Faith in the Wilderness: Words of Exhortation from the Chinese Church

“Let us learn from the witness of our Chinese brothers and sisters so that we can stand fast all the better as we face trials wherever we live.”

“Faith in the Wildernessis a powerful and moving collection of sermonic letters and I am glad to recommend it. I am quite sure that if you take the time to read it, you will be both blessed and encouraged. Best of all, you will be better equipped to endure pandemic, persecution, and whatever else providence may have in store for you and for all of us.”

“I cannot recommend this wonderful collection of sermons enough. Its exhortation to all who read can be summarized by one sentence in the second sermon: ‘Christians are those who worship God without regard for their own lives.’ May this characterize the way all of us live! Rising out of the soil of suffering, these sermons brim with biblical wisdom, gospel clarity and comfort, and unquenchable Christian hope. Feed yourself on the riches here; you will be thankful that you did.”

“Faith in the Wilderness is a timely resource for Christians in the freer world, marking a significant moment in church history. Saturated with knowledge of endurance under cultural and political hostility, our Chinese Christian family has delivered much more than a rich repository of scholarship; they’ve given all Followers of the Way reflections on survival and flourishing to help shape the next generation of global Christians into the image of Christ.”

“Being a Christian today involves listening and learning―especially from pastors who preach faithfully, regardless of their often challenging circumstances. This is why preachers over thousands of years in thousands of places have passionately proclaimed the truth and beauty of God’s word, urging followers of Jesus to remain faithful in the midst of suffering and persecution. The preachers who contributed to this volume are well acquainted with suffering and brokenness. Yet they do not lose heart nor hope. For they know that the way of Jesus is the way of the cross-suffering and then glory. So, whether you’re in Beijing or Boston, Chengdu or Chicago, listen and learn, for you will be encouraged and edified.”

“The value of these meditations is that together they boldly demonstrate how common it is for Scripture to align faithful Christian living with the way of the cross. That includes both the unique substitutionary elements of Jesus’s death, and the example it sets for the followers of Christ―and never less than both. On the one hand, ‘He himself bore our sins in his own body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness’ (1 Peter 2:24); on the other, ‘To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps’ (1 Peter 2:21). The Chinese church is being powerfully called to bear witness to these twin truths before their brothers and sisters around the world.”

“How much we Western Christians, so prone to complain about our paltry hardships, need the voice of fellow believers in the global church who know what real suffering is―suffering of which state persecution is just one variety. These sermons speak of a faith that took root in China centuries before Europeans even set foot in the Americas, and a faith that has been tested throughout by unremitting suffering right up to the present day. Relentlessly biblical, refreshingly direct, and down-to-earth practical, these sermons challenge our complacency and self-pity with Christ-centred gospel faith, hope, and joy. I know I will read them again because I need this voice in my ear to counter the cacophony of our culture or the sugar-coated shallowness of consumer Christianity.”

“All Christians are called to rejoice in suffering that produces perseverance, character, and hope (Romans 5:3). Yet, in affluent societies where the goal of life and religion is avoidance of all discomfort, we struggle to understand the cross we are to bear to treasure the cross of Christ. The Chinese leaders who have endured persecution and deprivation to write of Faith in the Wilderness bring needed perspective to believers worldwide―especially those in Western culture. By the irrepressible joy that is threaded through their writings, these leaders prepare us all to live in a fallen world, where some form of affliction is unavoidable, by the power of the Savior whose grace is sufficient, satisfying, and eternal.”

“Those of us who live in the freedom of the West find it difficult to imagine what it must be like to live as a Christian under the Chinese Communist Party. When we consider the challenges of a deadly pandemic added to the difficulties of ongoing persecution, we wonder how our faith would hold up under the pressure. Faith in the Wilderness invites us to sit under the preaching of Chinese pastors seeking to call their people to live out genuine faith in these challenging circumstances. And as we do, we hear a call to endurance of suffering empowered by our connection to our suffering Savior, a call that we need to hear and answer along with our Chinese brothers and sisters.”

“Faith in the Wilderness is an astonishing tribute to the grace of God at work in his people. While many Western Christians view persecution and trials as things to be avoided at all costs, the authors chart a course for all of us to follow as we embrace and overcome the suffering Christ’s followers endure. No sentimentality. No platitudes. This book reveals the crucial role of suffering in God’s plan for the world. I do not know a more sobering but inspiring testimony to Christ’s victory over sin and death, a victory that he graciously shares with all who follow him.”

“What a gift to have this book! Those of us in the West have so much to learn from sisters and brothers around the world who serve Christ faithfully, and often at great cost. For far too long we have imagined we are the ones with the answers, with the wisdom and knowledge, but in truth, we often have untested cognitive affirmations and a weak spirituality, not sacrificial insight gained through suffering and prayer. To help us, these meditations are well worth our time to read slowly and be changed by them in the process. I thank God for Hannah Nation and Simon Liu who helped make these accessible, and I am especially grateful to the authors who offered up these meditations in the first place. We are in your debt!”

“The voices of house church leaders have long cried out in the wilderness yet have been silenced. This book finally makes a way for them to be heard. I could not put it down. These sermons humanize theology, interweaving personal and biblical narratives, beautiful to the ear and the heart. They speak not as theorists who abstract propositions for the church’s consumption but as prophets who personally inhabit the story they tell. Their message is concrete and convicting, challenging both our perspective and practice. Blending insights from C. S. Lewis, Chinese writers, and church history, these pastors give us a much needed model for preaching and theologizing. They call us to repent and rejoice in the One who reigns over all nations.”