South Korea: Gospel work thrives

I recently returned from a wonderful trip to Seoul in South Korea, where I was asked to speak at the “East Meets West” Conference held at SaRang Church as part of the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) Assembly [see additional WEA article here].

SaRang Church has a membership just short of 40,000 and has a heart for mission. They give huge amounts of resources to the re-evangelisation of Europe. “East Meets West” is led by Sam Ko, who has supported many revitalisation projects and church plants across our continent and has a lead role at the Union School of Theology in Wales.

The church building is magnificent. The volume of people attending warrants its very own tube station. The main sanctuary would be the envy of any Premier League football club.

Above it is a glass-fronted tower block that would not look out of place in Canary Wharf, and this is just for their Sunday school rooms. They have a side chapel for weddings, a bookshop, a café, many lifts and escalators, fine art, marbled hallways, a multi-story digital waterfall, a clock tower and a replica Welsh Chapel.

Although grand, it is not excessive, nor arrogant, the fruit of hard-working people who seek to honour Jesus by providing the best possible place for all to come and hear the gospel.

I was overwhelmed by the members’ commitment to Jesus and their desire to make Him known – “all hands on deck.” Volunteers were in church as early as 4 a.m. They lined the hallways with beautiful smiles and an eagerness to serve.

We were taken out for food and sightseeing. The streets were immaculate and safe. We went to the graves of missionaries, where those who gave their lives to bring the gospel to Korea are buried. The guides were noticeably emotional, still so thankful for those who sacrificed all for their country; particularly Welsh missionary Robert Jermain Thomas, who was executed for bringing Bibles to Korea, which led to their nation’s revival.

The Sunday service was filled with messages of grace and commission. As I worshipped alongside thousands, weeping for the lost in communal prayer, I was made profoundly aware of what is possible. Why can’t the Lord do the same for us in the UK as He has done so graciously in Seoul? Why can’t every soul in my Welsh valley be called to worship and serve Jesus in the same manner as our Korean brothers and sisters? What is stopping the church that I pastor from doubling its congregation by Christmas? Is our Lord not able? What are we waiting for?

Exhausted from the jet lag, I return with greater zeal. “Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matt. 28v19-20).