Pastor Richard Wurmbrand passed from this world 15 years ago this month. Although he died before I was able to meet him, I had the privilege of working for the ministry that he founded--The Voice of the Martyrs, a mission to the persecuted church which was originally called Jesus to the Communist World.
How would Pastor Wurmbrand view what is happening today--especially the genocide being committed by the Islamic State against ancient Christian communities in Syria and Iraq? Perhaps no differently than his view of persecution during the cold war--an opinion shaped by his own experience of enduring 14-years in prison during Romania's communist era.
Wurmbrand was tortured for his faith, and forced to spend three years in solitary confinement in a dank, windowless prison cell 12 feet below the ground.
But after hearing many of his sermons, and reading many of his books--including Tortured for Christ--I don't recall him ever complaining about his suffering for Jesus.
Wurmbrand often spoke about the many blessings that come from suffering. He said his three years in solitary were among the most cherished moments of his spiritual walk because Jesus visited him, and he felt God's love during his worst hours in the prison cell.
Traveling the global lane, I have met many persecuted Christians who possess an enduring love for Christ. Most overcame their persecution because they embraced an eternal faith, they knew their suffering was only temporal, and their reward was ultimately in heaven.
So, on the anniversary of Richard Wurmbrand's death, let's remember our Christian family members around the world who are suffering for their faith. Let us not be dismayed by what is happening because of ISIS, or any other evildoers.
As Pastor Wurmbrand taught us, let us be assured that God uses the suffering to grow his church, to bring about blessing. And let us not be afraid to speak out on behalf of the persecuted, to be a voice for the martyrs.
Watch this VOM video to hear Wurmbrand tell the story of an imprisoned Christian who shared Christ with her captor: