Over the last two posts, we have published the first parts of an interview with Paul Hattaway on the need for Bibles in China. Here we continue to part three of this series.
Question: In [the previous parts of this interview] we ascertained that there is a huge need for Bibles in China among the house churches. Just how great is this need?
Answer: Our co-workers needed to answer the same question, so last year they asked many leaders of house church networks in China to survey their members and tell us of their needs. The result was staggering. Added together, the house churches throughout China urgently need 34 million Bibles, just to provide the Word of God to all of their members. It would be millions more if enquirers are considered, but our priority is to provide Bibles to as many believers as possible.
Q: That is a huge number. How did the need get so large?
A: It has been stated that ‘every Christian in China is an evangelist,’ and generally this is true. In one sense, the problem of providing Bibles can never be fully met while the church is in revival.
The more Bibles that are printed the more people get saved and the more Bibles are needed!
Many China ministries believe that, on average, two to three people come to faith in Jesus Christ for every Bible that is printed in China.
In the past, many missionaries to China were greatly discouraged because of the difficulty trying to reach people. The Welsh missionary Griffith John wrote, ‘The good news is moving very slowly. The people are as hard as steel…. To them our doctrine is foolishness, our talk jargon. We discuss and beat them in argument. We reason them into silence and shame; but the whole effort falls upon them like showers upon a sandy desert.’
The seasons have changed, and for the past 30 years God has done a mighty work in China. Countless millions are meeting Him for the first time. Now is the time of salvation in China!
Q: When we share about the needs of China and Asia with Christians in our country, someone invariably says, ‘We have plenty of needs in our area too, so why should we worry about the people on the other side of the world?’ How do you respond to this?
A: Certainly there are needs everywhere, but there are a few different ways I would respond to this attitude. The first and most important thing people need to consider is what does the Bible teach? God clearly reveals His heart for the whole world. Our God is a missionary God, who sent His own Son to reach the lost. He didn’t command His followers to only go into their local communities, but to the ends of the earth. The disciples were told, ‘You will receive power when the Holy Ghost comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem [the local area], and in all Judea and Samaria [neighboring regions], and to the ends of the earth’ (Acts 1:8).
Notice the Lord didn’t say they should ‘first’ reach Jerusalem, ‘then’ Judea and Samaria, and ‘ultimately’ the ends of the earth. All three are to be done simultaneously. Christians need to be involved in reaching the far ends of the earth at the same time they are reaching their local communities.
Q: Many Christians don’t help with needs on the other side of the world because they are unable to relate to those languages and cultures. How can this be overcome?
A: In regards to Bibles in China, we are all one family in Christ. We have millions of brothers and sisters in China starving without God’s Word, despite there being a proven and efficient method to provide Bibles for just $1.80 each. This opportunity should excite Christians who hear about it, regardless of where they live in the world.
Providing God’s Word to fellow believers in China should appeal to all kinds of Christians. For those with a shepherd’s heart, here is an opportunity to nourish and strengthen new believers with the Scriptures. For those with the heart of an evangelist, I can’t think of a more attractive investment. $1.80 will provide a Bible, which will bring an additional two or three Chinese people (on average) to salvation. That’s unbeatable investment value!
Q: How do you know that all the Bibles being printed in China are really getting delivered to believers?
A: Many people who are experienced in China Christian work have told us they are greatly impressed by the level of reporting we receive from our Chinese co-workers.
Within weeks of each print-run, we receive detailed reports showing us where every single box of Bibles ended up, along with extensive accounting.
We then have some Western colleagues who do ‘spot checks’ to ensure the information we receive is correct, that the funds have been delivered as reported.
For partner ministries, we take the distribution reports and overlay the information on maps of China, giving a powerful visual display of the locations in China their support has impacted.
This tested and effective method of providing Bibles to the hungry believers in China has not just fallen into place by accident. It has come about through many years of prayer, faith, and hard work by many people in China. Some have been arrested and imprisoned for their involvement, so it has also come at great cost.
The next post will continue, and conclude, this interview.
Reproduced from Asia Harvest newsletter #110, pages 3-7. Used with permission.
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