Church Planting on Stony Ground: Revisiting Japan's Situation

 

“And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth: But when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away.” – Mark 4:5-6 (Jesus in the Parable of the Sower)

This week will be important to me as it will be my ten year anniversary for living in Japan. Recently I was re-watching this old video about global missions. In the video a division can be seen setup between three different types of worlds that exist within global Christian missions. They classify these divisions as world A, B, and C. World C, which is 33% of the population, is the “Christian” world that has some kind of Christian influenced system or understanding. World B, which is 38% of the population, is non-Christian with access to the gospel, but has chosen not to accept it. World A, which is 29% of the population, is non-Christian with no access to the gospel or no chance of hearing it. The video goes on to say that a vast majority, or 72% of missionaries and resources are sent to World C. Another 25% of missionaries and resources are sent to World B, while the remaining 3% is sent to World A. This video was made years ago and little has probably changed since then with the only exception being that of greater internet access globally. This global internet access has greatly impacted World A in ways in which traditional missionaries have not been able to.

This brings us to Japan. According to Joshua Project missions statistics Japan is currently 0.57% Evangelical Christian with 2.16% overall “Christian”. In 1853 the United States Navy forcefully opened up Japan to the rest of the world with Missionaries arriving shortly thereafter for the first time in hundreds of years. It has now been about 171 years since that time with not a lot of huge changes happening toward accepting of Christ for this nation. Multiple Bibles have been translated, many Christian resources have been established, many churches have been planted within thirty minutes to one hour of every Japanese person (though there are some mid-sized cities with no churches still), and a small Christian sub-culture exists in Japan. All of these factors firmly place Japan into “World B”. Great access to the gospel with constant rejection of it. Doing missions in “World B” requires an entirely different set of skills and level of patience. In ten years of living here many missionaries have already come and gone for various reason. One day I too will have to leave as a reality of missions. What is the reality of church-planting on stony ground?

According to Ken Joseph's book Lost Identity in the 700s AD era Christianity came to Japan for the first time, but it never took too deeply and was absorbed into a certain Buddhist sect. Buddhism that had no God suddenly found itself worshiping various Buddhas as Gods in the newly established sect. Much later in 1549 the Jesuit Francis Xavier arrived to spread Catholicism, which was initially successful with thousands of converts, only to be crushed by massive persecution leading to almost completely being erased from Japan. In 1853 after being closed for centuries Western missionaries returned and slowly spread the gospel. During World War 2 the Japanese church was entirely complicit with the government and carries with it the scars of doing that to this day. Only after World War 2 with a new generation of missionaries were many churches planted in the newly humbled nation, but the gospel never spread as hoped. In its place secular humanism, materialism, and capitalism spread which led to great material prosperity until an economic crash in occurred 1990. To this day Japan has not recovered from that economic decline, but has rather steadily declined. 

Spiritually, to this day Japanese Christians have great difficulty maintaining the churches that they have been entrusted with due mostly to aging and attrition. Just like the description in Mark 4 of the stony ground from Jesus, a strong root never took place in Japan as a nation. Even now most Japanese are proud of their rejection of Christianity of the which they are taught about in school. To them it may be the only knowledge of Christianity that they have. As a people they are heavily skeptical of anything outside of their culture, which is deeply implanted into their minds through public schooling. There is a veil as it were covering their eyes. For many it takes years to consider God, and even if they do, they are many times unwilling to take the last step of obedience for fear of what others in the group may think. For many the deathbed conversion may be the only way to make peace with God and save face with others. Only the truly courageous step forward daring to risk all to follow Christ here. 

However, with greater access to travel, international education, and the internet as well as many looming social issues many Japanese people are thinking outside the box for the first time. Will they have the courage to trust Christ or follow the path of their ancestors in rejection? Will they have the courage to live for Christ openly in their land? Will they be able to reach their own nation? Traditional Missionaries still do what a vast majority of Japanese Christians are mostly unwilling to do: boldly preach the gospel to the lost masses by going against the group. Many seeds need to be planted and watered yet. We will continue to do just that as long as God permits!

