“They were praying and singing hymns to God and the other prisoners were listening to them and their chains came loose.”
[Sep.20. 2021] Three Iranian Christians were recently arrested when they were having a home church service in Rasht, Iran.
According to the US Christian Post, International Christian Concern(ICC) reported that Ahmad Sarparast, Morteza Mashoodkar, and Ayoob Poor-Rezazadeh were arrested around 10 pm on the 5th of September when they gathered for a church prayer meeting.
The ICC said, “The authority officers raided the site transferred them to an unknown location for interrogation,“ and asked for prayers for them and their families.
They were arrested in Rasht, a suburb considered a hotbed of persecution of Christians where 11 local Christians are serving long prison sentences, including Pastor Yousef Nadarkhani. Another Rasht local, Mohammadreza Omidi (Youhan), is living in internal exile in the US and four others are currently awaiting their sentencing.
Nine of the eleven Christians were serving five-year sentences for their participation in house churches and are accused of acting against national security. Raids on house churches in January and February of 2019 resulted in the arrests of a majority of converts currently serving time from Rasht.
Over the past few weeks, the nine Christians currently in Evin Prison have been threatened with forced transfers to different prisons. They will need to pay for their own transportation. Some are concerned that the transfer would also harm their re-trial, appeal, or leave requests.
During an appeal hearing on August 25, the three Converts’ were sentenced guilty with the maximum five-year servitudes. Their original sentencing on June 26 mandated the maximum prison sentence plus a fine of approximately US$1600.
ICC said, “Iranian converts to Christianity face intense persecution from the government, with a law against conversion, evangelism, and distribution of Christian literature in Persian. The update to the panel code in February 2021 suggests that religious freedom in Iran will continue to be severely restricted. “
Despite this dark circumstance, Iranian churches are still the fastest growing in the world. (Source: Christian Today, International Christian Concern).
About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everyone’s chains came loose. (Acts 16:25-26)
Father God, pray that the Iranian believers who were arrested during the worship service be filled with the Holy Spirit so that they may endure well with praises and prayers even in prison. Please protect the lives of the 11 detained believers and let the churches pray for them in unity. Stir up the hearts of those who need the Gospel so that they may seek God and receive salvation and freedom from the powers of sin and death, so that the revival of salvation may be more abundant in Iran.
Prayer 24·365
prayer@prayer24365.org
