A pastor highlighted that the church needs to focus on teaching truth, tracing church history, and sharing the gospel.
Recently, a pastor surnamed Gao from a city church in East China, born in the 1980s, believed that the reason many believers are currently weak is that the church hasn’t explained biblical truths clearly.
He perceived that the current Chinese church has a weak theological foundation. Not only believers but also many pastors lack a seasoned spiritual life. Moreover, overall, their level of education is relatively low. This has led to a lack of professionalism and systemization in diverse aspects, restricting their own and the church's growth and possibly leading to regression.
Furthermore, Gao also believed that the church ought to trace history and see how the early church did. "Throughout the history of Christianity, no period should have been more difficult than the apostolic age. Many Christians even had to sacrifice their lives for their faith. But looking at the present, although the church and believers face some difficulties, they cannot be compared to the challenges of the early church."
"However, it cannot be denied that in today's era, both pastors and believers face temptations and trials. Therefore, in order to ignite people's enthusiasm in this era, we must trace church history and see how the early Christians believed and lived," he added.
A pastor's wife from his church also stated, "Previously, many people hadn’t formed a Bible reading habit, and I was one of them. But since the church has faced challenges, I've developed a strong desire to read the Bible. It seems like reading the Bible has become essential in my life because, besides God, there's no one else who can help or comfort me. I can only find help and strength in God's words."
Apart from these two aspects, Gao mentioned another crucial thing, which is preaching the gospel, because that's the purpose of the church's existence. "Our gatherings, sermons, disciple-making, theological training, nurturing... aren't they all ultimately for sharing the gospel? However, looking at reality, many churches indeed do a lot, but it's all 'inward,' and there's not much done 'outward.' So, even if the church and pastors work hard, the church remains stagnant, lacking vitality."
He contrasted, "Some churches are small but emphasize evangelism. With just 20 or 30 people, they can send out and support several missionaries. Some churches have over 100 people but can't send out a single worker or support even one evangelist. It's not because they lack the capability, but because they simply haven't pursued it."
- Translated by Abigail Wu
