 "How can I understand unless someone helps me?" (Acts 8:31 CEV) |
Exodus from Darkness Daniel Shayesteh |
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'Searching for Truth Together' |
Click Here for Past newsletters |
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in Jesus Christ' |
December 2007 |
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Contact details Biography of Daniel Shayesteh July /September 05 June / July 2005 March / May 2005 Feb 2006 April 2006 July 2006 Sept 2006 December 2006 April 2007 August 2007 October 2007 December 2007 Feb 2008 March 2008 April 2008 |
"How can I understand unless someone helps
me?"
(Acts 8:31 CEV) 'Eternal Confidence is only found in Jesus Christ' We wish you all a very happy Christmas! We also would like to thank you, our dear churches, Christian organizations, brothers and sisters, and partners in the ministry, for your kindnesses and sacrifices. We praise God that from the beginning you realized that we wouldn’t be able to fight alone against the stronghold of Satan. You, therefore, decided to stand with us in the ministry. We are amazed and thankful for how your support and prayers have produced ‘huge’ fruit in the world. More than anybody and anything else, we want to thank our Saviour, Jesus, who has freed us so that we are able to speak about the freedom we have tasted. We love Him so much, and will stand for Him no matter what the cost might be. In our lead article we look at “The Problem is in the Root” Contents: 1. A message from Daniel and Mary Shayesteh: “The Problem is in the Root” 2. Latest news on Daniel and Mary’s ministry in Australia and the USA – October to December 2007 3. Upcoming Events – USA, Australia, Europe, South America, NZ 4. Exodus from Darkness Prayer Requests 5. Daniel’s Books We invite you to visit our EFD website at http://www.exodusfromdarkness.org.au Many of our past newsletters can be viewed at http://www.ministryblue.com/exodus.html 1. The Problem is in the Root Muslim leaders and scholars never compare the Qur’an and Islamic doctrine with the scriptures and doctrines of other beliefs in order to see where they stand in their relationship with God and other nations. While the whole of creation is based on cause and reason, Muslim leaders do not show interest in understanding the truth in the context of the world. It’s sad that with their narrow mindedness they want to rule over the world. They think they are following God, while in reality their lives are without God and hazardous to other nations. What or who is the cause of this? The root of the problem is Allah. When he is not in power, he manipulates and speaks in favor of everything, but when he gains power he imposes himself on others. The Qur’an states the following when Muhammad was not in power: • I will place Christians above those who do not believe in Jesus, until the day of resurrection (Q.3:55). • Muslims, Jews, Christians and Sabeites who believe in God and the last Day, and do which is right, shall have their reward with their Lord: fear shall not come upon them, neither shall they be grieved (Q.2:62). • We gave Moses the Book, so (Muhammad) do not be in any doubt about meeting it…(Q.32:23). • There is no compulsion in religion (Q.2:256). • Allah has ordained Israel for Jews (Q.5:20-21). • And We said thereafter to the Children of Israel, "Dwell securely in the land (of promise)“… (Q.17:104). But the Qur’an states another thing after Muhammad gained power: • You (Muslims) are the best folk that have been raised up unto mankind (Q.3:110). • Muslims must not befriend non-Muslims (Q.4:89,144; 5:51). • Christians belong to hell (Q.9:29-30, read the whole chapter). • Allah has sent his apostle (Muhammad) with a religion of the truth, that he may make it victorious over every other religion (Q.9:33). • He (Allah) gave you their (non-Muslims’) lands, and their dwellings, and their wealth, for a heritage – even a land on which ye had never set foot: for the might of Allah is equal to all things (Q.33:27). • Prepare against the infidels whatever arms and weaponry you can muster so that you may terrorize them (Q.8:59). The root of the problem is Allah: • Allah misleads whom he will, and whom he will he guides (Q.14:4). • For him whom Allah leads astray, you (Muhammad) shall by no means find a pathway (Q.4:88). • Allah has fashioned the soul with debauchery and righteousness (Q.91:8). Allah, as the ultimate power in Islam, deliberately misleads people. If Allah is the deceiver, what will you expect his followers to be? That is why Muslim leaders have been misleading people for 1400 years since the rise of Islam. Therefore, watch out and do not be deceived by any who say things like, ‘Islam is the religion of peace; there is not compulsion in Islam; Allah and God are the same, etc.’ Because, when Islam grows and occupies societies, its Allah will reveal his real nature, that which is stated in the Qur’an. He is the root of the problem in Islam. Daniel and Mary Shayesteh (Daniel and Mary are from Iran. Daniel was a teacher of Islamic philosophy, a member of the Iranian Revolutionary Army and a leading Muslim fundamentalist political leader during the Iranian Islamic Fundamentalist Revolution that began in 1979. He is now an evangelist for Jesus Christ.) 