Chinese Pastor Yun (Western Church 'U.S.A.')

In his book "The Heavenly Man" Brother Yun tells his incredible story of the work God has done through his life. He has suffered more years of torture in Chinese prisons than he has had years of freedom. He has had friends brutally murdered before his eyes. He went 74 days without ONE drop of water or ONE grain of rice while fasting in prison. He was beaten to the point of being crippled while in prison to keep him from escaping, yet one day stood up in his cell and walked past over 40 prison guards and out the open prison gate at China's most maximum security prison. How can these things be? How could he physically heal so many people he came in contact with?... Through his FAITH in trusting his every breath to the Creator. Through the uncomfortable life of sacrifice he chose to live for Christ.

Brother Yun is a pastor who has amazing insight into how to live a life for Christ and not for yourself. He is known as someone who always has a smile on his face. I wanted to share a bit about some of Pastor Yun's observations:


Living Under the Umbrella of God not living FOR God:

"Ministry had become an idol. Working for God had taken the place of loving God. I hid my condition from those who prayed for me and carried on in my own strength, until God decided to intervene in his mercy and love. I was still getting up every morning at five o'clock and praying with other church leaders, and I was still reading my Bible every day, but I was doing these things out of obligation and habit, and not from a willing heart flowing from my relationship with Jesus."
-Pastor Yun

-Here Brother Yun is sharing of a time when he grew away from God. In a way we in the states would not even consider wrong. How many times have you heard, "Just spend 15 minutes a day with God (reading His word)"? I think that literally makes God sick. That we have made time with Him such an obligation. Just a small part of our day. Just to ease our thoughts about how 'active' our Christian life is. Sickening.


"When China's borders started to open up in the early 1980's, many foreign Christians wanted to know how they could help the church in China. They first thing they did was smuggle Bibles to us from Hong Kong. These gifts were greatly appreciated and so desperately needed! ..However, after a few years these same mission organizations started putting other books at the top of the bags of Bibles. These were books about one particular denomination's theology, or teaching that focused on certain aspects of God's Word. This, I believe, was the start of disunity among many of China's house churches. These booklets told us we must worship in a certain way, or we must speak in tongues to be a true believer, or that only if we were baptized in Jesus' name could we be saved. Other teachings focused on extreme faith, still others argued for or against the role of women in the church. .. Instead of only speaking for Jesus, we also started speaking against other believers who didn't conform to our views."
-Pastor Yun


- This is someone (brother Yun) who, just recently, has seen how denominationalism can tear God's people apart. Who are we to say what is wrong or right? Denominationalism is nothing less than a group of judgemental believers against another group of judgemental believers. It tears the body of Christ apart. How often do you say, "Well he is [fill in a religion], they are crazy because they do/don't allow [fill in activity] at the church". Who cares? I can promise you God is concerned with children starving, homeless freezing, women raped, and villiages dying without hearing His name.. Not whether or not a woman is leading a prayer.


The following might hit a bit too close to home for some people. Pastor Yun, just as most of the world, had an image of American Church in His mind; "The most Godly place on earth". A place where everyone is a God loving Christian and is only concerned with the things of Heaven and not the things of this world. This might make you feel a bit uncomfortable-

"When I'm in the West I see all the mighty church buildings and all the expensive equipment. I can assure the Western church with absolute certainty that you don't need any more church buildings. Church buildings will never bring the revival you seek. The pursuit of more possessions will never bring revival. The first thing needed for revival to return to your churches is the Word of the Lord. God's Word is missing. Sure, there are many preachers and thousands of tapes and videos of Bible teaching, but so little contains the sharp truth of God's Word. Not only is knowledge of God's Word missing, but obedience to that Word. There's not much action taking place. I've seen people in Western churches worshipping as if they're already in heaven. Then someone invariably brings a comforting message like, 'My children, I love you. Don't be afraid, I'm with you', but why is it that nobody seems to hear a Word from the Lord like, 'My child, I want to send you to the slums of Asia or the darkness of Africa to be my messenger to people dying in their sin'?"

But not us, right? Not our church.



But miracles are OLD TESTAMENT stuff... Doesn't happen anymore. God doesn't NEED to prove anything anymore.

"Many Christians have also asked me why miracles and signs and wonders are so prevalent in China, but not so evident in the West.
In the West you have so much. You have insurance for everything. In a way, you don't need God. When my father was dying of stomach cancer, we sold everything we had to try to cure him. When everyhting was gone we had no hope but God. We turned to him in desperation and saw him mercifully answer our prayers and heal my father. We reasoned that if God could do that then he could do anything, so our faith grew and we've seen many miracles."
-Brother Yun


So does Pastor Yun just not believe God is in the U.S.? Does he seem to think God has left us because of our materialistic lifestyles?

The Church God Moves:
"Of course not all Western churches are asleep! Of all the strong churches I have visisted in the West I've noticed one thing they all have in common: A strong and sacrificial commitment to missions among unreached nations. I'm not talking just about local outreach, or even attempts to start churches in other cities in your nation. I'm talking about a heart to establish God's kingdom in the most gospel-starved and spiritually dark areas of the world, where nobody has ever heard the name of Jesus. When you start putting your time, prayers and finances there you will soon experience God's blessing on the work of your hands. .. Until the Western Church obeys the Great Commission and takes the gospel to the ends of the earth, people are just playing with God and are not really serious about the truth. Many churches look beautiful on the outside, but are dead where it counts, on the inside. If you truly want to see God move, the two main things you must do is learn the Word of God and have the obedience to do what God tells you to do."
-Pastor Yun


Please take these words to heart. Get upset. Don't 'change the channel'. These words have come from a very faithful, true life servant of Christ who is concerned for God's people and loves every man who has ever beaten, spit on, or tortured him for the sake of spreading the Word.