On February 1, new laws were enacted in China givingthe government additional control over everyday religious activities. According to the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, provisions state:

• Teaching that promotes the Communist Party must be propagated at religious gatherings.
• Additional information reporting will be mandatory, including getting official permission for effectively every religious gathering.
• Government officials have supervisory authority over leadership changes, major expenses, and construction events.

For many in China, this law has serious ramifications.

Local Implementation and the Church

Kurt Rovenstine, President of Bibles for China says, “I can’t speak specifically to the restrictions as they’re printed. But I do know two things: that there’s a bit of fear as to what and how it will be implemented.”

(Image courtesy of Bibles for China)

Often, provincial government officials decide how and to what extent they will implement national laws. This enforcement may vary by area. Some parts of the new law are also vague, leaving uncertainty about what it actually means for religious bodies.

However, tensions are high as people wait to find out what changes are in store for their churches. Rovenstine continues, “I know that there [are] a lot of our folks that just are afraid that there’s this…slow creep of the government into the business of the Church [which] will be accelerated.”

Impact on Bibles for China

Instead of an occasional check-in, a Communist Party official is now present each day at the provincial offices of Bibles for China. This could potentially restrict their work, but for now, Bibles for China continues checking the accuracy of the Bibles from Amity Press and distributing God’s Word to those who need it.

(Image courtesy of Bibles for China)

Rovenstine states the situation is “definitely something we have our eyes on. And as we’ve said before, we’re keeping a close eye on the Scriptures as well that are being distributed to make sure that they continue to be the Word and the Word alone. That’s very important to us, obviously.”

That work may become even harder. USCIRF notes, “The Chinese government is currently conducting an evaluation of religious texts—including the Bible and the Qur’an—and could amend passages deemed incompatible with ‘socialist values.’”

Currently, the reviews and regulations have not changed the structure of Bibles for China. With their work all done through legal avenues, they have not felt the crackdown in the same way as others. So for now, they are waiting.

“We haven’t experienced any difficulty in that. But…we will surely be monitoring that closely to see how those changes affect our ability to do what God’s called us to do.”

Pray for Chinese Christians

Rovenstine encourages believers to pray for Chinese Christians. He says that even while they struggle to worship freely, they are passionate about sharing God’s Word. They want to see it go to all the Earth. They want to be a part of God’s mission. Pray they would maintain this passion.

Rovenstine adds, “Also, [pray] that they would grab ahold of the truth of Scripture that says God is going to build His Church and the gates of Hell will not prevail against them. I’m sure it seems like the gates of Hell are advancing, but [pray for] that assurance that they will not prevail in these difficult times and they would be encouraged.”

Header image courtesy of Bibles for China

Tightening Restrictions, Continued Work

Even as regulations on religious freedom tighten, Bibles for China hopes to see 11 distributions within the next year.

(Photo courtesy of Tomas Roggero on Flickr at https://bit.ly/36FJuvD)

Kurt Rovenstine, President of Bibles for China says, “And the challenge with that, is that because of some of the, the new presence – I guess, is the best way that I would describe it for our particular ministry – of the government in and around the church, it makes it a little more difficult. We’ve already had to make an adjustment on one of our first distributions because of that presence. That presence is a little more scrutiny.”

That increased scrutiny means that as a non-national organization, Bibles for China has to be a little more careful about what they are doing. They need to rely more on local Chinese partners and step back from certain activities. For instance Bibles for China no longer sends Westerners to local churches when Bibles are presented.

But Rovenstine says this doesn’t change the mission.

The Same Commitment

“What hasn’t changed really much [is] what we do; other than we are no longer there. And so we are providing resources for the Chinese Church and the leaders there to secure Bibles to, you know, distribute as the Chinese church, not as the foreigners coming in and passing them out.”

He continues, “It’s still the Bible that’s printed in China at Amity Press that we keep a very close eye on to make sure you know that it’s still the Scripture and it hasn’t been sensitized in any way nothing has been added to it.”

