A Christian revival is shaking up China, causing dramatic, unprecedented changes.
CBN News made the startling revelation after it sent a team to Asia's communist giant. The team collected never-before-seen images from inside the country's communist-controlled churches and heard local evangelists who all spoke the same good tidings: the rise of Christianity in China.
Duan Huilai, one of the evangelists, said, "Dramatic changes are happening" in the government-controlled congregation known as Three-Self Church, adding that "God is moving in a powerful way inside these Three-Self Churches."
In Fujian Province, southeast China, the Christian news team found a large gathering of men and women dancing, waving flags, blowing shofars, singing and worshipping God.
"You might think these images come from a charismatic service in the United States. But they're not. This is communist, and officially still atheist China," CBN News reported.
There are two main types of churches in China: the registered and government-approved congregations, known as Three-Self Churches, and the unregistered ones, sometimes called underground or house churches. These latter churches operate outside government control and have been facing persecution for decades. Ironically, however, Christian persecution has failed to curb the growth of these underground churches.
Now, for the first time ever, even the registered congregations known as Three-Self Churches are seeing remarkable growth, according to Pastor Duan.
The Chinese pastor said the authorities have unexpectedly relaxed their grip on the churches as he cited some of the startling changes.
In the past, "every sermon that the pastor preached ... had to be vetted by the government authorities. Young people were never allowed to attend these churches so you'd only see old people, mostly women," Duan said. "Preaching about the power of the Holy Spirit was forbidden. You couldn't talk about end times or preach repentance."
But now, he said these restrictions are gone. Young people can now be seen in these churches and preachers can freely talk about healings, miracles, signs and wonders, he said.
Dr. Zhao Xiao, one of China's foremost experts on Christianity, told CBN News that "big revivals are happening in the Three-Self Churches."
"If you go to Haidian Church, you'll find yourself in a more than 100-meter line trying to get inside and worship. In Shenzhen, there are usually an average of 500 people being baptised each Sunday!" he said.