Japanese Education

 

With our recent venture into establishing a mission in Japan it would be a good time to talk about education in Japan. After having lived in Japan for awhile we have found that the main reason that Japanese people want to interact with us is so that they may learn English. There is not much interest in spiritual things. Only fear prevails. It is understood at this time in history that English is the “lingua franca” of the business world. It is said that to understand English is to gain greater access the world at large. At one time in history Japan even considered making English the official language! How does education play into this? Japanese society places high emphasis on education. Some of the highest literacy rates in the world are frequently flouted as proof of the Japanese dedication to education. It is not uncommon for Japanese parents to fiercely compete for placement into the best pre-school so that they may in turn get into the best schools further down the line. The whole of Japanese life is really built around education which is said to be the core of their civilization. Think to your perception of Japan in media. The whole stereotypical image of the “Sensei” and the student was projected onto the Western mind through movies such as “Karate Kid” as well as children's TV shows such as “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”. The teacher is highly valued as the wise master with all of the answers. In Japan there is great reverence even for the term “Sensei” which is not to be instilled lightly upon anyone. So much so, that we are careful not to call ourselves Sensei when instructing others. How is it that Japan has placed so much emphasis on education? In what way do they view education?

When Japan opened up in 1868 during the Meiji Era a strong desire was instilled by the leadership to catch up to western advancements. At the time Japan lagged behind as a backward country compared with the West in almost every way. Compulsory education combined with Japanese distinctives was seen as the way to rapidly advance. Within a few decades Japan was transformed into an industrialized advanced nation upon all outward appearances. To this day it is ranked number four worldwide for economic prowess which is said to have come from a strong educational emphasis. In their mind education has made them great and it is what makes them truly Japanese. What exactly is distinct about Japanese education?

Believe it or not, the main purpose of Japanese education is essentially to teach children how to be Japanese, not necessarily education. In Japan it is essential to be obedient to the dictates of the group. This is continually reinforced as a learned behavior from a very young age. Obedience to authority without question, working together in unison, rote memory of select information, and no allowance for critical thinking or questions all are used to create a uniquely ideal Japanese society. A uniquely man-made utopia on earth. How is this achieved? Through conformity. It must be learned that to be different from the group is bad. From a young age children are taught to dress alike, act alike, think alike, and are paired together in similar groups. This is said to create harmony. There is a strong emphasis on “inside the group” versus “outside the group”. There is also strong emphasis on giving good outward appearances, while concealing your true self. Though not intentional, this system creates a strong idolization of what is considered “inside the group” or what is uniquely Japanese above everything else. Coupled with Darwinian evolutionary thought this makes for a survival-of-the fittest scenario to play out. Foreigners, Half-Japanese, the “weak” or even Japanese who lived overseas will never completely be part of this ideal in-group. This also leads to an epic level of bullying that is prevalent throughout Japanese society at all levels. This then leads to the concept of enduring pain and suffering. Children are taught to endure all personal hardships for the sake of the group. For instance, to be exhausted all the time is to be Japanese. It is common for Japanese children to be placed in cram-schools for two to four hours after school each day. This is done not necessarily for learning, but to instill the concept of enduring hardship for the group to succeed. The main goal is to create good Japanese citizens who will unquestionably obey. Lack of analytical thinking, group-oriented conformity, and abdicating personal responsibility over to the group collective are the hallmarks of Japanese education. This is the reality of Japan. However, can this system be maintained?

The truth is, is that this system has been in decline for awhile. Japan's economy, birthrate, and conformity have been on the decline for years. Many are quietly rebelling by not get married, dropping out of the system, moving overseas, or sadly committing suicide. Their hope needs to be found elsewhere: not in this Utopian world system or any world system for that matter. Only the gospel can give them as well as mankind hope for the future. That is why we are here to spread the good news. No man-made system can free mankind from the shackles of sin. So, we are here to slowly and patiently teach the Bible to the few who will have the courage to look beyond the education that this world has to offer.  

Reading the Air

 

Anyone who has spent time learning about Japan knows that this country has a group-oriented culture. Group-oriented meaning that the group takes priority above the individual with regard to decision making. Before a decision is made Japanese people are taught from a young age to consider all possibilities of the group first. In fact, one of the Japanese educational system's objectives is to instill this way of thinking upon children. This concept is known as 空気を読む or “Reading the Air”. Without the ability to read the air it would be easy to make a social faux pa and seriously damage their reputation, therefore Japanese people are very careful about how they interact with each other. Smooth communication depends on understanding group norms even when they are not clearly communicated. To understand these norms is to be Japanese. To go against the group could mean loss of connection with friends, family, or co-workers which could have serious long-term consequences. Suddenly communication could be cut off without warning. Suddenly friends, family, or co-workers could stop interacting with you. Therefore, harmony with the group is of the utmost importance.

