Serving in Thailand

Theology / Church

The Kingdom of Thailand is well known for its sunny beaches, jungle hideouts, elephants and smiling faces. At the heart and crossroads of Southeast Asia, it is a relatively prosperous nation with a population of about 63 million.

Considered to be one of the most beautiful and diverse countries in Asia, it is a kingdom of vibrant culture and commercial activity, of potential and challenge, of variety, contrast, colour and light. Yet under that veneer many needs draw followers of Christ to serve here, seeking out opportunities to bring His hope and compassion to the diverse peoples of this land.

At the beginning of 2008 my husband, Peter, and I moved from Hamilton, New Zealand, to take on the role of Associate Pastors at Chiang Mai Community Church in northern Thailand. Chiang Mai is located more than 700km northwest of Bangkok, and is surprisingly small and pleasant by Asian standards, not at all an urban megalopolis. Dynamic and multicultural – many tourists and expats from Asia and the West base themselves here – Chiang Mai has successfully managed to combine its rich cultural history and traditions with its progressively more modern character. However, as a result of this rapid development, a huge increase in traffic and pollution makes going outside from February to April very unpleasant and unhealthy.

Chiang Mai Community Church has been serving the international community here for more than 40 years. Although Thailand is one of the most devoutly Buddhist countries in the world (more than 95% of all Thais are practising Buddhists), the law provides for freedom of religion. There has historically been an openness to the good news of Jesus among the hill tribe people, though not so much among mainstream Thais. The evangelical churches here are committed to working together in reaching out to the unreached.

While Peter was serving as a pastor in New Zealand before we left, I was working as a family doctor. I have discovered, however, that the skills required in a general medical practice, such as listening and problem solving, are central to my new life here, and that life as a pastor is varied, interesting, challenging and unpredictable!

Our church community is ethnically and culturally very mixed, and because many attend Thai or tribal group churches in the morning, we meet in the late afternoon – a great time for church, in our opinion! Although some have been with the church from its inception, on the whole the church ‘boundaries’ are fairly fluid, with many comings and goings. Chiang Mai is a resource centre for physical, emotional and spiritual renewal, and mission workers from near and far come here for medical and dental care, to have their babies, for rest and respite, and for member care. Others visit from physically isolated workplaces in order to enjoy some Christian community and church life. Many of those who live here also have responsibilities in neighbouring countries, which require them to travel frequently.

In our church we have a good number of young adults: some are with us for only a short time, while others are based in Thailand long-term. They come and go from many countries. We host a young adults’ group on Sunday evenings, and very much enjoy listening to their stories and challenges, and seeing them connecting with each other and building friendships. They are involved in a wide variety of ministries, such as teaching, media and journalism, mission through sport, and working in orphanages. Some work in relief agencies and with immigrants and refugees — approximately 130,000 Burmese refugees live in Thailand, having entered through the long, mountainous border Thailand shares with Myanmar. Others minister to women and children who have HIV. Although prostitution is illegal in Thailand, since the Vietnam War the country has gained international notoriety as a sex tourism destination, and this has led to the prevalence of HIV/AIDS, especially among sex workers.

Short-term mission teams also frequently come through Chiang Mai, and we recently had the privilege of hosting a medical team which included our youngest son, Tim. He and seven third-year medical student friends, from Auckland University Medical School, were inspired by their involvement with the Christian Medical Fellowship to gain some experience of medical needs outside of NZ. They were a great group of high quality young Kiwis, and we had such fun interacting with them, experiencing their energy, seeing their potential for the future and their heart for God and mission.

From short-term teams to those who have formed the core of this church for 40 years now, from visitors coming through to those working in remote locations or neighbouring nations sharing their faith in word and deed, the people we are privileged to serve in our role as pastors here have many, many interesting stories of life and challenge, heartache and joy, reflecting the grace and mercy of our God. Our call as we listen and teach, counsel and support is to encourage each one on their way, pointing them to the never-changing truth that will undergird each of their journeys. Our investment is into those who make a difference, often amongst the most vulnerable, and in the hard places, bringing the Kingdom of God into the midst of the Kingdom of Thailand – to Him be the glory!

Annette, and her husband Peter, are Kiwi partners. They have three adult children, located in Japan, Australia and NZ, and are very grateful for Skype and webcams.

/작성자:

Serving in Thailand

Theology / Church

The Kingdom of Thailand is well known for its sunny beaches, jungle hideouts, elephants and smiling faces. At the heart and crossroads of Southeast Asia, it is a relatively prosperous nation with a population of about 63 million.

