An Iranian pastor who has refused to renounce his Christian faith faces execution as early as Wednesday after his sentence was upheld by an Iranian court.

Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, who maintains he has never been a Muslim as an adult, has Islamic ancestry and therefore must recant his faith in Jesus Christ, the 11th branch of Iran’s Gilan Provincial Court ruled. Iran’s Supreme Court had ordered the trial court to determine whether Nadarkhani had been a Muslim prior to converting to Christianity.

The judges, according to the American Center for Law & Justice, demanded that Nadarkhani, 34, recant his Christian faith before submission of evidence. Though the judgment runs against current Iranian and international laws and is not codified in Iranian penal code, the judge stated that the court must uphold the decision of the 27th Branch of the Supreme Court in Qom.

When asked to repent, Nadarkhani stated: “Repent means to return. What should I return to? To the blasphemy that I had before my faith in Christ?”

“To the religion of your ancestors, Islam,” the judge replied, according to the American Center for Law & Justice.

“I cannot,” Nadarkhani said.

Nadarkhani is the latest Christian cleric to be imprisoned in Iran for his religious beliefs. According to Elam Ministries, a United Kingdom-based organization that serves Christian churches in Iran, there was a significant increase in the number of Christians arrested solely for practicing their faith between June 2010 and January 2011. A total of 202 arrests occurred during that six-month period, including 33 people who remained in prison as of January, Elam reported.

An Assyrian evangelical pastor, Rev. Wilson Issavi, was imprisoned for 54 days for allegedly converting Muslims prior to his release in March 2010, Elam officials told FoxNews.com.

Nadarkhani, a pastor in the 400-member Church of Iran, has been held in that country’s Gilan Province since October 2009, after he protested to local education authorities that his son was forced to read from the Koran at school. His wife, Fatemeh Pasandideh, was also arrested in June 2010 in an apparent attempt to pressure him to renounce his faith. She was released in October 2010, according to Amnesty International.

Nadarkhani was sentenced to death for apostasy last September based on religious writings by Iranian clerics, including Ayatollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran, despite the fact that there is no offense of “apostasy” in the nation’s penal code, Amnesty International reports.

In June, the Supreme Court of Iran ruled that a lower court should re-examine procedural flaws in the case, giving local judges the power to decide whether to release, execute or retry Nadarkhani. The verdict, according to Amnesty International, includes a provision for the sentence to be overturned should Nadarkhani renounce his faith.

Elise Auerbach, an Iranian analyst for Amnesty International USA, told FoxNews.com that an execution for apostasy has not been carried out in Iran since 1990. Nadarkhani’s sentence is a “clear violation of international law,” she said.

“The key is to keep up the pressure and to publicize the story because it obviously outrages most people,” Auerbach said. “It’s part of the pattern of persecution based on religion in Iran.”

Kiri Kankhwende, a spokeswoman for Christian Solidarity Worldwide, a human rights organization that specializes in religious freedom, told FoxNews.com that Nadarkhani was asked for the fourth time to renounce his faith during a hearing early Wednesday and he denied that request.

“We’re waiting to hear the final outcome,” she told FoxNews.com. We’re still waiting to hear what they’ve decided.”

Kankhwende said Nadarkhani could be executed Wednesday or Thursday.

“Iran is unpredictable,” she said. “We can’t say when it might happen. It’s a very real threat, but we can’t say when exactly.”

Officials at the U.S. State Department declined to comment when reached on Wednesday.Attempts to reach his attorney, Mohammed Ali Dadkhah, were not successful.

House Speaker John Boehner said Nadarkhani’s case is “distressing for people of every country and creed,” according to a statement released on Wednesday.

“While Iran’s government claims to promote tolerance, it continues to imprison many of its people because of their faith,” the statement read. “This goes beyond the law to an issue of fundamental respect for human dignity. I urge Iran’s leaders to abandon this dark path, spare [Nadarkhani's] life, and grant him a full and unconditional release.”

