My China Exile Story (6, The Last Story)

This article is an autobiographical record of the exile from China of missionary Yong-Sun CHO who was arrested by Chinese “national security (Guer Bao 国保)” agents from January 5th to 18th of 2018. This article describes the exile process of missionaries from China, which took place just before church gathering disappeared in almost every church in China in early February 2020 due to the severe religious oppression of the Chinese Communist regime. Currently, Chinese underground church members cannot gather in church buildings but have services in their own houses. <Editor>

The one who loves the Lord more than his/her own life

In China, I focused on training Chinese leaders together with focusing on family churches. That was the direction I decided for my Chinese missionary works. I thought it is important to train Chinese leaders because I could be expelled by Chinese police anytime for the missionary activities of foreign missionaries are illegal in China.

For eighteen (18) years, I could have trained four leaders. When I say four leaders, I mean that the leaders can preach the words of the Lord on my behalf. I use the term “leader” to a person who will not deny the Lord even to the point of losing his/her own life. Therefore, even though I was expelled from China after the missionary life for 18 years, I believe that the four leaders will do the works of the Lord with the heart as I had.

The second thing that I want to mention is family churches. One church was named “向天,” which is also can be “The Church for Heaven” in English. “向天” means “toward the Heaven.” The ultimate destination of people who believe in Jesus Christ is the Heaven, and the people should realize the will of the heaven (the will of the Lord) in this world.

At the very first, I didn’t mean to establish a church. However, the university students who studied with me for three years had some difficulties in adapting to other churches and wanted to listen to my sermons. Thus, I started the church named “The Church for Heaven” since May 16, 2004. In the church, university students met the Lord and their faith has been grown up. Now, the church members are spread out to some big cities of China and they are making small family churches.

The third thing to mention is the theological school underground. I had lectures in Y area and B area to the leaders. Through these lectures, I could deliver the deeper knowledge about God to Chinese leaders, and could teach Korean history to ethnic Korean leaders who immigrated and moved to settle in China. In that time, I could recognize the concept of the unit of the Korean people including: South Koreans, North Koreans, ethnic Koreans who immigrated and settled in China, ethnic Koreans settled in the post-Soviet states (e.g. Russia, etc.) and Korean Japanese people.

The fourth thing to mention is the Bible study and baptism. I had taught North Korean(s) the Bible and baptized him/her (them). When I think about the family, my heart hurts because they were forcibly sent to North Korea by the North Korean Security Agency. I do not have a relative in North Korean. However, because of this family, I now have spiritual relatives in North Korea.

Fifth, I could write some articles during my missionary life, seeing Chinese people, ethnic Korean Chinese people and North Koreans. I wished to publish the articles while I was working as a missionary in China. However, as a missionary in China, I could not publish the articles because if my name was published, I could have been found as a missionary. Chinese missionaries are people who really live without names or honors. However, I kept writing articles that I couldn’t publish by myself in the dark environment, and I gave articles to some Chinese people and missionaries around me as far as I can and I had reaped fruits in my own way.

I also remember that some Western foreigners attended the services to listen to my sermons for a year, saying that my Chinese sermons are easy to understand, and a Taiwan American(s) joined me for his/her religious life. I also remember one professor(s) from a university who came to the church I served for some years. However, I regret that I could not finish helping a North Korean youngster(s) who had a Chinese ID(s).

The One Witness Elected According to the Good Plan of the Lord

I posted an article(s) on my SNS, and I received a message from Korean student J, saying that he/she is also one of my disciples. Here is the message from J.

After receiving article “Holy Trinity God viewed in Hebrew language,” I was curious about the deportation process, and thank you for sending me the article about the deportation process. I received the article through a messenger on my cellphone while having a youth service. After giving a quick glance on the article, I only could read the article thoroughly after I came back home. As I expected, while reading the article, I burst into a rage of tears and I only could vaguely guess how harsh it would have been for you for the past years. I will not be able to know what conversation you had with the Lord along the window side, but I believe that the Lord had made all things done according to his good will and plan.

Pastor, you might have forgotten about me, but I am also one of the fruits led to the Lord by you. Before I graduated from high school, for the first time, I shared my problems in faith with you and I made the decision to give my life to the Lord. And I am proud of it. When some brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ ask me the cause of my faith, I first talk about you, pastor Yong-Sun CHO. I talk about how I met you through HY, and I talk about the Friday Bible studies, Sunday services, the baptism, and how the Lord led me from China to the USA, etc. It was the huge blessing for me to meet you in my life. I call you pastor for convenience, but I actually prefer calling you “Missionary Yong-Sun CHO.” You are the one I am so proud of, and you will be always the first person who come out in my testimony.<end>

Missionary Yong-Sun CHO  | A member of Global Mission Society (GMS). After he was expelled from China, he has been continuing mission for China on the Internet and he teaches students at World Mission Seminary. [Gospel Prayer News]

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