What is the Church?, Part 6: Union with God Is Manifested by Cross-Shaped Suffering

History shows us the church never really considered strategy; Christians continued to preach the gospel of Christ and to testify to God’s presence in their midst.

How did they eventually scatter? If we look at Acts 7, the word “persecute” first appeared in Acts in 7:52, when Stephen says their fathers persecuted and killed the prophets, and today they killed the Righteous One. The word “persecute” was first used by Stephen. Because he accused them of killing the prophets and Jesus, they killed him.

This is outright, irrefutable, external persecution by the sword. In Acts 8:1, the word “persecute” appears a second time: “There arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem.” After that, you see the promises of Acts 1:8, where the Holy Spirit dwelt in them and they not only received power, but in the course of persecution and verbal threats, their power grew. Eventually, when the sword came, they were scattered. But when they were scattered, it was not to escape. 

When persecution came upon them, it was clear the path and sign of the cross had come. It is only at that point that we can consider whether the Spirit is leading us to be scattered. The point of scattering is not self-protection but fulfilling the mission of the gospel. The apostles stayed in Jerusalem and became the driving force for the faith to move forward. They went to other places to build the kingdom of God, to preach the gospel, and to build the church.

In mainland China, the attitude of some house church leaders is that they will continue to gather for worship under verbal threats, so their lives will bear witness to the presence of God among them. If a pastor is under house arrest or detained (or under similar circumstances where persecution by the sword has come to the church), they will remain firm. When the sword comes forcefully, they continue to move forward in the Spirit, but will submit to the authority of the sword, because persecution comes through the authority God has sanctioned; those who abuse this authority will be judged by God. It is only when the sword comes that we acknowledge this is the path of the cross. Verbal threats, according to the New Testament, are not the same as persecution – therefore, the Chinese church will continue to move forward. This is the attitude of house church leaders.

Examining religion and culture, we see Christianity is actually very weak. It does not have a set of necessary, external, and cultural forms to consolidate the religion in order to pass it culturally from generation to generation. There is also no fixed set of doctrines or structure to solidify it. This is weakness, because the core of Christianity is the true and living God, who reigns from above. Our hope is in the invisible, not the visible. The center is the true and living God, the dead and risen Christ. The core of the faith is the collective union of the church with Christ.

Union with God is a reality manifested throughout history by an intense, cross-shaped suffering. The only way for us to be sure we are close to Christ and God is to ensure we walk the way of the cross, bearing the mark of the cross. It does not matter who – pastors from the earlier generation of Chinese house churches, pastors today, or even those of us overseas – we read our Bible, we pray, and we serve in the Spirit, partnering with the triune God to re-create this ultimate humanity in the last city, the church.

It is in this seemingly unbearable church that you and I are serving the living God. Persecution is a mark, but it is simultaneously a blessing. In Philippians, Paul said he forgets what lies behind, and presses on toward the goal. The verb “press on” is the same as “persecute,” and is used positively by Paul. He “persecutes” to obtain the prize of the upward call of God. Paul sees what is above as the true reality. When he continues to press on toward “the prize of the upward call of God,” it produces a horizontal reaction: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward.

When we “persecute” or pursue the prize of the upward call of God, and in the process face cultural challenges, this eventually leads to persecution. The basis of persecution is not the world, but the fact that we belong to God. We do not seek out suffering, but when we become the disciples of Christ, some kind of suffering will naturally occur in our lives.

What then should our strategies be today? To forget what lies behind, and strain forward to what lies ahead. When we forget what lies behind and strain forward to what lies ahead, there is no definite answer to the questions house church pastors face today, about whether to split or not, whether to go or stay. Practically, we bring all of this before God and ask: are we protecting ourselves, or are we doing it for the gospel? Is this for the good of the church? On the final day, can I account for my actions before God? All of us ought to seek God in this process, so we can give an account before him.

I want to end with a few final words about the church of God. The church is the will of God; final humanity is the will of God. The start of every new church is like planting a tree. In our ministry, no matter where we are – whether in mainland China or in North America – God’s church is our deepest love. We hope the ecclesiological reflections of these pastors are not merely their treasure, but our treasure as well. Victor Hugo once said that starting a library is an act of faith, because it is a commitment toward an unforeseen future.

For the people of God and the eternal plan of God, planting a church and starting a church planting movement is an act of faith in the invisible future people of God. It is also a way to behold the inaugurated and present kingdom of Christ. We see the holy city Jerusalem being established among us. We are establishing migrant cities that link directly to God. The resurrection of Christ started this new humanity. The citizens of this city are made up of you and me, a new humanity consisting of the children of God. The characteristic and likeness of this city is the reign of the resurrected Christ. He is our only Lord and beloved, and his reign in us is in the form of the cross. The fall of man started with rebellion toward a King and his command; but through another man, Jesus Christ, and his absolute obedience to the King’s command and plan, we are saved. This salvation created a new humanity who submits to the King.

Time will end with the complete return, victory, judgment, and reign of the King. Eventually, the ultimate and heavenly humanity will be revealed. I hope you and I will be among them! If there are still 10,000 years before Christ comes again, we hope these little trees God has planted among us can continue to grow in our lives as we get older. We hope they will become giant trees, full of grace and glorifying to God! If the world ends tomorrow, we will still plant the tree today: this is an act of faith, and this is the will of God, pleasing to him. This should be the attitude of our lives; this is the life that glorifies God.

 Translation provided by Moses, Jane, Ryan, and the China Partnership translation team.