Without Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, our hope of salvation would be lost. For the persecuted church, the reality of Jesus’ death and resurrection compels them to follow Him at all costs. Families acknowledge Easter in all manner of ways, but for persecuted believers, the gift of grace is worth giving up everything for.
A sacrifice like no other
Jesus’ death and resurrection are singularly the greatest events the world has ever beheld. In Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross is salvation and reconciliation to our Father. In His resurrection is the assurance that the tomb is empty, and He is seated on the throne in eternal reign.
He is the ache and awe behind songs like Amazing Grace; a love so indescribable, it deserves nothing less than the willing surrender of our lives. He is the living hope and confidence of the Church—the one true God, and the reason for Easter.
He is the prize our persecuted family reach and wrestle for, and through Him, countless believers have discovered the way, the truth, and the life.
Believers like Yasmina*.
A message worth celebrating
After losing her father at just 21, Yasmina turned to the Quran for answers.
“Friends at the university encouraged me to read the Quran and pray five times a day to know God and His Word, and thus find answers to my questions about God’s existence and the thorny issue of evil and suffering,” Yasmina says. “I thought that maybe it would help me overcome my sadness and anxiety.”
Six years later, her mother also died, and the question of God’s existence began to haunt her again.
“It was always the question of evil and suffering that drove me to seek God,” Yasmina explains. “My mother fell ill due to a tumour. We did everything to heal her. I even implored God to cure her, but unfortunately, she joined my father.”
Two days before her mother passed away, Yasmina had a simple thought: If God is real, He could surely hear her. So, she asked Him if He was the god of the Quran or another God.
“Suddenly, the stories of Moses and Jesus Christ came to my thoughts—stories I had already read in a book written by Muslims: The Stories of the Prophets,” Yasmina says. “So, I decided to set aside the Islamic religion and seek to learn more about the life of Jesus because it was His story that truly touched me.”
Yasmina diligently studied the gospels and felt she understood God for the very first time. The more she read, the more she wanted to know.
“The courses I took allowed me to deepen my knowledge of God, the Christian faith and the Church,” she says. “I also found answers to questions that had been troubling me concerning the Bible and the themes of suffering and evil.”
Yasmina received Christ into her heart.
Fury from her family
The decision brought new life – but it also brought new trials. Yasmina had to face the anger of her family members.
“My brothers were angry and upset with me, especially when I started attending church,” she says. “For them, it was as if I had dishonoured the family, and they thought my future was ruined.”
In Yasmina’s society, ‘honour’ and ‘shame’ are crucial concepts. Women and girls in North Africa and other Muslim-majority cultures can face violence, house arrest or even so-called ‘honour killings’ if they choose to leave Islam for another faith.
Thankfully, Yasmina was not physically harmed and married a believer – but has faced total rejection from people meant to love and protect her.
The message of Easter
But growing persecution caused Yasmina and her husband to flee their home. They long to return; to share the gospel freely—to tell others about Jesus, the son of God who was born, who died for them, and who rose and is alive today.
This is the gospel message, the message of Easter, a message believers like Yasmina risk everything for.
“I was sad, overwhelmed by fear and insecurity,” she remembers. “Life had no meaning or value for me. But God helped me overcome all of that. He gave meaning to my life. I tasted true joy and true peace when I entrusted my life to the Lord Jesus Christ.”
From all of us at Open Doors, Happy Easter!
*Name changed for security purposes
