5 Christians Who Sacrificed Their Lives for the Gospel

A martyr is a person who is killed because of their religious or other beliefs. They were an important facet of making Christianity what it is today. It was through them that word spread of the Gospel spread in addition to giving others the strength to carry on. Governments looked to wipe out the leaders of Christianity and those preaching Christ’s words, and could not succeed. They panicked by doing mass killings, but another person would pick up the mantle of faith. "Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me (Matthew 5:11).”

Saint Catherine

The Great Martyr Saint Catherine found God after experiencing a vision. Under the tyranny of Gaius Valerius Galerius Maximinus, Christians were tortured and killed. Catherine debated many regarding faith and subsequently helped convert many others to the Christian faith. Maximinus ordered her death on the wheel but it broke. She was then beheaded. Andrew was a follower and disciple of John. He went on to preach and plant churches causing Greek authorities to worry about his influence. The governor stepped in to stop Andrew from swaying people away from the Roman Gods. Andrew responded “I would not preach the honor and glory of the cross if I feared the death of the cross.”

John Wycliffe

During the 14th Century one man worked to make the Bible available in English. As part of the reformation, John Wycliffe translated the Bible from Latin to English against Rome’s wishes. The church accused the theologian of being vulgar and persecuted him relentlessly. After he died, his accusers were afraid of him, still. They returned to Wycliffe’s burial site to burn the body. He told his enemies "You say it is heresy to speak of the Holy Scriptures in English. You call me a heretic because I have translated the Bible into the common tongue of the people. Do you know whom you blaspheme? Did not the Holy Ghost give the Word of God at first in the mother-tongue of the nations to whom it was addressed? Why do you speak against the Holy Ghost? You say that the Church of God is in danger from this book. How can that be?"