Considered to be one of the most beautiful and diverse countries in Asia, it is a kingdom of vibrant culture and commercial activity, of potential and challenge, of variety, contrast, colour and light. Yet under that veneer many needs draw followers of Christ to serve here, seeking out opportunities to bring His hope and compassion to the diverse peoples of this land.

At the beginning of 2008 my husband, Peter, and I moved from Hamilton, New Zealand, to take on the role of Associate Pastors at Chiang Mai Community Church in northern Thailand. Chiang Mai is located more than 700km northwest of Bangkok, and is surprisingly small and pleasant by Asian standards, not at all an urban megalopolis. Dynamic and multicultural – many tourists and expats from Asia and the West base themselves here – Chiang Mai has successfully managed to combine its rich cultural history and traditions with its progressively more modern character. However, as a result of this rapid development, a huge increase in traffic and pollution makes going outside from February to April very unpleasant and unhealthy.

Chiang Mai Community Church has been serving the international community here for more than 40 years. Although Thailand is one of the most devoutly Buddhist countries in the world (more than 95% of all Thais are practising Buddhists), the law provides for freedom of religion. There has historically been an openness to the good news of Jesus among the hill tribe people, though not so much among mainstream Thais. The evangelical churches here are committed to working together in reaching out to the unreached.

While Peter was serving as a pastor in New Zealand before we left, I was working as a family doctor. I have discovered, however, that the skills required in a general medical practice, such as listening and problem solving, are central to my new life here, and that life as a pastor is varied, interesting, challenging and unpredictable!

Our church community is ethnically and culturally very mixed, and because many attend Thai or tribal group churches in the morning, we meet in the late afternoon – a great time for church, in our opinion! Although some have been with the church from its inception, on the whole the church ‘boundaries’ are fairly fluid, with many comings and goings. Chiang Mai is a resource centre for physical, emotional and spiritual renewal, and mission workers from near and far come here for medical and dental care, to have their babies, for rest and respite, and for member care. Others visit from physically isolated workplaces in order to enjoy some Christian community and church life. Many of those who live here also have responsibilities in neighbouring countries, which require them to travel frequently.

In our church we have a good number of young adults: some are with us for only a short time, while others are based in Thailand long-term. They come and go from many countries. We host a young adults’ group on Sunday evenings, and very much enjoy listening to their stories and challenges, and seeing them connecting with each other and building friendships. They are involved in a wide variety of ministries, such as teaching, media and journalism, mission through sport, and working in orphanages. Some work in relief agencies and with immigrants and refugees — approximately 130,000 Burmese refugees live in Thailand, having entered through the long, mountainous border Thailand shares with Myanmar. Others minister to women and children who have HIV. Although prostitution is illegal in Thailand, since the Vietnam War the country has gained international notoriety as a sex tourism destination, and this has led to the prevalence of HIV/AIDS, especially among sex workers.

Short-term mission teams also frequently come through Chiang Mai, and we recently had the privilege of hosting a medical team which included our youngest son, Tim. He and seven third-year medical student friends, from Auckland University Medical School, were inspired by their involvement with the Christian Medical Fellowship to gain some experience of medical needs outside of NZ. They were a great group of high quality young Kiwis, and we had such fun interacting with them, experiencing their energy, seeing their potential for the future and their heart for God and mission.

From short-term teams to those who have formed the core of this church for 40 years now, from visitors coming through to those working in remote locations or neighbouring nations sharing their faith in word and deed, the people we are privileged to serve in our role as pastors here have many, many interesting stories of life and challenge, heartache and joy, reflecting the grace and mercy of our God. Our call as we listen and teach, counsel and support is to encourage each one on their way, pointing them to the never-changing truth that will undergird each of their journeys. Our investment is into those who make a difference, often amongst the most vulnerable, and in the hard places, bringing the Kingdom of God into the midst of the Kingdom of Thailand – to Him be the glory!

Annette, and her husband Peter, are Kiwi partners. They have three adult children, located in Japan, Australia and NZ, and are very grateful for Skype and webcams.

/작성자:

Jesus Prince of Persia

Theology / Church, Arab World

Since the 1979 Islamic Revolution which forced out the Shah and installed an Islamic Republic, Iran has become a byword for Islamic fundamentalism. Nowhere has the so-called “clash of civilisations” been put into sharper relief than in the tortured relationship between Iran and the US, with President Bush labelling Iran as part of the so-called “Axis of Evil” in 2002 and President Ahmedinejad describing the September 11th attacks as “a suspect event”. Under these circumstances perhaps Iran, run by an oppressive régime incapable of tolerating dissent, is one of the least likely places in the world to witness a large-scale revival of the body of Christ. And yet, amazingly, that is the situation in modern-day Iran. The spirit of God is moving over the parched sands of Persia.

