The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms. Deuteronomy 33:27a
Mehdi Dibaj (1994)
“But from the arms of my God to whom can I return?”
Iranian evangelist Mehdi, who had converted from Islam to Christianity in his late teens, endured nine years in prison where he faced torture and solitary confinement before eventually being brought to trial at a Revolutionary Court in 1993, charged with apostasy from Islam.
In a written defence at his trial Mehdi wrote:
I would rather have the whole world against me but know that the Almighty God is with me, be called an apostate but know that I have the approval of the God of glory… They tell me ‘Return!’ But from the arms of my God to whom can I return? Is it right to accept what people are saying instead of obeying the Word of God? It is now 45 years that I am walking with the God of miracles, and His kindness upon me is like a shadow and I owe Him much for His fatherly love and concern…
…I am not only satisfied to be in prison for the honour of His Holy Name, but am ready to give my life for the sake of Jesus my Lord and enter His kingdom sooner, the place where the elect of God enter everlasting life, but the wicked to eternal damnation.
He was sentenced to death but released in January 1994 following an international outcry, though his sentence was not repealed. He disappeared in June 1994 and died in mysterious circumstances. On 2 July Mehdi’s family were contacted by the Iranian authorities to come and identify his body, which was reported to have been found that day in a forest, west of Tehran.
Truly fearless, truly fortunate martyrs, called and chosen to glorify our Lord Jesus Christ! If any man magnifies the Lord, honours and adores him, these are the models for him. If he reads about them, he will find that though they are modern, they are not inferior to the ancient ones: they will edify the Church just as much. These new examples of virtue will prove that it is one and the same Holy Spirit who was active then and is active now, one and the same omnipotent God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, whose glory and power are boundless and always will be, age after age. Amen.
Tertullian (c. 160-c. 225)