Preparing to Serve the Lord in China

When Chinese Christians feel a call to pastoral work they need to be trained. In China the options are more limited than in the West. A believer might go to study in a house church Bible school, or to a formal TSPM seminary - or possibly, if the supporting church has the finances and the connections for the required support, that future pastor might go overseas to study theology and pastoral skills in the USA or elsewhere.

Rex Chen graduated from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and from The Master’s University, both in the USA - a study process that altogether took 12 years of his life and ministry. Now Chen is asking a question: “Do Chinese Christians still need to study theology abroad since we have entered the online learning era?” Chen comments “I see the severe shortage of workers in the church in China. On the one hand, there is a need to study theological knowledge, but on the other hand, there is an urgent spiritual need at home. Going abroad for four years means at least a four-year absence from ministry in China.”

Chen’s conclusion is that “for most Christians and pastors, I believe that it is no longer necessary to spend four years studying theology abroad. You can now study theology online, either through free or paid programmes. Most books in the field are already digitised and can be accessed or downloaded online. In addition, there are numerous theological resources available on the internet, and with the help of artificial intelligence, online theological studies are no longer a barrier. In fact, they may be faster, more efficient, and more comprehensive than traditional in-person learning.”

The language and cultural barrier is another major obstacle to Chen. “If the language and cultural gap is too large, it becomes challenging to engage in high-quality discipleship” outside of China. Combined with language barriers, the effect of life-on-life discipleship overseas may be further diminished.

And of course, there is the issue of finance, the cost of travelling, living and studying in the West. 

Chen feels studying overseas can lead to disconnect. “Often, after several years of studying abroad, the congregation at home may have changed, and even the leadership in the church may have shifted. So, after several years abroad, returning home may not lead to a smooth transition back into ministry. In the worse cases, it may even be impossible to return to the original church for ministry, necessitating a search for new ministry opportunities.”

Source: ChinaSource

Prayer points

Pray for the Lord’s leading in the lives of young Chinese who feel called to pastoral or church ministry.

Pray for the online ministry of AM-CCSM that the Lord would use it to prepare many for His service 

Pray for labourers for the church in China.