REMEMBER THOSE WHO ARE BOUND

 This morning I want to share with you some thoughts on the persecution of the church. The Lord laid this issue on my heart several years ago.  Since then it has become almost a passion at times.  Another brother also saw this as a very pressing issue. His name was Paul. I want him to now come and introduce my message:

Drama – the Apostle Paul

Let me now state my case as to why such a message is necessary. According to David Barrett, professor of missiometrics at Regent University and a world-renown Christian missions statistician:

·        40 million Christians have been martyred since the time of Christ. 

·        In the same vein, more missionaries have been martyred in the last two decades than in the previous 200 years. 

·        Since 1950 an average of 300,000 believers have died for their faith every year; in the ‘90s that figure declined to about 175,000.

·        Quite simply put, an average of 17 people die for the sake of the Gospel every hour of every day!  That figures out at an average of 408 people every twenty-four hours. 

Let me put this into perspective.  A Boeing 747-100 carries around 400 passengers and crew members.  Let’s say that every day a fully loaded 747-100 were to crash killing everyone aboard. Please consider:

·        What kind of action would be taken to correct this problem? 

·        How many governmental agencies would get involved? 

·        How much time and money would be spent to remedy the situation? 

·        How long would it take before the airliner was barred from the skies? 

Yet, as I said, an average of over 400 people a day die for the cause of Jesus Christ. 

In fact, as hard as it is to believe, according to Professor Barrett again, “One Christian in 200 alive today can expect to be martyred in his or her lifetime."

I will base this morning’s concerns on the following words found in Hebrews 13:3: 

·        The New King James Version, “Remember the prisoners as if chained with them -- those who are mistreated -- since you yourselves are in the body also.”

·        The Message, “Regard prisoners as if you were in prison with them.  Look on victims of abuse as if what happened to them had happened to you.”

Now listen to these additional verses:

·        1 Corinthians 12:26 adds, “If one part (of the Body of Christ) suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.”

·        Colossians 4:18, Paul says, “Remember my chains.” 

What do you think of when you hear the term persecution?

Thus far I have stressed the fact that many many people have suffered martyrdom due to their faith in Jesus. However, persecution involves much more than being put to death. The group “International Christian Concern” defines persecution as specific acts that are targeted against people on account of their religious faith. These acts may include but are not limited to:

1.      the denial of basic internationally accepted norms of human rights,

2.      persistent acts of violence 

3.      repeated incidents of incarceration and/or interrogations,

4.      the use of unusual and inhumane punishment, such as torture, solitary confinement and enslavement,

5.      the inability for the accused to obtain legal representation or a fair public trial,

6.      severe limitations that prevent believers from the right to peacefully assemble or practice their faith either in public or private,

7.      the interference or prohibition by government against Christian institutions, 

8.      unfair laws, policies and practices that either severely impede or endanger the lives of Christians on account of their faith.

Having said that, I want us to take a journey through time and look at some of the periods of persecution. We will begin with the EARLY DAYS OF THE CHURCH

The most famous martyr of them all was non other than Jesus Christ, God’s Son.  He set the standard.  He suffered as no one else had or has suffered. He freely and deliberately offered Himself up on the cross. 

Persecution was something that constantly hung over His head.  He spoke often and openly of His pending death. He also warned His followers, “They have persecuted me, they will persecute you.”

He then noted that “the servant is not greater than his master.” In His Sermon on the Mount Jesus added, “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.  Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”  Matthew 5:10-12

Then too, each of the disciples died a martyr’s death with the exception of John.  He too suffered imprisonment, torture, as well as exile.

·        John the Baptist was beheaded.

·        The deacon Stephen was stoned to death. 

·        And eventually Paul the Apostle was likewise beheaded. Is it any wonder that the brother warned his followers in 2 Timothy 3:12, “Everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” 

Please notice with me the persecution that was brought on by the Roman Emperor Nero during the late first century. It was a capital crime during that particular period to simply be known as a Christian.  Many thousands of Christians were put to death by this evil despot:

·        Some were crucified; 

·        Some were sewn up in skins of wild beasts; then wild dogs were turned loose upon them; the people were torn to pieces; 

·        Women were tied to mad bulls and dragged to death; 

·        “The Christians to the lions” was a popular cry back then. 

