The Apostle Paul began the 12th chapter of Hebrews stating: “Therefore, since we also have such a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us…” (NASB20). Paul is of course referencing certain ancestors of our Judeo Christian heritage, who he wrote about in the preceding chapter of Hebrews.
After attending the recent BTJ Voices of the Persecuted Conference (VOP) and hearing the conference speakers, this writer felt that he had been in the presence of “a great cloud of witnesses.” The VOP speakers, much like the matriarchs and patriarchs of Hebrews chapter 11, endured and overcame tremendous hardship and persecution through faith.
The entire VOP conference was very moving and almost overwhelming at times. However, there were several specific moments that stood out to me.
First, seeing Brother Yun and his son Isaac at the conference together, reminded me of a story from Brother Yun’s autobiography, The Heavenly Man. At one point, both Brother Yun and his wife were each in prison. During this timeframe, both Isaac and his sister were homeless and living on the street. Thus, it was very encouraging to see Isaac alive, healthy, and serving in the ministry like his parents.
Second, Esther Chang is the only known living person to have been imprisoned in both China and North Korea. During a Q&A session, she was asked to describe what serving in Christian ministry in North Korea is like compared to serving in Christian ministry in China. She responded that in China you can be imprisoned, but in North Korea you can be killed for simply being a Christian. Thus, she also stated that “China feels like freedom compared to North Korea.”
Third, Andrew Brunson stated that he believed that Christians in both Europe and North America will experience persecution. He stated that the way to prepare for persecution is to prepare your heart. Even if Western Christians never personally experience severe persecution, we need to partner with Christians who do experience severe persecution. Either way, we should prepare our hearts for whatever comes.
Thus, Brunson’s call to prepare our hearts, reminds this writer of what the Apostle wrote after the aforementioned: “Therefore, since we also have such a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us…” (Hebrews 12:1, NASB20). Paul wrote: “let’s rid ourselves of every obstacle and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let’s run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking only at Jesus…” (Hebrews 12:1-2, NASB20).