The history of the Iranian church is remarkably long. Acts 2: 9 records “Parthians, Medes and Elamites” hearing the gospel on the day of Pentecost and there are churches in Iran that date back to the days of the apostles. Ancient churches and historical artifacts testify that Christian missionaries from Persia travelled as far as India and China in the 8th and 9th centuries. Even though Christianity in Iran has been a minority religion throughout its entire existence, buffeted by the whims of Zoroastrian and Muslim authorities over the centuries, the Iranian church has survived.

This, in itself, is remarkable, but even more remarkable is the extent to which the church is thriving. Western missionaries worked in Iran for over 100 years, scarcely seeing any fruit at all, but the seeds they planted were crucial. Thanks to their work, and the work of people like Haik Hovsepian and Seth Yeghnazar, along with his sons Sam, Lazarus and Luke, by 1976 a few small churches had been established. Following the 1979 revolution the new régime allowed Christians and other minority groups to gather openly and then clamped down savagely, closing churches and imprisoning Christians across Iran. These attacks culminated in the 1990s with several killings of senior Iranian churchmen. In 1989 Hossein Soodmand, pastor of the Assemblies of God (Jama’at – e Rabbani) church, was executed for apostasy. Mehdi Dibaj, another member of the Jama’at – e Rabbani, was imprisoned for ten years, from 1983 to 1993, before being freed in January 1994 following a global outcry. At his trial he boldly declared ““I am not only satisfied to be in prison for the honour of His Holy Name, but am ready to give my life for the sake of Jesus my Lord”. Following his release he was abducted and murdered later in 1994. In 1993 Haik Hovsepian, an Iranian bishop in the Jama’at-e Rabbani, was asked by the government to sign a document stating that he would not allow Muslims or Muslim converts into his church. He refused, declaring “our churches are open to all who want to come in”. He was murdered in January 1994.

The brutality of this persecution forced many Iranian Christians to meet in underground churches, but, as is often the case with persecution, it strengthened and encouraged the Iranian church rather than destroying it. There is currently an extensive network of underground churches in more than 40 cities across Iran, largely consisting of recent believers from Muslim backgrounds, and recent developments such as Christian satellite broadcasting are reaching millions more. The website of 222 Ministries (www.222ministries. com) contains many testimonies from Iranian Christians and stories of how the church in Iran is growing – Muslim clerics, leaders of mosques, drug addicts and prostitutes all testify to the power of Christ. 222 Ministries even run an online theological college which currently has over 800 students, including Muslim clerics, and their staff members receive 1,000 phone calls a month from Iranians wanting to commit their lives to Christ. Lazarus Yeghnazar, the President of 222 Ministries International, calmly states that “conservative estimates put the size of the Iranian church at over one million people”. The scale of this revival is astonishing.

Naturally, spiritual warfare being what it is, the persecution of the church in Iran is intensifying, a testimony to the size and momentum of this revival. Since April 2008 there have been 53 arrests of Iranian Christians all over the country – in Tehran, Mashad, Esfahan, Shiraz and elsewhere. In July 2008 an elderly Christian couple were leading a gospel meeting at their house church in Esfahan and baptising new believers in a tub of water in their lounge when their house was raided. The police were particularly incensed when they discovered that the husband, Abbas Amiri, was a respected haji who had visited Mecca on several occasions and who had also fought for Iran during the Iran-Iraq war. He was beaten and died on his way to hospital. His wife Sakineh Rahnama later died of shock. Recently the Iranian government provisionally passed legislation demanding the death penalty for Muslims who leave Islam – previously courts could hand down hard labour sentences or jail terms instead, but the death penalty could soon be the only option. The flourishing church is not the only evidence that many Iranians are unhappy with their government – for example, a United Nations report in 2005 revealed that Iran has the highest drug addiction rate in the world, and the Iran Press Service reported in 2006 that government agencies are considering creating legalised brothels to combat a massive rise in prostitution. It’s hard to escape the conclusion that something is rotten in the state of Iran.

