Since 2018 the church in China has faced increasing restrictions from the authorities. Sinicization, far from meaning that the church is becoming more Chinese, actually means that the policy is to make it more conformed to Communism by forcing the teaching of Xi Jinping thought and not the Bible. The obvious intent is to water down the unique teaching of the church so that it becomes in effect ill-defined, without a clear biblical message.
One believer wrote saying:
“We are really confused about the teaching in the church sometimes, because some pastors deliberately mix the Word of God with Communist teachings.”
At the same time we are hearing how the Lord is leading the Chinese church to respond. Ruth Wang from China Christian Daily identified several key trends currently shaping China’s church.
1. Wang speaks of the demand for deeper pastoral care. Over the last decades there has been rapid growth of the church in China, but now “the era of adding more gathering places and more meetings is past. Believers are hungry for more developed pastoral care and for different groups within the church.” If in the past it was said that the church in China was a mile wide and a foot deep, then clearly it is a time to dig a deeper foundation.
2. The need to see the workplace as the church’s greatest mission field. No longer should there be “the long-held division between sacred and secular, with the belief that those who are serious about serving the Lord should quit their jobs and go into church ministry. As the space for public witness shrinks, pastors are realising that much of the church’s witness needs to take place in the workplace, where most of China’s Christians live out their faith on a daily basis.”
3. The development of a Chinese version of theological education. Wang acknowledges the role that Western theological education has played in equipping a new generation of pastors in China. “However, many Chinese churches have discovered through frontline pastoral work and church planting that the Western academic approach often fails to fully adapt to the unique context of the Chinese church. It primarily emphasises the acquisition of knowledge and theories, which can result in a disconnect between theological understanding and spiritual life.” One answer in China would be to “localize seminary education by embedding seminary students and teachers into churches”. There is a need “critically to rethink the current model of church training and to explore a genuinely Chinese way of theological education.”
4. Wang argues that there also needs to be more community-oriented and public welfare ministries as part of the church’s presence within society. “In the current climate, those engaged in charitable and welfare work realize the need to conduct these activities independently of the church and to serve all of society, regardless of religious affiliation, in a more professional way. This service provides a relational context in which individual Christians can share their faith with members of the community.”
These are not easy days for the church in China. But history tells us that our brothers and sisters in China will always seek the Lord for His paths through the storm.
Pray for godly Chinese church leaders to hear the Lord's path for His church in China today.
Pray for individual believers to be called to these different areas of service.
Pray that the gospel will continue to be proclaimed throughout China.
Source: Brent Fulton of ChinaSource commenting on Ruth Wang’s article.
