“Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe” (Hebrews 12:28). “Remember those in prison as if you were their fellow prisoners, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering” (Hebrews 13:3).
“December 9,” at first glance, seems like an ordinary day but has become an extraordinary symbol. From the Guiyang Huoshi Church case on December 9, 2015, to the Chengdu Early Rain Covenant Church case in 2018, and subsequent frequent cases nationwide, it’s evident that Chinese house churches have entered a period of more severe government persecution. It is well known that the Chinese authorities are using all state means and methods to systematically persecute house churches: arresting preachers, confiscating church properties, freezing accounts, imposing heavy fines, closing halls, and banning churches; interrogating believers, terminating employment, suppressing church schools, and attacking homeschooling. All these are aimed at one goal: to extinguish and eradicate any gathering and activity of churches not under the leadership of the Communist Party.
In China, every day could become a “December 9” for some house church. Currently, not only are many church leaders and ordinary believers bound and imprisoned, but many brothers and sisters also face harassment and destruction in their family lives through methods such as cutting off utilities, blocking doors, slashing tires, and painting graffiti, as well as surveillance, guarding, and forced relocation. They also face baseless accusations and punishments such as “inciting subversion of state power,” “illegal assembly,” “using cults for illegal crimes,” “illegal business operations,” “fraud and indecency,” “picking quarrels and provoking trouble,” “illegally crossing national borders,” and “disrupting social order.”
Thank the Lord, many house churches, even in the face of such persecution, do not see “December 9” merely as a symbol of “church-state conflict” or “religious persecution.” Instead, they view it as a symbol of spiritual warfare. “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Ephesians 6:12). This symbol conveys God’s trials, encouragement, and warnings to us. If God intends for “church tribulations” to be a necessary form of “China’s return to the Lord,” then we are willing to embrace these tribulations, to be “blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation” (Philippians 2:15), for in Christ, “if we share in His sufferings, we may also share in His glory” (Romans 8:17b).
Thank the Lord! After “December 9,” many Chinese house churches that have experienced afflictions have been strengthened in their faith through God’s presence, willingly taking the path of the cross. Christians, standing on God’s righteousness and love, bravely resist the government’s sin of persecuting the church, and yet conquer evil with good, following the Lord’s teaching to “pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). In a culture full of hatred, retaliation, and violence, they preach the gospel of God’s grace in Christ and the message of reconciliation between God and man.
We believe: “December 9” is both a symbol of affliction and of grace and glory for Chinese house churches. On this day, as the Bible says, “If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it” (1 Corinthians 12:26). Therefore, we propose that Chinese churches worldwide set apart this day, and the following week, as “Prayer Day and Prayer Week for the Persecuted Chinese House Churches”:
- We pray for those who are willing to sacrifice, walk the path of civil disobedience for their faith, and are imprisoned for the Lord: May they receive strength from the Lord, remain faithful unto death, and unshakable.
- We pray for the Chinese house churches that endure silently, entrusting their lives and deaths to God: May they develop perseverance in tribulation, character in perseverance, and hope in character, a hope that will not disappoint. “For everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith” (1 John 5:4).
- We pray for all house churches that persist in their faith and do not cease gathering: May they earnestly maintain the unity of the Spirit given by the Holy Spirit, cease mutual slander, and instead intercede, support, and love each other.
- We pray for church leaders and believers around the world: May they recognize that the persecuted Chinese house churches are an inseparable part of the universal church; the suffering brothers and sisters in China are interconnected members in Christ.
- We urgently pray for China: May God grant grace to China according to His will, discipline China, and renew China. May the house churches and believers raised by God, whether in season or out of season, spread the gospel throughout China’s land, because we believe Jesus’ promise – “Whoever comes to me I will never drive away” (John 6:37). China, in its suffering and calamity, must obtain new life under the Lord’s care!
- We also pray for “those in authority,” for we know “The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord; he directs it like a watercourse wherever he pleases” (Proverbs 21:1), “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34). May God lead them to “turn from their evil ways so that he will not bring the announced disaster on them” (Jonah 3:10).
From “5 AM in China” to “5 PM in China,” prayer has increasingly become the form of Chinese house churches crying out to God. We call on churches around the world to jointly initiate the “December 9” – Prayer Day and Prayer Week activities for the persecuted Chinese house churches. Let us come together before the Triune God in prayer, knowing that we “are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken,” to thank Him, willing to worship, serve, and pray “acceptably with reverence and awe” (Hebrews 12:28). Let us at the same time “remember those in prison as if you were their fellow prisoners”; let us in different places “remember those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering” (Hebrews 13:3).
We pray for God’s blessing on the persecuted Chinese house churches in the land of China, to become ambassadors of the kingdom, blessings for this country and nation, awakening our compatriots’ “slumbering spirits” with the gospel of Jesus Christ. For through Jesus, God “reconciled to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross” (Colossians 1:20).
Early Rain Ministry, USA Leader: Pastor Chen Biao North American Baptist Faith Church. Leader: Pastor Hong Yujian Harvest Huaxia Christian Church. Leader: Pastor Zhang Boli China Gospel Fellowship, USA. Leader: Elder Zhao Xiangen Nicodemus Society for Truth Seeking, Australia. Leader: Teacher Zhang Tan
Co-sign (to become a co-initiator): Method: Email signature (signed by churches or organizations, indicating the person in charge, personal signatures are not accepted) Email: [email protected]
Appendix: December 9 Prayer Week: According to Beijing time, starting annually on December 9, lasting for one week. Churches (organizations) worldwide, regardless of location or format, are invited to participate in this mission-driven prayer.