The Saddest Sign Of All

The Saddest Sign Of All

Another specific sign of the end-times is being fulfilled in dozens of countries throughout the globe even while you are reading this�can you name it? In Luke 21:7,12,16,17 Jesus answered his disciples when they asked him about the signs of the end-times�
�Teacher," they asked, "when will all this take place? And will there be any sign ahead of time?" And he said�there will be a time of great persecution. You will be dragged into synagogues and prisons, and you will be accused before kings and governors of being my followers�Even those closest to you-your parents, brothers, relatives, and friends-will betray you..some of you will be killed. And everyone will hate you because of your allegiance to me.�

So many of us think that the time of the worst persecution of the church occurred back in the 1st and 2nd centuries when Roman emperors were murdering Christians daily for practicing their outlawed new religion. Those were terrible times for the early saints, but here is a true fact�

�More Christians have died for their faith in this current century than all other centuries of church history combined�During this century, (20th) we have documented cases in excess of 26 million martyrs. From AD 33 to 1900, we have documented 14 million martyrs.� (http://chi.gospelcom.net/GLIMPSEF/Glimpses/glmps105.shtml)

These 3 web sites below are the best ones I know for finding more information on this subject�
www.opendoorsusa.org �.. www.worthynews.com �.. www.persecution.com
Here are some news bulletins I found at these sites just from the past month!

ILORIN, Nigeria, August 14 - - Islamist Group Attacking Christians in Central Nigeria�Clergymen say extremists blame Christian prayers for Muslim leader�s death.
ISTANBUL, TURKEY, August 6 - - An Iranian Christian couple in their 60s died last week from injuries sustained when secret police raided a house church service hosted at their house and severely beat them�
LAOS, August 8 - - Authorities have detained/arrested at least 90 Christians in 3 provinces in recent weeks
MADHYA PRADESH, INDIA, August 15 - - Staff from Youth With A Mission, World Vision and believers from a variety of churches had gathered together to pray for India�about 70 Hindu radicals attacked...They beat up some�and took others to the�police station�charged with forced conversions�
ERITREA, AFRICA, August 5 - - Eritrean authorities locked eight high school students in metal a shipping container and burned hundreds of Bibles at Sawa Defense Training Centre.
SAUDI ARABIA, Aug 14 - - www.persecution.org has learned that a Saudi Arabian man cut out the tongue of his daughter and burned her to death after finding out that she had converted to Christianity.
��what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age? � you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. � Matthew 24: 3, 9
Look up, saints, for �your redemption draweth nigh!