serving the persecuted
DESCRIPTION
International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted church is a call for the Body of Christ to set aside a Sunday in November to pray for persecuted brothers and sisters in Christ. The day is usually the second Sunday in November.TRANSCRIPT
REMEMBER the PERSECUTED
By Dr. Peter Hammond
REMEMBER the PERSECUTED
By Dr. Peter Hammond
“Remember the prisoners as if chained with them – those who are mistreated – since you yourselves are
in the Body also.” Hebrews 13:3
Persecution Worldwide
Over 400 million Christians live under 66 governments which restrict religious freedom and persecute believers. Every year an average of
200,000 Christians are killed for their Faith.
In the Book of Revelation, the
Apostle John was given a glimpse into
Heaven.
He sees the martyrs, and he
hears their prayer.
What are the martyrs who have
died for Christ praying?
The Martyr’s Prayer
“When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the Word of God and for the testimony
which they held.
And they cried with a loud voice, saying, ‘how long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge
our blood on those who dwell on the earth?’
Then a white robe was given to each of them; and it was said to them they should rest a little while longer, until both the number of their
fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed as they were, was completed.” Revelations 6:9-11
Praying for Justice
Here we obtain a glimpse into Heaven. Those who had been faithful to God’s Word, and had been slain for the testimony that they had
maintained, are in the very presence of God and they are praying:
“How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You
judge and avenge our
blood on those who dwell on the earth?”
Throughout the world I have come across many people who are praying for peace. However it is notable that the martyrs
in Heaven are praying for justice.
And how does the Lord respond to these prayers? Does He rebuke them? No! Each of them is given a white robe
signifying their right standing with Almighty God.
They are told to be patient for a little while. When the full number of their fellow servants and brethren have died for
Christ, their prayer for justice will be answered.
The Wrath of the Lamb
The rest of Revelation 6 illustrates that Judgment: “And the kings of earth, the great men, the rich men,
the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man,
hid themselves in the caves and the rocks of the mountains, and said to the mountains and rocks, fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the
Wrath of the Lamb! For the Day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?” Revelation 6:15-17
If the World Hates You
The Lord Jesus warned us:
“If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you.
If you were of the world, the world would love its own.
Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose
you out of the world, therefore the world
hates you. Remember the Word that I said to you, ‘the servant is not
greater than his master.’
If they persecuted Me, they will also
persecute you.”
John 15:18-20
Indeed, all of the
Apostles suffered severe
persecution for Christ:
The Testimony of the Apostles
Peter was crucified upside down in Rome after much outreach.
James the Elder was
beheaded by Herod in
Palestine after fearless
preaching.
John, after a life of evangelism, was boiled in oil and banished in
exile to Patmos.
Andrew was crucified in Greece while spreading the Gospel there.
Philip died as a martyr
in Asia Minor after preaching the Gospel
to the Gauls.
Nathaniel preached the Gospel in India and Armenia before being flayed alive and beheaded.
Thomas established churches throughout Babylonia and India before being axed to
death.
Matthew was burned to death while preaching
the Gospel in Ethiopia.
Jude preached the Gospel throughout
Syria and Persia where he was
finally martyred.
James the younger was
crucified while
evangelising in Egypt.
Simon the Zealot preached the Word of God throughout Syria and Mesopotamia and was
sawn in half in Persia.
Matthias was crucified on a missionary outreach in the
Crimea (in what became the Ukraine).
MARK was martyred in Alexandria, Egypt
The Sufferings of Paul
The Apostle Paul testified: “In labours more abundant, in s t r i p e s a b o v e measure, in prisons more frequently, in deaths often. From the Jews five
times I r e c e i v e d f o r t y stripes minus one.
Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was stoned; three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been in the deep; in journeys often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness,
in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and
thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness – beside the other things which come upon me daily: my deep concern for
all the churches.” 2 Corinthians 11:23-28
The Suffering is Temporary
The Apostle Paul wrote: “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the
glory which shall be revealed in us.” Romans 8:18. The suffering is temporary – the glory is eternal.
Following in His Steps
The Apostle Peter wrote: “For what credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God. For to this you were called, because Christ also
suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps.” 1 Peter 2:20-21
Tested by Fire
“In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the
genuineness of your Faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found
to praise, honour and glory at the Revelation of Jesus Christ.” 1 Peter 1:6-7
Will Suffer Persecution
“Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.” 2 Timothy 3:12
Scripture does not say some, nor does it say many, nor even most.
