Surprise, Surprise

God cannot be held back!

Skip, your experience confirms what some friends of mine
have told me about their direct experience and knowledge
of what’s actually taking place in China.

And, yes, the last place you want to go for information
is the media.

There are restrictions- no politics related topics.
Appreciate such pictures of your ministry. Thank you.
Shalom, and blessings for a very fruitful, fulfilling trip!

You really could not have said it better, Suzanne! Amen!

Has the world changed from the first century? For that matter, from the time of the prophets of old in Israel? Surely, no.

Surely the reason there were Christians (and prophets) being martyred left and right then was because they were accurately representing the truth FOR THAT TIME.

The reason there were martyrs burning on the street corners during the Reformation was because there were Christians who were daring to represent accurately enough the truth for THEIR TIME.

Surely the ONLY reason we do not have Christians (excuse me – CHRESTIANS) burning on the street corners now on the streets of China, or AMERICA, for that matter, is surely because we are NOT accurately representing the truth FOR OUR TIME enough. This is our litmus test. Perhaps we don’t have our understanding or language adjusted properly. The world did not change between then and now, did it? Then who has changed? Surely it has been the church.

“Then to side with Truth is noble, when we share her wretched crust,
Ere her cause bring fame and profit, and ’tis prosperous to be just.
Then it is the brave man chooses, while the coward stands aside,
Doubting in his abject spirit, ’til his Lord is crucified,
And the multitude make virtue of the faith they had denied….

By the light of burning heretics Christ’s bleeding feet I track,
Toiling up new Calvaries, ever with the Cross that turns not back,
And these mounts of anguish number how each generation learned
One new word of that grand Credo which in prophet-hearts hath burned
Since the first man stood God-conquered with his face to heaven upturned.

For humanity sweeps onward: where today the martyr stands
On the morrow crouches Judas with the silver in his hands;
Far in front the cross stands ready and the crackling fagots burn,
While the hooting mob of yesterday in silent awe return,
To glean up the scattered ashes into History’s golden urn.

They were men of present valor; stern old iconoclasts,
Unconvinced by axe or gibbet that all virtue was the Past’s;
But we make their truth our falsehood, thinking that has made us free,
Hoarding it in mouldy parchments, while our tender spirits flee
The rude grasp of that great Impulse which drove them across the sea.

They have rights who dare maintain them; we are traitors to our sires
Smoldering in their holy ashes Freedom’s new-lit altar fires;
Shall we make their creed our jailor? Shall we, in our haste to slay,
From the tombs of the old prophets steal the funeral lamps away
To light up the martyr-fagots round the prophets of today?

New occasions teach new duties; time makes ancient Good uncouth;
They must upward still, and onward, who would keep abreast of Truth;
Lo! Before us gleam her camp-fires! We ourselves must Pilgrims be,
Launch our Mayflower, and steer boldly through the desperate winter Sea,
Nor attempt the Future’s portal with the Past’s blood-rusted key

THE PRESENT CRISIS
by: James Russell Lowell

Surely it does not matter where we imagine the world to be at in regards to the truth. Truth has not changed. The world has not changed where it is in regards to that truth, either. We have been slowly slogging through, one step at a time, in the fight to convince ourselves that there really is no alternative to the truth. It is only to the extent that we have learned part of that truth that we are able to live together or advance in any direction AT ALL. But that does not mean we have accepted enough truth. There is plenty more that would make the world angry enough if it were ever accurately portrayed enough that it would be burning its representatives on the street corners anew.

If I ever screw up the guts enough to stand up and actually figure out how to represent the truth for this time accurately enough, I reckon y’all will know it soon enough, because the world will be burning me on a street corner. I reckon the only reason I am not burning now is not because the world has changed where it is in regards to the truth, but because I have not screwed up my courage enough to figure out how to change enough. Until then, I guess I will continue to enjoy hanging out with ya’ll lovely folks.

Chinese goverment likes this kind of comment. They would give you lots of thanks Skip! It showes the world that the goverment is “changing”. Skip, that is NOT TURE at all. Big church in china like this will cause great attention from the goverment, everything they do is “protected” by the gov. There are police in congregation. who knows what is going to happen when the gov. wants to deal with the chinese leaders. For example, the culture revolution. You should know well from Chinese history. Chinese underground churh like this size is very rare, because they realize the convience of keeping the church smaller size could avoid attention. Underground church is still unregistered. I admire their braveness. The separation between the gov. and the church is very clear among the underground. Not like westen world. Chinese religion policy looks nice outside for the world, but they practise it differntly. Any group contains more than 50 people would be commanded to close the church building. Persecution still exists, some area is better and some area is bad. When a foreigner visted that church and nothing happens to that church only has two possibility. First, God’s protection. Second, that not underground. If the goverment knows you are a preacher and visting China, you are followed by the police already.