Martyrdom Today

I found out about the “Voice of the Martyrs” organization through our pastor.  I am sharing some notes from his teaching today.  VOM is a legitimate organization and the problems are real…unfortunately.

If you live in the United States you may be surprised by the number of countries that do not allow Christians to openly worship, carry bibles, etc.   Although there are various estimates, the number of Christians being martyred daily, largely in these countries, ranges from 400-450/day.

In the early days of Christianity, martyrs had a huge evangelical impact.  If one is willing to die for their faith, it sends a really strong message to those watching or hearing about it from first hand witnesses.   The second-century theologian Tertullian said, “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church.”   His wonderment at the faithfulness of those early martyrs brought him to their Christian faith.  This was an absolutely an unintended side effect of the religious persecution of the early Christians.

Few realize that there is resurgence in martyrdom worldwide that far exceeds that in the early Church!  Our pastor asked, “What should be our response to the martyrdom of today?”  His answer is worth sharing:  “Be informed, be prayerful, and be prepared to suffer as well.”

In most of the U.S. while it is very fashionable to believe in a loving higher power or energy source, it is not fashionable to be a Christian.  Christians are branded as bigots and hateful.   The socially acceptable ‘god’ does not require too much of his followers, has no absolute standard of right or wrong because that would be inconsistent with lovingness.  The ‘higher power’ does not have a justice or holy side.  Nope, that god is all whatever-fulfills-you-is-okay.

Interestingly, where I live in the Bible belt there is an opposite but still unhealthy situation.  Most folks are “cultural Christians”.  While it may be far more acceptable in the South to acknowledge a Christian God in public places than any other place I have lived, the majority of people here (estimated by various source to be 80%) are not part of any community of worship, Christian or otherwise. 

I have witnessed first-hand the severe damage done when “Christians” act in a non-Christian ways—or just like anyone else that is not a Christian.  Cute phrases abound, “Christians aren’t perfect, just forgiven.”  A more accurate phrase but less bumper-sticker-friendly might be, “Christians should have some life-changing evidence of their relationship with Jesus Christ.”  Christians have the same divorce rate as non-Christians.  That is except for one group of Christians—those marriages where husband and wife habitually pray together.   Did you marry your spouse because they loved the Lord?  For many professed Christians that  is not even on this list.

All of this talk of martyrdom for one’s faith…is there anything that any of us are willing to die for?  It is a hard question if you are honest with yourself.   How about if you are being tortured?   Might you survive the firing squad but not torture?  The Christian martyrs of today and tomorrow have my utmost admiration.  For eye opening information check out Voice of the Martyrs and, also, Frontiers ministering specifically to Muslim countries.  Both are worthy of your support.