World Watch List 2025

Open Doors have published the ‘World Watch List’ for 2025.

‘Where do Christians face the most extreme persecution for following Jesus? Every year, the World Watch List uses extensive, expert research to rank the countries where loving Jesus comes at the highest price – places where you could be ostracised, attacked, imprisoned or even murdered.’

See here for more information.

Foundations 84 (July 2023)

Issue 84 of Foundations: An International Journal of Evangelical Theology, published by Affinity, is now available (here in its entirety as a pdf), which includes the below essays.

Donald John MacLean

Editorial

Peter Sanlon

Glories That Form and Deform Identity: The Roads Ahead

This paper seeks to analyse what has become the main presenting issue of the day for western culture, that of identity. This question penetrates a good deal deeper than the vexed matters of gender, sexuality and ethnicity; essentially it comes down to a clear and binary choice: whom do we love, worship and glorify – self or God? The quest for self-realisation and self-fulfilment may take many forms, from pornography to conspiracy theories to a culture of ‘victimhood’, but each of these are diverse expressions of the same fundamental motivation – to worship and serve the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever – Amen! (Rom 1:25). Against all this, the next generation is summoned to walk ‘The Road Less Travelled’, where we gather under the cross of Jesus Christ.

Robin Gray

Divine Light and Holy Love: Genuine Conversions in the Works of Jonathan Edwards

This paper opens up the key question of genuine conversion by delving deep into the mind of Jonathan Edwards (1703–58) on the subject, and in particular, his Religious Affections, which were the mature fruit of Edwards’ deep reflection, years after many striking and ‘surprising’ events in his own ministry. Few minds have thought as hard and as deeply as Edwards about the subject of conversion, but fewer by far have written about the subject as incisively as he did. Whilst many other scholars and pastors have very helpfully brought Edwards’ thinking to the attention of the contemporary church, this paper, as it succinctly summarises Edwards’ main observations, will undoubtedly prove to be a precious additional resource in the hands of twenty-first-century pastors, not only in evaluating professed conversions in their own churches but in keeping a close watch on their own souls (1 Tim 4:16).

Phil Heaps

Sanctification and Consistent Godly Living

This paper will lead us to the Sermon on the Mount and to the Beatitudes in particular (Matt 5:3-12) demonstrating that this ‘Jesus Seminar’ is unparalleled as ‘a discipleship course for the 2020s’. Here is material which is intensely practical and yet is addressed directly to the human heart; here is a masterclass for the formation of Christian character but one which is to be worked out in the corporate context of the church. The Lord Jesus Christ – and the Beatitudes are, supremely, a delineation of Christ’s own spiritual character – calls his people to a radical obedience which is motivated by humility, ‘poverty of spirit’ (Matt 5:3) but which is the only path to the growth for which God looks, growth in holiness.

Mark Thomas

Pastoring the Twenty-First Century Church

This paper begins with the tremendous, transcendental reality that God himself is the Pastor of his people (Ps 23:1, 80:1), and then fleshes out in detail how the pastoral office of the undershepherd is described in Scripture. Throughout, the calling of the pastor is described and illustrated with many examples in the Reformation and Puritan tradition – not least from the ‘three Bs’ of Bucer, Baxter and Bridges. The climactic feature of this paper is its recognition and analysis of contemporary culture and how it impinges on young people attached to churches. Whilst there are timeless issues and considerations that every pastor and church must face, there are some that are peculiar to today, and pastors are urged to face up to these – they include anxiety, exhaustion, ‘influences’ and, as in Paper 1, the whole question of ‘identity’.

Patrick Fung

Faithfulness Amidst Trials and Persecution

This paper begins with an in-depth treatment of the narrative of persecution in Luke-Acts, showing how it was first directed against Jesus and then against his disciples. The key consideration is not simply that persecution happened, but that the early church needed to know how to respond to it. The next section of the paper we describe in detail the Boxer Uprising in China in 1900 and in particular the response of the church, exemplified in the approach of Dixon Edward Hoste (1861–1946), Hudson Taylor’s successor as leader of the China Inland Mission. Hoste’s approach was humble, gracious, visionary and deeply instructive for the church today. We conclude with a survey of the state of anti-Christian persecution in the world today, both ‘east’ and ‘west’, and calls us to prayerful, patient, self-denying witness.

