Persecution Blog

VOM Radio: Persecution in Mexico

"Mike" and "Rose" serve the Lord in Mexico, where they planted a secret church in a tribal village hostile to evangelical work. They'd been warned that gospel work in that village was dangerous, but God’s call was clear. Several villagers came to Christ, and they began a secret Bible study.

But the Good News didn't stay secret for long, and when village leaders learned of the secret Christian meetings Mike and Rose were evicted from their home and kicked out of the village. More than four years of laying foundations and planting seeds…seemingly eliminated in eight days.

“God!” they asked. “Why did You allow this to happen? Where was Your hand when we needed You?”

But God was faithful! He even used opposition and hostility to bring more villagers to Christ.  Listen in as Mike and Rose share how God moved through that difficult time to encourage them and empower local Christians stand strong in their young faith, and draw others into the Kingdom.

 

You can also access every episode of VOM Radio as a podcast.

Johann Christiaan Beker’s Theology of Suffering

J. Christiaan Beker’s suffering and persecution came at the hands of German occupation forces of the Netherlands in World War II. Beker later immigrated to the United States to become a professor of New Testament at Princeton Theological Seminary. He died in 1999. While not specifically suffering for Christ’s sake, he suffered at the hands of those who were idolatrous, adhering to the false religion of Naziism. This experience led him to investigate the meaning of suffering, not only because of the emotional and psychological damage done to him but also theologically. The “mystery of suffering” must somehow be reconciled with the Christian belief in “the goodness of the good creation.”

While Beker’s theology is not a full-fledged theology of suffering, he touches on some themes that are relevant to our topic. A summary statement of his theology might be “facing the reality of suffering but always with apocalyptic hope.” Beker’s passion is to reconcile seemingly contradictory or paradoxical ideas in the Bible related to suffering and God. How do you reconcile “the mystery of suffering” with the goodness of creation? Or, how do you reconcile invisible hope with concrete reality?

He begins with some foundational themes that help guide his thinking and set the parameters for his thought. The first is the meaning of apocalypse. It does not mean, as it the popular usage of the term, the doom of total destruction and the annihilation of mankind and total destruction of the universe; but is a time of the reversal of evil and the transformation of humanity and creation where God is finally and fully revealed.

The second theme has to do with the ‘normative pattern’ for Christians, which should be derived from the gospel. The present suffering of the church and the world is set in the context of hope in the triumph of God.

The third theme is the dogma of retribution which constitutes the basic moral order of the universe. If you do good, you will be blessed; if you do evil you will be punished. It is the substance of justice. But, it is not the last word. God has introduced mercy for those who do evil. What is not taken into account, says Beker, is the fact that the righteous could and would suffer. In fact, it would become a way in which God would seek to redeem the world. Sufferings and tribulations are really penultimate realities. They will not be permanent, not the ultimate, defining reality. Suffering, Beker believes, comes at the hands of human injustice which has its ultimate source in idolatry. “Idolatry,” he says, “is the source of absolute ideologies, human illusions, and pretensions” (61). He suffered at the hands of idolaters.

Beker takes up the question of theodicy, or the defense of a good God in the face of the reality of evil. For Beker, it is the question of tragic suffering that afflicts the innocent for no apparent reason that is an issue for him. Actually, God hates suffering, he says, and it is alien to his coming kingdom. The implication is that he allows it now for his own providential reasons.

So, whether we are facing persecution or trying to live a Christian life in a world hostile to Christian values, Beker has some substantive thoughts for us to consider and incorporate into our lives.

Roy Stults, PhD, is the Online Workshop Coordinator and Educational Services Coordinator for The Voice of the Martyrs. He graduated from Olivet Nazarene University (BA and MA), Nazarene Theological Seminary (M.Div.), Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (Doctor of Missiology), and The University of Manchester (England) with a PhD (theology). A Vietnam veteran, Dr. Stults served as a missionary for 19 years and pastored U.S. churches for eight years. Prior to joining VOM, he was a Professor of Religion at Oklahoma Wesleyan University.

Barber Shop Taboos

An unspoken rule of many barbershops and hair salons is that two topics are never to be discussed: religion and politics.

Why do we dodge these topics?

Because they create conflict, and many of us have been taught from an early age to avoid conflict. We are taught to get along, to compromise and to be careful not to bring up topics that may offend others.

When I think about brothers and sisters that I have been honored to meet around the world, I remember people who are unafraid to create conflict for the cause of Christ. 

They are not looking for a fight, but they are looking to faithfully follow Jesus no matter how much it costs.

As we all know, Jesus made some very exclusive claims. If we believe what Jesus said, and if we tell others the way that He told us to…

We will create conflict. 

