While many in the west are concerned about the condition of the church in China, Christians in China are often concerned about the state of the church in the west. In this article, published in the Christian Times, a pastor expresses his confidence that the church in England and Europe will once again experience revival.
God hasn't forgotten England or Europe; they will experience revival again. Pastor Li, who attended a revival meeting in England this year in August, shared the new ideas God has given him about missions.
When it comes to missions, the world has been focused on the Chinese Church, and the Church is united in the belief that God will make China into a missions-minded country. Regarding Europe, most people may think that the Church is in decline, even facing such a bleak reality as having to auction off church buildings. Yet Pastor Li, who attended a revival meeting in England this year, said that God showed him a different reality."
At the beginning of this year, the Church in England invited me to talk about missions. I thought that I understood them a lot, but after arriving, I realized that I really didn't know much about the European Church. I had heard so much about the decline of the Church in Europe, about church buildings being sold, and that the Church had gotten old. But this is not completely true," Pastor Li told the Christian Times.
During the Olympics, he attended a revival meeting in England. A church invited him to talk about missions because, at the beginning of the year, they heard Gods call to partner with the Chinese church. After arriving, he learned that since World War II, God has constantly been at work in England. God had kept a devoted group of servants there, people who have been striving for the revival of England and all of Europe."
Now, we can see the results of their hard work. They have great training sessions for their young people, and every year a large number of young Christians give their lives to serve the Lord. I saw some people commit themselves to the Lord; they really love God. I attended a cross-denominational multi-church united meeting. They have been doing this for 20 years, each year praying for the revival of England. And the vision they received this year was that they should work together with the Chinese Church."
Pastor Li shared that, through this God revealed to him that England can push Europe forward and spread the Gospel toward Jerusalem, going in the opposite direction. The Gospel spread from Jerusalem to the four corners of the earth, and it will return to Jerusalem from every direction. The European Church will rise once again, and churches in England will catch this vision. God gave them the vision to partner with the Chinese Church in world missions, moving forward hand-in-hand."
He also mentioned that there were direct descendants of the Cambridge Seven present at the revival meeting. They were really happy to learn about missions from the Chinese church pastors. When he saw them, he realized that God has not forgotten England. He believes that God will cause their Church to rise up again."
There's a pattern in British history, that there will be a big revival every 200 years. It is almost time for the next big revival, because a lot of people are praying for England. In England there is a common but strange phenomenon; there are many families with three or four generations of pastors. In the family I stayed with this time, there was a very devout elderly pastor. He was adamant that we should persevere in our faith and share it with others, and he has never stopped praying for England. Although the outward environment is getting worse and worse, he doesn't pay attention to the environment, and continues to come before the presence of God in prayer. This 70-year-old pastor has been organizing this meeting for 20 years, and he continues to pray for England." Pastor Li shared that his deepest conviction from this trip to England he is confident that a revival will soon come to England.
In regards to churches in England and China working together to bring the Gospel back to Jerusalem, how do we establish this kind of partnership? Pastor Li believes that because God once mightily used England to bring the Gospel to countries all over the world, China can be a sort of spiritual successor, carrying on the tradition, and receiving the spiritual anointing of their fathers.
Regarding the particulars of this missions alliance, Pastor Li shared, "Regarding missions, we're praying for England, that revival will come soon; that Chinese people in Europe will help the local revival and fan the European revival flame. And the church in England will do what it can to help China, such as pouring into Chinese international students studying in England. In the end, they'll bring the Gospel from Europe towards Jerusalem, and we'll bring the Gospel west to Jerusalem, supporting each other, hand-in-hand bringing the Gospel back to Jerusalem.
Original article: 神没有忘记英国、欧洲 他们会再次兴起来
Image source: by JR P, via Flickr
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