ASIA FOCUS May 2011 No.37

Persecution and church growth:
Loss can be gain

NORTH African church father Tertullian (160-220 AD) famously said, The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church. Indeed, the early church may have never spread victoriously around the world if it hadn’t been for persecution. Today, one reason for the phenomenal growth of the church in China is the fact that it has been persecuted ever since the Communist takeover in 1949. The church in Laos is also persecuted. A leader in the Lao Evangelical Church (LEC) said the other day, We need persecution for the growth of our church. It makes us strong. The LEC, the second-largest body of any kind in the country has experienced incredible growth over the last 20 years—in part because of persecution.

»Read full article