One of the most systematic and terrible of all persecutions took place during the reign of the Roman Emperor Diocletian.  It began in 303 and ran until 310 AD.  In March of 303 the Emperor ordered the:

·        Cessation of all meetings of the Christians,

·        The destruction of all church buildings,

·        Imprisonment and/or death of all church officers,

·        Imprisonment of those who continued to testify of Jesus,

·        Destruction of all Bibles by fire,

·        He also ordered all Christians to sacrifice to the pagan gods or face death.

History records that the prisons became so crowded with Christians that there was no longer room for the criminals.  When it seemed to the emperor that he had made an end to the church, he had a coin minted with the following inscription engraved upon it: “The Christian religion is destroyed and the worship of the Roman gods is restored."  The joke was on him!  The truth is that the church simply went underground and continued to grow by leaps and bounds!

I think that people generally put persecution into ancient history.  It happened way back then, so what.  Well, friends, it DID happen way back then.  People like you and me paid the ultimate sacrifice for their faith.

LET’S NOW SKIP TO THE MIDDLE AGES

Fox's Book of Martyrs notes that 32,000 people were murdered because of their faith during this time.

·        Others rotted in prisons;

·        faced exile from home, family and friends, and

·        lost all of their worldly possessions,

One of these martyrs was a fellow by the name of JOHN HUS.  He lived some 100 years before Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation.  He taught at the University of Prague and served as a pastor.

·        Hus believed that the Bible was the Word of God and that it should be available to the laity in the language of the people;  

·        He discarded the Latin mass and taught that church services should be easily understood by all; 

·        He believed and taught that salvation was by grace through faith;  

·        He also introduced congregational singing to the church.

For these practices and doctrines he was branded as a heretic and was burned at the stake in the year 1415.   I want you to listen to his defense just prior to his death: VIDEO clip-- JOHN HUS

It was along this same time that the reformer John Calvin wrote, "No man is fit to preach the gospel, save only he who is armed to suffer."

THIS THEN BRINGS ME TO OUR DAY AND TIME

I want to share with you a portion of a report entitled "The Persecuted Church" found in Moody Monthly magazine, “In the last few months, Amnesty International has documented human rights abuses against religious leaders, believers and activists in almost every region of the world....  There are more Christians being killed today that there were 1,000 or 2,000 years ago.  The 20th century is undoubtedly the BLOODIEST CENTURY that Christianity has ever experienced in terms of total martyrs."

Let me very briefly share with you the stories of the martyrdom of TWO of my heroes:

Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a young Lutheran pastor and scholar of Germany.  Although he was German, he strongly opposed the reign of Hitler leading up to and including the time of the Second World War.  He was eventually placed in prison in April of 1943.  He was executed on April 9, 1945 at the age of 39.  He was hung in his cell, not by a rope, but rather by a piece of piano wire. 

            Bonhoeffer challenged Christians to reject a complacent undisciplined faith and life. One of this great man's most famous sayings can be found in his excellent book, The Cost of Discipleship.  He noted, "When Christ calls a man, He bids him come and die."  He then goes on to write about the cost of grace.  He said, "It is costly because it costs a man his life...."

            Bonhoeffer also wrote: “Jesus makes it clear beyond all doubt that the ‘must’ of suffering applies to his disciples no less than to Himself.  Just as Christ is Christ only in virtue of His suffering and rejection, so the disciple is a disciple only in so far as he shares His Lord’s suffering and rejection and crucifixion.”  Bonhoeffer’s parting words were: “This is the end -- for me, the beginning of life.”

A generation ago, Jim Elliot went from Wheaton College near Chicago to become a missionary to the Auca Indians in Ecuador.  Jim was killed, along with four other young missionaries, by the Acuas back in January of 1956. Two statements of Elliot’s particularly stand out.  One is a prayer: "Father, take my life, yes, my blood and consume it with your everlasting fire.  I will not save it for it is not mine to save.  Have it, Lord, have it all.  Pour out my life as an offering for the world.  Blood is only valued as it flows before your altar."

            He is also known for having said, "He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose."