Although precise statistics regarding the church in Iran are hard to come by – it’s an underground church, after all – what is clear from many sources and from the increasingly desperate restrictions introduced by the Iranian government is that the message of Christ is spreading in Iran, and spreading fast. Lazarus Yeghnazar believes that the church around the world needs to be prepared for an avalanche of new believers both inside Iran and in the extensive Iranian diaspora around the world, and wants Christians to pray for this as a matter of urgency. The ancient bones of the church in Iran, dating back to the time of the apostles, are coming to life in thrilling fashion, providing a wonderful example of the power of Christ over the plans of men.

/작성자:

Church Finding

Theology / Church

When people hear that I worked in South Asia for many years they often ask “Were you involved in Church Planting?” Oddly enough, the answer to that is “No, not really.” It was more like Church Finding. Church Finding is a lot easier and probably more fun, though just as stressful.

There are seasons of sowing and of reaping. My great uncle served in South Asia in the 1950s and 60s, and saw no church growth among the Muslim community whatsoever. In 1995, on our first Home Assignment, we went to visit him. He had been diagnosed with cancer and we spent a lovely day with him. At one point just he and I were sitting together. “Tell me” he said. “Are there any believers from the Muslim community at all?.” I was able to tell him of meeting forty men in the city in which he had worked. Then he started to cry. Quietly wiping a tear from his cheek, he said in a soft voice “I gave up hope you know. Oh, I worked with the church and we saw tribal people and others come to faith. But we didn’t see anyone from the Muslim community. I didn’t think it was possible” Six weeks later he went to meet Jesus face to face knowing that God was able to do more than he could have thought or imagined.

Since the mid 90s, numbers have grown. Conservative estimates of this new form of Muslimbackground church in our region are 50,000! Some estimates are a lot higher. Much of my role was finding new groups of believers, listening to their stories and documenting them, and helping link them to other groups around the region. It also involved walking beside a couple of key leaders as they looked at what it meant to follow Jesus coming from their heritage and in their setting.

Leaders are subject to huge pressures. I would like to report that the guys I walked beside did really well and had no problems. That would, however, be to embellish the truth. As it was, some of them grew in maturity and leadership, but others struggled with issues like finance, use and abuse of power, personal integrity, and didn’t really give clear guidance on some major theological issues.

Nor were the problems confined to leadership. The growing groups saw almost all the problems of the New Testament churches and even some problems that hadn’t been invented then. When the church grows so quickly there are bound to be problems, but there is also bound to be real growth, maturity and solid foundations. I saw an illiterate young man explain to the police the basis to his faith, that it wasn’t illogical or immoral, and that he refused to turn back. I saw families have their crops destroyed and their irrigation systems wrecked, and yet they acted with love and compassion towards the very families who were attacking them.

So the question arises: what real advice can a foreigner give to groups going through genuine, gut-wrenching, painful persecution? Can any advice be more than just fine sounding words from a rich person with a passport? Fortunately, I was able to draw on the experience of others who had been through such times themselves. They were able to give the call – “Be faithful.” In the midst of this there are three things that stand out as helpful for people and groups under attack for their faith.

1. Memorise scripture. The more the word dwells in our hearts, the more it guides our heart responses in times of trouble. And if it’s memorised it is with us in the times when our Bibles are taken from us.

2. Have a heart song. Have a song that embraces all that’s dear to you about Jesus. Sing it daily. Have it embedded in your heart. In those times of hardship, that song will help shine his light into your heart.

3. The believing community commits to look after your family. If someone is taken away from their family, maybe put in jail, what happens to their family is a major concern. One thing that helps hold people firm is to know that the rest of the community has committed beforehand to look after the family. No matter what the situation, no matter the amount of mud flung or violence used, others will work to look after the family. If I know that, then I can face what is thrown at me.

Being involved with the rapidly reproducing church is fantastic. To see lives transformed by Christ, and to see this happen time and again touches our hearts in deep ways. There are problems, of course. There are real hurts, mistakes and wounds. However, many testify that “it’s worth it.” The change in people’s lives, the joy that is radiated and the peace that fills them is thrillingly infectious. Having come back from South Asia where this change is now expected and planned for, it’s been an adjustment to come to churches in the UK who fear that they are dying or have little hope that a ‘mission’ will transform many people. The body of Christ is growing dramatically around the world. For those in areas where it doesn’t seem to be, take heart. He is able to do more than we could think or imagine.

/작성자:

Church Finding

Theology / Church

When people hear that I worked in South Asia for many years they often ask “Were you involved in Church Planting?” Oddly enough, the answer to that is “No, not really.” It was more like Church Finding. Church Finding is a lot easier and probably more fun, though just as stressful.

