age he said of his imprisonment, “That was my honeymoon with Jesus!”
Muslim background pastor Medhi Dibaj in Iran spent seven years in prison with the last few years isolated in a small cramped cell. On his release he said, “The past few years have been the sweetest years I’ve ever spent with Jesus.”
Liviu Georgescu was a teenager when his father, Costel, was distributing Bibles in Romania during the communist regime. Open Doors asked him what he thought of the time when his father was in prison for his faith. Liviu said, “It was a very good time, because then we had more time and opportunities to give Bibles to people and to talk about the faith. Now there is more freedom, but we have to work harder and put in longer hours in order to get by. This means that we have little time or energy for the faith. There is less interest as well.”
God seems to be most visible when things are at their worst.
Response:
Today I will thank God for the difficult times and ask for help to see Him as visible in the good times.
Prayer:
Thank You God for obviously being there in the darkest hours before the dawn of a new day or era.
________________________
~ "Standing Strong Through The Storm" - a daily devotional published by Open Doors USA, PO Box 27001, Santa Ana, CA 92799
~ Open Doors USA is a 501(c)(3) compliant organization and a charter member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability. All contributions are tax-deductible.
Fleeing Persecution
"When you are persecuted in one place, flee to another." ~ Matthew 10:23a
One of the clear biblical responses to persecution is to flee. But it is not the only response. Thus it is imperative that the persecuted believer is sure that running away is in the will of God. History is full of examples of Christians who relocated because of religious persecution.
The early Christians in Jerusalem were not obeying Jesus’ orders in Acts 1:8 (evangelize to the ends of the earth) so God allowed an Acts 8:1 (persecution) to send them on their way. The original text indicates the persecution accomplished the will of God for as they scattered abroad, they went “gossiping” the gospel (Acts 8:4). The first meaning of the word “gossip” was “to chat” or “rehearse.” The early Christians, when scattered by persecution, could not help but repeat the glorious message of the gospel to everyone they met.
The Apostle Paul left Damascus over the wall in a basket when a life threat was discovered early in his ministry. He was not just trying to avoid persecution, but he knew it was not yet God’s timing for his life and ministry to end. That occurred years later in Rome.
Today an Egyptian Christian leader is in hiding because he has the highest price on his head — four times more than Osama Bin Laden ever had. Zakaria Botross’ entire life story is that of defying death. The total price for his elimination (a fatwa), at last report, was one hundred million dollars. This is because his ministry to Muslims is so challenging, effective and productive. If his arguments cannot be countered then his voice must be silenced.
He was one of the most striking figures of the Coptic Orthodox Church. In 1964 he had a conversion experience which changed the direction of his ministry to thousands of people. Not only did Father Zakaria preach for conversions to Christ and to strengthen believers, he also effectively rebutted accusations against Christianity made by Islamic leaders. He is a scholar of ancient Arabic and knows the Koran and the Hadith (Islamic traditions) so thoroughly that Islamic scholars find it difficult to refute his teaching or counter his challenges.
His zealous activities could not help but attract the notice of the authorities of the State. He was removed from his church. Twice he experienced imprisonment for ministering to Muslims and leading them to faith in Jesus. He was accused of the ultimate crime, evangelizing Muslims and thereby inciting religious factionalism. Then he was deported and exiled from Egypt. His subsequent ministry in Australia and the UK was successful but not with everyone’s approval.
Today as an elderly senior, he lives in hiding in the West because more than sixty million people — most are Muslims — watch his satellite TV programs and visit his website. Countless millions across the Arabic speaking world are turning to Christ annually because of his ministry.
Like the Apostle Paul, Father Zakaria runs and hides, not because he is afraid of dying, but by defying death has been able to have the most effective ministry in the world to Muslim people.
Response:
Today I will resolve to run from persecution only when I know it is the will of God.
Prayer:
Pray for leaders like Zakaria Botross who have to live in hiding because of their effective ministry for the Lord and His church.
______________________________________
~ excerpt from: "Standing Strong Through The Storm", a daily devotional published by Open Doors USA, PO Box 27001, Santa Ana, CA 92799 USA
~ Open Doors USA is a 501(c)(3) compliant organization and a charter member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability. All contributions are tax-deductible.