Moving on, I want to share with you two short paragraphs from the April 29, 1996 issue of Christianity Today.  “Most American Christians do not lead typical Christian lives. The typical Christian lives in a developing country, speaks a non European language, and exists under the constant threat of persecution--of murder, imprisonment, torture, or rape.  The persecutor’s sword dangles by a hair over Christians in the still-communist countries and in lands where the rising tide of Islamism overwhelms political efforts at fairness, tolerance, and due process.”

I WANT US TO NOW LOOK AT SOME SPECIFIC AREAS OF PERSECUTION TODAY.

Video-- Listen with me to a short video on persecution today. The video is by The Voice of the Martyrs.

North Korea: One of the most violent threats to the church today comes from the godless communist country of Korea. The leaders there have worked hard at removing all traces of the church from the land.  Listen to two Korean Christians describe one account of persecution there from 1972.  The interview took place prior to President Kim Sung’s death in July of 1994. 

VIDEO CLIP-- KOREA

LOOK WITH ME AT IRAN.  More Muslims have become Christians in Iran since 1980 than in the previous 1,000 years combined. The price for such a victory has been great. 

Haike Hovsepian Mehr is the former General Superintendent of the Assemblies of God in Iran. He was martyred in January, 1994.

Noting extreme persecution, Brother Haike wrote: "If we die or go to jail for our faith, we want the Christian world to know what is happening. We have nothing to lose. We have kept silent all these years. Nothing has changed. Please don't worry about me. I am quite ready for anything."

Less than 48 hours later Brother Haike disappeared on the way to the airport to meet a guest.  Brother Haike's murder is only one of many incidents directed against Christians in Iran.

·        Pastor Hossein Soodmand was hanged on December 3, 1990.

·        Christians have been harassed by threats and interrogation, beaten with thick wires, or hanged upside down for many hours. Pastors have been told not to allow Muslims or converts from Islam to attend their churches, but these brave men of God have refused to deny anyone access to the gospel.

This past January 23, an Australian missionary and his two sons were murdered in India in the eastern state of Orissa.  Graham Staines, 58, and his sons, Philip, 10, and Timothy, 8, were burned to death when the vehicle in which they were sleeping was doused with gasoline and set ablaze, allegedly by dozens of Hindu fundamentalists. The vehicle was parked outside a small, makeshift church about 1000 kilometers southeast of New Delhi.

On January 25, an estimated 10,000 people attended the funeral of Staines and his children. Staines had been working with leprosy patients in India for 34 years and was the secretary of the Evangelical Missionary Society.

On and on the stories could go but I feel as if you have gotten the idea -- the world is a dangerous place to be a CHRISTIAN.  Simply put, Christians are the most persecuted religious group in the world today, with the greatest number of victims," asserts Nina Shea, director of Freedom House's Puebla Program on Religious Freedom.

Let’s noW move to America.

On April 20, 1999, Cassie Bernall, a 17-year-old junior at Columbine High in Littleton, Colorado, was a typical teenager having a typical day. That was before two fellow students opened fire killing Cassie and fourteen other people. Cassie was murdered, in part, due to her faith in Jesus.

As her classmate Mickie Cain told Larry King on CNN, "She completely stood up for God. When the killers asked her if there was anyone who had faith in Christ, she spoke up and they shot her for it."

Cassie's martyrdom was even more remarkable when you consider that just a few years ago she had dabbled in the occult, including witchcraft. She had embraced the same darkness that drove her killers to such despicable acts. But two years before her death, Cassie dedicated her life to Christ, and turned her life around. Her friend, Craig Moon, called her a "light for Christ."

The Boston Globe carried a poem which had been written by Cassie just two days prior to her death. It read:

"Now I have given up on everything else

I have found it to be the only way

To really know Christ and to experience

The mighty power that brought

Him back to life again, and to find

Out what it means to suffer and to

Die with him. So, whatever it takes

I will be one who lives in the fresh

Newness of life of those who are

Alive from the dead.

Then too, there was rachel scott.

Let me read to you from the Scott family website: “For just one moment imagine yourself in the line of fire possibly facing the barrel of a gun. The feelings of fear are unimaginable and indescribable; the only way for you to survive is by denying Christ.