2. Latest news on Daniel and Mary’s ministry in Australia and the USA – October to December 2007 Medford, New Jersey I spent October 20th-21st with the Fellowship Alliance Chapel in Medford, New Jersey. I gave my testimony in the church’s four worship services, one on Saturday evening and three on Sunday morning. The following emails are examples of many we received after our visit. They illustrate the impact of our message on people: “Thank you for enlightening us to the dangers of the Islam in the powerful message you delivered at our church, Fellowship Alliance Chapel. Everyone I spoke to afterwards was deeply moved. For me it was a wakeup call to the fact that we have become very complacent in this country, willing to accept just about anything in the name of religious tolerance. I have heard many times recently that Muslims worship the same god that we do as Christians, but this just didn’t make sense to me.” “Daniel’s testimony was outstanding and God is using his message in a mighty way to reach people, I know our congregation enjoyed the message as all four services gave him a standing ovation at the end of the service. If any of our churches want a reference before inviting him to come, just send them my way.” Ft. Wayne, Indiana I spent October 26th-28th at Praise Evangelical Lutheran Church in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Prior to my visit, I was discredited by Muslim leaders for not understanding Islam and the host church came under attack for inviting me to speak. In addition to personal security, I was escorted by five police officers to the church. We admire the courage of churches that stand for the free values of their country and want to lead their nations to search openly for the truth. The church held two open meetings on Saturday to the public. Because of the limited seating, the church was not able to accommodate more that 1200 people. Many people who wanted to attend missed the opportunity. There were a number of committed Muslims present when I shared my testimony at the 2pm and 7pm services. I exposed the values of Islam with the verses of the Qur’an and the comments of Muhammad. This time, the committed Muslims did not blame me with ignorance anymore. They said, ‘that is not the Islam he teaches and we follow’ even though I was using their Qur’an that their scholars translated and the comments of their own prophet. Unfortunately, this is what Muslims have been doing throughout the history of Islam. They falsify you, no matter what you say, true or false, until you agree with them and speak in Islam’s favor. They do this for months, years, centuries, until they confuse people and gain power. It is then that they themselves speak about the same and real Islam you have been teaching. This is called ‘Taghiyyah’ the secret jihad (war) of Islamists again others. Why do they live such a double life? I pray that my talks will touch their hearts and minds and get them to question some of what they have been taught. Sometimes they speak against you because they are expected to do so in front of other Muslims. However, privately, their consciences challenge or condemn them. Praise God and thanks to our prayer supporters throughout the world for the fact that nobody interrupted my message. It is so sad that the fundamentalist Islamic culture has become a threat to Western citizens and that they do not feel secure in their country anymore. At the Sunday morning Bible study, I spoke about 20 minutes and answered questions from the audience for a further 25 minutes. The impact on people was huge and they were deeply moved. The elders showed interest in inviting me for a return visit, where I would teach them about influential evangelistic tools for reaching out to others. Berea, Kentucky On November 4th, I shared my life story and testimony in both the morning and evening services at Bethel Baptist Church in Berea, KY. In the evening service, two pastors from other churches attended with some of their parishioners. The message was eye opening to the audience. One person gave her heart to the Lord and several people renewed their commitments to the Lord. People realized that they need to prepare themselves in order to answer the contemporary questions of people and lead them to Christ. They also realized that they should not expect strangers to respect the values of America, if they themselves do not appreciate them. Lexington, Kentucky On Monday, November 5th, we went to Lexington, KY. On Tuesday, we went to tour the AiG Museum. We were so encouraged by the wonderful works that are on display in the Museum. It illustrates the vast expanses of the world and how no part of it can exist without a Mighty Creator. It proves that the theory of evolution is just the product of the simple-mindedness of man. On Wednesday, November 7th, I spoke in the World Mission Class to the PhD students at Asbury Seminary in the town of Wilmore, half an hour from Lexington. I gave my testimony and for about two hours I answered questions from the audience. This is a Wesleyan college and John Wesley’s statue was in the yard of the school. I always imagined him to be a physically big and tall man, not unlike his mission and awakening work. But much to my shock I discovered that he was a small man, one whose voice penetrated into the heart of the giant world and made a great change in it. On Friday evening, November 9th, I spoke to 45 people at the