Taking Away The Cross
A Western co-worker was visiting the Chinese city of Dandong which borders North Korea. He shares his challenging experience at a local house church meeting:
It was the first time I had ever been called “Satan!” But no one could fault the careful exegesis as this fiery Korean preacher bellowed to the 200-member house church.
“The third temptation of Jesus,” he declared, “was when the devil offered him the kingdom without the cross. The devil was basically saying, ‘Don’t go off and make all those sacrifices, touch all those lepers, spend nights in agony praying, and end up being tortured by soldiers and dying a horrible death. Just take it all now…from my hand!’” He went on, “The church often has the same temptation. The devil offers us power without suffering. And…I’ve got to say this even though our Western friend is here…this is a temptation one part of the church tempts another part of the church with. We have to call that part of the church ‘Satan,’ just as Jesus had to call Peter ‘Satan’ when he made the same suggestion later in his ministry.”
Good rip-roaring stuff, and thoroughly biblical. But I was intrigued as to why this pastor had singled out the Western church as the tempter. He was happy to explain over a meal.
“I hosted five pastors from North America last year. All Koreans. They came with reading material. Good stuff as far as it went, and they were supplying a sort of formula for church growth. But could one of them even bring himself to mention suffering? No! And when I heard those Korean pastors preach, it was also absent.”
He leaned forward and whispered, “When these pastors preach to the Persecuted Church, and mention everything but suffering, they are taking away the cross from the Christian life. That’s why I have to say that they are bringing a satanic suggestion. Anyone who says you can follow Christ but not carry your cross is no better than the old deceiver himself. Jesus said so. He said it to Satan, and he said it to Peter. And I’m going to say it to anyone else who dares to think they can be a witness for Christ from anywhere else but on a cross.”
Response:
Today I will focus on the things of God realizing they will always require me to carry my cross.
Prayer:
Lord, I will no longer try and eliminate the way of the cross from my Christian living. May I never again attempt to substitute power for suffering.
__________________________
~ "Standing Strong Through the Storm" - a devotional published by: Open Doors USA PO Box 27001 Santa Ana, CA 92799 USA
~ Open Doors USA is a 501(c)(3) compliant organization and a charter member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability. All contributions are tax-deductible.
The Word Of Their Testimony
"Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: The salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Messiah have now come, because the accuser of our brothers has been thrown out: the one who accuses them before our God day and night. They conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they did not love their lives in the face of death." ~ Revelation 12:10-11
Overcoming believers also declare Christ’s love and forgiveness aloud to themselves, to Satan, and to the world. It is the second way we become “more than conquerors” (Romans 8:37).
________________________
Daniel was called by the Lord to the north of Vietnam where he soon found himself in the midst of a revival. People were coming to know the Lord and Daniel immediately started a training program to equip these new believers. He also witnessed the power of God as people were healed and many were delivered from their addiction to opium. The inevitable soon happened and Daniel was sent to prison, his “training school,” for three years. With a smile that illuminated the room, Daniel shared his experiences in prison:
“After my arrest I was put in solitary confinement and chained to the ground for six months. This was a very hard time for me. The cell was small, there were no lights in the cell and I only had one bowl of rice and salt a day. A piece of bamboo was stuck over my crossed legs and chained to the ground. Being chained to the ground for such a long time also resulted in my body swelling and creating a lot of pain. I felt totally deserted. I asked the Lord to take my life. It was too much for me. I prayed a lot but thankfully the Lord did not do what I asked."
“One night in my prison cell, chained to the ground, I saw a vision of the Lord. He did not speak a word. He just placed his hand on me and I felt how new strength filled my body. I cried and repented before the Lord. Then I knew the Lord was saying to me that He would not allow me to leave this world defeated, that when He takes me “home” it will be victoriously.
“The next day the police came and took me to another cell with other prisoners. Today I can see why God allowed this difficult time. I could share the gospel with many people in prison. After three years in prison there is a church in every area where I spent time in a prison and more than 200 inmates came to know the Lord while I was in prison. Three other prisoners who came to know the Lord also started churches in prison. When I was released from prison, I found my church in the village had grown to 500 people.”
As Daniel concluded his testimony, co-workers could positively see the grace and love of the Lord in this humble man. He looked at them and summed up a life of sacrifice with the following words. “I know that God has a good plan — He sent me to prison to preach the gospel and to become a strong warrior for Him.”
