Seven months ago, Donald Ossewaarde became the first American convicted of breaking a Russian law that bans preaching the Gospel outside a registered church.

Now he's going before Russia's Supreme Court—and the outcome could have huge ramifications for all Christians in the country.

The story of Ossewaarde and his wife, Ruth, began 14 years ago when they moved to the Russian city of Oryol.

"My area is 250 miles south of Moscow and they're very, very communist," Ossewaarde told CBN News in his first American TV interview. "They [people in Oryol] have a very Soviet mentality in that area."

The couple decided Oryol would be a good place to settle down, buy a small home and start evangelizing.

"I'm there to give them the Gospel of Jesus Christ, to tell them of the Good News of salvation," Ossewaarde said. (Screengrab via CBN News)

To do that, these Baptist missionaries placed Gospel tracts, with their home address, in every single mailbox of each apartment building in Oryol.

"There are 320,000 people in Oryol, so everybody has received a personal invitation from me with a plan of salvation," Ossewaarde said.

And people responded. CBN News obtained footage of Ossewaarde preaching and worshipping in his living room, and conducting a water baptism of a Russian Believer.

"Everybody knows we are there. We're operating openly. It's no secret what we are doing and why we are doing it," the Baptist missionary said. "We are the only Americans within 250 miles so everybody in town knows that I am the American."

A 'Troubling' Russian Trend

But on Sunday morning, August 14, 2016, their work came to a screeching halt.

"I had been expecting it for three weeks before that, and then when they [police] walked in; I thought, 'Ok, here goes.'"

Let's pause here for a moment.

Twenty-five days before, on July 20, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed new amendments to a law that govern religious life.

Under the guise of confronting terrorism, Putin gave authorities the power to "ban preaching, praying, proselytizing, and handing out religious materials outside government-sanctioned churches".

The U.S State Department warned the move signaled a "troubling Russian trend of intimidation and harassment".

Sergey Rakhuba's organization works in Russia and 13 other countries of the former Soviet Union.

"This law is known among evangelical Christians in Russia as an "anti-missionary" law because it places harsh restrictions on evangelical churches and foreign missionary organizations," explained Rakhuba, who heads the Illinois-based Mission Eurasia.

Among other things, the law required foreign missionaries to have a permit to evangelize. Also, reading your Bible, singing or simply praying outside a registered church, even in a home, became illegal. (Screengrab via CBN News)

Roman Lunkin is a lawyer with the Slavic Center for Law and Justice, the Russian counterpart of the American Center for Law and Justice, a group that tackles religious freedom cases around the world.

"The law inflicted serious damage because suddenly many Christians feared that just talking about faith or sharing with others about God was a crime," Lunkin told CBN News in Moscow.

Andrei Desnitsky, a prominent Russian commentator, told CBN News that the "law tells us not to do anything that can be called a "missionary activity," including saying, 'I believe in Jesus' for instance."

Supporters insist the law is necessary to confront terrorism, especially acts perpetrated by radical Muslims.

But Rakhuba believes there's a more sinister agenda.

"The Russian authorities are trying to restrict the Protestant and evangelical movements and stop them from spreading their influence and the message of the Gospel"...

Continue reading here.

To receive daily emails from Breaking Christian News to your inbox CLICK HERE

Give Him 15: Mercy is Our New Currency

A Little Baby Girl Is Rescued from a Dumpster in Texas. A Dumpster

Nonprofit Asks Feds to Investigate Schools' 'Gender-Affirming Care' Practices

Latest Move by the President to Prevent a Government Shutdown Is Brilliant

Trump Closes Loophole Allowing Illegal Aliens to Drive Commercial Trucks After Tragic Accidents

Trump's Administration Finds 25,000 Missing Migrant Children

Autism, What We Know: Science Backs Up President Trump's Statements

Former FBI Director James Comey Indicted by Grand Jury for Obstruction in Russia Hoax Investigation

The Spiritual Battle is REAL!: Sean McDowell's Son Encounters a 'Demon' While Evangelizing in NYC

3 Suspects Arrested after Houston Youth Baseball Coach Shot during Pregame Prayer With Kids

Explosive Clash: Dearborn Mayor Attacks Resident Who Objected to Terrorist Street Naming

Economy: Second Quarter GDP Revised Up – Again – to Best Quarter Since 2023

DOGE Helped Uncover the Biggest Health Care Heist in American History

Charlie's TPUSA Campus Tours Continue as Virginia Tech Venue Fills to Max Capacity

Justice Department Seeks to Indict Former FBI Director James Comey before Looming Deadline, for Allegedly Lying to Congress

What Happens When You 'Pause' Your Child's Puberty? The Answer Is Even More Devastating Than You'd Think

Texas Bans Gender-Confused People from Using Opposite-Sex Facilities in Public Schools, Prisons

NBC Forced to Retract Claim that ICE Used 5-Year-Old Autistic Girl as 'Bait'; In Reality, Her Criminal Alien Father Abandoned Her in a Car and Agents Rescued the Child

President Trump Urges UN to Protect 'The Most Persecuted Religion on the Planet Today: Christianity'

Secret Service Finds, Dismantles Massive 'Telecommunications Threat' Near UN General Assembly in New York