"Swells in the Middle Kingdom" began his life in China as a student back in 1990 and still, to this day, is fascinated by the challenges and blessings of living and working in China.
Reading Peng’s book, alongside the research of many other scholars of the Chinese Bible, reminds China workers today of the very real merits of the Union translation as well as its prominence within the Chinese church.
The experience of ministering as an expatriate in China is quite different today, as those who remain struggle to carve out meaningful roles in an increasingly challenging environment.
Excerpts from a pamphlet from an earlier era selected to encourage new generations of readers to persevere in prayer on behalf of the work in China and around the globe.
Many Chinese believers enter the church at times of personal crisis. Financial troubles, broken relationships, health emergencies—real world trials often reveal to Chinese people the fractured nature of their safety nets, as friends, family, and the state fail to provide them with what they need. These moments of brokenness can be used by God to open people’s hearts to their own weakness and God’s strength.
While social service has long been part of missionary work in mainland China, today a host of different factors are driving Chinese Christians to explore for themselves the place of humanitarian concerns within gospel ministry. For a growing number of local Christians, loving one’s neighbor through acts of service is rapidly becoming an indispensable aspect of Christian witness. This essay will first explore the role of social service in the history of mission in China before analyzing its place in the ministry of the contemporary Chinese church.
Choosing to face hardship—for remaining in China seemed foolish to almost everyone back in February—has brought us tremendous blessing, as each of us has experienced in the most concrete ways imaginable the solid trustworthiness of God’s promise: “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
We persevere through the frustration, alienation, and anxiety, trusting that if we seek first the coming kingdom then our loving Father who knows exactly what we need will provide for us—even in the midst of China’s latest storm. Maybe that’s why he keeps us here.
A look at how churches are responding.
An article on effective service from the ChinaSource archives.
As Christians from the west we must stop thinking in terms of “the west and the rest” and embrace our identity as equal members of the world church, no more special or privileged than any of our sisters and brothers.
Once we understand that the world in which we minister has changed significantly, then we are in a position to reassess more accurately what our role ought to be in the global church.
Before we can assess our role in the global church we must first have an accurate picture of the church around the world today.