Sarah Allen

Review Article: Complementarianism

Book Review

Evangelical Review of Theology 46, 4 (November 2022)

The latest Evangelical Review of Theology, published by The World Evangelical Alliance, is now online and available in its entirety as a pdf here.

Introduction: Remember the Persecuted

Thomas Schirrmacher

The Protestant Faith and Shared Civilizational Values

Ron Kubsch and Thomas Schirrmacher

Apologetics: Intellectually Bearing Testimony to the Christian Faith

Every Christian should be an apologist, or a defender of the faith. But how? This article provides a sweeping historical overview of ways in which Christians have defended the gospel, along with key considerations affecting how we explain what we believe to others today.

Motoaki Shinohara

Evangelical Diversity: Towards the Future Church

This message, originally delivered at an Asia Theological Association conference, is an excellent, comprehensive statement on how evangelicals (and especially evangelical theological institutions) should live out unity in diversity amidst an era of transition from strong denominational to more horizontal partnerships among churches and organizations.

Daniel Weiss

Sign and Countersign: The Battle against Pornography in the Church

Pornography is one of the greatest scourges of our age, yet churches and Christian ministries almost universally remain silent about it. This article gently reveals the nature and severity of the threat and thoughtfully inspires us to sensitive action.

Paul Wegner

The Afterlife in the Old Testament

The Bible’s teaching on the afterlife began as a shadowy idea in the earlier writings of the Old Testament and took on a more definitive form as Old Testament times progressed. This article interprets, in their original context, the key Old Testament texts that refer (or appear to refer) to the afterlife and shows how they can be harmonized.

Thomas Schirrmacher

No Neutral Bystanders When Christians Are Suffering

Dennis P. Petri

How the Church Got Rid of Persecution: A Critical Analysis of Famous Cases

We talk a lot about how to oppose religious persecution; we don’t talk as much about the possible unintended consequences of our efforts. This article analyses three well- known episodes where Christians worked to end persecution, along with the sometimes complicated long-term results of those apparent successes.

Rossana Muga and Teresa Flores

Political Repression of Religious Leaders’ Manifestations of Faith in Nicaragua

This article on the current struggles of Christians in Nicaragua not only describes their situation to the world but also exemplifies the high-quality research activity of Christian organizations dedicated to improving conditions for Christians under threat.

Yoe Suárez

The 11 July Protests and the Cuban Evangelical Community

On 11 July 2021, Cuba saw the largest public protests since the socialist takeover of 1959. Many Christians were involved. This moving article by a Cuban journalist captures the exemplary actions, courage and spiritual expressions of prominent evangelical participants in a hostile environment.

Book Reviews

Lausanne Global Analysis 11, 3 (May 2022)

The latest issue of Lausanne Global Analysis, from The Lausanne Movement, is available online from here, including pdfs of individual articles as below.

Kaiky Fernandez and Pedro Dulci

Theological Education for Digital Natives: A Case Study of the Invisible College

Sherman Lau

Why Canada’s Multicultural Policy Falls Short of the Gospel Ideal: Moving Toward Involvement, Empathy, and Commonness

Cynthia Stephen

A Historical View of the Christian Minority in India: Rethinking Christian Witness in a BJP-Run Nation

Babatomiwa M. Owojaiye

Christian Persecution in Nigeria: A Biblical Response to an Insensitive Government

Evangelical Review of Theology 46, 1 (February 2022)

The latest Evangelical Review of Theology, published by The World Evangelical Alliance, is now online and available in its entirety as a pdf here.

Johannes Reimer

The Erosion of Church Growth through Patriarchal Leadership in Russia

Authoritarian patriarchal leadership has spawned abuse, scandal and controversy caused tragedies in churches and Christian ministries all over the world. This article highlights the pervasive problem of autocratic leadership among Russian evangelicals – explaining the historical reasons for the development of this pattern, analysing its components and urging a healthier way forward.

