Friday Reflections is a new series on the China Partnership blog. Twice a month, we will share a short reflection from a Chinese pastor on the nature of the gospel. Though we often post longer articles, there is a richness to short and concise thoughts. 

Wang Jianguo is the collective pseudonym for a group of Chinese house church pastors thinking and writing about issues related to the spread of Christianity in their nation. They are committed to preaching a grace-centered gospel, developing resources for the church, and loving China’s urban centers.

We emphasize five core values in [our gospel movement]:

• First, we speak of the gospel. 

• Second, we speak of how grace changes everything.

• Third, we speak of the city and how the gospel transforms the city. 

• Fourth, we speak of church planting. 

• Fifth, we speak of the unity of the church. 

And though we speak of five core values, the basic foundation is still the gospel, because the gospel is the beginning and the end. 

The gospel is very basic – it influences the entirety of life. So we speak of renewal, which stems from the whole gospel as revealed by God. It permeates personal life, ecclesiological life, and even the whole world. The renewal of the city requires the planting of new churches to bring about unity in the city. Thus, these all find their motivation in the pure gospel; our whole value system is built on the foundation of the gospel. 

The perpetual, marvelous work of the gospel of grace in a person is to continuously lead him into holiness and sanctification – this is the change of the gospel. We know that the gospel influences every sphere of our personal lives, bringing groups of individuals together to form churches. This then brings about the transformation of the local community, culture, and nation. Wherever the gospel is preached rightly and lived rightly by Bible-abiding Christians, that place or country will be greatly blessed. We return to the Bible, which leads men into deeper and greater holiness, leading society to lesser evil, hence becoming a series of blessings between men. The most important thing is that everyone may see the kingdom.

Translation provided by the China Partnership translation team.