Crackdown on Churches in China

As I left my home for church today, I may have been observed by my neighbors, and my sister’s neighbors may have seen me pick her up at her house on the way.  We have a pattern of doing this pretty much every Sunday, and from our dress and the time of day it would not be hard to conclude that we were going to worship services.  We did not, however, have cause to fear that someone might report us.

We did not have to fear that our church might be raided because it was not approved by the government, and that the pastor and others might be arrested, cuffed, and taken to jail.  Our church was not shut down because the pastor refused to allow the government to install surveillance cameras in the church.  We didn’t have to fear that the government might use facial recognition technology to identify us as Christians.

We have not been forced to join an underground church that meets in a different location each Sunday, so that we can worship God in the way that we choose.  Our livelihoods have not been threatened because we go to church, and our property has not been destroyed or confiscated.  We have not been threatened or beaten by government sponsored gangs of thugs, and neither have our family members.

We have not been imprisoned or required to do forced labor.  We have not “disappeared.”  We can freely buy Bibles online or at our favorite bookstore.  We can keep religious literature in our homes and distribute it to persons who are willing to accept it.  We can talk about our Lord to those who are willing to listen.

We can vote for candidates who share our views, and petition our elected representatives.  We can run for office.  When we are harassed, as we sometimes are these days, we can avail ourselves of appropriate legal recourse.  When the secular, humanist, progressive politicians, judges and interest groups try to silence us, we have the right to equal justice under the law.

Last week, I received a newsletter from The Voice of the Martyrs, which informed of the escalated level of persecution of religious groups, including Christians, that has been happening recently in China.  This information was corroborated by an article by Samuel Chamberlain on the Fox News Website (12/10/2018).  Mr. Chamberlain based his report, in part, on information from a Texas based group called China Aid.

I thank God for the religious freedom we Americans are blessed with.  Please pray with me for persecuted Christians in China, and in other countries where the persecution is frequently worse.  Voice of the Martyrs provides Bibles to persecuted Christians worldwide, and they help the families of the victims of persecution.  They provide help to local churches in country, and to native born Christians who are witnessing and growing church groups. https://www.persecution.com/

People in China are placing themselves at risk by witnessing for Christ, attending church and/or holding positions of leadership.  We who have the freedom to worship as we choose sometimes do not use that freedom.  I read somewhere that “A freedom not used is a freedom that has been forfeited.”