When I was born again in 1983, I began to attend a home group. The teacher of the group told us that he had heard that Christians in China were praying for the Christians in America.
I was a baby Christian, so naturally I thought to myself “Why would they be praying for us, when they are imprisoned?”
As I grew in my walk with Jesus, I realized that in America we have so many distractions, freedoms and much wealth. We tend to be satisfied in our state of comfort and become complacent.
And that complacency has given birth to APOSTASY across America. This was foretold in the Word and it is called the Great Apostasy or the Falling away from the Faith.
In China, the Christians were under extreme persecution (as they are today). The persecution served to push believers into the arms of Jesus.
“Now all these things happened unto them for examples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come” (1Corinthians 10:11).
“And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God” (Romans 12:2).
“Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee” (Psalm 199:11).
When I read the article from sovereign nations.com I felt ashamed – ashamed of the things of which I complain. And I felt ashamed that I have many Bibles, yet I do not read the Holy World of God nearly enough.
Chinese Christians imprisoned for their faith are memorizing Scripture passages smuggled to them on small pieces of paper because prison guards “can’t take what’s hidden in your heart,” one former prisoner revealed.
In a recent sermon, Wayne Cordeiro, pastor of New Hope Christian Fellowship in Honolulu, Hawaii, shared an experience he had on a trip to China, where the church went to train leaders.
The pastor shared how 22 Christians from the Hunan Province took a 13-hour train ride to attend the leadership training held at a 700-square-foot hotel room. Out of the 22 Christians present, 18 had been imprisoned for their faith, the pastor revealed.
“If we get caught what will happen to me?” Cordeiro began by asking.
“Well, you will get deported in 24 hours, and we will go to prison for three years,” the Chinese Christians responded.
After beginning his lesson, the pastor realized he only had 15 Bibles to pass around, so seven people went without.
“I said, ‘turn to 2 Peter 1, we are going to read it.’ Just then one lady handed hers to the person next to her, and I thought ‘hmm interesting,’” he recalled.
As the Christians began reading, he quickly realized why she had given her Bible away: she had memorized the whole book.
“When it was done, I went over to her at a break and said, ‘You recited the whole chapter,’” he said. She replied, “In prison, you have much time in prison.”
“Don’t they confiscate the Bible?” he asked.
She said that while any Christian material is indeed confiscated, people smuggle in scripture written on paper and hide it from the prison guards.
“That’s why we memorize it as fast as we can because even though they can take the paper away, they can’t take what’s hidden in your heart,” she explained.
Following the three-day training session, one Chinese Christian man asked Cordeiro, “Could you pray that one day we could just be like you?”
“I looked at him and said, ‘I will not do that,’” he replied. “You guys road a train 13 hours to get here. In my country, if you have to drive more than an hour, people won’t come.”
“You sat on a wooden floor for three days. In my country, if people have to sit for more than 40 minutes they leave. You sat here for not only three days on a hard wooden floor, in my country if it’s not padded pews and air conditioning, people will not come back.”
“In my country, we have an average of two Bibles per family. We don’t read any of them. You hardly have any Bibles and you memorize them from pieces of paper.”
China has seen explosive growth in the number of believers over the last several decades. Estimates have even suggested that China is on track to have the largest Christian population in the world by 2030.
About 30 million Christians in China are estimated to attend state-sanctioned churches while many others attend illegal underground house churches that are not registered with the government.
In efforts to stunt the rapid growth of Christianity, authorities throughout China have shuttered a number of prominent house churches and arrested Christians for worshiping without the approval of the government.
The pastor urged Christians in the West to embrace suffering for the glory of Christ “because the Church is that beautiful and that important.” source
Once again:
**The pastor urged Christians in the West to embrace suffering for the glory of Christ “because the Church is that beautiful and that important.”
Persecution is coming to Christians in America
When I speak of the coming persecution to the remnant believers in America, I get various reactions, but mostly the brethren disagree with me and quote Scriptures about being kept from the Wrath of God. Some are looking for revival, but I don’t see that in God’s Word.
First of all, the “Wrath” of which the Bible speaks has to do with the period of time referred to as the TRIBULATION.
I am speaking of “persecution” which we should expect as we are in this world, but certainly not of it. It you are not being persecuted by family and others – if you are not seen as a “God freak” and are not excluded from most get togethers, then I have to say that you should take a long look at your walk with God.
I am not trying to make people fee guilty; but then again if that is what it takes to convict a brother or sister in Christ that they are blending in with the world – then guilty you should feel!
” If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you” (John 15:18-19)
Pray for our brothers and sisters in China as they pray for us.
Pray for those imprisoned in China to receive the Word of God. Pray for boldness and courage for them, as they may be facing martyrdom.
Pray for the brethren in America that they will realize that persecution is at our door.
But take heart because this persecution will serve to draw us closer to Christ! Many will say that the Christians in America will not suffer persecution – that we are somehow immune to this.
I believe that these people are misled.
Shalom b’Yeshua
MARANATHA!!
I am grateful to anyone who prays for America. America has lost the fear of God and has turned from his ways. To think that the persecuted in China are praying for our country is simply humbling! May we all learn from them and continue to pray for China and all restricted nations who do not have the freedoms that we in America enjoy.
Amen.
Reblogged this on Wake Up To The Truth.