Despite the harsh and almost total blanked of silence that has descended from the Chinese Church due to rampant persecution, we continue to receive reports from China of the Gospel continuing to spread, and multitudes of people coming to faith in Jesus. This is especially true of Han communities in the cities, where disillusions and discontent brought on by Xi’s COVID lock-downs and the crumbling economy have created a hunger in the hearts of millions of Chinese for truth. Many who were previously closed to the claims of the Gospel have now dedicated their lives to the King of Kings. We thank God for this! Instead of large churches full of hundreds or thousands worshipers, new believers often now find themselves included in small groups of four or five Christians who meet discreetly for prayer and Bible study. The Body of Christ in China has largely broken itself down into small cells to avoid detection during this dark times.
Xi Jinping is just one of a long line of godless rulers throughout history who thought they can destroy God’s people and demolish His kingdom. Things tend to end very badly for such people, as Jesus Christ sets a limit to how far He will tolerate their actions before He steps in. Xi himself has a choice. Will his destiny be like King Nebuchadnezzar, who provoked God and ended up being humbled for seven years before he finally came to his senses and repented? In the end, that broken King made this remarkable declaration: “At the end of that time, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored. Then I praised the Most High; I honored and glorified him who lives forever. His dominion is an eternal dominion; his kingdom endures from generation to generation. All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back his hand or say to him: “What have you done?” (Daniel 4: 34-35)
Or will Xi Jinping be like another king, Herod, who refused to bow his knee to God’s will? The New Testament records the final act of his life with these chilling words: “Immediately, because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died.” (Acts 12:23)
Pray for President Xi Jinping and China’s other leaders, that God would soften their hearts and cause them to repent and submit their lives to Jesus Christ before it is too late. And continue to pray for the Body of Christ in China, that the great revival of the past 50 years would continue to burn brightly and bring many millions more people into the kingdom of God. In several speeches, Xi has spoken about his desire for a “great nationalist revival” of the Chinese people. Pray the Living God will indeed continue and expand His great revival — just not the kind Xi Jinping expects! Despite the strong head winds, we continue to work in China, strengthening the Church and helping them take the Gospel to the unreached.
China - in His image 