One of the most shocking events in recent days has been the exodus of thousands of Christians in Iraq. Christians in this city were told to convert to Islam, pay a huge tax or face death by an Islamic terrorist group called ISIS. This was put in place by their caliph Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi who is the leader of these terrorist persecutors. This city of Mosul has had a Christian witness for over 1600 years and once had 60,000 Christians as early as 2003. Today there is not a Christians left in this city! Those Christians who have survived have fled the city and are pilgrims trying to find refuge. ISIS also destroyed the famous tomb of Jonah in Mosul which was said to be the burial ground of Jonah of what used to be called Nineveh. This act was an attempt to desecrate a figure in Judeo-Christian scripture.
I saw this letter written by Tim Keesee on the Desiring God blog today. It is a powerful letter written directly to the Caliphate Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi . I was so taken by Keesee’s letter that I felt it almost necessary to post it for my readers. It really reflects the differences between those men we see attempting to praise their god and those who have the God of Jonah as their God. Please take the time to read this short letter and pray for our brothers and sisters who are being driven from their homes and murdered by these men.
One of the last paragraphs truly lays out the essence of the difference.
Some days ago, your sledgehammer-swinging and explosive-detonating disciples destroyed the tomb of the prophet Jonah. The God of Jonah, whose name was first proclaimed there in Nineveh by Jonah, is nothing like the god you claim to kill for. Jonah’s God, the only God, showed grace to his enemies in Nineveh. God’s mercy would later reach its greatest, deepest, widest expression in his Son Jesus Christ, whose death and resurrection forever secured life for all who come to him — even you, if you would come.
