The latest report out of Iran suggests the regime is increasing pressure on his case, even making up charges to justify their actions.

At a court appearance last week, Nadarkhani refused to deny his Christian beliefs.

"Repent means to return. What should I return to? To the blasphemy that I had before my faith in Christ?" he said.

Religious rights advocates are continuing to speak out for Pastor Nadarkhani.

CBN News spoke with Richard Land, president of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission. Land said the United States has an important role to play in this case.

"I think that part of American exceptionalism is that we have an obligation and a responsibility to be the friend of freedom, to be the friend of freedom of conscience," Land said.

"To help those who don't have it achieve it, and to speak up for those who can't speak up for themselves, such as this Iranian pastor," he said.

The American Center for Law and Justice is following the case and the ongoing efforts to free Nadarkhani.

CBN News