The Christian Revolution.

mar-tyr (mar' ter) n. [< from the Greek word for "witness"] 1) One who chooses to suffer death rather than deny Jesus Christ of His work. 2) One who bears testimony to the truth of what he has seen or heard or knows, as in a witness in a court of justice. 3) One who sacrifices something very important to further the kingdom of God. 4) One who endures severe or constant suffering for their Christian witness. 5) A Jesus Freak.

Across the courtroom, the young man on trail continued preaching. The jury fidgeted nervously as he told of their religious heritage and forefathers. What did Abraham and Moses have to do with Jesus? Another yound man in the audience, about the same age as the defendant, seemed not to be listening. His mind was already make up on the matter of this Jesus follower. The crowd of Jewish leaders, however, grew more agitated at every word from the young defendant.

Suddenly the preacher turned to the audience. "You stubborn and hardheaded people! You’re always fighting against the Holy Spirit, just like your ancestors did. They killed the prophets who told about the coming of the Righteous One. And now you have turned against Him and killed Him. You have received the law of God, but you have not kept it.

When the crowd head this, they were even more furious, but the defendant ignored their growing anger. His race glowed like that of an angel, and he stopped talking and pointed to the ceiling. "Look! I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God."

This was too much. Yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him. They dragged him out of the city to stone him. He continued preaching all the way.

The young man who had been in the audience, one Saul of Tarsus, followed after them. He stood a short distance away from the defendant, looking steadily at the sky as the mob grew larger. The cries grew more heated now. A man handed Saul his coat, then stooped to pick up a stone as though waiting for a signal from Saul. Saul lowered his gaze, then looked directly into the man’s eyes and nodded. It was time to silence the young preacher.

Stephen, the defendant, continued despite the crowd’s jeers, because the Man he was telling them about was so important to him. He couldn’t stop talking about Him. Several more men had now removed their coats, handed them to Saul, and began gathering rocks, many of them so large that the men had to lift them with two hands.

"This blasphemer must be dealt with!"

"He speaks against Moses!"

"We don’t want to hear about your Jesus anymore!"

A rock sailed past Stephen’s head. He stopped speaking long enough to duck it, dazed for a moment, then stood to continue. The second rock caught him near his temple, and he fell to his knees. Another hit his shoulder. Then there were too many to count.

"No more Jesus talk!"

"Let this be a lesson to al who would proclaim this Jesus!"

Another stone found its mark. Then another. He couldn’t open his eyes for the sting of the blood. His clothes were torn by the blows and blood dripped freely from the tatters. He began to pray, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." Then he scanned the crowd until his eyes locked with those of the young man who held a bundle of coats. "And Lord," he continued, "do not hold this sin against them."

When he said those words, Stephen died.

Slowly men gathered their coats from young Saul, who was soon alone with the body of the young preacher. Saul had come to Jerusalem to help silence this growing craze about Jesus of Nazareth. Despite his hatred, he could not shake the young man’s words and how fearlessly he had faced death. He stood staring at the body of the first martyr for Jesus. The glow that had so angered Saul was still on the young man’s face. He had seen it as the smug pride of a heretic, but could it have been something else? He quenched the thought and turned away, more determined than ever to crush this Jesus movement.

The teens could tell that the shouts and chanting were getting closer and closer. An older teen nervously looked at his friend. "The Muslims are coming. We’d better hide the kids," he said. Others, following his lead, helped the smaller children find hiding places in the buildings nearby. Then they hid themselves.

It was January and a crowd of mostly Christian children and teenagers had gathered for a Bible camp at the Station Field Complex of Pattimura University on the Island of Ambon, Indonesia. When the camp was over, cars came to take the laughing, rejoicing children back to their homes. But there were not enough cars to hold the young people.

Mecky Sainyakit and three other Christian men had gone to Wakal village to try to rent additional transportation to take the rest home. But they had not yet come back.