And, we will need boldness. 

And it is a type of boldness that only God can provide—a supernatural boldness!

God’s Word is clear. If we faithfully represent Christ we will generate conflict. We will “suffer” for His name’s sake. But scripture also teaches that Jesus will be with us and that He will ultimately be glorified through our suffering.

In some of the earliest stories about Jesus’ followers, we witness this type of boldness. In Acts chapter four we find two of the earliest leaders of the Church, Peter and John, making a bold stand for Jesus.

Have you ever found yourself in a spot when you knew that if you said something, or did something, you were guaranteed to create conflict? That is exactly where Peter and John found themselves in Acts chapter four.

Instead of quietly slipping away, rather than carefully avoiding the topic, John and Peter seized the opportunity to proclaim the hope that Jesus offers to all who seek Him.

They set the pace for hundreds of thousands of Christians after them who would do the same. And many are still boldly proclaiming today in the most difficult spiritual frontiers. As you get acquainted with these brothers and sisters, God will lead you to pray with them and to help serve them.

You can be an international missions worker without ever leaving your knees. I remember speaking with a strong leader from Vietnam. He said, “When you pray in America, you are working in Vietnam.”

Are we willing to boldly stand for Christ wherever He places us? Pray today that you will have the opportunity to follow the example of Peter and John, and so many others around the world, and to share God’s good news with someone in need. And remember those around the world who are bravely willing to discuss the topics that many of us were taught to avoid.

Dr. Jason Peters serves as Associate Vice President of Connection for The Voice of the Martyrs and travels frequently to meet with our persecuted sisters and brothers. He has ministered in 40 countries, as diverse as Iraq, Cuba, Nepal, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Burma, Colombia, Sri Lanka, Kyrgyzstan, Indonesia and Nigeria. Jason ministered as a military chaplain for more than 18 years, with assignments at the Pentagon, the US Air Force Academy and as a faculty member of the Air Force Chaplain Corps College, where he directed Crisis and Trauma training. Jason and his wife Kimberly lived overseas for several years, where two of their five children were born.

VOM Radio: Church Planting In Iran

Padina was ready to kill herself on live TV to earn Allah’s favor and prove the God of the Christians was powerless. Instead, she met Jesus Christ and saw Him heal her mother from sickness. She became passionate to introduce her countrymen to the Savior.

Today she leads a house church network inside Iran, including training church leaders to be ready to face arrest, harassment and persecution. She’ll tell us how they prepare to face persecution, and describe the ways that VOM is helping and strengthening the church in Iran today. Finally, we’ll talk about specific ways to pray for the church in Iran.

You can read more of Padina’s story in the book Iran: Desperate for God or watch a video about how she came to Christ on VOM’s YouTube channel. You can also listen to every episode of VOM Radio as a podcast.

Three Thoughts on Refugees Coming To America

Recently a college friend asked my opinion about Syrian refugees and whether or not the US should allow them in. In recent weeks—especially since the Paris attacks—there has been much ado about Syrian refugees coming in, and how they are being screened, and the security concerns raised by allowing thousands of people from the war-torn Middle East into our nation. “What is the right thing for us as Christians to do?” my friend asked, crediting me with a lot more expertise than I actually possess.

I am not running for President and I’m glad that I don’t have to lay out a plan that tries to answer every question and every security concern. But as I have watched the news reports, read the angry Facebook posts and thought about what the right response is, I’ve been reminded of three things:

The first thing I thought of was the story in Matthew 25 about who Jesus welcomes into eternity with Him and who he turns away. To those He invites into paradise He says:

“Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’” (Mat. 25:34-36)

A few verses later, He explains to those He is turning away why they will not be welcomed into His presence, including that “I was a stranger and you did not take Me in” (v. 43).

As we think about refugees, this story seems to make imminently clear which response Jesus will honor.

The second thing I thought of was the story of Richard Wurmbrand, as he tells it in his best-selling book, Tortured For Christ. Richard had a great heart, after he committed his life to Christ, to reach Russians with the gospel message that had transformed him. “For me,” he wrote, “to preach the Gospel to Russians is heaven on earth.”

When a million Russian soldiers were sent in by their communist masters to occupy Wurmbrand’s native Romania, he didn’t protest the illegality or hunker down to ensure the safety of his family and church. Instead, Wurmbrand saw these one million armed men as a divine answer to his prayer! He loved to minister to Russians and had asked God to open the door for him to minister to more, and now ONE MILLION RUSSIANS were inside his country, within easy reach! Praise the Lord for this miracle!