Response:
I will overcome today by speaking out the word of my testimony to myself, to Satan and to the world.
Prayer:
Lord, even though I am not in prison, I can be a faithful overcomer today by sharing your love with others I meet through the word of my testimony.
_______________________________________
~ "Standing Strong in the Storm", a devotional published by Open Doors USA PO Box 27001 Santa Ana, CA 92799 US
~ Open Doors USA is a 501(c)(3) compliant organization and a charter member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability. All contributions are tax-deductible.
Satan's Changing Tactics
Have you ever noticed the strategy Satan used throughout Old Testament history? His attacks were aimed at preventing the birth of the Messiah at Bethlehem, but, once Jesus was born, Satan’s tactics changed somewhat. In some instances, he tried to kill Jesus before the Lord could reach the cross. At other times, Satan engineered numerous attempts to discredit Him — to cause Him to stumble or to sin.
But Satan met defeat at the cross. He failed to understand God’s strategy, and his final blunder actually forced events so that Jesus, though innocent, was condemned to die. The Apostle Paul noted that Satan did not understand this:
"None of the rulers of this age knew this wisdom, for if they had known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But as it is written: "What eye did not see and ear did not hear, and what never entered the human mind — God prepared this for those who love Him." ~ 1 Corinthians 2:8-9
Since that time, Satan’s tactics have changed. He’s still concerned about preventing the Word — the Word that was with God and is God (John 1:1) — from reaching people who are under Satan’s dominion. His attack is now two-pronged.
First Satan concentrates on the life and name of Jesus which each and every believer bears as the Lord’s representative. I believe it is important for Christians undergoing persecution to realize the attack they are under is actually directed not at them, but at the life of Jesus in them, a life which they have power to transmit to others.
Satan will make every effort to discredit you, to frighten you and to silence your witness in order that the new life in you stops with you. Sometimes Satan overreaches himself, just as he did at the cross, and sends a believer to a martyr’s grave but that life lives on in other believers who continue to bear witness more gloriously and triumphantly than ever.
That the church not only survives, but grows under such persecution has been demonstrated beautifully by the church in China. After missionaries were forced to leave in 1950, and all ties were cut with the body of Christ, believers were put through the horrible experience of Mao’s Cultural Revolution. Christians were killed or imprisoned, Bibles burned, and the remaining believers scattered all over China. The attack was clearly on the life and name of Jesus as manifested in believer’s lives.
As these sufferers scattered, they took the life of Jesus with them, and just as was the case with the early believers in Jerusalem, “Those who were scattered went about preaching the Word” (Acts 8:4). Now we see the harvest in China as millions of Christians are identified, meeting together for fellowship and worship in remote provinces…
I want others to have the one who makes me happy — Jesus.
Response:
Today I will be aware of Satan’s attempts to silence my witness for Jesus and resist him!
Prayer:
Thank You, Lord, for the way You bring good from the evil tactics of the enemy of our soul. Help me stand strong against his attack on the life and name of Jesus in me.
____________________________________
~ excerpt from: "Standing Strong Through the Storm", a daily devotional published by Open Doors USA, PO Box 27001, Santa Ana, CA 92799 US
~ Open Doors USA is a 501(c)(3) compliant organization and a charter member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability. All contributions are tax-deductible.
Pray With The Persecuted
"You did not choose Me, but I chose you. I appointed you that you should go out and produce fruit and that your fruit should remain..." ~ John 15:16
The first request of us from the Persecuted Church is that we pray for them. And correspondingly, they are usually great models of people of prayer which we can emulate. But we often need to be reminded that they do not ask us only to pray for them but also to pray with them. If we only pray for them, we will pray for their safety and the termination of their persecution. They want us to pray with them which means we will pray for: the advance of the gospel in their land; that they will bear fruit that will last; and for perseverance and fearless courage in the face of suffering.
Pastor Samuel Lamb from Guangzhou, China, has an interesting prayer for severe situations of persecution which expresses his trust in a great God. He prays: “Lord, I rejoice in how You are going to work this out.”
Moses Xie, a Chinese church leader who spent more than twenty years in jail for his faith, says that when asking visitors to pray for him he is really after three distinct outcomes:
“First, I want them to experience the blessing of prayer for themselves. They will go to God on my behalf, but they will receive a great blessing from being in the presence of God.
