Iranian believers in jeopardy, stay committed

OneNewsNow ^ | 10-2-2011 | Charlie Butts

[ReformationFan]

The church in Iran is growing and Christians are excited about it, despite persecution. Most Christians in Iran are remaining steadfast to their faith in spite of pressure from the government. Michael Wood of Open Doors USA recently returned from the Middle East and explains the spiritual climate there. “The government has gotten wind of what's going on and as you can understand they don't like it, so we see some repercussions that [have] happened,” Wood says. “The house church is coming under a lot of pressure -- freedoms are even more taken away from individuals that had been found to be in house churches, and just being a Christian in general.” The ministry spokesman says that those in Iran who claim to be believers, truly are committed Christians. “It's authentic. It's not something that you would just say, just to say,” he explains. “Most people when they make a commitment to follow Christ, to follow the Lord, it's a decision they know there's some repercussions that could happen and it could mean their lives, it could mean imprisonment, losing a job, family members.” Open Doors does Bible distribution, works with house church leaders, especially with training, and provides support for families that have Christian loved ones in jail.