Ask yourself one question, would you do it? Would you deny the Christ who died for you, who saved you from your sins?

On April 20th, 1999, Rachel Joy Scott was faced with this question. This question meant life or death. While two killers stood before her and asked her. "Do you believe in God?" She bravely answered "Yes, I believe!"

Rachel Joy Scott, as you know likewise died a martyr’s death.

WHAT IS THE MESSAGE IN ALL OF THIS FOR US TODAY?

1.         it is my hope that each one of us better Understand the price that has been and yet is being paid around the world for this precious faith that we hopefully cherish.  Our faith may be free but it is not cheap.  It has cost millions of people everything!

Listen to this prayer from Betty Stam, a former missionary to China.  She cried: "Lord, I give up my own purposes and plans, all my own desires, hopes, ambitions and accept Thy will for my life.  I give myself, my life, my all, utterly to Thee, to be Thine forever.  I hand over to Thy keeping all of my friendships.  All the people whom I love are to take second place in my heart.  Fill me now and seal me with Thy Spirit.  Work out Thy whole will in my life, at any cost, now and forever.  To me to live is Christ.  Amen."  Miss Stam was martyred December 4, 1934.

2.         I also want us to appreciate the fact that we have a faith that is worth dying for. 

Charisma magazine had as its cover story a while back, "How Can We Reach Generation X?"  It was a piece about reaching the teens of today.  The article said in part: “The teens who fill our churches and youth groups today have been fed a brand of Christianity that is much like the world: It offers little in the way of challenge or purpose.  The Christianity that we offer the younger generation lacks the substance that dares them to sink their teeth into it and never let go.  The fact is: ‘Until we find a cause worth dying for, we're not really living.’" 

The bottom line is, today’s youth want to have a faith that is really worth a sacrifice!  This message is my attempt to show them that we have such a faith.

3.            Then, I also want us to pray for our brothers and sisters who are undergoing such terrible persecution.

Friends, these martyrs from around the world are a part of us.  The Bible declares that we are all members together of the body of Jesus Christ! "We have not understood what the Bible teaches about the body of Christ," asserts Brother Andrew, founder of Open Doors, an organization supporting persecuted Christians. "If one member suffers, the whole body suffers."

4.         And finally, I want this message to be a wake up call to the church.  Many saints are apathetic today.  My cry is, “wake up saints!”  We live in perilous times!  Let us watch and pray!

The following lines are inscribed on a plaque outside one of the concentration camps in Germany.  They were written by a Martin Niemuller: “In Germany, they first came for the Communists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist; then they came for the Jews, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew.  Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Trade Unionist.  Then they came for the Catholics, and I didn't speak up because I was a Protestant.  Then they came for me and by that time no one was left to speak up." Niemuller was a German pastor as well as a victim of such a Nazi concentration camp.

As you know, my wife and I recently returned from a trip to Israel. While there we visited the Holocaust Museum. In the lobby of one of the main areas in a plaque that reads: “Son of man, keep not silent. Forget not deeds of tyranny, cry out at the disaster of a people. Recount it unto your children, and they onto theirs. From generation unto generation, that hordes swept in, ran wild and savage, and there was no deliverance, valiance and revolt. How the mighty are fallen. The great in spirit and stout of heart, walking to their death with a halo of eternity.”

The Jews never intend for another holocaust to take place. Why can’t we be just as adamant that the present day holocaust against our brothers and sisters in Christ will both come to an end and will likewise not be repeated?

Proverbs 24:11-12 says in The Living Bible, “Rescue those who are unjustly sentenced to death; don't stand back and let them die. Don't try to disclaim responsibility by saying you didn't know about it. For God, who knows all hearts, knows yours, and he knows you knew!”

I WANT US TO NOW TAKE A BRIEF LOOK INTO THE FUTURE 

There is yet one additional time of persecution that is coming on the church. It will take place during the Great Tribulation.  Several verses in Revelation deal with this time.  Notice with me only Revelation 20:4.  “I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony for Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshipped the beast or his image and had not received his mark on their foreheads or their hands.”

Think about that passage as you listen to and watch this final video clip:

VIDEO -- “ALLEGIANCE”