The Liberty of Grace – and Why the Church is Persecuted (Galatians 5)
Last Sunday while we were holding our service, Islamist militants “slaughtered” some 30 churchgoers in north-eastern Nigeria. The Bishop of Yola told the BBC the insurgents had locked the church and “cut people’s throats” in Waga Chakawa village, Adamawa state. On the same day, militants also attacked Kawuri village in neighbouring Borno, killing 52 people. Both assaults were blamed on the Boko Haram group. The name means “Western education is forbidden” – is especially active in the north-east of the country. Boko Haram wants to impose a severe form of Islamic law, and has been blamed for thousands of deaths in Nigeria.
The Liberty of Grace from Stephen Sizer on Vimeo.
The Bishop of Yola, Mamza Dami Stephen, said parishioners described how the insurgents had arrived on trucks and locked the church “towards the end of the service”. “Some people tried to escape through the windows and the [attackers] shot at them,” the bishop said. The militants set off bombs, before burning houses and taking residents hostage during a four-hour siege. The bishop said locals were gripped by terror. “Everybody is living in fear,” he explained. “There is no protection. We cannot predict where and when they are going to attack. People can’t sleep with their eyes closed.” Open Doors asks us to pray for God’s comfort and grace to reach all affected by these tragic incidents and that there will be an end to this cruel war against the people of Nigeria, and Christians in particular. But what happened in Nigeria last Sunday should not surprise us. This is the Open Doors 2013 Watch List.
Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31-32). But the truth is dangerous for many in our world today. And Christians in the South and East, it seems, are willing to pay the price to stand for Jesus. Yet in the West, we have domesticated Him. We don’t necessarily see the link between truth and freedom. We probably don’t experience opposition to our faith on a daily basis. So we take freedom for granted and we are liable to compromise the truth. When was the last time you brought Jesus into a conversation at a dinner party or meal with friends or neighbours? Die for Jesus on the streets of Virginia Water? I don’t think so. Hard to imagine. In November each year, we pause for two minutes silence to remember the names of people from Virginia Water who gave their lives to preserve our freedoms and defend us from fascism and totalitarianism. Imagine if those lists were the names of Christian brothers and sisters from our church family who had given their lives in the service of Christ? Would we honour them differently? What of those Christ followers in Syria, Iraq, Iran, North Korea, and many parts of the world, for whom the persecution Paul writes of in our passage today is the norm. Can we take it for granted that it won’t happen in our country?
Continue reading →