You’ve to be a Rip Van Winkle not to notice the number of times the Church has been featured on our local newspapers in the past few months. I often think of the “why” this is being done; why all the sudden interest and fascination on the Church, not just in Singapore but in Asia as well?

Last week, we all read about one church in Singapore that raised $21 million in a single service. Doesn’t that make you just want to scream in frustration? And did you not read the Straits Times yesterday – that seven pages of our most read newspaper featured articles of the Church in China, including an article in the front page. And it had as captions such as – “Jesus in the House”; “Jesus in the office”; “Jesus in the Rice Fields” or “95% of village believers come to Jesus because of an illness”. If you just read the articles without knowing that you’re reading the newspapers, it might just as well seem as if you were reading from “Charisma” magazine or “Christianity Today”. I don’t know about you but I think this is great.

But as I read about the Church in China, both the underground church and the Three-Self church, I couldn’t help but praise God for the wonderful move of the Holy Spirit. I couldn’t help but want to shout and praise God for this marvelous thing that’s happening. I only think the reports were too conservative about the numbers. And if this is marvelous in our sight, is it also not marvelous in His? Then I read about this pastor who’s been arrested 37 times and he says he’s fearless because he’s a son of God. Wow, I’m really impressed and encouraged as well by his boldness in the Lord. What an awesome testimony! Now is it possible that the Chinese authorities realise that this is something that’s inevitable and cannot be avoided and that the wise thing for them to do is learn how to manage it? That’s just my opinion and I think that this is good.

We’re blessed to have good, clean and wise government and we must as Christians be supportive of our leaders, pray for our Government that they lead wisely, and obey all the laws of the land. Singapore is our country and we must do all we can to protect the values we hold dearly. With all the publicity that we seem to be getting, let’s always remember that we’re a peculiar people, a people who have been set apart for God’s glory.


Pastor Yang Tuck Yoong