Elmer John Thiessen

In Pursuit of Intellectual Virtue

This article rigorously and insightfully examines three intellectual virtues – love of knowledge and truth, intellectual humility, and open-mindedness – that are essential to Christian maturity and powerful in overcoming strife, contention and polarization.

Richard L. Smith

Such a Heart as This: The Intellectual Implications of Deuteronomy 5:29

Contrary to the frequent Christian tendency to devalue intellectual pursuits, Richard L. Smith finds an emphasis on loving God with the mind throughout the Old Testament. This excerpt from his new book shows how God communicates this message through Deuteronomy.

Dennis P. Petri and Ronald R. Boyd-MacMillan

What Persecution To Endure, To Resist, or To Flee?

How to respond to persecution is a complex decision involving both principled and strategic considerations. In this article, two of the world’s leading experts on religious persecution draw on both Scripture and their considerable experience to discuss the options comprehensively.

Francis Jr. S. Samdao

On the Idea of Contextualization: Cultural Sensitivity and Catholic Sensibility

How do we present the Christian faith so as to be sensitive and accommodating to local cultures while not obscuring the non-negotiable truths of the gospel? This article, authored in an Asian context but with worldwide relevance, offers guidance on fulfilling both of those imperatives.

Israel Oluwole Olofinjana

Jesus’ Discipleship Model of Suffering and Sacrifice: Discipleship and Racial Justice

How to pursue racial justice has been a contentious issue in many places, particularly because of the allegedly radical views of some pro-justice organizations. This article takes a different approach, depicting racial justice as an implication of whole-life discipleship and proposing practical actions for Christians.

David A. Clark

Evangelical Identity Formation in Post-colonial Britain

Modern cultural changes have divided evangelicals in many parts of the world, with some urging progressive agendas and other resisting what they consider radical ideas. Using racial justice issues as an example, this article warns against both extremes and charts a course of sensitivity toward the aggrieved as part of building a more unified church.

Leah Farish

The ‘Sins of Equals’ and Racial Justice

Evangelicals believe that Scripture and the great confessions of faith remain relevant to our modern lives. This short essay demonstrates that relevance by applying a little- known passage from the Westminster Larger Catechism of 1648 to race relations.

Book Reviews

International Journal for Religious Freedom

I recently came across the International Journal for Religious Freedom, the journal of the International Institute for Religious Freedom.

The IJRF ‘aims to provide a platform for scholarly discourse on religious freedom and persecution. It is an interdisciplinary, international, peer reviewed journal, serving the dissemination of new research on religious freedom and contains research articles, documentation, book reviews, academic news and other relevant items’.

Individual articles or the full copy of the latest issue can be downloaded free of charge here.

Lausanne Global Analysis 8, 3 (May 2019)

The latest issue of Lausanne Global Analysis, from The Lausanne Movement, is available online from here, including pdf downloads.

In the issue overview, editor David Taylor writes:

‘In this issue, as the results of the election in India emerge, we analyze Hindu and other nationalisms and their implications for mission; and we consider the crackdown in China and how churches and foreign workers can adapt to a tighter political environment there. We also ask how much we care about integrity and the struggle against corruption, bribes, and extortion; and we explore why wealth creation is central to our mission.’

Knowing and Doing (Spring 2019)

The Spring 2019 edition of Knowing & Doing – ‘A Teaching Quarterly for Discipleship of Heart and Mind’ – from the C.S. Lewis Institute is now available online (from here), and contains the following articles:

Joel Woodruff

President’s Letter: It’s About Transformation in Community, not Information in Isolation

Joel Woodruff challenges us to resist the tide of individualism and seek spiritual growth in community. Rather than pursuing “information in isolation,” the C.S. Lewis Institute President urges us to learn from and challenge others as we grow in Christ.

Thomas A. Tarrants, III

Persecution and Suffering for Jesus Christ

Looking at the process of discipleship from the opposite side of most discussions, Tom Tarrants raises the important, albeit disturbing, topic of persecution for the sake of the gospel. Jesus warned many times that his disciples would face specific trials that come from following him. This article helps us prepare for those inevitable trials.