“All who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.”
Faithful Under Fire
Yet, surely, if we are seeking to be faithful to our Lord Jesus, we will suffer some persecution for it? By God’s grace, perhaps, not the violent
and vicious persecution which Christians in communist and Muslim lands have suffered.
However, if we remain faithful to the Lord, there will be times when we will be misunderstood, slandered, discriminated against, threatened and
abused.
Whether from family or friends, neighbours or co-workers, whether at school or at the work place, those who maintain a consistent testimony
for the Lord are bound to suffer some abuse.
Watch and Pray When the Lord warned his
disciples of coming persecution (Matthew
16:21-16; 26:31-35), they responded with disbelief.
Because they did not believe Christ’s warning, they did not “watch and
pray.”
As a result, they denied the Lord and ran away
(Matthew 26:40-46; 56; 60-75).
The Apostle Paul strengthened the disciples and encouraged them to
remain true to the Faith by teaching: “We must through many tribulations enter the Kingdom of God.” Acts 14:22
Rooted in the Word
Jesus taught that many believers would forsake Him (Matthew 24:9-10) when trouble or persecution comes because of their superficial
commitment. Those with no roots in God’s Word would fall away quickly (Matthew 13:21).
In response to the clear warnings of these Scriptures, and in the light of the increasing hostility towards Christianity in so many circles, it would
be wise for every Christian to study what the Word of God has to say about persecution.
Brother Andrew writes of a mission behind the Iron Curtain to Hungary where a pastor asked him if there
were any pastors in prison in Holland. Brother Andrew replied that, -no, he was not aware of any
pastors who were in prison in Holland.
“What then do your churches do with 2 Timothy
3:12?”
Brother Andrew reported that he had to admit that their churches did nothing with this
verse.
Victorious Faith
“And they overcame him by the Blood of the Lamb and by the Word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.”
Revelation 12:11
Christians can overcome satan by the Blood of
Christ’s atonement and by the Word of God. Not only by the Word known and
memorised in our hearts and minds, but by
our living testimony,
applying the Word of God to
every area of life.
Our Lord Jesus Christ taught that we should not be afraid of those who can only kill the body and after that
can do no more. The Lord told us whom we should fear. We must fear God, who after
the killing of the body has power to throw both body and soul
into hell, forever. (Luke 12:4-5)
Courage
And it is this kind of courage that we see in the Apostles in the Book of Acts. When Peter and John were dragged before the Sanhedrin they courageously responded: “Judge for yourselves whether it is right in
God’s sight to obey you rather than God. For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.” Acts 4:19-20.
In response to the threats of the Sanhedrin, Peter and John gathered with the other disciples
and prayed for the boldness to continue to
proclaim God’s Word “Now Lord, look on their
threats, and grant to your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your Word…”
Acts 4:29
And the Scripture records that “when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled
with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the Word of God with boldness.” Acts 4:31
To Obey God or Man? Then we read that the High
Priest rose up with great indignation and arrested the apostles, casting them into prison. “Did we not strictly
command you not to teach in this Name? And look, you have filled Jerusalem with
your doctrine, and intend to bring this Man’s blood on
us!” But Peter and the other
apostles answered: “We ought to obey God rather than men.”
Acts 5:28-29
Suffering Shame for His Name The Sanhedrin then had the
apostles flogged and commanded them not to
speak in the Name of Jesus. We read that the Apostles
left the council “rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame
for His Name. And daily in the temple, and in every house, they did not cease
teaching and preaching Jesus as the
Christ.” Acts 5:41-42
The Steadfastness of Stephen
We then read of the martyrdom of Stephen who is described as “full of Faith and power” and who did great wonders and signs
among the people (Acts 6:8).
The people were stirred up against Stephen and false witnesses were produced. Stephen’s courageous stand
before the Sanhedrin is recorded in Acts 7: “You stiff necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist the
Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you. Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute?
And they killed those who foretold the coming of the just One, of whom
you now have become the
betrayers and the murderers, who
have received the Law by the
direction of angels and have not kept
it.” Acts 7:51-53
Scattered by Persecution
We read that “a great persecution arose against the Church which was at Jerusalem; and they all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria…those who were scattered went everywhere preaching
the Word.” Acts 8:1-4
The Martyrdom of James
In order to please the people, King
Herod had James, the brother of
John, beheaded.
