By Mallory Mattingly
Iranian UFC fighter Beneil Khobier Dariush shared the Gospel with his people in Iran nearly four years ago, a message more important than ever after war broke out in the country last week.
“My people in Iran, I know you’re struggling. I know you’re fighting for freedom. I know it’s a tough struggle. I want you guys to know we’re praying for you and we love you,” he said after a fight in a video shared by David J. Harris on Instagram.
“Let me tell you one more thing. This might be the most important thing you’ll ever hear. There is true freedom, freedom that no one can take from you in the name of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Don’t ever forget that. If you remember one thing I said, remember that,” Dariush emphasized.
Related: UFC Fighter Beneil Dariush Fights for the Glory of God
Though Dariush trains hard, he ultimately wants to glorify God by doing what He has called him to do.
“I want to be a champion,” he told News18 Sports in June, “but more importantly I’ve always focused on the glory of God. That’s what I desire and fighting is a platform that God has given me and that’s what I do.”
The UFC Fighter is an “Assyrian/American born in Iran,” according to his Instagram bio.
“I came over to America when I was nine years old,” he said. “I lived on a farm previous to coming to America…Coming to America and all of a sudden there’s so much what I would call luxury…It was just really strange.”
“I was not very good at school, but eventually I ended up going to Jiu-Jitsu and that really changed my life,” he added. “That was the direction God took me.”
When asked why he is so outspoke about his faith, Dariush told CBN in 2023, “The thing that drew me to Him was Him…[you] read the scriptures and [see] that He didn’t have the brokenness and all the things that I have that I know are wrong…and then on top of that he is willing to give up his life for us.”
Dariush also explained the conflict he could face as a fighter and a Christ follower.
“We have to be servants. I’m a leader, but I’m a servant in my house. In a lot of situations I am a servant,” the UFC fighter explained. “I understand what it means to turn the other cheek and when the time is right you just got to know the difference. I believe it was the Apostle Paul said, ‘I became all things to all men in order to save some.’ We do what God tells us to do, so if I have to serve and turn the other cheek, I will.”
Though Dariush shared this message over three years ago, those words have never felt more true for the people in Iran right now.
Read Next: UFC Fighter ‘Excited’ to Raise Son, ‘Serve Christ’ After Loss
Questions or comments? Please write to us here.
– Content: +2