Stepping back has changed the dynamic in many places. Some places need additional space, yet in other areas new doors have opened.

“Increased Opportunity”

(Image Courtesy of Bibles for China)

In fact, deciding not to visit in person made a big difference in two areas. Rovenstine says, “Well, immediately when we decided not to visit, we had two new areas open up to us because the pastors felt as if then they could accept the help that we were giving to them without us having to come into their area. It reduced the scrutiny that that was upon them. So we saw that almost immediately, just an increased opportunity.”

Get Involved

Continued work, even under new rules, means continued spread of the Gospel. Rovenstine asks for prayer for Bibles for China as they seek to honor Christ even under a tightening regime.

“And so we want to be able to take the Word of God in ways that we currently aren’t. So that we can think creatively, that we can be good stewards of the gifts that folks give and be able to continue to get Bibles into the hands of folks who haven’t had them before. And that we can do it with integrity, and that we can do it with confidence that the Scripture we’re distributing is the unchanged Word of God.”

Please pray for the spread of the Gospel in rural China. Pray that it would be distributed unhindered and that God would bless and protect His workers in China.

To learn more, click here.

Header Image Courtesy of Bibles for China.

Changes in Church Life

Kurt Rovenstine with Bibles for China says their contacts are facing many of the same troubles other Christian organizations have expressed; the government is cracking down on Christianity.

(Photo courtesy of Bibles for China)

For many churches, this means programs are being shut down.

“Sunday school is going away. [There is] pressure from the government to try to control and limit the scope of Christianity. And part of that is, I believe, that the church is still strong. And we visit folks that are doing great things and still have a passion for the Bible, still have a passion for evangelism, still have a passion to see the Church grow. And we know that when things are moving forward that the enemy will come in and try to thwart that.”

A New Focus

The growing pressure to limit the scope of Christ in China is changing the way many ministries operate. Bibles for China sees these changes as a way to broaden or shift their focus.

Instead of solely Bibles, they want to offer study Bibles and commentary sets as well. These items are more difficult to get to their partners. However, they are valuable assets for training younger, rural generations and lay-pastors. Because of security concern, these materials are handed out one-on-one to specific partners instead of en masse.

However, the focus on Scripture is not going away, Rovenstine explains. “We still will be primarily about Bibles, as many as we can, as far away as we can. You know into the remote areas, we’ll try to see that Bibles are distributed so that there’s plenty of copies of God’s Word if things would ever shift, you know, really radically.”

A New Verification System

In addition to a small shift in focus, Bibles for China has been forced to change the way they operate. Changes in government have made it very difficult for Westerners to do much beyond traditional sight-seeing.

That’s why Bibles for China relies more heavily on partners they have made in the past. They no longer send teams into China to verify Bibles and encourage local believers; instead, they work with Chinese partners who do the coordination for them.

(Photo courtesy of Bibles for China)

“They send us reports. Numbers of Bibles to specific churches and those kinds of things. And then we’ve had partnerships for many years with several provinces. We trust the leaders. We’ve been there multiple times. They send us a similar report. Number of Bibles, names of Churches … So, we do still have a verification process, it’s just a little different.”

These changes can be difficult. However, Bibles for China is continuing to bring Bibles and study materials to people who need them in China, at least for now.

Pray for Revival

When asked how people can pray, Rovenstine recounted the last time he was permitted to attend a church service in China. The pastor spoke about the dry bones in Ezekiel. He asked his people to seek a revival in China through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Rovenstine explains, “Not that there aren’t good things already, but it’s so easy to see the conflict, trouble, and persecution and strife and think that the dry bones are going to just remain in the valley and continue to rattle around in the desert wind. But as Ezekiel saw that great vision, I think we can pray for a great coming together of the Church in China and the Church around the world. That the Holy Spirit through the word of God, through the determination and faithfulness of His people there would be a great revival.”

Please join Bibles for China in praying for God’s spirit to revive the Church in China and protect His people who are facing troubles.

Please also consider joining Bibles for China financially here.

Header photo courtesy of Bibles for China