I wonder how many Christians have asked God to open doors for them to minister to Muslims and share with them the LOVE of Jehovah God (something that is not offered by Allah of the Quran)? Is it possible refugees fleeing the chaos of their nation, and having seen up-close the darkness of Islam, might be God’s miraculous answer to some of those prayers?

The third thing I thought of was a message I heard from Joel Rosenberg, author and astute Christian thinker, one of the people I trust when it comes to Middle Eastern affairs. Earlier this year I had the privilege of hearing Rosenberg speak at the National Religious Broadcasters conference.

Rosenberg made a statement that wasn’t about refugees; he was talking about the Islamic State. “We need to defeat [ISIS] as enemies as a government,” Rosenberg said. “And we need to love them as enemies as a church.”

I was reminded of Rosenberg’s statement when thinking about refugees because I believe his statement shows that there are different responses from a government perspective than from a church or Christian perspective. Our government leaders take an oath “to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States of America.” They have a responsibility to that oath, and in thinking about refugees they must think about the safety of American citizens and the need to carefully screen those whom America welcomes within her borders.

As followers of Christ we are loyal to our nation and pray for our leaders. We also hear Christ’s call for us to love our “enemies” and we know that our ultimate citizenship is not in the United States, but in a heavenly country (Heb. 11:16).

I’m not running for President. I don’t have any wish for a radical Islamic terrorist to move in next door to me. But I do want to honor Christ. I do want to be among those He invites into eternity with Him.

There are “strangers” coming out of the Middle East. They are fleeing chaos and war and terror. Some are fleeing persecution. Most see no hope for themselves in their country, or even the region.

God is giving us an opportunity, as Christians in America. An opportunity to follow Jesus’s clear instructions. An opportunity to reach Muslims with the gospel message.

I don’t see how, as Christ followers, we can close our ears to the refugees’ cry and our doors to their knock.

Todd Nettleton has served with The Voice of the Martyrs for 17 years. He’s travelled to more than 20 restricted and hostile nations and interviewed hundreds of believers who’ve faced persecution for their Christian witness. As VOM’s principle media spokesperson, Todd has done more than 2,000 interviews with media outlets ranging from Moody Radio to the BBC and Los Angeles Times. He is the principle author of Restricted Nations: North Korea and was part of the writing team for four other VOM books. In 2014 VOM launched a weekly, half-hour radio show with Todd as the host.

VOM Featured on Moody Radio

VOM's Todd Nettleton was a guest on "In the Market With Janet Parshall," aired nationally yesterday on the Moody Radio Network.

In the 30-minute interview, Nettleton shared updates about Christians in Syria, Turkey, Bangladesh, Iran and other nations. Parshall and Nettleton also discussed the issue of refugees from the Middle East coming to the United States.

Please click here to listen to the interview. (A new window will open, Todd's interview begins at about the 29:00 mark.)

Are You N?

Radical Muslims are using the Arabic letter “n” for nasara (Nazarene) to mark the homes of Christians in Iraq, Syria and other nations. Christians in America are choosing the same symbol to show our solidarity with bold believers in the Middle East, making the commitment, “I will not let them suffer in silence. I will not let them serve alone.”

In March VOM will offer a book, published by David C. Cook, sharing challenging testimonies of some of these believers and the Biblical truths which empower their faithfulness. Get an early preview through our friends at YouVersion by signing up for the I Am N reading plan. 

T-shirts and other ways to show your commitment are also available. 

No Guarantees for Refugees

Are you tired of stories about Syrian refugees? It’s been all over the news since Paris was attacked and around 130 people were killed in three separately coordinated attacks.

Our Christian brothers and sisters in places like Iraq and Syria face extraordinary dangers every day. There are strongly-worded articles both for and against allowing refugees to resettle in the United States. On one side, we argue for compassion and love. On the other, we argue for our safety.

So what should we do? As a starting point, it is helpful to be aware as one can about what Christians in the Middle East and other parts of the world face. Just as the attacks by ISIS terrified people in Paris, so too are people facing Islamic extremists around the world. No one is really safe, and it is God who measures out our days.

Additionally, keep in mind that we can still help Muslims, Yezidis and other refugees seeking safety (here or in other countries). If you are compelled to offer immediate assistance, there are a number of things that you can do to reach out to Christians facing Islamic extremists and to share the love of Christ with those who are suffering. VOM is sending Action Packs as well as Outreach Packs to places where Iraqi and Syrian refugees have many needs.  For Christians, it is to know that they are not forgotten. For Muslims, it is to know that God really does love them.

“Ann Kay” is a writer for VOM. She learned about VOM five years ago when she read Tortured for Christ and began receiving the newsletter. She is passionate about reaching the world for Christ and sharing stories of the persecuted church.

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