Pastor’s Perspective

 

   

Persecution

           Last Sunday I preached part one of a double sermon on the last Beatitude (see Matthew 5:10-12). Many of our Christian sisters and brothers around the world are living for Christ at risk of their very lives. Below is part of an email letter I received from The Voice of the Martyrs.

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Help Christians Receiving Death Letters, Bullets

Dear Friend of the Persecuted Church:

What would you do if you received a letter with these words? What if the letter also included a real bullet? Would you tell your children? Would you leave your home? Would you stay and face the consequences?

Letters like this are being sent to Christians living in a Muslim nation. (For security reasons we cannot name which nation.) These death letters to Christians are sometimes accompanied by real bullets. The message is chilling: convert to Islam, leave or die.

Millions of Christians have already fled hostile Muslim nations for safety in neighboring countries or the West. Others have fled their homes in major cities for refuge in surrounding villages. But some have chosen to stay, asking God for his protection.

The challenges Christians face in Muslim nations are mounting. In Iran, police raid the dorm rooms of Christian university students. In Saudi Arabia, police kick in the doors of private homes where Christians meet and arrest all those present. In Indonesia, churches are closed by the government if Muslim neighbors complain.

VOM is standing with Christians living in Muslim nations who are persecuted for their faith. Recently, we delivered Action Packs to Christians forced out of their homes and now living in a small rural village in the Middle East. We have also provided Bibles and Christian materials to displaced Christians living in other Muslim nations.

Please use the enclosed "bullet letter" as a tangible reminder of the persecution Christians in Muslim nations often face. Read it to your family during your devotion time, or place it on your refrigerator as a reminder to pray for Christians in the Muslim World.

Thank you for partnering with us as we support Christians whose passion for Christ is so great they would rather take a bullet than deny him.

For those in bonds,

Tom White, Executive Director

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If you would like to learn more or make a donation visit their website at www.persecution.com. If you don't do computers and are interested, let me know.

Hebrews 13:3 (NIV) Remember those in prison as if you were their fellow prisoners, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering.

I hope you will indeed pray for the persecuted Christians. Pray for them to be strong, faithful and encouraged. Pray for their churches, Pastors, and their families. Pray for their enemies that the love of Christ will work into their hearts.