He then ordered the Apostle Peter to be arrested.
However, God opened prison
doors and set the captive free - in
answer to prayer.
And God judged Herod. “An angel of the Lord struck him, because he did not give
glory to God. And he was eaten by worms and died. But
the Word of God grew and multiplied.”
Acts 12:23-24
Power Amidst Persecution
Throughout the Book of Acts we see peace and power amidst persecution. Paul and Barnabas boldly proclaimed the Gospel and
responded to persecution with joy.
“But the Jews stirred up the devout and
prominent women and the chief men of the city, raised
up persecution against Paul and
Barnabas and expelled them
from their region.
But they shook off the dust from their feet against them, and came to Iconium. And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy
Spirit.” Acts 13:50-52
Singing in the Cells
In Acts 16 we read of Paul and Silas seized
and dragged before the authorities,
“Then the multitude rose up together against
them; and the magistrates tore off
their clothes and commanded them to be beaten with
rods.
And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they threw them into
prison, commanding the jailor to keep
them securely…he put them into the inner prison and
fastened their feet in the stocks.
But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing Hymns to God and the prisoners were listening to them.” Acts 16:22-25
Triumph Amidst Tribulation
Stripped and beaten, flogged and imprisoned, chained in the
prison cells, Paul and Silas
determined to praise God amidst their persecution.
“Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so
that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were
loosed.” Acts 16:26.
By God’s grace Paul and Silas were able to see their captor converted and his entire family brought to Salvation.
Refusing to Worship Caesar
Foxes Book of Martyrs records
many testimonies of courageous
Christians who suffered for the
Faith.
It is important to note that Christians were not persecuted in the Roman Empire for worshipping Jesus. The Romans were polytheists.
They had an entire pantheon of gods.
If the early Christians had registered their religion with the state and if they had burnt incense before an image of Caesar,
they would have been left alone.
However, by refusing to participate in Emperor worship and declare “Caesar is lord” Christians came under suspicion and violent
persecution. They were not persecuted because they worshipped Christ, but because they refused to revere Caesar.
Christian Courage
It is extraordinary to read these testimonies in Foxes Book of
Martyrs of dynamic believers
responding to persecution
with joy.
Ignatius of Antioch
Ignatius of Antioch, when sentenced to death by the Emperor Trajan
responded: “I thank Thee O Lord, that they has vouchsafed thus to honour me. I am God’s grain, to be ground between the
teeth of wild beasts, so that I may become a holy loaf for the Lord.”
Polycarp of Smyrna
When Polycarp, the Bishop of Smyrna,
was arrested he declared: “God’s will
be done!”
He provided food for his captors before they escorted him before the Roman
consul.
The consul was struck by how old Polycarp
was: “Pity your grey hairs, old man, just burn some incense
before the Emperor and you can go
free.”
Polycarp responded: “If you think for a
moment that I would do that, then you pretend not to
know who I am. Hear it plainly, I am
a Christian!”
“Then do this, old man, just curse
Christ and I will set you free.”
Polycarp responded: “86 years I have served my Christ, and He has never done me any wrong. How then can I blaspheme my King who
has saved me?”
“I have wild beasts” threatened the pro-consul.
“Bring them” Polycarp said. “I
would change my mind if it meant
from going from the worse to the better,
but not from the right to the
wrong.”
“If you despise the wild beasts, I will have you burned”, warned the consul.
“You threaten me with a fire that burns for but an hour and then is extinguished. But you know nothing of the fire of Eternal Judgment
which will never be extinguished. Bring what you will.”
As Polycarp was led into the arena he was heard to pray: “Lord God, Father of our blessed Saviour, I thank Thee that I have been deemed
worthy to receive the crown of martyrdom, and that I may die for Thee and Thy cause.”
Cyprian of Carthage
Cyprian of Carthage, when sentenced to be beheaded, exclaimed:
“Thanks be to God!”
Perpetua – Forever Faithful
Perpetua was a Christian noblewoman living in Carthage (North Africa). In A.D. 202 when Perpetua was a 22-year old mother, she was one of the first to
be arrested in a new wave of persecution.
When her pagan father visited and pleaded with her to deny that she was a Christian, Perpetua responded
that it was impossible that she be “called anything other than what I am, a Christian.”
When the governor ordered Perpetua to worship the emperor her response was decisive: “I will not.”
