In a previous article, we heard about the cultural pressures that Christians in southern Russia face from the majority Muslim and Russian Orthodox cultures. (Read the full story here.) Today we’ll take another look at their faith and at what they would say to believers in other parts of the world. 

 

Russia (MNN) — In any area hostile to the gospel of Jesus, there is still urgency to share that gospel. That’s because Jesus’ command to go and make disciples of all nations applies to every Christian and every context.

(Map of Caucasus regions courtesy of Flalf via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0)

“[Sharing your faith] is where a clear belief that ‘God is bigger than human resistance’ is very important,” says Eric Mock with Slavic Gospel Association.

For believers in the regions known as the Caucasus, “they are faithful to declare the gospel to all people, recognizing that all of their mechanisms, all of their creativity is not the answer that brings people to faith. It is God working in their hearts.”

Mock is reminded of the odds stacked against the early church.

“You can only imagine the amount of pushback that they faced from Jew and Greek alike. No one wanted Christians around, yet they were faithful and the church flourished,” he says. “[Believers in the Caucasus] know if they weren’t there, who would advance the gospel? So as they advance the gospel, they’re confident that God will add to their numbers as He turns hearts to Him.”

Two messages to the Western Church

Mock shares two messages from Christians in these regions for the Church in the West. The first is a request for prayer, but not that things get easier. “They feel that God has raised them up for such a time as this. So we pray for their strength, their endurance, and the wisdom and the faithfulness [to press on].”

The second message is much like what the Apostle Paul’s wrote in 1 Corinthians 11:1: “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.”

Prayer pixabay

“[Persecution] finds you in an environment where you hold onto God’s Word and God’s truth, and you’re willing to die for your faith.” – Eric Mock with SGA (Stock photo obtained via Pixabay)

Mock explains, “They would ask that we would see their example, learn from them and be faithful in our environment. A lot of the assaults that we (in the West) face are quite a bit more insidious.”

These include pressures from social media, government policies — and even the tempting pull of church congregations that have abandoned biblical tenets on marriage and sexuality.

“They would tell you that persecution refines all that. It finds you in an environment where you hold onto God’s Word and God’s truth, and you’re willing to die for your faith,” Mock says.

“[These believers] would ask that we would learn from this in the good times, when we have this freedom, that we would seek God, know Him more and trust in Him more so that when persecution does come, the fruit that is squeezed out of our life reveals the gospel and reveals Christ.”

Click here to learn more here about how SGA serves the Church. 

 

Header photo is a representative stock image courtesy of Nathan Dumlao via Unsplash.