There are seasons of sowing and of reaping. My great uncle served in South Asia in the 1950s and 60s, and saw no church growth among the Muslim community whatsoever. In 1995, on our first Home Assignment, we went to visit him. He had been diagnosed with cancer and we spent a lovely day with him. At one point just he and I were sitting together. “Tell me” he said. “Are there any believers from the Muslim community at all?.” I was able to tell him of meeting forty men in the city in which he had worked. Then he started to cry. Quietly wiping a tear from his cheek, he said in a soft voice “I gave up hope you know. Oh, I worked with the church and we saw tribal people and others come to faith. But we didn’t see anyone from the Muslim community. I didn’t think it was possible” Six weeks later he went to meet Jesus face to face knowing that God was able to do more than he could have thought or imagined.

Since the mid 90s, numbers have grown. Conservative estimates of this new form of Muslimbackground church in our region are 50,000! Some estimates are a lot higher. Much of my role was finding new groups of believers, listening to their stories and documenting them, and helping link them to other groups around the region. It also involved walking beside a couple of key leaders as they looked at what it meant to follow Jesus coming from their heritage and in their setting.

Leaders are subject to huge pressures. I would like to report that the guys I walked beside did really well and had no problems. That would, however, be to embellish the truth. As it was, some of them grew in maturity and leadership, but others struggled with issues like finance, use and abuse of power, personal integrity, and didn’t really give clear guidance on some major theological issues.

Nor were the problems confined to leadership. The growing groups saw almost all the problems of the New Testament churches and even some problems that hadn’t been invented then. When the church grows so quickly there are bound to be problems, but there is also bound to be real growth, maturity and solid foundations. I saw an illiterate young man explain to the police the basis to his faith, that it wasn’t illogical or immoral, and that he refused to turn back. I saw families have their crops destroyed and their irrigation systems wrecked, and yet they acted with love and compassion towards the very families who were attacking them.

So the question arises: what real advice can a foreigner give to groups going through genuine, gut-wrenching, painful persecution? Can any advice be more than just fine sounding words from a rich person with a passport? Fortunately, I was able to draw on the experience of others who had been through such times themselves. They were able to give the call – “Be faithful.” In the midst of this there are three things that stand out as helpful for people and groups under attack for their faith.

1. Memorise scripture. The more the word dwells in our hearts, the more it guides our heart responses in times of trouble. And if it’s memorised it is with us in the times when our Bibles are taken from us.

2. Have a heart song. Have a song that embraces all that’s dear to you about Jesus. Sing it daily. Have it embedded in your heart. In those times of hardship, that song will help shine his light into your heart.

3. The believing community commits to look after your family. If someone is taken away from their family, maybe put in jail, what happens to their family is a major concern. One thing that helps hold people firm is to know that the rest of the community has committed beforehand to look after the family. No matter what the situation, no matter the amount of mud flung or violence used, others will work to look after the family. If I know that, then I can face what is thrown at me.

Being involved with the rapidly reproducing church is fantastic. To see lives transformed by Christ, and to see this happen time and again touches our hearts in deep ways. There are problems, of course. There are real hurts, mistakes and wounds. However, many testify that “it’s worth it.” The change in people’s lives, the joy that is radiated and the peace that fills them is thrillingly infectious. Having come back from South Asia where this change is now expected and planned for, it’s been an adjustment to come to churches in the UK who fear that they are dying or have little hope that a ‘mission’ will transform many people. The body of Christ is growing dramatically around the world. For those in areas where it doesn’t seem to be, take heart. He is able to do more than we could think or imagine.

/작성자:

God’s New Thing

Theology / Church

/작성자:

Jesus, Prince of Persia

Theology / Church, Arab World

Since the 1979 Islamic Revolution which forced out the Shah and installed an Islamic Republic, Iran has become a byword for Islamic fundamentalism. Nowhere has the so-called “clash of civilisations” been put into sharper relief than in the tortured relationship between Iran and the US, with President Bush labelling Iran as part of the so-called “Axis of Evil” in 2002 and President Ahmedinejad describing the September 11th attacks as “a suspect event”. Under these circumstances perhaps Iran, run by an oppressive régime incapable of tolerating dissent, is one of the least likely places in the world to witness a large-scale revival of the body of Christ. And yet, amazingly, that is the situation in modern-day Iran. The spirit of God is moving over the parched sands of Persia.

