In Memory of Bae Hyung Kyu (1965-2007)

There’s nothing like reading real stories about real people in far-away continents who are laying down their lives in difficult places for the glory of Jesus Christ. Their accounts help me in my fight for joy. More than that, they serve as sobering reminders to my soul that “only one life, ‘twill soon be past; only what’s done for Christ will last.” Life is a vapor. I don’t want to waste it.

Bae Hyung Kyu did not waste his life. Last week, he was murdered by the Taliban on his 42nd birthday, just a few days after he and a group of 22 young South Korean missionaries (men and women) were taken hostage in Afghanistan on 19 July. Bae, the leader of the group, was a Presbyterian pastor in Seoul and known by fellow church leaders as “Mr. Smile.” According to the UK news site TimesOnline, “Reverend Bae knew the huge risks of leading young Christian missionaries into the Islamic heart of Afghanistan, but did so with irrepressible good cheer.” Imagine the opposition he must have received, even from some Christians, for embracing such a great risk for the sake of Christ.

Two paragraphs later in that same article, I read the following: “Even as he faced slaughter at the hands of the Taleban, Reverend Bae’s main concern was not for his own life. He wanted desperately to donate his organs to medical research at a hospital in Anyang, but feared they would be rejected if riddled with bullet-holes.” The Taliban militants did just that: ten bullet holes were found in Bae’s head, chest, and stomach. At the brink of death, Bae’s concern was not for his own life but for the lives of others back home who could benefit from his organs. Indeed, Pastor Bae’s final thoughts on earth were a sweet echo of the Apostle Paul’s words:

“I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.” [Acts 20:24]

Bae faced death unafraid because he knew he would gain Christ. “Whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it” (Matt. 16:25). The One who suffered and became a curse on a cross in Bae’s place, this glorious and resurrected Christ was the One enabling Bae to suffer and die for His name’s sake. This is the power of God.

Bae Hyung Kyu, thank you for showing us what it means to live an un-wasted life of radical love for people, a life that takes great risks to display Jesus Christ and to bear witness to His atoning work for sinners. Your life is a beautiful testimony to the glory of the grace of God.

See you in heaven, brother.

Bae leaves behind a wife and a nine-year-old daughter.
Let us pray that God would deliver the remaining hostages from their oppressors.