By Koay Chee Hoe
Imagine what the Christian faith would look like if there were no church buildings or religious gatherings. What if there were only a network of devout Christ-followers who loved and served non-believers in their contexts?
In a closed, under-reached nation in Asia, that is exactly what is happening. Due to cultural and political barriers, one of our pioneering teams has abandoned the model of forming Christian communities and then trying to invite non-believers into their own circles. Instead, they live out their faith among their existing family and friendship networks.
“I told the believers in our work that we would not have [church-style] meetings,” said my friend John (not his real name), one of our leaders in the region. “So, then they asked, ‘Well, what will we do?’ And I said that we would still be together, but that we would be together among our lost friends and relatives. I told them that we would be known for our love for Christ and for each other, not for our meetings.”
In this culture, Christianity is perceived as a Western religion and the Bible is seen as a Western holy book. So, our teams have learned how to hold natural conversations about the Scriptures during meals and social activities, with believers and non-believers comingled. After conversing briefly about a story or principle in the Bible, they ask simple questions, such as: “What do you think about that?” or “What does that mean to you?”
This simple approach helps to overcome political and cultural barriers against common Christian activities. For example, even typical house church meetings are scrutinized by authorities. And those believers who participate in these house churches soon become marginalized or cut off by their families. As a result, the Gospel is hindered from spreading within a person’s existing relational network.
In light of these obstacles, the team decided to follow the model of the first-century believers, as described in the New Testament. In that era, the Gospel spread through large households (oikos in Greek) of believing and unbelieving families and friends. Believers distinguished themselves and gained rapport among non-believers by the quality and character of their lives, transformed by Jesus.
In the same way, the pioneering teams in this closed nation do not create separate Christian environments; rather, they seek together to imitate Jesus among non-believing relatives, friends and whoever else happens to be in the home in order to move the Gospel forward.
As my friend John stated, “We emphasize love for one another as the primary and public evidence that we are followers of Christ. We have moved away from formal meetings and have developed strong relationships in the context of the oikos. We remain an open network . . . rather than becoming a closed community of believers, just as Jesus built friendships with tax collectors and sinners.”
Andrew (not his real name) came to Christ as a student through our movement. He was sent by his employer to live and work at a project site outside a major city. Other than phone calls and occasional visits from his like-minded friends, he had no believing community nearby. So, Andrew prayed and began gently sharing his faith among his non-believing peers, clients and suppliers.
During business dealings, one of Andrew’s suppliers repeatedly offered him kickbacks, a normal practice in that society. Andrew always politely refused. The supplier was impressed. He wanted to know why Andrew would not take the kickbacks. Andrew explained that he was a follower of Jesus and that God wanted him to conduct business with integrity.
As the two men continued to meet, Andrew told him more about Jesus, a little at a time. Finally, the supplier told Andrew that he needed help: His marriage was in trouble and he wanted to be a better father. When the supplier asked Andrew what he should do, Andrew replied, “You just need to turn the other direction and embrace Jesus.” The next time John met Andrew and the supplier, the supplier had given his life to Christ.
Today, Andrew, that man and two other colleagues have integrated the pursuit of following Jesus into their friendship. By God’s faithfulness, this small community is growing in faith and spreading the Gospel to more people they know.
Koay Chee Hoe is an international vice president of The Navigators.
