"We need to get rid of our hostile attitude"

April 2009
Brother Andrew speaks at NEM Renewal Conference
Brother Andrew (Open Doors) is one of the guest speakers at our NEM Renewal Conference in Holland this summer. At first sight this seems a strange choice for an organisation like Near East Ministry. In the past Brother Andrew was criticised by people who are pro-Israel. He visited Israel's enemies frequently and therefore they called him a 'friend of Hamas'. But the theme of our conference: 'Peace for Sale' appeals to him very much.

Because he often visits radical Muslims and terrorists, the outsiders put him in a pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel box. But Brother Andrew states: "The politics of Israel and the Palestinians are not my business. I'm an evangelist. I only have to proclaim God's Word, preach Jesus and strengthen the suffering church. And because the suffering church in the Palestinian areas is bigger than in Israel, I visit the Palestinians more often."

It is a biblical command to love your enemies. "Blessed are the peacemakers. Whom do you make peace with? With your enemies, so I go to my enemies and talk with them." That Brother Andrew is in touch with members of Hamas and Taliban does not mean that he agrees with them. "Jesus had also contact with the sinner, but did not agree with his deeds. I also tell Hamas that I disagree with their bus bombs and that I find it terrible, but that does not relieve me of the duty of loving them."


To pray
Brother Andrew says Christians need to pray for their enemies. "1 Timothy 2:1: 'First of all, I ask you to pray for everyone. Ask God to help and bless them all, and tell God how thankful you are for each of them.' Who can I exclude then? So I also pray for Bin Laden, although some people have difficulties with that. It seems Christians have put certain groups on a 'black list' and don't pray for them. People who they prefer not to come across in heaven."

Naive
Naive? "Call me naive, if you want. It is easier to take a gun and just shoot your enemies. But also politics aren't going to bring a solution for the conflict in the Middle East. We all fail. We need to preach Jesus and let his Spirit work. There only is a small group of missionaries who focus on the Muslim world. Apparently few Christians have the faith, vision and guts to win Muslims for Jesus. Muslims won't win because they are strong, but because we are weak. We have to get rid of our hostile attitude. If they are really dangerous and strong, then we have to go to them", states Brother Andrew.

Getting rid of hostile thoughts is only possible if Christians visit Muslims, according to Brother Andrew. "In Europe there are a lot of Muslims and you can recognise them easily. Talk with them," he says. According to the former Bible smuggler we don't have to have an interfaith dialogue. "The message of Jesus has to be central. But how can you approach Muslims? Do you dare to love Muslims as Jesus commanded us? If you regard them as enemies, God can't use you as a channel for his love for Muslims."