Father Jonathan Morris, a Catholic priest in the Archdiocese of New York and an analyst for Fox News Channel, said Nadarkhani’s case is “unmistakable evidence” that Iran is executing Christians simply because they refuse to become Muslims.

Morris continued: “Will President Obama, and the free world, allow the United Nations to continue in its cowardly silence on this matter?”

Thanks again so much to ALL of you who gave (in honor of Derek’s birthday) to the beautiful Amy Lucas family.  Little “Ivan,” soon to be renamed “Liam Josiah” will now be coming home to the arms of his new family! Amy had chosen Liam’s middle name a couple months ago, in honor of our little Josiah who went to be with Jesus when he was 2 and 1/2. God is a God of great justice! You have truly been His hands and feet and we are so blessed by the way you walked out James 1:27 on behalf of this little one. Please take time to read Amy Lucas’ “thank you” note below. So thankful for you!!

Amy’s note:

How do you thank someone for giving your child his life back? That is what I have asked Jesus, as I prayed to him over the last several days. I am a single Mom with four sons who live at home and one son who lives thousands of miles away. My four sons have a home, a family and a life full of love and friends and happiness. My other son has nothing, no home, no family, no love, no future.

When I began this adoption, I was afraid, afraid that I would not be able to pay the cost of rescuing this sweet boy. I would toss and turn at night and pray to God for peace. I knew that my fear did not come from God. I questioned God. How can I adopt again at such a high cost? I have only one income and a teacher’s income at that. How can I do this Lord? And He whispered to me, “I’m with you.”

So, I began the adoption process and everything was going smoothly. The homestudy was complete and I managed to pay for it myself. But there was an additional cost of an Egress window that had to be installed in order for my homestudy to be approved. I did not have that money. That money was set aside to make necessary repairs to my basement which had flooded a couple years ago. I finally had the money to have those repairs done but if I wanted to bring Liam home, I could not repair my basement. So of course, I had the window installed and prayed to God that my basement would not flood again. About a week later, I received a letter in the mail from the city, saying that they had implemented an insurance program to cover the repairs to the basement if needed. With that, God showed me that He was with me.

I have had many people support me as I decided to adopt Liam. But there have been others who have thought I am crazy. They could not understand why I would adopt with the economy so bad. Unfortunately, I let them cause me to fear again. I longed to bring Liam home so I prayed to God again for peace, and to help me raise the money that I would need to bring Liam home. I could do some of it myself but I would still need $15,000. I did a couple fundraisers and I had raised almost $8,000. But it took about 6 months to do that. I had just completed my dossier and it was ready to be sent across the ocean. How in the world could I come up with the rest of the money that I would need? I prayed and prayed and ashamed to admit that I was scared too…..

And then Renee contacted me and told me that her precious Derek’s birthday was that day, and that she and the rest of Derek’s family had chosen to honor him, by helping an orphan come home to his family. That orphan was Liam “Ivan” and that family was mine. I stood there and just cried as I read her words. She told me how much they loved us and loved Liam. I cried and cried and praised God because I knew at this very moment, that this was God’s doing. So, in honor of Derek and his love and commitment to helping orphans…..Liam was coming home!

And that is not all…..the most miraculous blessing was about to happen. People, many people, people I don’t know, and people that don’t know me…………………… began donating to Liam’s adoption. And they were praying for Liam and praying for my family. These people that love Jesus and love Derek began lifting my family up in prayer and also chipping away at the financial burden that I was carrying.I am once again in tears as I write this….because I am in awe of what God has done. I am overwhelmed with emotion as I think of how God has moved mountains with the goodness in people’s hearts. As a mother who loves my child deeply, and longs to hold him in my arms, and who prays daily for his safety and his health…….I can’t thank you enough for what you have done for my Liam. God Bless each and every one of you for your love and your prayers and your donations. Thank you Jesus! Thank you Renee, John and Tracie. We love you! And thank you Derek for sharing your special day with my family and for your gift to Liam.

With all of our love,

The Lucas family

Amy, Jimmy, Benjamin, Caleb, Elijah and Liam