Spotlight

Every day, about 15,000 people in China become Christians. The new Christians would like to teach their children about Jesus. But they don’t know how! When the parents were children, many of them had never even heard of Jesus.

The Bible tells us that children should be taught about God and encouraged to come to Jesus. (See Deuteronomy 6:4-7 and Luke 18:16). But in some parts of China, officials say children under 18 must not be taught about God and Jesus.

“Where can they learn?” two Christian couples with children asked God and each other.

God answered the parents’ prayers. The principal of the school that their children attended was a Christian, and she was willing to keep a secret. She knew a few other Christian parents with the same problem. She figured out a way for the children to learn Bible stories.

Secret Bible Lessons

Children are playing games in a large room. Students in music class are singing. In a first grade classroom, kids are learning how to add and to write their names in Chinese characters. (Chinese writing is made up of “characters” rather than letters.)

The big school has lots of space. No one notices that 10 children have quietly gathered in a small room, away from the other classrooms.

The teacher shows the children a picture of a lion and a bear. She tells them the story of David. King Saul did not think David was strong enough to fight Goliath. David told the king God had helped him kill a lion and a bear, and He would help him fight Goliath (1 Samuel 17:34-37). The children listen eagerly to the Bible lesson, then slip quietly back into their other classes.

Why Does the Government Have These Rules?

A Christian from China recently visited The Voice of the Martyrs and told why the government and some Christians do not see eye to eye. This is what he said:

• Jesus is #1. That’s what it says in the first chapter of the Book of Colossians.
• Colossians 1:15 says Jesus is “the firstborn over all creation.”
• Jesus will never be in second place. He cannot be.
• But in China, the government says Jesus is not #1. The Communist Party, which rules China, must come first, the leaders say.
• So there are disagreements between government officials and the church. The government makes rules that do not agree with the Bible. The Christians follow God’s rules. Like Peter and the other apostles in Acts 5:29, they believe, “We must obey God rather than men.”

Standing Strong

Has anyone ever tried to get you to do something that is against God’s rules? Have you ever seen an advertisement that tries to talk people into ungodly behavior?

If you put Jesus first and resist temptation, you will not likely get arrested. But Chinese families risk arrest and fines if they don’t put the government first, before Jesus. Ask God to help the secret Bible students and other Chinese Christians stay strong in difficult situations.

To Think About

How is the Chinese government like Goliath and how are the Christian children in the secret classroom like David?

Note: To protect their identities, the names of some of the people on this Web site and some identifying details have been changed.