At several steps on their path to death by beheading and crucifixion last month, 11 indigenous Christian workers near Aleppo, Syria had the option to leave the area and live. The 12-year-old son of a ministry team leader also could have spared his life by denying Christ.
The indigenous missionaries were not required to stay at their ministry base in a village near Aleppo, Syria; rather, the ministry director who trained them had entreated them to leave. As the Islamic State (ISIS), other rebel groups and Syrian government forces turned Aleppo into a war zone of carnage and destruction, ISIS took over several outlying villages. The Syrian ministry workers in those villages chose to stay in order to provide aid in the name of Christ to survivors.
"I asked them to leave, but I gave them the freedom to choose," said the ministry director, his voice tremulous as he recalled their horrific deaths. "As...
REV. 14:12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus. 14:13 And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.
"The Syrian ministry workers in those villages chose to stay in order to provide aid in the name of Christ to survivors. "I asked them to leave, but I gave them the freedom to choose," said the ministry director, his voice tremulous as he recalled their horrific deaths"
Matthew 5:11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. 12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.
REV. 15:2 And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God. 15:3
And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints. 15:4 Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest.
That which is taking place in the east at this time is very sobering and the reports vary with the source.
It seems Christian Aid which is a 501c3 has the advantage of training indigenous missionaries. Their site said they began with an outreach to university students many of whom returned to their respective nations after their education. I was involved years ago with one such group but I didn't see too much encouraging going on, though the opportunity was great and open. The Chinese students I was involved with were for the most part too busy to care about spiritual things, academia was first. That is accept for one dear one, but her great loneliness for home caused her to marry a fellow Chinese student and she moved away to his university setting. I could only hope the Lord continued to work in her life.
That was close to 20 years ago. Maybe these indigenous students have become more open to truth with all the discomforting world events. I looked at their (C.A.) statement of faith and saw the picture of Jesus next to it. That makes me cringe.
It certainly seemed God gave great upholding grace to these poor sufferers and that it was a great affliction to the missions director.
It is ultimately what Christ knows and does that matters. He gathers his elect
And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. Rev 20:4
COMMENTS 
locked 
System Notice