The history of the Iranian church is remarkably long. Acts 2: 9 records “Parthians, Medes and Elamites” hearing the gospel on the day of Pentecost and there are churches in Iran that date back to the days of the apostles. Ancient churches and historical artifacts testify that Christian missionaries from Persia travelled as far as India and China in the 8th and 9th centuries. Even though Christianity in Iran has been a minority religion throughout its entire existence, buffeted by the whims of Zoroastrian and Muslim authorities over the centuries, the Iranian church has survived.

This, in itself, is remarkable, but even more remarkable is the extent to which the church is thriving. Western missionaries worked in Iran for over 100 years, scarcely seeing any fruit at all, but the seeds they planted were crucial. Thanks to their work, and the work of people like Haik Hovsepian and Seth Yeghnazar, along with his sons Sam, Lazarus and Luke, by 1976 a few small churches had been established. Following the 1979 revolution the new régime allowed Christians and other minority groups to gather openly and then clamped down savagely, closing churches and imprisoning Christians across Iran. These attacks culminated in the 1990s with several killings of senior Iranian churchmen. In 1989 Hossein Soodmand, pastor of the Assemblies of God (Jama’at – e Rabbani) church, was executed for apostasy. Mehdi Dibaj, another member of the Jama’at – e Rabbani, was imprisoned for ten years, from 1983 to 1993, before being freed in January 1994 following a global outcry. At his trial he boldly declared ““I am not only satisfied to be in prison for the honour of His Holy Name, but am ready to give my life for the sake of Jesus my Lord”. Following his release he was abducted and murdered later in 1994. In 1993 Haik Hovsepian, an Iranian bishop in the Jama’at-e Rabbani, was asked by the government to sign a document stating that he would not allow Muslims or Muslim converts into his church. He refused, declaring “our churches are open to all who want to come in”. He was murdered in January 1994.

The brutality of this persecution forced many Iranian Christians to meet in underground churches, but, as is often the case with persecution, it strengthened and encouraged the Iranian church rather than destroying it. There is currently an extensive network of underground churches in more than 40 cities across Iran, largely consisting of recent believers from Muslim backgrounds, and recent developments such as Christian satellite broadcasting are reaching millions more. The website of 222 Ministries (www.222ministries. com) contains many testimonies from Iranian Christians and stories of how the church in Iran is growing – Muslim clerics, leaders of mosques, drug addicts and prostitutes all testify to the power of Christ. 222 Ministries even run an online theological college which currently has over 800 students, including Muslim clerics, and their staff members receive 1,000 phone calls a month from Iranians wanting to commit their lives to Christ. Lazarus Yeghnazar, the President of 222 Ministries International, calmly states that “conservative estimates put the size of the Iranian church at over one million people”. The scale of this revival is astonishing.

Naturally, spiritual warfare being what it is, the persecution of the church in Iran is intensifying, a testimony to the size and momentum of this revival. Since April 2008 there have been 53 arrests of Iranian Christians all over the country – in Tehran, Mashad, Esfahan, Shiraz and elsewhere. In July 2008 an elderly Christian couple were leading a gospel meeting at their house church in Esfahan and baptising new believers in a tub of water in their lounge when their house was raided. The police were particularly incensed when they discovered that the husband, Abbas Amiri, was a respected haji who had visited Mecca on several occasions and who had also fought for Iran during the Iran-Iraq war. He was beaten and died on his way to hospital. His wife Sakineh Rahnama later died of shock. Recently the Iranian government provisionally passed legislation demanding the death penalty for Muslims who leave Islam – previously courts could hand down hard labour sentences or jail terms instead, but the death penalty could soon be the only option. The flourishing church is not the only evidence that many Iranians are unhappy with their government – for example, a United Nations report in 2005 revealed that Iran has the highest drug addiction rate in the world, and the Iran Press Service reported in 2006 that government agencies are considering creating legalised brothels to combat a massive rise in prostitution. It’s hard to escape the conclusion that something is rotten in the state of Iran.

Although precise statistics regarding the church in Iran are hard to come by – it’s an underground church, after all – what is clear from many sources and from the increasingly desperate restrictions introduced by the Iranian government is that the message of Christ is spreading in Iran, and spreading fast. Lazarus Yeghnazar believes that the church around the world needs to be prepared for an avalanche of new believers both inside Iran and in the extensive Iranian diaspora around the world, and wants Christians to pray for this as a matter of urgency. The ancient bones of the church in Iran, dating back to the time of the apostles, are coming to life in thrilling fashion, providing a wonderful example of the power of Christ over the plans of men.

