By Oscar Amaechina
Christians in my country are being massacred daily, and our government isn’t doing anything about it.
Nigeria has become the most difficult place to live as a Christian. According to an April 2023 report by the International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law, at least 52,250 persecuted Christians have been killed in the past 14 years, simply for the crime of being Christian. In the past five years, violence has spread southwards to the middle belt of Nigeria, with radicalized Fulani herdsmen killing Christians in order to steal their land.
Between January and the close of April this year, International Christian Concern (ICC) says that it had documented “a dramatic rise in attacks against Christian communities in Nigeria.” In the span of a little over three months, ICC soberly reported that over 300 Christians were killed. Dozens more were abducted while thousands were displaced as Islamic jihadi violence continues to escalate in Nigeria. Unfortunately, Nigerian authorities still largely fail to address the raging violence or help the victims.
A close look at what is happening in Nigeria shows that the killings in Nigeria are underreported. Afri-Mission and Evangelism Network Nigeria team, which I lead, just returned from the southeastern part of Nigeria after a two-week mission trip. The information that we received from villagers in Eha-Amufu and Ogurugu was devastating. The villagers related their ordeals and cried out for help as their people were either kidnapped or massacred on a daily basis. Apart from these two areas, killings and kidnapping are happening in almost every community in Enugu state, which largely go unreported, especially those that happen in remote farmlands.
The government is not defending us, and when we defend ourselves, we die by hanging. What can we do?
I strongly believe that the only antidote to terrorism, Insurgency, and banditry is the Gospel. This might sound foolish, but God uses the foolish things of this world to confound the wise (1 Corinthians 1:27). Apostle Paul was the greatest terrorist in the New Testament but when he had an encounter with Christ on his way to Damascus, he was transformed and became an instrument in the hands of God. How are we sure that these people cannot repent if we continue to pray for them and reach them with the Gospel and love of Christ? The risk is enormous, but cannot be compared to the risk of leaving them unevangelized.
Global Christians should help Nigerian Christians by praying for God, who converted Paul, to also do the same to those who are terrorizing Nigerian Christians. We are also asking that missionaries be sent urgently to Nigeria by churches and mission agencies to complement the efforts of indigenous missionaries who are working very hard to reach the unreached with the Gospel and love of Christ.
We can’t underestimate how the lack of logistics and funds has hindered the work of missions by indigenous missionaries. We badly need the support. Both spiritually and financially.
We risk becoming the last generation of Christians in Nigeria if nothing is urgently done. We are looking for men and women who will boldly step out of their comfort zones to take the Gospel to areas and places where it is forbidden to mention the name of Christ in Nigeria. We are hopeful that our efforts will not be in vain because we have seen them come to Christ before.
The Lord is at work in Nigeria, even when things look dire and hopeless. He has not forgotten us. My fellow Christians, please don’t forget us either.
Oscar Amaechina is the president of Afri-Mission and Evangelism Network, Abuja, Nigeria. His calling is to take the gospel to where no one has neither preached nor heard about Jesus. He is the author of the book Mystery Of The Cross Revealed.
