Regional Synod of Canada - Reformed Church in America

Pioneer Christian Monthly

Date - Jan/68

Contributor - R. A. Hartmans

Title - The Church in The World

Topic - The Church in The World

At times one may feel chagrined when one hears and reads disquieting reports concerning the decline of the Church in. some areas of the world. In Europe church membership is decreasing. Some countries like China have to shut the door completely foreign missionaries.

The New York Times reported in a recent article that Protestant Churches in Angola, West Africa, are having a hard time as they try to continue the work of mission among the 4.000.000 inhabitants. The Governor General of this Portuguese colony accuses the Protestant Churches to have encouraged the nationalist insurrections which have occurred periodically over the last six years. The use of native languages instead of Portuguese in the proclamation of the Gospel have made the Protestant missionaries very unpopular- with the Portuguese government. The Council of Evangelical Churches receives no permission to bring in new missionaries. Moreover, missionaries who leave the country on furlough are not allowed to return. The result is that the number of missionaries has declined from 250 in 1961 to 65 at the present.

Fortunately there is also other news to report which may give the believer new hope in the future of the Church. In Hervormd Nederland we read about the popularity of another mission of the Church. I am thinking of the recently opened new home of the Dutch Center, for Sailors and Skippers at Antwerp, Belgium. This home away from home is sponsored by the Nederlandse Hervormde Kerk and directed by Rev. A. van der Walle. The Center serves the sailor in his social and spiritual needs.. The popularity of this work is proven by the registration of 550 visitors within one month after the Center opened its doors.

Another optimistic sound of a very different character has reached us from Indonesia. You may know that this "necklace of emeralds strung along the equator" has experienced difficult times recently. Deep poverty encouraged the growth of a Communist party. An unsuccessful coup led to the slaughter of countless Communists and Communist sympathizers. Notwithstanding, or, may be, because of the difficult times the Christian Church nas continued to grow. Indeed the great number of recent conversions to Christ is seen by many as no less than a miracle.

One should know that Christian missionaries have been working in Indonesia for several centuries. Often, the work was far from easy Particularly in the face of Muslim opposition. Indeed, as recent as October l, 1967, the second anniversary of the unsuccessful coup, Muslims destroyed twenty out of twenty-four Christian Churches at Madagaskar. Also, no one knows the number of believers who have been martyred throughout the years on account -of their faith. However, the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church. According to the Indonesian Bible Society, the tremendous happenings of the last years may be traced back to a copy of the New Testament. A young boy who attended a Christian Boarding School at Salatiga, Central Java ' spent his Vacation at home in a Communist village. Every day he read to his many brothers and sisters from a copy of the N.T. which he had brought along. Soon others came to listen - grown-ups who asked many questions. Often the boy was unable to answer the questions, and word was sent to a Church at Salatiga to send a preacher. Soon 150 students received instruction from Pastor Soesilo. Six months later they were all baptized.

The story does not end here. The new Christians spread the Word like "a contagious disease" It affected others. Soon 160 believers from 12 other villages were baptized. Remember, this Happened in 1964, before the coup, when it was still very unpopular among Communists to become Christians. However, the pace of growth increased after the coup. Many ex-communists turned to the Christian Gospel for help. Also non-Communists Muslims turned to the Lord. One denomination gained 10.000 members in one year. In Borneo thirty new churches have been formed with 5.000 members. In Sulawesi, Celebes, 3.000 converts proclaimed their faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour. In North Sumatra 1,900 people were baptized and 8,000 more are receiving instruction.

When we consider these figures, we recognize that one must be careful in the interpretation. We also recognize that not all seed will grow to maturity in Christ and bear fruit. Nevertheless, if only half of what we have learned about the recent history of the Church in Indonesia is true, it is a reason for encouragement and tremendous thanksgiving. It shows us the power of God's Word. It shows us that we must not be pessimistic about the future of the Christian Church, even under the severest of pressures, for the Lord Himself continues to add unto his Church those who are being saved.

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