Second, I know that as they pray, their burden for the persecuted will increase, and as their burden grows, so their commitment to assisting us in all sorts of other ways will increase also. Prayer alone makes them be the body.
Third, I want them to release more of God’s power into our situation through intercession, since I know that God has bound Himself not to act until we ask.”
Today is a great day to glorify God in our lives and those of the Persecuted Church.
Response:
Today I will not only pray for the persecuted but I will also pray with the persecuted.
Prayer:
Lord, may my life glorify You today and may I be a lasting fruit bearer who only desires that Your will be done.
____________________________
~ "Standing Strong Through the Storm", a daily devotional published by Open Doors USA PO Box 27001 Santa Ana, CA 92799 US
~ Open Doors USA is a 501(c)(3) compliant organization and a charter member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability. All contributions are tax-deductible.
The Day of Persecution
“I have told you these things so that you won’t abandon your faith. For you will be expelled from the synagogues, and the time is coming when those who kill you will think they are doing a holy service for God. This is because they have never known the Father or me. Yes, I’m telling you these things now, so that when they happen, you will remember my warning." ~ John 16:1-4
I am not trying to be a “negative nellie” here, but there is a deep darkness that is encompassing the face of the world – and it is getting darker by the day. The “darkness” has many names, but the name “anti-Christ” or “anti-God” would certainly cover all of the other names. That dark spirit has been alive and well throughout the world for thousands of years, and there are many parts of the world where Christ followers are being martyred daily for their unwillingness to bow down to it. This same spirit is growing in its ability to consume more-and-more souls of the lost and dying in the “free countries” – and it is only a matter of time (short in my opinion) before full-blown persecution of Christ followers will become the norm in every country.
In addition to being concerned for the “lost and dying”, I am almost equally concerned about the “believers" that are struggling with carrying out even the small, daily commands of the Lord for their lives. As Christ followers – if we are struggling with even the minimal amount of obedience to the Lord in our daily walk, then how will we be able to withstand the persecution that is coming straight at us?
If we are to be strong in the Lord when the day of our persecution comes against us, then we must train ourselves to be obedient in the small things first, and then the Lord will slowly increase our strength in Him to be able to handle whatever the darkness of the world throws against us. In order to be ready and willing in the strength of Christ (through the Holy Spirit), we must continue to build on our obedience to Him with each greater command that He gives to us.
Please begin, and/or continue to grow stronger in Christ by being obedient to the small things that He has been laying on your hearts to do – or to stop doing, and be ready for the day of persecution that is quickly approaching.
God bless!
Send a Secret Message to North Korean Christians
Under the cover of darkness with the volume turned down low, our brothers and sisters in North Korea listen to secret radio messages like these — messages that you send into North Korea to encourage the underground church.
Through a special covert broadcasting operation, the messages you send are translated and relayed to North Korean believers who are hungry for both food and spiritual refreshment.
This month, we’re asking Christians like you to write a one-sentence prayer for your family in North Korea.
Our hope is to send over thousands to be translated and read into homes throughout North Korea.
Click here to share your one-sentence prayer.
The message you write today could be the words of hope a mother needs to continue praying for her family. They may be the lifeline a father has been praying for to assure him he hasn’t been forgotten; or the prompt to share Jesus with their neighbor.
I believe you’ll feel so good, knowing that you took time today to let God use you to breathe life into the hearts and souls of His people.
Recently, we heard from a church leader in North Korea, thanking Open Doors for these messages and offering a prayer of blessing: “We pray that God will anoint all those believers who have sent us a message of encouragement. We pray that the Lord will bless all fellow Christians in the world this year. Thank you for your radio programs.”
We can’t wait to read your prayers!
Best,
Lindy Lowry, editor, Open Doors Weekly
https://www.opendoorsusa.org/pray-for-secret-believers-in-north-korea/
The Poor In Spirit:
“The poor in spirit are blessed, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs." ~ Matthew 5:3
Acknowledging our poverty in spirit is humility. It occurs when a man or woman realizes his or her own utter lack of resources to meet life and finds his or her strength in God. Such an attitude leads one away from attachment to things to attachment to God and heaven. The word for poor here means absolute, abject poverty. We can thus paraphrase the first Beatitude this way:
"Blessed are those who have realised their own utter helplessness and inadequacy and who have put their whole trust in God. Such a person will humbly accept the will of God and thus become a citizen of the kingdom."