What the kids waiting for rides home didn’t know was that on their way to the village, the men were attacked by a Muslim mob, who pulled them from their car and out onto the road. Mecky and one of the other men were stabbed to death, and later their bodies were burned by the mob. The two other men escaped with their lives.

Before long, the mob reached the University. They found many of the teens and forced them to come out of hiding.

Roy Pontoh was forced from his hiding place and made to stand before the mob.

"Renounce your Jesus, or we will kill you!" they threatened.

Roy was terribly frightened. Though trembling, he answered, "I am a soldier of Christ!"

At this one of the Muslim attackers swung a sword at his stomach. The sword hit the Bible Roy held, and ripped into it, knocking it out of Roy’s hand. The man’s next swing sliced open Roy’s stomach. His last word was "Jesus."

The mob dragged Roy’s body out and threw it in a ditch. Four days later, his family found it. Even though they were wracked with grief, Roy’s parents stand proud of their son, who stood strong in his faith to the end.

~~

Mary Khoury, 17 years old, Damour, Lebanon, During the Lebanese civil war, 1975-1992

Mary Khoury and her family were forced to their knees before their home. The leader of the Muslim fanatics who had raided their village waved his pistol carelessly before their faces. His hatred for Christians burned in his eyes. "If you do not become a Muslim," he threatened, "you will be shot."

Mary knew Jesus had been given a similar choice, "Give up Your plan to save sinners, or You will be crucified." He chose the cross.

Mary’s choice was similar. "I was baptized a Christian, and His word came to me: ‘Don’t deny your faith.’ I will obey Him. Go ahead and shoot." The report of a gun from behind her echoed in the valley and Mary’s body fell limply to the ground.

Two days later, the Red Cross came into her village. Of all her family, Mary was the only one still alive. But the bullet had cut her spinal cord, leaving both her arms paralyzed. They were stretched out from her body and bent at the elbows, reminiscent of Jesus at His crucifixion. She could do nothing with them.

More words from the Lord came to Mary. Even though she was now handicapped. She knew God had a plan for her life.

"Everyone has a vocation," She said. "I can never marry or do any physical work. So I will offer by life for the Muslims, like the one who cut my father’s throat, cursed my mother and stabbed her, and then tried to kill me. My life will be a prayer for them."

~~~~

"I found one!" The Inquisitor held up the forbidden book as he called to his assistant. "Bring in the mayor and his family. Someone is studying the Bible in this house!"

In the 16^th century, Philip II sent the Duke of Alba to Flanders to stamp out the Protestants who insisted on reading the Scriptures in their own language. Anyone found studying the bible was hanged, drowned, torn to pieces, or burned alive at the stake.

The Inquisitors had found a Bible while inspecting the house of Mayor Brugge. One by one, family members were questioned, but everyone claimed they knew nothing about how the Bible got to their house.

Finally the officials asked the young maid-servant, Wrunken, who boldly declared, "I am reading it!"

The mayor, knowing the penalty for studying the Bible, tried to defend her, saying, "Oh, no, she only owns it. She doesn’t ever read from it."

But Wrunken chose not to be defended by a lie. "This book is mine. I am reading from it, and it is more precious to me than anything!"

She was sentences to die by suffocation. A place would be hollowed in the city wall, she would be tied in it, and the opening would be bricked over.

On the day of the execution, as she stood by the wall, an official tried to get her to change her mind, saying, "So young and beautiful – and yet to die."

Wrunken replied, "My Savior died for me. I will also die for Him."

As the bricks were laid higher and higher, she was warned again, "You will suffocate and die in here!"

"I will be with Jesus," she answered.

Finally, the wall was finished, except for the one brick that would cover her face. For the last time, the official tried to persuade her. "Repent – just say the word and you will go free."

But Wrunken refused, saying instead, "Oh Lord, forgive my murderers."

The brick was put in place. Many years later, her bones were removes from the wall and buried in the cemetery of Brugge.

~~

Used with permission. From "Jesus Freaks" copyright 1999 Bethany House Publishers and Voice of the Martyrs Inc.