Generation to Generation

China is big! This is a simple fact, yet it is difficult to grasp even for seasoned China watchers. Why? Because it is too big.

Stagnant, confused, and gloomy? True. Vibrant, determined, and optimistic? Also true.

Since 2017, China has gone through dramatic political left-turning, with stricter laws and regulations regarding media and online spaces, and sudden and violent economic conflicts with major economies, not to mention the incomprehensible COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns. Life is difficult for anyone living in China, but probably true to say it is even more so for Chinese churches.

Also, since 2017, missionaries from the US, Korea, and around the world have flooded out of China, mostly involuntarily. It didn’t matter if you had been there for over 15 years, had a successful business, or were even married to a Chinese national; once tagged, you were likely forced out within one week or, by God’s grace, one month.

The government places a particular focus on religious facilities. For all legitimate facilities, prominent crosses could not be observed outside. Within the facilities, the national flag was raised, the core values of socialism and other slogans hung conspicuously on walls, and HD cameras were everywhere. Unregistered churches were all closed—at least, in theory.

From 2018 to 2023, Christian gatherings were harassed by police officers, brothers and sisters were taken into custody for two days or two weeks, and pastors and publishers were sentenced into jail from seven to fourteen years. An exodus, or run, of Chinese Christians and pastors is noticed globally. In the US, Korea, and Thailand, you can easily recognize passionate Chinese Christians eagerly attempting to start a new life and ministry for the Chinese diaspora.

What do things look like in China? From an outsider’s perspective, it is horrible, like hell. Can you imagine your emails and social media constantly being watched? Or police officers showing up at your front door because two months ago you bought a Christian book or are in a WeChat group that you barely checked? Or having your job and social security threatened if you attend a church service or share your perspectives about current events? Yet, from the insiders’ perspective, it is simply life. Like a deep-water creature, we get used to the darkness, cold, and pressure. If you live in the surface water, the conditions are unbearable. But we learned how to share the gospel, pastor our churches, and advance God’s kingdom in deep water. Some might think that deep water is not fit for life, but if you find yourself there, you might be surprised by how resilient life can be, or how you can be. You simply need to do it, and you can.

Therefore, does the drain of leaders and educators, due to previously mentioned reasons, result in a Chinese church meltdown? Do all crumble into ashes? Far from that—what God has called us to do for the past forty years is not a mirage but a true kingdom of God. Indeed, from 2019 to 2022, Chinese churches, in general, went through a panic and confusion period. Various ideas and prophecies appeared and disappeared. Warnings, false hopes, and drastic suggestions overwhelmed many. The lockdowns, Zoom, and turbulent domestic and international events all continue to fuel this frenzy.

However, around 2022, we started to sense a bouncing back from the bottom. People began to accept reality. We cannot give up the Great Commission; we cannot leave God’s sheep to die; and we simply cannot stay paralyzed despite what has happened. So, what should we do?

Under such tremendous pressures from outside and inside, registered and unregistered churches are shaken, and some have even disintegrated. Therefore, waves of Christian refugees wander from WeChat groups to Bilibili videos, Zoom meetings to TikToks, searching for spiritual and biblical nourishment.

Not just Christians but the whole of China is shaken and crumbled. Broken businesses, broken families, and broken hearts are everywhere. People have never been so eager to hear about the gospel because their lives and hopes have never been so damped in the past four decades.

What are our responses? Or, what is God’s response?

First, he has raised a wave of new warriors. These young, energetic, and creative young men and women of God are quite different in appearance, philosophy, and practice from the old generation. They stand upon and continue previous works but drastically transform the demography of spiritual leadership.

Second, he forces us to think and try previously unimaginable ways to do ministry. The combination of online and offline ministry, community building across a city or a province, the mobile church that can be relocated at any time, and flexible but integrated training systems for young leaders are only a few examples of the creative explosion of ministry methods in the past few years.

Thirdly, primarily due to online ministry but also due to the mobility of Christian refugees, Chinese churches have never been so interconnected in all its history. Many pastors become nationally well-known. Ministries easily jump from one city to another city, one province to another province. New ideas and methods are spread like wildfire. In early 2020, Zoom was practically unknown to the vast majority of Chinese Christians. But by May 2020, a grandma in a remote area of Sichuan province taught her eleven group members how to download, install, register, and log into Zoom for daily Bible classes.

Of course, creative endeavors involve high risk; many will fail. But we will learn, and eventually, some will stay, and some might even become classics.

This wave of new leaders, methods, and interconnections has just begun. Its true effect on Chinese churches and society will only be recognized as early as 2030, and its main force will reach its climax around 2035. It is indeed an exciting and transformative period for Chinese churches and China.

Is it all bright in China? Far from it. We are in deep water; that’s a fact. Yet it is my firm conviction and hope that out of ashes, hope will arise. Darkness is real, but our Lord is alive.

Are you enjoying a cup of good coffee or fragrant tea while reading the latest ChinaSource post? Consider donating the cost of that “cuppa” to support our content so we can continue to serve you with the latest on Christianity in China.

Donate