First Alliance Church. Most of the audience came from surrounding churches and communities. I spoke about three things very briefly; our life story, the difference between Islam and Christianity, and the cultural differences between the Islamic countries and the West in comparison with the culture of Christ. My goal was to help the audience understand the cultural barriers in evangelism. On Saturday, November 10th, we talked at three programs. From 8am to 9:15am, there was a combined men’s and women’s breakfast. I gave a very brief overview of our testimony and answered questions from the audience. From 9.30am to 11:20am Mary spoke to the women about her story in Christ and about women in Islam. I lectured about the influential tools of evangelism and answered the audience’s questions. On Sunday, May 11th, I preached about influential evangelism in the two morning services. In the afternoon, we spent time with a practicing Muslim-American man along with a few of his Christian friends. We had a lengthy discussion about the differences between Allah and God, Muhammad and Jesus, and the values of both Islam and Christianity. One of the disturbing comments we heard from this Muslim man was, “If Islam takes over America, it will establish its own law (Shari’a). When Shari’a is established, every non-Muslim must become Muslim, otherwise he/she must be killed.” In response, I said to him, “So you are saying to your Christian friend that you are friends with him when Muslims are a minority in America. However, when Muslims become the majority your friendship with him will cease unless he becomes Muslim. If your Christian friend said this to you, wouldn’t you be disturbed?” We could tell by his body language that he was troubled. He responded that “this is the way Allah has established for Muslims and we need to obey Allah.” Pittsburgh, PA On Monday, November 12th we flew to Pittsburgh. We were hosted for a week by a family who is supporting our ministry. Mary and I desired to see them in order to show our appreciation for their partnership with us. On Wednesday, I was taken to a live interview on Cornerstone Television (CTV). That evening, I spoke to a small group at Allegheny Center Alliance Church (ACAC) about the difference between Christ and other gods, including Allah. On Thursday morning, Mary gave her testimony to another small group and following her talk, I answered the following questions from the audience: 1. How does Christianity differ in persecuted countries compared to the US church? 2. Is the apathy of US Christians going to be our downfall? 3. Have death threats been made to you and your family? 4. Is a political war going to change life in the Middle East? 5. Is a democracy possible in the Middle East? 6. Will Christianity ever be a religion that is not persecuted? On Thursday evening, I spoke briefly to a young adult group about our life story and then about the superior philosophy of Christ among all other philosophies and beliefs. On Friday evening, I spoke to a small home group about our ministry goals and answered questions from the audience about Islam. On Saturday afternoon, our host family arranged an open house and families came and had fellowship with us. On Saturday evening, I preached at ACAC. On Sunday, November 18th, I preached at ACAC three times to approximately 2,500 people. Somerset PA On Monday, November 19th, we flew back to Colorado Springs. On the following Saturday, Nov 24th, I flew back to Pennsylvania again in order to minister in the Somerset Alliance Church. Somerset is the town where one of the planes (Flight 93) was crashed by Muslim terrorists on Sep 11. It was on this flight where several passengers bravely fought the terrorists, preventing them from crashing into the White House or any other building. Thousands of Americans come to Somerset every week in order to keep the memory of these brave passengers alive. On Sunday morning, Nov 25, I gave my testimony in the church. On Sunday evening, I spoke about the nature and mission of Islam and answered the questions of many. On Wednesday, Nov 28, we flew to Sydney/Australia in order to minister in three churches and also be with our kids. Kellyville NSW On Sunday, Dec 2nd, I gave a brief report of the highlights of EFD in 2007 to the Hills Alliance Church, where we initially started our ministry, and then preached a sermon titled ‘Give All Your Rights to Christ’. The message conveyed that the perfect love of Christ requires perfect surrender, not even 99.9%. The church was encouraged by the Spirit of God. At the end, the pastor and the believers gathered around us and prayed for our safety and for more ministry opportunities. Menai NSW On Sunday, Dec 9, I gave our testimony in both morning and evening worship services in the Menai Baptist Church. People were highly moved of the amazing love and grace of Christ and were convinced that the key factor for protecting the values of Christ is to love Him dearly. Campbeltown NSW On Saturday, Dec 15, I shared our life story at the Men's breakfast in the Campbeltown Church of Christ. They felt that their eyes were opened to what is really taking place in Australia. Many people were encouraged by the Spirit of God, desiring and praying for boldness and courage to speak and live the Truth. Email Exchange In between my speaking engagements, I have the pleasure of responding to many emails from Christians and non-Christians, from university professors and students about the various issues of life. Through these email conversations, some people have believed in the Lord, some have become stronger in their faith in Christ, while some have been encouraged to investigate. 