By Gary Chang
In this new year, our church begins a sermon series on the book of Ephesians. The core focus of this letter is ‘the mystery of God – building and becoming a new community in Christ, which is the church.’
This is why the early apostles spread the gospel outwards, not only to the Jews but also to different ethnicities. This wasn’t easy to accept and understand at that time. Through the book of Acts and most of Paul’s letters, we gradually understand what the mystery of God is in these end times. This mystery is to allow Gentiles and Jews to become citizens of God’s kingdom together through the gospel of Jesus Christ.
The Bible tells us that this gospel is for all nations, so we must proclaim it to the whole world. However, sharing the gospel among all nations is not an easy task. There are many examples throughout missionary history of how the gospel has transformed the values of certain regions, leading to the progress of those countries and areas.
However, the concept of becoming a new community in Christ is difficult to understand or accept when it comes to missions in Japan. This is because Japan is not a very diverse society. Although, the Japanese government has recently been working to promote opportunities for foreigners to work in Japan, the average Japanese person is still not very accepting of foreign cultures. Looking at Japanese history, Japan is a relatively exclusive country. Because Japanese culture itself is vibrant, they do not feel the need to accept foreign cultures, as foreign cultures are not necessarily better. We see immigrants from many different races all over the world; for example, Chinese people can be seen all over the world. Immigration is about aspiring to a better life. However, relatively few Japanese people live abroad. Most Japanese people believe their country is good, so they have no desire or need to move. I recently saw a news report that only 17.5% of Japanese people have passports, meaning that most Japanese people have never been abroad.
Although having experience abroad doesn’t make one more open to multiculturalism, establishing a church isn’t necessarily about emphasizing diversity. However, God calls us to be His people, representatives of His kingdom in our regions and countries. This means we may differ from local traditional cultures, especially in aspects of religious worship. Being called means living as kingdom citizens, no longer conforming to secular values and customs. This, to some extent, can lead to multicultural outcomes. In the American church scene, this is often seen as a beautiful picture: people from different races and cultural backgrounds become one family through Jesus Christ’s salvation, forming a new community. Such a concept might seem foreign to Japan.
Please pray for the churches in Japan, asking the Lord to send a revival and renewal, bringing breakthroughs in the Japanese Christian community. Also, pray for Japan as a nation; in recent years, economic needs have pushed the government to open up to more foreign workers. We pray that this will change Japan so that the gospel can be more easily understood and accepted by Japanese people.
Discussion Questions:
On our Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn platforms, leave your answer to these questions. Or share this link with your answer to your own social media.
- What does it mean to live as citizens of God’s Kingdom?
- Read Ephesians and share something that stood out to you.
- What role can you play in supporting global missions? How can you be part of God’s work beyond your own community?
Articles:
- Brazil Needs Missionaries and Short-Term Teams
- Beyond The Noise: How The Church Can Change The Conversation
- Briannan Byrd Shares Her Heart For Japan