If you are a follower of Jesus today, there is a very real chance – at least in many parts of the globe – that you will have to pay for your faith with your life. There have been more Christians killed in the past hundred years than throughout the previous nineteen hundred years of Christianity. Indeed, there are more than 200 million Christians today who do not have full religious freedom simply because they have confessed Jesus Christ as Lord.
The recent killing of three Christians in Turkey is one more example of this. Necati Aydin, Ugur Yuksel, and Tilmann Geske were the first Turkish martyrs since 1923 A detailed account of their martyrdom has just been released, and the story is worth recounting. Thanks to Elizabeth Kendal from the Religious Liberty Commission of the World Evangelical Alliance for passing it on.
(The following report from Martin Bucer Seminary (MBS) Bonn, Germany, was compiled by Titus Vogt, MBS Dean of International Programs. The English translation was done by Thomas K. Johnson, Ph.D., MBS Professor of Apologetics and Ethics.)
It seems their murderers first gained their trust some months ago. “Clearly the attack was planned well in advance. On the morning of 18 April, two of the murderers came to the office of Zirve Publishing House in Malatya. . . . Among other things, they discussed the Christian faith with Necati Aydin, as they had done frequently over the previous months. On this particular morning, in addition to Tilmann Geske, the bookkeeper, Emin M., was also in the office. Everything seemed to be completely normal. In the course of the morning, M. left the office, not suspecting that he would never see Aydin and Geske alive again.”
“Shortly thereafter the three other assassins arrived and tied up the first two victims, while they threatened them with pistols. As soon as the victims were tied up, the murderers began stabbing them with knives all over their bodies. A short time later Ugur Yuksel came into the office; he was immediately grabbed by the murderers and tied up.”
“When the police arrived a few minutes later, the victims were still alive. The police demanded that the criminals open the door, at which they slit the throats of the victims. When the police forced the door and stormed the office, they found Aydin and Geske already dead. Yuksel was still alive and was rushed to a local hospital. In spite of emergency surgery and 51 units of blood, he died of his numerous and massive knife wounds.”
“The autopsy reports lead to the following picture: The bodies were covered with about 156 knife wounds in the pelvis area, lower body, anus, abdomen, and back. Their fingertips had been sliced repeatedly; and they had massive slashes on their necks which severed the windpipe and oesophagus.”
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Christian Martyrs and the Power of Forgiveness
If you are a follower of Jesus today, there is a very real chance – at least in many parts of the globe – that you will have to pay for your faith with your life. There have been more Christians killed in the past hundred years than throughout the previous nineteen hundred years of Christianity. Indeed, there are more than 200 million Christians today who do not have full religious freedom simply because they have confessed Jesus Christ as Lord.
By: Bill Muehlenberg
Posted: Thursday, 3 May 2007, 0:14 (EST)
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