The Gospel was first introduced to Ji'an City in 1891, according to the WeChat post of "Nomads", a Christian news account. The church, located in Jizhou District, was first called the Church of the Nazarene. It was started by Reverend Harry Wiese, an American Missionary sent by the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, along with Pastor Fei and his wife from Shandong Province, who came to Ji'an in 1946. They bought land at No. 214 Yongshu Road, Ji'an City, and built a church, a rectory with an attached building, and a three-story Bible School. The project was completed and put to use in the second half of 1947.
Pastor Xu Guibin took over leading the Church of the Nazarene when Rev. Wiese returned to America shortly after 1949. The church then merged with the China Inland Mission, Anglican Church, and Seventh-Day Adventist church in December 1958 to form the Ji'an Christian Church. Believers, at the time, worshiped in an Anglican church in the city, the Church of Heavenly Peace.
With the implementation of the policy of religious freedom, the Church of the Nazarene property was returned by the government in 1985 and the church resumed its services in 1996.
The church was torn down during urban redevelopment in 2001, and the people rented a grain silo for worship in the second week of December 2001.
The church was separated to form the Gospel Church and Christ Church in 2003. Christ Church has hosted many revival meetings, musical worship services, prayer services, and training classes of many forms. It has also set up a drum team, Sunday school, sacred music training, and more.
The foundation for Christ Church was laid on May 1, 2005. The first baptism ceremony in the new church was held in 2006 and the dedication ceremony for the church was held on March 18, 2007. The church has a New Gothic design with a Latin style cross. The building is solemnly simple; but, full of spirit.
Translated by: Grace Hubl
