Escape from darkness

Escape From Darkness

His dark, deep-set eyes and chiseled chin fit the stereotype of a middle-eastern political leader. His broken English resounds with the halting grammar of one who is foreign to the soil he now calls home.

He knows danger and has paid the price of power. His body language reveals shadows of suspicion and readiness for unflinching response to any threat.

However, there is an unexpected incongruity. His handshake is a greeting. Joy-filled eyes join an ever-widening smile.

Most amazing of all is his story; one that few have lived to tell. As a former radical Muslim who was heavily involved in the Iranian fundamentalist revolution, “Daniel” was once committed to exterminating Jews, Christians and other “infidels.”

That was before his Creator became his redeemer. His heart transformed by the love of Christ, Daniel is now a born-again Christian who is committed to helping others understand and properly respond to the Islamic faith.

He reveals the inconsistencies and alarming directives of Islam’s holy book and its associated worldview.

Although Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world, the vast majority of “westerners” have a limited idea of what it really teaches. True followers of Allah (the Qur’an’s version of God) must be actively involved in the merciless extermination of Christians, Jews and other non-Muslims, yet communities across the United States have naively welcomed thousands of new mosques. 

Muslims (followers of the Islamic faith) are widely recognized as sincere, but the Islamic holy book (the Qur’an) is read by only a fraction of those who live in Islamic societies. Just as America is called a Christian nation (yet few consistently read and follow the Bible, in most nations identified as Islamic, few consistently read and follow the Qur’an).

[TBC: Here are a few points from his testimony.]

How did you become a Christian?

“In Iran I studied and taught philosophy because I had always been interested in other philosophies and religions. Once in Turkey, I had the opportunity to read the Bible and God revealed Himself to me in an amazing way. Through an evangelical church in Turkey, God began a great revolution in my mind and my heart. The people in that church were so good to me and showed me that the God in the Bible is a personal God and you can have a relationship with Him here in this life on earth. All other religions and philosophies have left that for the afterlife. It was amazing, and I gave my heart to Jesus. It was a radical decision and it required a radical change.” 

Mary, Daniel’s wife, also participated in militant training.

What about your wife?

“You must understand that in Islam, it is a death sentence for you and very hard for your family if you convert to Christianity. At first my wife was very amazed and really angry that I had become a Christian. But, I prayed and prayed and begged the Lord and my wife to give her heart to Jesus. Soon, she did, after an amazing revelation of Christ to her. We both were radical Muslims who did many bad things and we would have in an instant been involved, directly or indirectly, in Jihad because that is the doctrine of Islam (Q.9:5, 29-30). Any true Muslim who does not support Jihad is a sinner. But when we both gave our hearts to Jesus, we left Islam (the religion) and entered Christianity (the relationship with Jesus Christ). In time our three daughters chose to follow Jesus as well.” 

How has life changed for your wife and your children?

“Once we lived in darkness. In darkness, there is no true happiness. But now we live in the light, and in the light is true freedom and true joy and true happiness. My wife and daughters now understand that they were created equal to men, which is contrary to the Qur’an. They know that they are precious to God and because my heart has changed, they are so much more precious to me than they could have been if I had been true to the Qur’an and to the Islamic faith.” 

Do you get threats on your life?

“The biggest death threat is the one written in the Qur’an that says that all Christians, Jews, and other infidels must be killed. But in addition to that, we do from time to time receive threats. Because I am speaking out and revealing the truth about Islam and Mohammed, I am a target. But the God of the Bible is sovereign, and if His eye is on the sparrow, we know that He is watching us, too. Our purpose is not to live safe, comfortable lives, but to live for Jesus and glorify God, whether in life or in death. It is the same for all Christians.”

https://answersingenesis.org/ministry-news/ministry/escape-from-darkness-expanded-version/