/작성자:

God’s New Thing

Theology / Church

/작성자:

Jesus, Prince of Persia

Theology / Church, Arab World

Since the 1979 Islamic Revolution which forced out the Shah and installed an Islamic Republic, Iran has become a byword for Islamic fundamentalism. Nowhere has the so-called “clash of civilisations” been put into sharper relief than in the tortured relationship between Iran and the US, with President Bush labelling Iran as part of the so-called “Axis of Evil” in 2002 and President Ahmedinejad describing the September 11th attacks as “a suspect event”. Under these circumstances perhaps Iran, run by an oppressive régime incapable of tolerating dissent, is one of the least likely places in the world to witness a large-scale revival of the body of Christ. And yet, amazingly, that is the situation in modern-day Iran. The spirit of God is moving over the parched sands of Persia.

The history of the Iranian church is remarkably long. Acts 2: 9 records “Parthians, Medes and Elamites” hearing the gospel on the day of Pentecost and there are churches in Iran that date back to the days of the apostles. Ancient churches and historical artifacts testify that Christian missionaries from Persia travelled as far as India and China in the 8th and 9th centuries. Even though Christianity in Iran has been a minority religion throughout its entire existence, buffeted by the whims of Zoroastrian and Muslim authorities over the centuries, the Iranian church has survived.

This, in itself, is remarkable, but even more remarkable is the extent to which the church is thriving. Western missionaries worked in Iran for over 100 years, scarcely seeing any fruit at all, but the seeds they planted were crucial. Thanks to their work, and the work of people like Haik Hovsepian and Seth Yeghnazar, along with his sons Sam, Lazarus and Luke, by 1976 a few small churches had been established. Following the 1979 revolution the new régime allowed Christians and other minority groups to gather openly and then clamped down savagely, closing churches and imprisoning Christians across Iran. These attacks culminated in the 1990s with several killings of senior Iranian churchmen. In 1989 Hossein Soodmand, pastor of the Assemblies of God (Jama’at – e Rabbani) church, was executed for apostasy. Mehdi Dibaj, another member of the Jama’at – e Rabbani, was imprisoned for ten years, from 1983 to 1993, before being freed in January 1994 following a global outcry. At his trial he boldly declared ““I am not only satisfied to be in prison for the honour of His Holy Name, but am ready to give my life for the sake of Jesus my Lord”. Following his release he was abducted and murdered later in 1994. In 1993 Haik Hovsepian, an Iranian bishop in the Jama’at-e Rabbani, was asked by the government to sign a document stating that he would not allow Muslims or Muslim converts into his church. He refused, declaring “our churches are open to all who want to come in”. He was murdered in January 1994.

The brutality of this persecution forced many Iranian Christians to meet in underground churches, but, as is often the case with persecution, it strengthened and encouraged the Iranian church rather than destroying it. There is currently an extensive network of underground churches in more than 40 cities across Iran, largely consisting of recent believers from Muslim backgrounds, and recent developments such as Christian satellite broadcasting are reaching millions more. The website of 222 Ministries (www.222ministries. com) contains many testimonies from Iranian Christians and stories of how the church in Iran is growing – Muslim clerics, leaders of mosques, drug addicts and prostitutes all testify to the power of Christ. 222 Ministries even run an online theological college which currently has over 800 students, including Muslim clerics, and their staff members receive 1,000 phone calls a month from Iranians wanting to commit their lives to Christ. Lazarus Yeghnazar, the President of 222 Ministries International, calmly states that “conservative estimates put the size of the Iranian church at over one million people”. The scale of this revival is astonishing.

Naturally, spiritual warfare being what it is, the persecution of the church in Iran is intensifying, a testimony to the size and momentum of this revival. Since April 2008 there have been 53 arrests of Iranian Christians all over the country – in Tehran, Mashad, Esfahan, Shiraz and elsewhere. In July 2008 an elderly Christian couple were leading a gospel meeting at their house church in Esfahan and baptising new believers in a tub of water in their lounge when their house was raided. The police were particularly incensed when they discovered that the husband, Abbas Amiri, was a respected haji who had visited Mecca on several occasions and who had also fought for Iran during the Iran-Iraq war. He was beaten and died on his way to hospital. His wife Sakineh Rahnama later died of shock. Recently the Iranian government provisionally passed legislation demanding the death penalty for Muslims who leave Islam – previously courts could hand down hard labour sentences or jail terms instead, but the death penalty could soon be the only option. The flourishing church is not the only evidence that many Iranians are unhappy with their government – for example, a United Nations report in 2005 revealed that Iran has the highest drug addiction rate in the world, and the Iran Press Service reported in 2006 that government agencies are considering creating legalised brothels to combat a massive rise in prostitution. It’s hard to escape the conclusion that something is rotten in the state of Iran.

