China’s
critical lack of Bibles (Autumn 2003)
The house churches in China have
recently reported a critical lack
of Bibles. Many thousands of new
believers cannot obtain even one
copy of God's Word.
The shortage is even more acute
than normal because of the Chinese
Government's decision to decrease
the number of Bibles that are officially
allowed to be printed. In spite of
the intense persecution and suffering
imposed on Christians by the communist
regime, more than 20,000 souls are
coming to Christ each day!
But there are not enough Bibles.
This Christian leader from Henan
is typical of thousands more when
he says,
“ We have hundreds of churches
with thousands of converts and some
of these churches don't even have
one Bible for their entire congregation."
It’s estimated that each Bible
distributed in China will eventually
be used by at least 300 people. Of
these 300 people at least 10 will
come to Christ! What an awesome opportunity
and responsibility this is for those
of us God has blessed so abundantly
where we are.
The
revival that China has been witnessing
has grown even stronger
with the
recent SARS epidemic. The fear
and anguish evoked by the illness
has
forced people to look for a solid
foundation for their lives. Many
people found that Jesus Christ
was that foundation.
Because of this incredible awakening,
today there is an even greater
need for Bibles.
Thousands of new believers who have
recently come to know Jesus Christ
as their Lord and Saviour are left
without a written testimony of His
Word.
Reports that the limit for officially
printed Bibles in China is decreasing
will create an even greater need.
According to some sources, the Amity
Printing Company based in Nanjing,
which has official permission to
print an annual quota of Bibles,
said recently that 519,493 copies
were printed in the first quarter
of 2003 and is on track to reach
the target of two million copies
approved for this year.
However, from 1994 to 1999 the total
number of Bibles printed each year
was, on average, 2.6 million. This
means that the number of Bibles legally
printed in China has dropped by about
23 percent in recent years.
Underground printing
AsiaLink has for many years been
serving Christians inside China who
are printing their own Bibles. Hundreds
of thousands have been produced in
this way, at great personal risk
to believers who have put there skills
to use in printing presses around
China, often working through the
night in secrecy.
Our associates have been receiving
numerous requests from around China
for more Bibles. Unfortunately, we
have been unable to provide them
with an adequate supply to keep up
with the demand this year. We need
your help.
This crisis will not go away! It
is our responsibility to provide
the Word of God to these new Christians
who are going to face hardship and
rejection as a result of the life
that they have now chosen. They will
have to find the strength to stand
against the flow of a society that
rejects Jesus Christ. Many will face
jail and many will be tortured. Some
will have to go through periods of
sleep and food deprivation as a result
of choosing to become a Christian.
Equipped for battle
These brothers and sisters need
to be equipped with the Word of God
to be their strength as they face
these trials. They will need to have
this Word written on their heart,
but how can this happen if they don't
know what the Word of God says?
We don’t often make such direct
appeals at AsiaLink but this really
is an urgent matter that goes to
the heart of our God-given mission.
We need your help today so that we
can begin to quickly arrange to get
Bibles into the hands of hungry Christians.
Can you help please?
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