“Are you a Christian then?” asked the governor.
“Yes I am!” Perpetua’s determined response brought immediate condemnation.
The governor condemned her and her friends to be thrown to the wild beasts and to die in the arena.
The amphitheatre was filled with nobles, ladies, senators, ambassadors, and tens of thousands shouted their insults and derisions as she was led to her death. Wild beasts and gladiators circled them on the arena floor and the crowds in the stands roared, demanding to see blood.
When Perpetua and her friends entered the stadium they were singing Psalms in such a joyful demeanour that the crowd demanded that the
Christians be scourged first. This was done.
As the mob screamed abuse, Perpetua was heard
to say:
“You have condemned us,
but God will condemn you.”
A wild heifer charged and tossed Perpetua into the air. As she fell on her back she sat up and adjusted her ripped tunic,
“thinking more of her modesty than of her pain.” She then walked over to help Felicitas, her servant to her feet.
Perpetua encouraged the other Christians: “You must all stand fast in the Faith and not be
weakened by what we have gone through.”
Witnesses in the stands described Perpetua in the
arena as “young and beautiful”,
“a pure and modest Christian lady”, “with shining
countenance and calm step, as the beloved of
God, as a bride of Christ, putting down everyone’s
stare by her own intense gaze.”
Her bold testimony: “I am a Christian and cannot deny Christ” was repeated throughout the Empire. Her example of Christian resolve and
Christian courage, choosing to suffer and die with a clear conscience, rather than deny her Saviour, inspired generations of Roman Christians
to stand firm in the face of relentless persecution.
“Be faithful until death,
and I will give you the crown
of life.” Revelation 2:10
The Blood of the Martyrs
As Tertullian famously declared: “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church.” For every Christian killed in the arena
multitudes were converted in the stands.
Converting the Persecutors
In time the slaves of the Roman Empire were converted, the nobles of the Roman Empire were converted,
the barbarian invaders were brought to Christ,
and even the
bloodthirsty Vikings
were won to Christ.
The Waldensians
The Waldensians of Southern France, Northern Italy and Switzerland endured much persecution between the 12th and the 17th Century,
courageously standing firm and enduring as the oldest community of Protestants in the world today.
Wycliffe and the Lollards
Professor John Wycliffe of Oxford University, and his itinerant evangelists (the Lollards), despite severe persecution continued to
translate the Scriptures into English and to proclaim and sing the Gospel in English in the market places.
They were the field workers of the Reformation, sowing the good seed of the Word of God and laying solid foundations
for the mighty move of God’s Spirit in the Reformation.
Jan Hus of Prague
Professor Jan Hus of Prague courageously worked for Biblical Reformation and was burned alive in 1415. His final prayer was: “Into
Thy hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit. I am willing, patiently and publicly to endure this dreadful, shameful, and cruel death for the sake
of Thy Gospel and the preaching of Thy Word.” He died signing praises to God.
William Tyndale
The Reformer William Tyndale of England was burned alive at the stake for the crime of translating the Bible
into the English language.
His last words, his dying prayer: “Lord, open the King of England’s eyes!” was wondrously answered as the very King, Henry VIII, who had condemned Tyndale
for his work of Bible translation,
within two years of Tyndale’s death, had
authorised that same Bible in English to be placed in every parish in the land,
accessible to the common people, in the common
tongue.
George Whishart
Patrick Hamilton and George Whishart of Scotland were burned at the stake for preaching Biblical Reformation.
George Whishart prayed an Imprecatory Prayer against the cardinal who had condemned them.
Within three months that cardinal had met a violent death.
John Knox
Reformer John Knox of Scotland was imprisoned
and chained as a slave in a galley for nineteen months. At one point he refused to
kiss an idol of Mary. Throwing it overboard, he
declared: “She is light
enough, let her learn to swim!”
St. Bartholomew’s Day Massacre
The Huguenots of France endured vicious persecution and massacres, particularly the St.
Bartholomew’s Day Massacre of 24 August 1572.
Condemning a Nation
At one point in the 16th Century the
Spanish Inquisition condemned the entire nation of
Holland (3 million men, women and
children) to death as heretics!
By God’s grace, and through the
courage of Prince William the Silent and his followers,
the Dutch succeeded in
throwing back the Spanish invaders
and winning freedom for
Protestant Holland.
The Greatest Century of Persecution
You may be surprised to know that more Christians died for Christ in the 20th Century than in all previous
19 centuries combined.