3. 2008 Calendar January 2008, USA February-March 2008, Europe April 2008, South America May 2008, USA June-July 2008, Australia and New Zealand - Australian/NZ readers - there are still some dates free during this period. Please email Janet at dmjcd@bigpond.com for details if you would like Daniel to speak at your church or to your community during this time (e.g., June 28/29, July except for July 3 and July 13) October-November 2008, USA 4. Exodus from Darkness Prayer Requests Please praise the Lord with us for all that has been achieved through the ministry of Exodus from Darkness. Exodus from Darkness is a ‘Specialised Apologetics and Evangelism Ministry’ with three major goals: Raising up Middle- Eastern evangelists, awakening non-Christians and Christians to the uniqueness of Christ and caring for our societies. It is nearly six years since Daniel, Mary and Michael, supported by their families and many other people, started working together in ‘Exodus from Darkness’. Since the early 1990’s hundreds of thousands of people have heard Daniel speak in person around the world in English, Azerbaijani, Turkish or Farsi and we estimate that many millions have now heard Daniel through books, CD, DVD, radio, newspapers and television. Please pray for the provision of funds to cover Daniel’s airfare to Europe in February. Please pray for God’s blessing and guidance upon the Shayesteh’s as they work towards setting up ‘Exodus from Darkness’ in the USA. There are lots of regulatory issues to work through and significant costs. Praise the Lord for the many times now that Mary and Daniel have been able to travel together. We speak in Jesus' Name to many hearts across the world, that they will be challenged in this era of globalisation to search for the Truth with all their heart. Please pray for the Lord’s guidance and creativity to be poured out upon us so that we can work together with churches to share the gospel persuasively with local communities. Please pray for all the people who hear Daniel and Mary’s testimony to Jesus. Please pray that these people, and all the people they influence, will grow in their courage to walk the bridge between east and west in Jesus’ Name. Please pray for the continuing provision of all Daniel and Mary's financial needs. They have sacrificed much to ensure Daniel and now Mary could speak and lecture across Australia and overseas. A donation to help them would be a blessing for them. We thank God for groups of people who are supporting Daniel and Mary's ministry spiritually and intellectually as we consider the most effective ways for their ministry to grow in the years ahead. Please pray that the Shayesteh's ministry will be guided along the path of greatest fruitfulness for the kingdom of God. 5. Daniel's books Many people have been blessed through the special insights into Islam and other religions that are provided by Daniel's books. Always accompanying these insights is Daniel's testimony to the uniqueness of Christ our Lord in every dimension of life. Please make use of Daniel's books listed below and share them with your churches, bible colleges and friends. 'The Difference is the Son' compares the Qur'an and the Bible against the backdrop of Islam's early history and Islam's contemporary message. Daniel concludes that the difference between these two books in all dimensions of life is the 'Son' - our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, the only source of eternal confidence. "A Journey from 'gods' to Christ" (The title of this book in the USA is, “Christ above all gods”) looks at the nature of 'god', sin and salvation in all the world's major religions, while at the same time challenging the conscience (God given!) of every human being to search for the Truth. 'The Difference is the Son' - suggested donation $20 + $5 for postage "A Journey from 'gods' to Christ" - suggested donation $15 + $5 for postage. For contact details for ordering these books, please see the end of this email. We close with the words of Jesus. "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field." Matthew 9:37,38 (CEV) Shalom! Janet Shayesteh and Michael York EFD Contact Details Email/mail to the Director, Dr Daniel Shayesteh: dmjcd@bigpond.com.au EFD Inc. PO Box 1885 Castle Hill NSW 1765 Mobile for Director: 0402 464 412 Email/mail address for donations and ordering books/recordings, Janet Shayesteh: dmjcd@bigpond.com.au EFD Inc. PO Box 1885 Castle Hill NSW 1765 EFD Bank Account Details for direct deposits: Exodus from Darkness Inc., Commonwealth Bank, Baulkham Hills, NSW, Australia BSB: 062279; Account Number: 10193530 We also accept donations on Bankcard, Mastercard or Visa by phone or mail. Cheques can be made payable to "Exodus from Darkness Inc." Exodus from Darkness (ABN: 51 091 519 696) is endorsed by the Christian and Missionary Alliance of Australia (http://www.cma.org.au/) Facilitator for EFD Inc. Michael York PhD Phone: 02 9896 5951 Mobile: 040 88 66 164 Email: michaeljyork@primusonline.com.au or efd@exodusfromdarkness.org |