Tom Schwanda

Biblical Foundations for Growing in Intimacy with God

Tom Schwanda steps back from practical considerations about discipleship and begins to explore the Biblical foundations for spiritual growth. This is the first of a three part series that reflects deeply on why we need intimacy with Christ, how scripture sets the platform for it, and then offers suggestions for pursuing that noble goal.

Bill Kynes

How to Read the Bible, Part 1: Introduction and Overview to the Bible

The role of the Bible in spiritual life is often assumed but not as often pursued the way it should be. Bill Kynes begins a four part series that considers how to read, study, and meditate on the Bible. He begins with a reminder that the Bible’s overall storyline must be the context in which we examine any specific passage.

Bryan Hollon

Catechesis and Christian Discipleship

Bryan Hollon points us to a topic that rarely is addressed in contemporary discussions of spiritual growth – the role of catechesis in spiritual formation. Many people don’t even know what that word means. Hollon defines, describes, and encourages systemic training in doctrine and theological reflection.

Joseph Loconte

War, Friendship, and Imagination: How J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis Rediscovered Faith, Friendship, and Heroism in the Cataclysm of 1914-1918

Joe Loconte reveals to us some of the ways C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien found faith in some of the most unlikely settings – the battlefields of World War I. While many people lost faith in God because of the carnage they experienced during those dark days, Lewis and Tolkien were transformed for eternal beauty. And their friendship after those days encourages all of us in profound ways.

Aaron Welty

Modern Mythology Matters

Just as C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien looked to mythology and story as ways to experience the storyline of the gospel, Aaron Welty shines a similar light on comic book heroes and the appeal they draw through today’s blockbuster movies. If Lewis could create Narnia and Tolkien could tell of Middle Earth, perhaps Superman and Marvel movies could point people to a better “savior.”

William Cowper (1731-1800)

Love Constraining to Obedience

C.S. Lewis loved poetry and wished he could be remembered most for his poems. They grab us in different ways than stories or prose. In each issue we feature a poem. William Cowper’s offering tilts our hearts toward obedience and joy.

Dwight L. Moody

Sermon – The Christian’s Warfare

The great evangelist and preacher Dwight L. Moody didn’t shy away from weighty topics. This sermon on spiritual warfare is a welcome reminder of the nature of our experience in a fallen world.

Lausanne Global Analysis 8, 2 (March 2019)

The latest issue of Lausanne Global Analysis, from The Lausanne Movement, is available online from here, including pdf downloads.

In the issue overview, editor David Taylor writes:

‘In this issue we continue our exploration of how we should respond to growing religious persecution around the world, focusing on Islamic State (Daesh) atrocities and legal/political responses to them; we examine how we can present the gospel to cultures dominated by secularism, relativism, and “tolerance” worldwide; we consider how to develop an effective multicultural team in cross-cultural Christian service; and we make the case for the use of local languages and resources in urban ministry.’

Judd Birdsall on Religious Persecution

The latest Cambridge Paper from the Jubilee Centre is available online here (from where a pdf can be downloaded), this one by Judd Birdsall:

Judd Birdsall, ‘Pitfalls in Combatting Persecution’, Cambridge Papers 27, 4 (December 2018).

Here is the summary:

‘A great number of Western Christians have laudably invested their time, money, and energy to confront the massive global challenge of religious persecution. Sadly, their effectiveness has too often been limited or undermined by several common mistakes. This paper explores seven of these pitfalls and points to Christian principles that enable us to more effectively advance religious freedom for all. My goal in pointing out these dangers is not to condemn any particular organisation or tactical approach, but rather to commend a more considered, capacious, and constructive promotion of religious freedom.’

Word and World 3 (2017)

Word and World, published by IFES, ‘aims to promote conversation and reflection about God’s Word and God’s World’, seeking ‘to enable those involved in student ministry to be nourished by the gospel and attentive to the world that students inhabit’.

The current issue explores persecution and suffering, from the days of the early church to a variety of modern contexts, including Iraq, Gabon, and Nigeria.

