Entrusted With the Gospel

Have you ever spent loads of time and maybe even a good bit of money making a very special gift for someone? Maybe you’ve saved and scrimped and sacrificed to be able to purchase something extravagant for someone important to you. When you go to great lengths to thoughtfully create or buy something special for a loved one, you hope the recipient will treasure it and appreciate the hard work and expense involved.

I wonder sometimes if, even at my age, I’ve learned to appreciate some of the most valuable gifts the Lord has placed in my hands. Have I stewarded well all that He’s given me? How faithfully have I honored the sacrifice He’s made to be able to call me His child?

There’s an excellent series available through streaming called “Jesus the Game Changer.” Karl Faase interviews men and women all over the world who’ve recognized what Jesus has done for them and whose lives have been revolutionized by that realization. Their subsequent ministries have impacted not only people’s living conditions, but most importantly their eternities.

Two women from Iran, Maryam Rostampour and Marziyeh Amirizadeh, have a powerful story. Both women grew up in Iran and were educated in Islamic doctrine. As young girls, neither of them knew each other, but both passionately desired to know God.

In her quest, Maryam was told to just repeat the “namaz,” an Islamic prayer, but that exercise failed to bring her closer to God. Marziyeh asked questions of her teachers to better understand Who God was but was told to not question her faith.

As teenagers in Iran, each woman encountered Jesus in her own way. Maryam’s sister brought home a booklet containing Luke’s gospel. She devoured the contents, reading it over and over. Finally, she prayed the written prayer at the end of the booklet, surrendering her heart to Jesus.

Marziyeh was introduced to Jesus in a dream. Shortly thereafter, a friend visited her and told her about His love for her and how He had died on the cross to save her from her sins. She hesitantly placed her trust in Him, pleading fervently with God to redirect her steps if she were misguided in her decision. That was never needed. Marziyeh believed, and Jesus did not disappoint.

 Through different avenues, these Bible-thirsty new believers both ended up in Turkey, where they had ready access to the Word and to instruction in the ways of Jesus. It was there that Maryam and Marziyeh met and discovered a mutual passion for sharing God’s love and Word, most especially with the beloved people of Iran.

Recognizing the power of the Word, they determined to get copies of it into the hands of as many of the Iranian people as possible. Pastors from London supplied New Testaments to them, and Maryam and Marziyeh strategically distributed them throughout the city of Tehran. With their backpacks stuffed, they made nightly runs, dropping off New Testaments in mailboxes all over the city. Over the course of three years, over 20,000 copies were passed out. Although they encountered a few episodes of harassment, they were miraculously never arrested by local officials.

The ladies also started house churches among communities of prostitutes and young people eager to know more about Jesus. In 2009, however, their ministry came to an abrupt halt when they were arrested and detained.

Life in the cells at the police station was unpleasant, to say the least. Cold concrete floors were softened only by urine-soaked blankets. Days passed with no food or water provided. Interrogations complete with threats of physical harm were daily occurrences. The officials demanded the names of their Bible suppliers and the people who attended their churches. Maryam and Marziyeh stood silent.

In their misery, they prayed for freedom – until one day, they realized that in the jail, God was giving them a daily influx of new prisoners who had never heard the gospel. God worked through these two missionaries as they listened to the stories of the women, prayed with and for them, and shared His love with them. No longer were they seeking out prostitutes to witness to. God was bringing the prostitutes to them!

Eventually, Maryam and Marziyeh were transferred to Evin Prison, a place for political prisoners. They were housed in Wing 209, notorious for brutal interrogations, harassment, and torture. Again, their lives were threatened as were the lives of their family members. Fellow inmates mocked them and called them “dirty Christians.” But the two women determined to pray for them all and to demonstrate by their behavior the love of Christ. They had no Bible so they decided to double down on practicing what they already knew from God’s Word. He used their faithful example to slowly soften the hearts of the other women in Wing 209. Tragically, many of their newfound friends would not survive their stay there.

Maryam and Marziyeh would have a very different outcome. Unknown to them, influential world leaders and powerful organizations were rallying for their release and pressuring the Iranian government to comply. Unexpectedly, they were given the gift of freedom.

While they were grateful to everyone who was involved in securing their emancipation, they were devastated to leave their friends behind. Evin Prison had changed their hearts and their perspective. They recognized the value of their salvation, and they were weighed down with the burden to share it with the suffering and oppressed. Unable to do that safely in Iran, they relocated to the United States, carrying in their hearts the faces and names of those left behind. They saw that God’s purpose was for them to be witnesses to the stories of injustice – so that the world might know and act.

The lives of Maryam and Marziyeh teach us that although we may enjoy the luxury of freedom, we must do more than enjoy it. We must shoulder the responsibilities and high standards that come with that freedom. We must advocate for the oppressed and do our part – no matter how small and no matter where God has placed us – to look after the victims of unjust circumstances.

As Karl Faase wrapped up the story of these two brave, faithful Iranian women, he concluded with the thought that we’re saved by grace and we’re also held captive by grace. Freedom in Christ places on every believer the responsibility to share the good news that’s liberated us from sin’s bondage. Let us never undervalue the priceless gift of our salvation. Let us faithfully, boldly, and joyfully steward our positions as Christ’s ambassadors as we share that great treasure with a world in need.

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“You are not your own. For you were bought with a price; therefore, glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.” – 1 Corinthians 6:19b-20