In 1980, The Christian World Encyclopedia calculated that at least 28 million Christians had been martyred
in the 20th Century { up until then }.
The total martyrs since A.D. 33 was calculated at 43 million.
The encyclopedia calculated that atheists and secular governments had murdered 25 million Christians.
Violence against Christians in Egypt has escalated sharply over the last ten years. Churches have been targeted for car bombings.
Incredibly the Egyptian church has survived 14 centuries of Islamic discrimination and persecution.
There are however over 10 million Christians, mostly Coptic Orthodox, making up 12% of the population of Egypt.
For over 1,000 years Egypt was a majority Christian population, even after the Arab Muslim conquest in AD 640.
Many hundreds of Christians have been wounded or killed in violent attacks on Christian churches and neighbourhoods, especially in Iraq
and Egypt.
And Roman Catholics and RC governments had murdered 4½ million Protestants.
Serving the Persecuted
During the last 30 years of missionary work I have had the privilege of serving the persecuted Church in Mozambique, Angola, Romania,
Albania, Rwanda, Sudan, Northern Nigeria, the Congo and Zimbabwe.
During this time I have endured aerial bombardments, ambushes, artillery and rocket barrages, and I have been arrested and imprisoned
for missionary work.
Speaking up for the Persecuted
Some of what Christians suffer in Marxist and Muslim lands has been documented in Faith Under Fire in Sudan; Holocaust in Rwanda; In the
Killing Fields of Mozambique; Slavery, Terrorism and Islam;
and in documentary films that we have helped to produce such as: Sudan: The Hidden Holocaust and Terrorism and Persecution –
Understanding Islamic Jihad.
Angola’s Agony
On numerous occasions, Cuban soldiers in Angola have placed the heads of cattle, or an AK47, on altars
or pulpits demanding that the Christians commit idolatry and bow before them.
They have walked into services, and taken the Bible off the pulpit and thrown it by the door and demanded: “You may all
leave – one by one – just spit on the Bible and you can go free. If you don’t – we will kill you!”
Communist troops have burst into church services declaring: “You Christians – you say that you worship the Lamb – well
here is a lamb!”
The Cubans taunted the worshippers as
they started pouring the blood of this lamb
over the believers saying “the blood of
the lamb is shed amongst you – worship
the lamb!”
The head of the lamb was placed mockingly on the pulpit and people were dragged and forced to their knees to bow down
before it.
Christians who have escaped from communist concentration camps and
prisons have told how they were often tortured
by the Marxists.
One prisoner told me of a time in Angola when they were near breaking point and one of them shouted
out: “Why don’t you just kill us, and get
it over with?”
The response of the communist concentration camp guards was
most enlightening: “Oh no, we don’t want to kill
you! We don’t want to send you to Heaven to
be with God! No, we want you to curse Christ and to come to hell with us, for
all eternity!”
The Aim of Persecution The aim of
persecution is not to kill Christians. There is no victory to the
kingdom of darkness for Christians to go
to Heaven. The aim of persecution is to
intimidate Christians into silence.
To persuade believers to compromise. To terrify Christians, to giving in to cowardice. If the devil cannot stop us being
converted, he at least wants to divert us and distract us so that we are not effective in fulfilling the Great Commission
and winning other souls to Christ.
As long as you refuse to be intimidated into silence, neutrality and compromise,
persecution fails.
“Then Jesus said to His disciples,
‘if anyone desires to come
after Me, let him deny himself,
and take up his cross, and follow
Me.
For whoever desires to save his life will
lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and
loses his own soul? And what will a
man give in exchange for his
soul?’” Matthew 16:24-26
Sabrina Wurmbrand
The wife of Romanian Pastor Richard
Wurmbrand, Sabrina Wurmbrand, testified that before she went
to prison she was very poor. But once she went to prison she became very rich.
This was because she was poor in the things of the
world, but rich in the things of God. When she came to prison she had the only
currency that was of any value, she had much of the
Word of God memorised and stored up in her heart and
mind. Therefore in prison she was able to make many
people rich!
After years in the slave labour camps of Romania, Sabrina was finally released.
Some time later a man came to her claiming to have been in prison with her husband, and having a message from him to
share with their congregation.
Knowing how the communist state sought to infiltrate congregations by infiltrating spies and blackmailing members into being informers,
Sabrina was cautious. “Please, before we go any further, would you lead us in prayer?” She bowed her head.
