Introduction
During the last 10 days of September radical Muslims killed
250 people and injured 350 in
three seemingly 'unrelated' attacks in Kenya, Pakistan and Nigeria. During the
same week, it so 'happened' world leaders attended a Global Counter-Terrorism
Forum – the fourth such high level forum in the last few years. Reflecting on
these horrific events, Raymond Ibrahim, a leading researcher of persecution,
connected the dots in a brilliant article, Nigeria:
Where Jihad and Christian Persecution Run Rampant.
One week after these events the cover story of the Spectator highlighted anti-Christian
persecution. Although this magazine is secular, it declared, “one doesn't need
to be a Christian to see the defence of persecuted Christians as a towering
priority.”
Six months earlier, three seasoned scholars published Persecuted:
The Global Assault on Christians affirming that, indeed, Christians are
the single most persecuted group worldwide. Not only so, the writers
say persecution is happening in Muslim majority nations on a scale that is
“widespread, intense, and, ominously increasing."
What should we do?
First of all, we ought to pray and offer support to our
suffering Christian brothers and sisters. There is, however, another question
that weighs on my mind, “Is God trying to get our attention? Are these
increasing terror attacks a wake up call?” I started glimpsing
this a couple
years ago and subsequent events have confirmed it. Please be patient as I
connect the dots between the 5 passages in the title.
Connecting the dots
If you carefully read each passage you'll see what happens
when God's people fail to obey him (fully). Obviously, in Jonah's case, it
optimistic to say that he obeyed, even partially. At any rate, the main point
is: Each story contains a warning (explicitly or implicitly) that there are
dire consequences if we disobey.
In Numbers 33, Moses warned the Israelites, "But if
you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land, those you allow to remain
will become barbs in your eyes and thorns in your sides."
The dire consequence in Jeremiah chapter one involves
terror. Look at verses 7,17 , "Do not be afraid of them... Do not be
terrified by them or I will terrify you before them."
As for Jonah, the ship in which he stowed away was struck
by a terrible storm. His disobedience brought him deep trouble, but it also
imperilled the sailors who were with him! The storm was so severe that they
were "terrified".
What about Acts 1:8 where Christ commanded us to take the
Good News to the whole world? Does it mention any threat of dire consequence if
his followers disobey? Not exactly, but if we look carefully, we see this
principle is implicit as the story unfolds. For example, speaking of his
responsibility to take the Gospel to the whole world, Paul said, "Woe to
me if I do not preach the Gospel." (1 Corinthians 9:16) We see another
hint of this in Acts 20:26-27, where Paul says, "I am innocent of the
blood of all men for I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of
God." (compare Ezekiel chapter 3)
Furthermore, we gain another glimpse of a painful
consequence in Acts 8:1 where we read, "a great persecution broke out
against the church at Jerusalem." Look at the wider context and you'll see
that up to this point, the church had not taken the Gospel to Judea and Samaria
– they had not fully obeyed the Lord. Interestingly, this
persecution resulted in the Gospel being spread into the very two regions where
Christ commanded them to go! It makes sense, therefore, to see this dire
consequence – at least in part – as a disciplinary or corrective measure.*
Let us conclude with a thought provoking question, “Is the
church, perhaps, experiencing "barbs" and "thorns" like the
Israelites of long ago?” It is easy for us to criticize the Israelites for
failing to fully obey the Lord. But what about ourselves? Will we humbly admit
we've not shared the Good News as we ought, especially to the 1.6 billion
Muslims -- the largest group of unreached people in our world?
This last year I have written several articles dealing (in
one way or other) with terrorism and persecution. Most of them are written with
Muslim readers in mind. They serve as appetizers or door openers to explore the
Good News. And by God's grace, many people are reading them.
If you want to discuss this further or share a similar
experience you may have had I'd love to here from you. You can email me here.
All Bible quotes are taken from the New International
Version.
Endnote: Persecution & Divine Providence
* Isn't it amazing how God is able to work all things out
for the good of his children? (Romans 8:28-29) This is illustrated in Acts 1:8
and 8:1 where God “great persecution” was a vital step in working out his good
purpose, i.e. spreading the Gospel to Judea and Samaria. In modern times, we
can also see a phenomenal spiritual harvest in spite of worsening persecution!
Dr David Garrison, reports in book, A Wind
in the House of Islam, “Today,
in more than 60 separate locations in at least 17 of the 49 countries where
Islam holds sway, new communities of Muslim-background followers of Christ are
emerging ... Each of these movements has seen at least 1,000 baptized believers
and at least 100 new worshipping fellowships, all of whom have come to Christ
over the past two decades. In some countries, the communities have grown to
number tens of thousands of new Muslim-background followers of Christ."
Another article on persecution you may want to look at is
entitled, Persecution:
A Sign of the Times.
IHS
No comments:
Post a Comment