International Bulletin of Missionary Research 39:2 (April 2015)

The latest issue of International Bulletin of Missionary Research carries several feature articles on the theme of ‘Hostility against Mission’.

Here are the opening paragraphs from J. Nelson Jennings’ Editorial:

‘Theodicy, or vindicating God in light of the existence of evil, is a relatively safe philosophical exercise. Actually undergoing suffering inflicted by hostile opponents, however, is excruciating trauma. The former presents a genuine intellectual challenge to faith; the latter brings debilitating pain and anguish. Reports from around the world suggest that more persecution and more martyrdoms have occurred during the past two to three generations than in all previous history. Indications are that the trend will continue or even increase.

‘Participants in Christian mission are, quite obviously, not the only people who suffer brutal attacks or systematic oppression. Moreover, specifically religious motivations for harming Christ’s servants are often intertwined with or even overshadowed by political, ethnic, economic, social, historical, or other driving factors. Even so, hostile actions against missionaries and others associated with Jesus Christ are proportionally higher than statistical projections would lead one to expect, whether or not those acts have been primarily religiously motivated.’

The issue includes an essay by Chris Wright on Lamentations, excerpted and adapted from his forthcoming ‘Bible Speaks Today’ commentary on that book.

The whole issue is available as a pdf here.

9Marks Journal (Fall 2014) on the Church and Opposition

The latest issue of the 9Marks Journal, available here as a pdf, is devoted to the topic of ‘Vanishing Church? Seeking the Right Perspective as Opposition Grows’.

In the Editorial, Jonathan Leeman writes:

‘The growing opposition to the Christian faith in Western culture is heart breaking and worth challenging. That said, God has good purposes for letting the nations – even a so-called Christian nation – oppose his people. And one of them is to sharpen the church’s distinctness. He is seeking a bride for his Son, and he means for her to radiate.

‘The nature of our relationships inside a church should be distinct. Our ways of serving our employers and employees should be distinct. Our treatment of spouses and children should be distinct. Our loves and our laughter should be distinct. Our sexuality and family budgets and vacation plans should be distinct. And the more our culture opposes God and his people, the more the distinctness of our churches should shine. Yes, there should be points of commonality. We never stop being human, and our lives and loves should be deeply humane. But we are the new humanity. Our neighbors should find us both familiar and exotic.

‘Notice, then, the further a nation moves away from Christian moral assumptions, the more its churches have occasion to radiate the life-changing power of God. Which means, cultural opposition shouldn't scare us. It sets a backdrop for the display for the glory of God in our lives.’

Christian History Magazine on Persecution

The latest issue of Christian History Magazine is devoted to ‘Eyewitnesses to the modern Age of Persecution’, reminding readers of ‘the continued widespread global persecution of Christians in the modern era’.

Here’s the final paragraph of the Editorial:

‘Many past issues of Christian History have been meant to inspire prayer and study, as we let the past – in examples both good and bad – teach us how God wants us to be faithful in the present. This issue has the same intent. But more than most, it is also intended to inspire action. Let these stories remind you that the story God is writing through his church today is a story written in suffering, perseverance, and hope. And let that guide you as you discern how to be faithful in your own present.’

The whole magazine is available as a 10.5 MB pdf here.

Lausanne Global Analysis 2, 5 (November 2013)

The latest issue of Lausanne Global Analysis, from The Lausanne Movement, is now available online.

In the issue overview, editor David Taylor says:

‘In this issue we address several topical themes. We analyse what has come out of the groundbreaking Asian Christian Leaders’ Forum held in Seoul in June, and we address Business as Mission (BAM), one of the key themes of the Global Leadership Forum held in Bangalore the week before. We also explore a topic related to BAM – that of Stewardship and Justice in the way we behave as consumers. We follow up our article in our March issue on the various ideological trends in China and Christian responses to them by anaylsing the results of a recent conference on the subject. Last, but by no means least, we examine the outlook – and many opportunities – for Christians in the Middle East amid the current turmoil and persecution.

The executive summary is available here, and the full issue is available here.