Although precise statistics regarding the church in Iran are hard to come by – it’s an underground church, after all – what is clear from many sources and from the increasingly desperate restrictions introduced by the Iranian government is that the message of Christ is spreading in Iran, and spreading fast. Lazarus Yeghnazar believes that the church around the world needs to be prepared for an avalanche of new believers both inside Iran and in the extensive Iranian diaspora around the world, and wants Christians to pray for this as a matter of urgency. The ancient bones of the church in Iran, dating back to the time of the apostles, are coming to life in thrilling fashion, providing a wonderful example of the power of Christ over the plans of men.

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Church Finding

Theology / Church

When people hear that I worked in South Asia for many years they often ask “Were you involved in Church Planting?” Oddly enough, the answer to that is “No, not really.” It was more like Church Finding. Church Finding is a lot easier and probably more fun, though just as stressful.

There are seasons of sowing and of reaping. My great uncle served in South Asia in the 1950s and 60s, and saw no church growth among the Muslim community whatsoever. In 1995, on our first Home Assignment, we went to visit him. He had been diagnosed with cancer and we spent a lovely day with him. At one point just he and I were sitting together. “Tell me” he said. “Are there any believers from the Muslim community at all?.” I was able to tell him of meeting forty men in the city in which he had worked. Then he started to cry. Quietly wiping a tear from his cheek, he said in a soft voice “I gave up hope you know. Oh, I worked with the church and we saw tribal people and others come to faith. But we didn’t see anyone from the Muslim community. I didn’t think it was possible” Six weeks later he went to meet Jesus face to face knowing that God was able to do more than he could have thought or imagined.

Since the mid 90s, numbers have grown. Conservative estimates of this new form of Muslimbackground church in our region are 50,000! Some estimates are a lot higher. Much of my role was finding new groups of believers, listening to their stories and documenting them, and helping link them to other groups around the region. It also involved walking beside a couple of key leaders as they looked at what it meant to follow Jesus coming from their heritage and in their setting.

Leaders are subject to huge pressures. I would like to report that the guys I walked beside did really well and had no problems. That would, however, be to embellish the truth. As it was, some of them grew in maturity and leadership, but others struggled with issues like finance, use and abuse of power, personal integrity, and didn’t really give clear guidance on some major theological issues.

Nor were the problems confined to leadership. The growing groups saw almost all the problems of the New Testament churches and even some problems that hadn’t been invented then. When the church grows so quickly there are bound to be problems, but there is also bound to be real growth, maturity and solid foundations. I saw an illiterate young man explain to the police the basis to his faith, that it wasn’t illogical or immoral, and that he refused to turn back. I saw families have their crops destroyed and their irrigation systems wrecked, and yet they acted with love and compassion towards the very families who were attacking them.

So the question arises: what real advice can a foreigner give to groups going through genuine, gut-wrenching, painful persecution? Can any advice be more than just fine sounding words from a rich person with a passport? Fortunately, I was able to draw on the experience of others who had been through such times themselves. They were able to give the call – “Be faithful.” In the midst of this there are three things that stand out as helpful for people and groups under attack for their faith.

1. Memorise scripture. The more the word dwells in our hearts, the more it guides our heart responses in times of trouble. And if it’s memorised it is with us in the times when our Bibles are taken from us.

2. Have a heart song. Have a song that embraces all that’s dear to you about Jesus. Sing it daily. Have it embedded in your heart. In those times of hardship, that song will help shine his light into your heart.

3. The believing community commits to look after your family. If someone is taken away from their family, maybe put in jail, what happens to their family is a major concern. One thing that helps hold people firm is to know that the rest of the community has committed beforehand to look after the family. No matter what the situation, no matter the amount of mud flung or violence used, others will work to look after the family. If I know that, then I can face what is thrown at me.

Being involved with the rapidly reproducing church is fantastic. To see lives transformed by Christ, and to see this happen time and again touches our hearts in deep ways. There are problems, of course. There are real hurts, mistakes and wounds. However, many testify that “it’s worth it.” The change in people’s lives, the joy that is radiated and the peace that fills them is thrillingly infectious. Having come back from South Asia where this change is now expected and planned for, it’s been an adjustment to come to churches in the UK who fear that they are dying or have little hope that a ‘mission’ will transform many people. The body of Christ is growing dramatically around the world. For those in areas where it doesn’t seem to be, take heart. He is able to do more than we could think or imagine.

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