Christians especially in countries like Pakistan find this a great comfort, for the majority of them are road sweepers and do menial jobs that others will not do. They are denied better jobs often because they are illiterate. Their children have no access to higher education and so the cycle of poverty continues with little hope of a break. Surely this message is also for them. As they put their complete trust and hope in the Lord, they are assured of a place in the Kingdom of God.
A Chinese Christian woman, a leader in her church, was arrested and put in prison. Led of the Lord, she volunteered to do hard labour, cleaning the filthy prison cells on her knees. This humble work gave her opportunity to sing and share Jesus with the prisoners in each cell. Through her words and actions many prisoners came to know the Lord in a personal relationship.
Response:
Today I acknowledge my helplessness and inadequacy and place my complete trust in God.
Prayer:
Lord, help me express true humility in practical ways today and show that my trust is in You alone.
_________________________
~ "Standing Strong Through the Storm", a devotional published by Open Doors USA, PO BOX 27001, Santa Ana, CA 92799 USA
Open Doors USA is a 501(c)(3) compliant organization and a charter member of the Evangelical Council of Financial Accountability. All contributions are tax-deductible.
https://us13.campaign-archive.com/?u=4095fe8e93e66f79fa4625ef7&id=7284e2bc82
The Beatitudes
"One day as He saw the crowds gathering, Jesus went up on the mountainside and sat down. His disciples gathered around Him, and He began to teach them." ~ Matthew 5:1-2
For the next nine days we’ll look at Jesus’ greatest training program — the Beatitudes. It is important to remember that each of the eight Beatitudes has a two-fold nature: a “knowing” and a “doing” response. We must not only know them, we must also respond to what we learn from them.
Eight times in the Beatitudes it says, “Blessed are….” To understand the Beatitudes, we need to know the meaning of those words. Blessed are refers to Jesus’ evaluation of the kind of person He names in each Beatitude. Jesus was referring to His esteem for that kind of person. His meaning is, “I esteem highly any person who….” He was urging us to have that kind of attitude. His deeper meaning is, “All you who hear Me, choose to become like these kinds of people.”
One noted author calls the Beatitudes, “God’s radical reconstruction of the heart!” We must never consider that Jesus was promising happy conditions, as though He meant, “The one who is poor in spirit will feel good and always be joyful.”
The first four Beatitudes focus internally — that is, they speak to the heart of the one who wants to obey God. They can be viewed as four stepping stones to becoming an obedient servant of the Lord Jesus Christ. They are: humility, mourning, meekness and hunger for righteousness.
The second four Beatitudes focus on the external behavior of the servant who follows Jesus. They are: mercy, purity, peacemaking and persecution.
This teaching has particular relevance for Christians who live under Islam. Restricted, deprived, regarded as second class citizens, laughed at, despised, often living in fear, many times persecuted, the words of encouragement are precious and give fresh hope of another place and time when things will be put right.
While in countries like Malaysia and Indonesia, there are greater freedoms and life is not so difficult, there are restrictions nonetheless. In others like Pakistan, Christians have suffered unjustly and are denied many basic rights. In Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Iran, Sudan, Nigeria and Morocco, the story is similar though the extent of suffering may vary. To all, Jesus gives this important message. We will look at each of the eight Beatitudes individually.
Response:
I will study Jesus’ Beatitudes so that I live the way Jesus lived.
Prayer:
Pray for Christians in Islamic countries that they will receive great encouragement as they seek to know and live the Beatitudes in their regions of restriction.
____________________________
~ "Standing Strong Through the Storm", a devotional published by Open Doors USA, PO BOX 27001, Santa Ana, CA 92799 USA
Open Doors USA is a 501(c)(3) compliant organization and a charter member of the Evangelical Council of Financial Accountability. All contributions are tax-deductible.
https://us13.campaign-archive.com/?u=4095fe8e93e66f79fa4625ef7&id=db3f3725d2
ISIS bombing attacks church in Syria - 11 people injured.
Christians are the most persecuted religious group on the planet,
yet there is barely any media coverage on anti-christian hate crimes.
Share if you support Christians living under persecution!
https://www.christianpost.com/news/isis-bombing-syrian-church-wounds-11-13-others-killed-car-bombing-afrin.html
