“Recite the words, ‘Mao is
our Savior’ and give up your Bible for the Red book and you can be free.” This
was the Communist brainwashing that Pastor George Chen heard from his jailers.
The ultimatum was simple—deny Jesus, stop preaching the Gospel and he could be
released.
But George Chen would not
be so easily broken. His amazing testimony of faith is recorded in Philip
Yancey’s book, Prayer. Chen was one
of the original leaders of the underground church movement in China. He
pastored three rural churches totaling about three hundred members. He was
arrested three times for the so-called crime of “preaching the Gospel” and in
1968 the Communist regime locked him up and threw away the key.
(Pastor George Chen)
Chen was ripped away from
his wife and son, who actually died while he languished in prison. The cruel
Communist captors withheld this news from him. As part of his punishment, the
warden forced him to work in the prison cesspool, where he spent his days
knee-deep in human waste, turning it with a shovel to make compost. “They
thought I’d be miserable, but actually I was happy,” said Chen. “It smelled so
bad no one could come near me, so I could pray and sing aloud all day without
interruption.”
Not to mention that after
several years of this, the warden told Chen he would grant him freedom if he
would renounce Christ and promise never to preach again. Chen refused. Finally,
in 1978 after 18 long years of prison, Chen was released from the Chinese
prison camp.[1] It
wasn’t until he was given his freedom that he discovered his family had died
and the churches he planted had grown from the original 300 members to 5,000.
Pastor George Chen fits
the description given in the grand “Hall of Faith” passage. Towards the end of
Hebrews 11, the writer explains the adversity that many who walked by faith
endured:
“36
Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. 37 They
were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went
about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated— 38 of whom
the world was not worthy—wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens
and caves of the earth.” (Heb. 11:36-38).
Pastor Chen and the untold
numbers in the body of Christ around the world who are suffering for their faith
are a stirring challenge to us. We in the West are something of a historical anomaly.
For the past 240-plus years, Christians in the U.S. have been insulated from
much of the persecution that believers in Asia, Africa and the Middle East
endure on a daily basis. However, we can see that this trend is reversing is
the States. Persecution is not just over there–it’s also here, but in milder
forms.
In fact, consider the following statistics from Open Doors:
I’m not trying to put a
guilt trip on anyone for not being more “hard-core” about their faith or that
we should pray for persecution to come our way so that we can prove our
commitment. However, we should recognize the simple fact that if we walk
in-step with Christ then we will be walking out-of-step with the world. We
cannot expect that God will give us a free pass when it comes to suffering, nor
should we strive to have the world’s stamp of approval. Every disciple of
Christ will have to stand at the crossroads of convictions and convenience and make a choice.
Perhaps Vance Havner said
it best, “The modern church member all too often avoids persecution by taking
the line of least resistance and living in a truce with this age of easy-believeism.
The early Christians wore scars, but we would rather wear medals.”[2]
Christ has not called us to wear a crown, but to bear a cross (Luke 9:23) and
if Jesus was hated then we will be too (John 15:18-19).
Persecution should not be
a surprise to those who love the Lord (1 Peter 4:12). Ungodliness is threatened
by godliness. When we take a stand, we will be stood against. Let’s pray that
from the fires of persecution God’s people become stronger and the church grows
cleaner. -DM
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