There was an awkward silence and then the man, who claimed
to have a message from her husband, stuttered and
stammered. Sabrina Wurmbrand looked up and, gazing directly
into the man’s eyes, said: “Now then, aren’t you ashamed of
yourself? Wouldn’t you like me to explain to you how you can
become a real Christian?”
To Prison with Praise
In 1987, while leading a Frontline mission team across the border, we were arrested.
This was my first prison experience. We were stripped
and beaten.
Thrown into cells covered with human filth. Deprived of water
and food, blindfolded and transported from Livingstone to Lusaka. There we were thrown
into an overcrowded prison.
The cells, which were 15 feet by 25 feet, were crammed with an average of 60 prisoners per cell. There were no beds, furnishings, plumbing or
electricity in these cells.
The whole prison seemed to be one big stinking disease factory. With our shoes taken away, walking barefoot, with cut and bleeding feet, amongst this filth, we could only imagine how many infections and
diseases God protected us from.
Falsely Accused
In our prison cell there was Isaiah Moyo, a 26 year old black South African, who had been imprisoned on trumped up charges of being a
South African spy!
Actually, he had lent money to some ANC refugees in Lusaka, who had decided, rather than repay him, to accuse him of being a spy!
Tortured
Isaiah had been severely tortured. He had 26 pussy sores on his body where red hot pokers had been pushed into his skin. His knees were
calloused from the many hours he spent kneeling on the concrete floor praying to the Lord.
When, by God’s grace, international prayer and pressure forced the Zambian government to open the prison doors and let us free, I
determined to campaign for the release of Isaiah Moyo.
Publicising the Plight of the Prisoners American
Christians that I met in Cape Town encouraged me to
come overseas and testify of the
reality of communist
persecution in Africa.
I received an invitation to speak at the International Society for Human Rights Conference in Frankfurt, Germany and used that as the launching
pad for my first overseas ministry trip.
This involved radio and TV ministry in the USA,
testifying to government officials of
the atrocities I had witnessed and documented in
communist Mozambique and
Angola, and speaking on the BBC World
Service.
Later I heard that prison wardens had rushed with their radios to Isaiah Moyo in Lusaka Central Prison shouting: “Isaiah, that white South
African missionary who was locked in here, he is speaking on the radio – and he is talking about you!”
Isaiah heard the tale end of my interview as I gave people his prison address, and requested people to send care packages, with salt, soap,
sugar, vitamins, pens, pencils, paper, etc.
Isaiah told us later that from that time on he was never mistreated again. Mail sacks of letters and parcels were dragged into the cell. He became the most popular person in prison. He had so many trading
items which everyone wanted. People couldn’t do enough favours for him.
The BBC World Service radio programme had raised him to celebrity status in the prison. The prison guards treated him with great respect, and soon he was set free and allowed to travel back to South Africa to
be reunited with his wife and two children.
Publicity Provides Protection for the Persecuted
This was my first experience of seeing what an influence Western Christians can have through prayer and pressure.
Publicity provides protection for the persecuted.
As our Lord Jesus taught in Luke 18:1-5,
even an unjust judge will do what
is right in response to persistent prayer and pressure.
As virtually every Marxist dictatorship in the world is a beneficiary of vast amounts of foreign aid from Western nations, this provides
leverage.
Most dictators prefer foreign aid to foreign prisoners. If given a choice, they will let the prisoners go free in order to
continue to receive the Western dollars, pounds or euros.
Setting Captives Free
Whatever we bind will be bound, whatever we loose will be loosed. By the power of prayer, and through persistent
pressure, we can see the powers of darkness limited, prison doors opened and captives set free.
Jesus said: “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.
Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we see
You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You?
Or when did we see You sick, or imprisoned and come to You? And the King will answer and say unto them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, in as
much as you did it to one of the least of these brethren, you did it to Me.’” Matthew 25:35-40
“And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honoured, all the members rejoice with it. Now you are the
Body of Christ, and members individually.” 1 Corinthians 12:26-27
REMEMBER the PERSECUTED
Sunday 11 November is the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church.
“Remember the prisoners as if chained with them – those who are mistreated – since you yourselves are
in the Body also.” Hebrews 13:3
Frontline Fellowship PO Box 74
Newlands
7725
Cape Town
South Africa
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: www.frontline.org.za