Johnnie Moore - We Are One: Walking by Faith with the Persecuted Church

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We Are One: Walking by Faith with the Persecuted Church

Copyright 2018 by Johnnie Moore. All rights reserved.

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Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one.

JOHN 17:11

ON THE NIGHT before Jesus was crucified, he prayed for his disciplesnot just for the ones who were with him in the Garden of Gethsemane but also for us today. What was on Jesus heart when the Cross was in his sights was that all believersin his time and in the futuremay be one.

We live in fractured times of political, cultural, and religious division, even among those who claim to follow Christ. But Jesus prayer for us is a reminder that deeper and stronger than the things that divide us is the bond we share. We are one.

It is amazing, then, that for many Christians in the West, we have forgotten a large part of the family of God. According to some estimates, a Christian is martyred for his or her faith every five minutes. Christians in Egypt have experienced more persecution in the last five years than in the previous six hundred years combined. Groups like ISIS and Boko Haram terrorize Christians in the Middle East and Africa, and atheistic regimes in China and North Korea have worked to sideline and silence Christians. And the West is largely silent.

How can this be when we are one?

The goal of this devotional is to remember our brothers and sisters around the world who are suffering and dying because of their love for Jesus. But more than remembering them, we need to pray for them. We need to serve them. We need to identify with them. We need to be them.

Jesus prayer is that we may be one. That is my prayer as well as you read these stories of those who have faced persecution around the world. Each devotion includes a short prayer that will help you as you intercede on behalf of your brothers and sisters facing persecution.

These devotions are a good place to start in identifying with those who are persecuted, but there are many more resources available to you through organizations like Open Doors USA (www.opendoorsusa.org) or my own organization, The KAIROS Trust (www.theKAIROStrust.com). My book The Martyrs Oath also contains more information about persecution worldwide as well as what you can do to support persecuted Christians. Ive included the introduction and first chapter of that book at the back of this devotional. (You can take your stand with Christians around the world in harms way at www.MartyrsOath.com.)

The apostle Paul wrote, There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all (Ephesians 4:4-6). There is one Lord over all of us who claim the name of Christ. We are one. My prayer is that we will live this reality.

Johnnie Moore

August 2017

Everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.

MATTHEW 19:29

PERSECUTED CHRISTIANS know what its like to rely on God for their daily needs. Often theyve had to learn this lesson when everything was taken from them quickly and unexpectedly. Even while I was writing this book, one Egyptian village was nearly destroyed. Eighty Christian homes were looted and burned to the ground.

All of this was for one reason, because of a rumor that the Christians intended to build a new church in the city. When jihadist fanatics attacked, the police largely stood on the sidelines. These families watched as all they had was taken away and their homes were burned to ashes. Their kids toys and family photos, their lives and livelihoods gone.

We all hope this is an experience we never have, but we must believe that God would be with us if it did happen. He will provide what we need and reward us for our sacrifice on his account.

Heres a fact you can count on: God will always take care of you. That doesnt mean that youll always have what you want. It doesnt mean that your cupboards wont be empty and your bank account wont run dry. Its not a guarantee of an easy life.

It is a guarantee of provision. It is a guarantee of enough.

God will give you enough of what you need when you need it, and he will give you enough grace to get through when its hard to see the way, though God often doesnt give you too much, because he wants you to walk by faith. He knows youre better off if you know you need him every day.

God, be with my brothers and sisters who will lose their homes and lives today for you. May their testimony bring you glory and bring countless people to you. God, be with me today as I struggle to walk by faith. I thank you that you are always here for me, in abundance and in poverty.