Building Shalom Even in Adversity

Exiles Seeking and Praying for Shalom on Facing the Cruel King

In my last article, I proposed that a non-profit organization should be prepared to get along well with the government to achieve its missional purpose. I have quoted the Prophet Daniel as a model. He cared about the well-being of the brutal king, Nebuchadnezzar. Through the sincerity of his respect and concern, the king recognized the holiness in Daniel. Then, he was given a chance to come to know the Most High God.

Here, I would like to extend our perspective from Daniel serving the ruler in the court to the common Jews in exile. They all lived in a religiously restrictive nation. Understanding what God expected them to do helps us conjecture how we should react in a nation with restricted religious freedom. Jeremiah, against all odds, convinced the Jews, the envoys of surrounding countries, and the king in Jerusalem that they were doomed to the rule of the cruel king, Nebuchadnezzar (Jeremiah 27). At the point of the prophecy coming true, the Lord instructed how his people would thrive in a land full of hostility until they could return to their homeland seventy years later. Through Jeremiah, God told them to seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which God would carry them into exile. They should also pray to the Lord for its peace and prosperity, because if the city prospered, the exiles too would prosper (Jeramiah 29:7).

In other words, they were supposed to do two things:

1. The exiles should construct the peace and prosperity of the city. Peace and prosperity refer to shalom in Hebrew. This word connotes the outward abundance in society and the inward well-being and harmony of the people.
   
   
2. They should keep praying to the true God and hold on to the faith that only he could shower holistic blessings to make shalom a reality.

Same Paradigm for Christians Facing the Cruel Caesar

This practice of praying and building shalom in the Old Testament became a precursor for the Christians facing the cruel Caesar, Nero, in the New Testament time. An example can be found in Paul’s letter to Timothy:

1. Concerning prayers, in 1 Timothy 2:1-2, Paul writes, “First of all, then I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may live a peaceful and quiet life, godly in dignified in every way.” From the context of the letter, we understand that the prayers and intercessions were concerned about having a suitable ground for preaching the gospel in society. Good governance benefits people’s spiritual welfare as they can lead “peaceful” and “quiet” lives. (Peaceful, eremos in Greek refers to outward peace while quiet, hesychios, inward peace.) Praying for a peaceful and orderly society is essential to ensure the best possible conditions for evangelistic mission.¹
   
   
2. Concerning constructing wellness in community, throughout the letter, he encourages the whole congregation to uphold righteous acts and avoid evils. At the climax of the instructions, in 6:17-18, Paul commands those with riches to perform good deeds and generously share their wealth. Thus, Paul ensures their actions for community care are consistent with what they faithfully pray for.²

Paul wrote this epistle to Timothy in the AD 60s, during the reign of Nero. Paul was once under house arrest in Rome. From the Praetorian Guard,³ he could have got the firsthand information about Nero’s tyrannous rule, his murderous acts in the royal family, immorality of his life, and depravity of the feasts he held.⁴ Possibly Nero had already set fire to Rome and persecuted Christians when Paul wrote this letter.⁵ The theme of praying for shalom and performing good deeds in society reemerged in the early church for coping with the adversities in preaching gospel.

Non-Profits Are Licensed to Promote Shalom

In China, some roles of the government in building social development, community service, and social governance are shared with the non-profits. In many cases, the concerns of such social organizations are rooted in addressing the difficulties in certain social strata and the sentiments arising from them, especially in the areas overlooked by government officials. The scope of services includes care for the underprivileged, poverty alleviation, respect for the elderly, psychological counseling, rights of women and children, neighborhood mutual help, environmental protection, mental wellness, public health, and so on. Reports show that social organizations are effective in working across individual needs and social issues. They also uphold righteousness and integrity in society.⁶ Their service programs can be summarized as caring about the outer prosperity and inner peace for the community. Christians and churches are encouraged to follow the paradigm mentioned above, so that they can actively take part in the prayers and actions for building shalom on facing adversities in preaching the gospel.

Wisdom in Scoping the Community Service Offered

Many Christians would like to join social service to witness Christ’s love. No doubt this is of foremost importance as lovingkindness is the distinguishing hallmark in the activities. However, bearing in mind that a non-profit in China works closely with a government that holds a stance of atheism, we must prudently align our faith with wisdom to gain favor with the Lord and the ruler (Proverbs 16:12-15, 24:21-22). Considerations on the scope of service are necessary to ensure that we achieve our ultimate purpose, especially in the following aspects:

1. Developing Specialized Capabilities

As reflected in a survey, voluntary public welfare services in China have grown rapidly. In 2021, registered volunteers surged up to 270 million. That was 74 times higher than 10 years ago, reaching 15.4% of the population. The number of voluntary programs increased to 5.41 million.⁷ While various kinds of voluntary work have emerged, a missional non-profit should focus on some specialized areas. Then, its team members can develop their expertise in effectively resolving the problems of the clients. This will make the distinctiveness of the organization stand out in an ocean of community services. Then, your lovingkindness will earn the recognition of the public and the government. Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven (Matthew 5:16).

2. Finding Common Ground with the Officials

In general, a government may make policies for or against our biblical values. There can also be different shades of gray areas in between. In China, there is an abundance of measures beneficial to the livelihood of the people publicized on the websites of the central government and locational bureaus in different provinces, cities, and townships. We can select those in line with our principles to support and develop programs in accordance with strengths of our team, keeping in mind that we express biblical truth through our services. In this way, we can cooperate with the officials and work with them closely. Building relationships is pivotal to enlarging our positive influence in the communities through their support.

Conclusion

Ever since the fall of the Northern and Southern Kingdoms, God’s people in exile were deprived of the freedom to worship the only true God for a long period. A significant part of the Old Testament was written under such oppressive conditions. In the New Testament time, the long persecution of Christian came just 30 years after Jesus’ ascension. Again, a weighty portion of the Apostle’s epistles was written in a pressurized environment. From this perspective, we should be able to find the relevant principles in the Bible for coping with the present religious restriction. I believe when one door is closed, God opens some other doors for the furtherance of the gospel. It is our responsibility to actively seek the opportunities for building shalom and to pray earnestly for the authorities until we see the alternative doors opened for holistically blessing the people in China.

1. Philip Towner, The Goal of Our Instruction: The Structure of Theology and Ethics in the Pastoral Epistles (London: Bloomsbury Academic, 2015), 203.
2. Craig L. Blomberg, “The Perfect Law of Liberty on Poverty and Wealth: A Precursor to Paul?”, Tyndale Bulletin 73, no. 1 (2022): 171-195.
3. Mentioned in Philippians 1:13.
4. Brian Schmisek, The Rome of Peter and Paul: A Pilgrim’s Handbook to New Testament Sites in the Eternal City, (Eugene, OR: Pickwick Publications-Wipf and Stock Publishers, 2017), 32-35.
5. Harley Howard, The First Epistle of Paul the Apostle to Timothy (Maitland, FL: Xulon Press, 2005), 82.
6. 董志峰，困境與出路 – 甘肅省社會組織發展研究，（北京：社會科學文獻出版社，2019），第二章.
7. 李慶，“我國志願者人數達2.17億”,公益時報（China Philanthropy Times）,2202.7.5.

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