We must pray for wisdom and humility as we support those leaders who navigate challenges we in the West may never fully understand.
Burmese refugees worship in Thailand. / Photo: Christian Broadcasting Network via [link]21 Wilberforce[/link].
“Can you explain how your work contributes to evangelism?”
This is a question I often hear when I share about our work supporting international religious freedom. It reveals an assumption: that advocacy and evangelism are separate disciplines, and that the latter is the calling of the church. This is far from accurate.
I believe defending religious freedom is part of the mission of God.
Throughout Scripture and church history, the growth of the church has often been accompanied by persecution. When ministries bear fruit, they frequently attract opposition.
Churches are shuttered, pastors arrested, and believers harassed, all for faithfully living out the gospel.The response to persecution is part of ministry too.
[destacate]Churches are shuttered, pastors arrested, and believers harassed, all for faithfully living out the gospel. The response to persecution is part of ministry too[/destacate]To sustain the fruit of evangelism, church leaders are often called to push back against discrimination and injustice. Advocacy becomes a form of stewardship, protecting what God is growing.
When 21Wilberforce receives a call or a WhatsApp message from a pastor whose church was closed, or who was visited by the police, or who is at risk of an unjust criminal prosecution, we answer by helping the pastor plan how to respond.
We pray, plan, and carry out a response together as partners. We ask Christian leaders of persecuted churches, “How is God calling you to respond to this persecution—and how can we come alongside you?”
This partnership is obedience to the prayer of Jesus in John 17:20–23 that the Church may be one in love and truth.
The response to persecution takes many forms. It can include:
21Wilberforce collaborates with indigenous Christian leaders in the discernment process and helps them navigate the diverse range of approaches and tools for addressing persecution.
[destacate]At times, international advocacy in places like Washington, DC, or Geneva is needed. But it must always align with the discernment of local church leaders[/destacate]Often the most effective responses are led locally by national Christian alliances and denominations, pastors, lawyers, humanitarian workers, and Christian advocates who know their context intimately.
At times, international advocacy in places like Washington, DC, or Geneva is needed. But it must always align with the discernment of local church leaders.
In fact, we sometimes decide not to initiate a public campaign because indigenous leaders believe that attention from the West could escalate societal hostility and would play into a false narrative that Christianity is the West’s religion.
Not every pastor or church leader is called to public advocacy. Many quietly endure hardship while remaining deeply faithful to the work of ministry.
Christians in some countries today are living out a story like the one in Acts 8: “On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. … Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went.”
We must pray for wisdom and humility as we support these leaders who navigate challenges we in the West may never fully understand.
To my fellow Christians, especially those in the United States and other wealthy nations, I urge you: move beyond mission silos. Don’t separate evangelism from pursuing justice and religious freedom.
Instead, ask church leaders on the frontlines how God is calling them to respond—and how you might walk with them in unity, courage, and purpose.
Wissam al-Saliby, President of 21Wilberforce. He previously worked as Director of the World Evangelical Alliance United Nations Office in Geneva. This article was first published on the site of 21Wilberforce and re-published with permission.
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