Persecution: Visits Used by God or by Men?

 Most of you are aware that high-ranking churchmen from our country have visited persecuted lands  recently and in years past and come back with glowing reports of how free and easy it is to be a Christian in those lands. They are not aware that when they leave, some of the believers that they helped "flush out" by what seemed to be a thaw of the government's policy, are rounded up and put in prison or worse. They are -seemingly - not aware of the way they are being used by the government for propaganda. If they are aware they write it off as a decent bargain for the opportunity of preaching Jesus. Which means they are also unaware that Jesus is being preached in those lands already by the nationals.

Why do our brothers feel they must visit these lands? The answer to that question, when given by me, can only sound like a judgment. And I am not their Lord or their Judge. I leave it with them and with Him. But how I wish I could encourage them to stay home.

There are many ways to help the suffering church. Many many believers worldwide are praying, supporting, sending material goods, writing letters, visiting secretly, even moving to harsh countries as teachers and businessmen to be near the saints in trouble. The big-name  evangelists don't seem to fit into that pattern of help. And when they come back reporting to us that suffering hardly exists, what horrible insults they give to those who are already hurting enough.

Tonight in Ethiopia an elder of a Mennonite church sits in prison for allegedly "insulting" the prophet Muhammad. What he did was to refuse to sell his property to a nearby mosque.

In Kashmir, India,  this evening a family tries to recover from the murder of their husband and father, Tantray. He dared to convert to Christ from Islam.

In Vietnam, a nation that even our government is now saying does not persecute, a manual has been found that outlines a plan to subdue the rapid growth of Protestantism.

In Pakistan, two Christians have been  assaulted in their own church by armed and drunken Muslims.

If our famous men visit these countries, will they bring back such reports, or only stories of the great crowds who gathered to hear them? Will they help us to see the true picture of the cross or only pictures of their "crusade"?

Oh yes, Christ is preached, and we must be glad. But does Christ ask His men to deceive for the privilege of preaching? Is there any clue in the New Testament that God's men are to behave this way? Did not God's true men risk their lives to preach the truth? Join me in praying for God to block the entrance of men who will do more damage than good. And that God will continue to use the "little" men and women and children of persecuted lands to bring about His glory.

Thanks for your visit! Go to https://www.icommittopray.com/ for regular updates on the persecuted church. Check out my books at Amazon.com. Send me a message at bobdiakonos7@gmail.com