JUNE 2018 / THE CHOSEN PEOPLE - 7
SEEING ROMANS 11:11
COME ALIVE THROUGH
IRANIAN BELIEVERS
By Hormoz Shariat
Hormoz Shariat is the president
and founder of Iran Alive
Ministries (IAM). Below, he
shares about the partnerships
between Iranian believers in
Jesus and how Iranian Muslim
converts view Israel and
Jewish believers.
God has graciously positioned
Iran Alive Ministries (IAM)
to have a tangible impact in
Iran for the gospel. We have
been broadcasting satellite TV
into Iran since 2001. Hundreds
of thousands of Muslims
have come to Christ through
us and hundreds of house
churches have been planted.
Our current focus is to teach,
train, encourage, connect,
and mobilize the current three
million Christians so that they
will be agents of transformation
for Iran. We believe by doing
this, not just Iran but the whole
Middle East will be impacted.
One mission of IAM is to
help Muslim background believers
become free from any
kind of hatred and animosity
towards any people group and
nation—especially the Jewish
people. We do not get involved
in the political side of the issues.
Therefore, we do not
condone or condemn the political
decisions of the Israeli government.
However, we teach
Iranian believers that:
a. God loves all nations and so
should we. We must love
the Jewish people, want
His best for them, serve
them, and share the gospel
with them.
b. God has a special plan for
the Jewish people and the
nation of Israel. God loves
all people. But as He has
different plans for different
people, He also has different
plans for different nations.
Just as He has a special
plan for Iran as declared in
Jeremiah 49:34-38, He also
has a very special plan for
the future of Israel.
There is such a disconnect
between the people of Iran and
their government that when
the government puts on rallies
shouting, “Death to Israel,” the
people of Iran say, “We don’t
trust you. Why should we hate
Israel?” So, once they become
Christians, it is not hard to help
them get rid of that hatred and
animosity.
At Iran Alive, we feel a part
of our call is to turn the enemies
of Israel into its friends. We
believe Iran has a major part in
the fulfillment of Romans 11:11
to bring the Jewish people to
jealousy. We believe once the
Jewish people see how the
Lord Jesus has changed the
hearts of their Iranian arch
enemies, who wanted to wipe
Israel off the map, into people
who love them, they will
become open to the gospel in
an unprecedented ways.
Even now, there is a continuous
flow of Iranian Muslim
background Christians who
travel to Israel for prayer and
ministry. There are a growing
number of Iranian Christians
who feel called to serve the
Jewish people and minister to
them. There is even a Muslim
background Christian pastor in
Jerusalem who has planted a
church there.
We at Iran Alive invite the
Jewish believers to partner
with us to take advantage of
this historical opportunity to
transform Iran into a Christian
nation. Let’s work together to
help Christianity grow strong
in Iran—after all, that is one of
the best things you can do for
Israel!
To read more, please visit
chosenpeople.com/romans11
MINISTRY BEGINS AGAIN IN BROOKLYN
In Brooklyn, the weather is starting to warm up, so our ministry
efforts have also expanded. The Brooklyn team has been able to
increase its regular book table outreaches at some of the local
subway stops and has distributed a lot of gospel material to Jewish
people in the neighborhood. Please pray specifically for a group
of four young Jewish men with whom our team has interacted.
Initially, they were very confrontational, but our missionaries,
Robert and Joseph, continue to run into them in seemingly
random ways. Two of the men in particular have shown an interest
in actually talking about and considering that Jesus might be the
Messiah. Please pray that God would strip away any sense of
hesitancy, fear, and skepticism and that He would open up their
hearts and eyes to see the truth. Also pray that God would give
the team great confidence, boldness, and wisdom as its members
share with them.
/romans11