More response to the death of a Pakistani pastor

Pakistan (MNN) — Christians around the world continue to respond to the torture and murder of a pastor and his driver last week in Pakistan. Shamoun Babar, 37, was working with several Christian organizations helping translate Christian material into local languages in the region. According to one report, Babar’s death is believed be connected to his evangelistic outreach there.

Strategic World Impact is building a Christian school in Pakistan. SWI’s Kevin Turner has worked with Babar and says he tried to establish an emergency evacuation plan for Babar, based on the number of threats he had been receiving. “When I heard news of his death, I remembered (his response) very well. He said, ‘Kevin, I won’t run and I won’t leave and I’m committed to embrace whatever Jesus has for me.”

Since Pakistan is predominately Muslim, Turner says Christians have difficulties. “In Pakistan you are required to have the witness of two Christians just to testify against one Muslim. I just came from Pakistan last month. I was shocked when we were trying to press a case against a 21 year old man, who has raped four Christian children. We’re having all we can do to press this case this case forward and the people in the village know it was him and they know that he did it.”

Despite Babar’s murder, Turner says the work will go forward. “It’s a spiritual thing. And, the Bible says that the gates of hell will not prevail.”

Turner says this kind of incident needs to help us… “Be emboldened in our faith to say, ‘look there’s nothing a persecutor can do to me except kill me and put me in the presence of Jesus and I think it should bring a boldness to us here to stand up for the truth and really live the Christian life.”