Iran has a long and varied history. It is mentioned many times in the Bible and is in the news today. Iran has several proxy groups and people doing its bidding, including Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and others. It is significant that despite the harsh persecution against Christians in Iran, the church in Iran is one of the fastest-growing groups in today’s world. Here are some of the factors I want to suggest for such growth…
Eschatology Determines Behavior
What a person, a people, or a nation believes about the end times determines behavior. Premillennialists, Amillennialists, postmillennialists, and panmillennialists all have different views of the end times. Many of those who believe that Israel is God’s covenant people with a distinct place in the end times will go to Israel to serve the nation and people in a variety of ways—construction work, medical volunteers, and providing a multitude of non-combatant services.
Those who see Israel as an oppressor nation will seek to destroy the nation and the people “from the river to the sea.” Those who have no eschatology and are godless will live consistent with their belief: “Let us eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die.”
Muslim Eschatology
Muslim eschatology has several features that resemble biblical eschatology. Al-Masih ad-Dajjal is a prominent figure in Muslim end-time beliefs. Masih is an Arabic title applied to Jesus and means “Messiah.” Dajjal means “most deceitful.” The phrase Al-Masih ad-Dajjal means “the fraudulent Jesus,” or “the lying Messiah,” equivalent to the Antichrist of Christian teaching.
Parallels between biblical eschatology and Islamic eschatology are not unusual. Muhammad often claimed that the Bible supports his message. He stated many times that if people would read Scripture and consult with Jews and Christians, they would agree that what he said was true (Qur’an 5:42–48; 5:65–68; 6:114–115).
But what about the Qur’an and other Islamic literature regarding Israel and the Jews? Muhammad did consider the Jews “people of the book” and initially presented himself to them as a spiritual leader.
When reading the Qur’an, we find many statements that can hardly be seen as complimentary of the Jews. They are portrayed as disobeying God (2:92–93), rejecting their own covenant (2:100), and distorting or twisting the meaning of the divine revelation they have received (2:101, 174). Jews are even cursed by God (2:88; 4:51–52). Outside the Qur’an, in non-canonic but traditionally accepted Hadiths, we read: “The Day of Judgment will not come about until Muslims fight the Jews, when the Jew will hide behind stones and trees. The stones and trees will say ‘O Muslim fight the Jews; when the Jew will hide behind stones and trees,’ the stones and trees will say, ‘O Muslims, O Abdullah, there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him.’”
Muslim apologists will point out that the Old Testament also has some strong, and even harsh judgments pronounced against Israel—which is completely true. But there is something added in the Old Testament that sharply changes the emerging picture. God is punishing Israel because He loves them (Amos 3:2). In the end times, Israel will be judged by God, but those Jews who remain will be purified and will be graciously accepted by God for all eternity in the Kingdom Age (Zech 13:8–9).
Waiting for the Twelfth Imam
There are two main branches of Islam—Sunni Islam, and Shi’ite Islam. Belief in the coming Mahdi is of pivotal importance to the Shi’ites. “Twelvers,” as Shi’ites are called, believe that Muhammad al Mahdi, the Twelfth Imam, the son of the eleventh Imam, Al-Hasan al-Askari, is in “occultation”—obscurity, perhaps in hiding, or perhaps present but not visible. When the Twelfth Imam appears, he will bring great changes to the world, namely removing evil and injustice. This is of particular importance to the Iranian leadership who agrees that Zionism is a great evil that must be destroyed. The Mahdi will accomplish this by his reappearance.
In 2022, CBN published a revealing piece titled, “Iranian President Prepares For 12th Imam’s Reappearance.” Reference is made to Bernard Lewis, professor emeritus of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton, who said that Aug. 22 could be an opportune time for Iran’s then-President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, would see that as the date to set in motion the return of the Twelfth Imam. Lewis gave a chilling reminder of what this means. “There is a radical difference between the Islamic Republic of Iran and other governments with nuclear weapons. This difference is expressed in what can only be described as the apocalyptic worldview of Iran’s recent rulers.”
President Ahmadinejad was a strong supporter of “Twelver eschatology.” They emphasized the historical succession of imams, connected by family ties, beginning with the Prophet Muhammad and concluding with the Twelfth Imam.
Kairosjournal.com states that Twelvers like Ahmadinejad believe “that the hand of God is guiding him to trigger a series of cataclysmic events which could precipitate the return of the Twelfth Imam. Only time will tell if this is his true conviction; but if he does hold such a view, his possession of nuclear weapons is a particularly scary prospect.”
Further study will show that belief in the Mahdi’s return significantly shapes Iran’s foreign policy. Iran’s leadership will prioritize their actions that align with apocalyptic expectations, believing that chaos and conflict are a necessary precursor to the Mahdi’s appearance. With good reason some fear that Iran’s leaders might intentionally escalate conflicts to hasten the Mahdi’s arrival. Some believe this is clearly taught in a previously mentioned Hadith, which states: “The Day of Judgment will not come about until Muslims fight the Jews.”
The Role of Pious Iranian Citizens
Iranian citizens are taught to view Iran’s religious leaders as the deputies of the Twelfth Imam, who will return to check on their faithfulness. The leaders are to be revered by the citizens. They are to give a part of their assets and revenues to the leaders each year. Faithful Iranians believe that these funds belong to the hidden Imam by right.
This may explain the vicious persecution of Christians and others, such as women who refuse to wear the required head covering. If the general population of Iran abandons Shi’ite beliefs and becomes lax in obedience to the Iranian leadership, the funds will stop flowing into state coffers. The hidden Imam will be angry at Iran, and all eschatological promises of victory over infidels will be annulled. The people of Iran are taught to live in alignment with Shi’ite beliefs or face a humiliating defeat at the hands of the Americans and the Zionists.
Clearly, belief in the Mahdi’s imminent return has a strong influence on how Iran relates to the rest of the world. The nation’s foreign policy only makes sense if The Twelvers are honored. Consequently, every presidential administration in the U.S. must relate to Iran based on Iran’s eschatological beliefs or face disastrous consequences.
In another CBN report, titled, “‘Twelfth Imam,’ Key Facet of Islamic Prophecy, Fuels Middle East Turmoil,” Ray Tillman, director of the school of intercultural studies at Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary, “noted that the major eschatological question for Shi’ite Muslims is when the Mahdi’s return will take place—and many hold the belief that the time is near. … The increasing clash with Israel and that with the rapid rise of Christianity in Iran, are two indications to Shi’ites that the Mahdi’s return could very well be near.”
In the above-cited CBN report, William Wagner, senior professor at Golden Gate Baptist Seminary and author of the book How Islam Plans to Change the World, stated that Iran’s religious leaders “feel like one of the major blocking points is Israel, and that is the one reason why they feel like they must destroy Israel.”
Is Conflict Necessary?
A little-recognized fact of Shi’ite Islam is that conflict is not necessary. We would be wrong to assume that militant Shi’ite beliefs are uniform throughout Iran, and wrong to assume that Shia Islam universally calls for revolution, a violent overthrow of secularism, and an attack against “infidels.”
The current Shi’ite leadership has corrupted Iran’s original Shi’ite religion and made it a twisted, angry, bloodthirsty monster that sponsored the indescribably evil acts that were perpetrated on innocent Israelis on October 7, 2023.
Many younger Iranians are fed up with their fascist leaders, as expressed in the conversion of thousands of Iranians who are now following Jesus—even though it is extremely costly to do so. Yes, we are to pray for the peace of Jerusalem (Ps. 122:6) but while you are doing that, pray for the peace of Iran.