Because Harmony is valued above truth, objective morality does not seem as important. Rather whatever the group deems as important takes precedence. So, to avoid incurring the wrath of the group from a young age children are taught to comply with the group at all costs at the sacrifice of their individuality. The advantage is an outwardly harmonious as well as highly obedient society whereas the disadvantages are abuses, bullying, depression, escapism, intimidation, suicide, no questioning, etc. This can also be used to not take personal responsibilities for evils because they were “just doing what the group told them”, I.E. “just following orders”. Older group leaders continue the legacy of conformity to group pressure because the same was done to them when they were younger. When the potential evils of the group are realized and cannot be changed hopelessness sets in. This leads to compromising any values to please the group, intentionally becoming shallow, not asking questions, or escapism. Japanese people will either go with the group whether good or evil, try to change or dominate the group, drop out of the group and isolate, intentionally move to another country, or end their own life.

This immense group pressure is at the crux of the Japanese culture. It is the “power of the air”. As Christians, in the Bible we know that we are not to conform to this world, but are to conform to the image of Christ. The one who rules the “air” is the prince of the power of the air. In the Bible Ephesians 2:2 states, “Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:” It is no wonder that a group of unsaved people trying to conform to each other will work against God. It is the way of the flesh which is greatly amplified with many people working together. Is it no wonder why it is so hard to break through this power to reach the hearts of Japanese people? For a Japanese person to even consider God comes at a great risk to them. Great fear exists to go against the power of the air because it is all that they have known. The only way out is for the Japanese people to realize that Jesus Christ is greater than all of their fears, and that He is the source of true freedom that they are seeking.

2024 Year in Review

 

Suddenly the year has come to an end and it is time to think about what has been learned. Ever year brings forth new blessings, challenges, and experiences. This year was no different. Here is the verse of the year:

“The LORD is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.” – Psalm 145:9 KJV

I remember with excitement as we headed into the new year with meetings with the family who had come out to help us with a church plant as well as a new believer freshly led to the Lord. There were also many hopeful prospects to share the gospel with in our neighborhood as we were settling in. However as we continued on into the year to try to build a core group for a future church, it slowly dissolved back to being just our own family. The process of disciple making is work as well as spiritual battle. To work closely together and find cohesion as a new group was difficult. So, the family that came with us decided to go back with the original church, until further notice. Eventually they quit going to church consistently. Please pray for them. The new believer did not want to take steps to grow in his faith at this time, so I had to step back and pray. Hopefully in the future he will desire to grow in his faith. Sometimes these things can take years. So, we had to start over and re-evaluate our situation. We essentially had to start over from zero once more.

What seemed like a good start, turned out to be a humbling situation. Even more so when I got a kidney stone and had to go to the hospital by ambulance! Good thing that it is God who plants churches and not me!

We decided to keep meeting as a family each Sunday morning out of our house. We have grown closer as a family together. The children have also grown a lot with their homeschooling and Bible memory. It was shortly thereafter that we met two Japanese families in the neighborhood that were interested in learning English using the Bible, so we started to meet with them gradually. We still meet with them to this day. Around this time I decided to start trying to find students to teach English with using the Bible. Eventually I was able to find five students to teach the Bible using English. Later one eventually left, but the other four remained consistently over the course of the year. Gradually over time they have learned about God, memorized many Bible verses, and heard the gospel. At the time of this writing they continue to study with me. Most Japanese are very skeptical concerning Christianity, so it takes a lot of time for them to open up to spiritual things in this way. It takes a lot of patient work as well as prayer here to see fruit. Ministry is quite a battle here. On a more positive note, a lady that we had led to the Lord the year before has been going to our previous church and growing, so we are thankful to God for that!

During this last year I have spent a lot of time studying Japanese to try to improve my speaking and listening skills. I still have a long way to go, but am continuing to try my best, and Lord willing will be fluent some day. God has showed me that it is not about my ability or plans, but His plans rather that His work is accomplished. We had to be patient during this time until God opened a new door. I was able to get a driver's license for the first time this year, which changed our life greatly. Up until this year we had used bikes, walking, buses, and trains to get around. Having a car was a great life changer. During this time we continued to plant gospel seeds with 56,000 tracts going out around Tokyo with some of those in many different languages. Thank God for different gospel tract distributors that send us gospel tracts to put out each week. We again attended three different annual international festivals to put out gospel tracts (Vietnamese, Laos, and Thai) which is always a blessing. People for many countries are starting to move to Japan, so there are increasing opportunities for the gospel.

Perhaps the most unbelievable thing this year was soul-winning over the internet. After years in Japan of scarce opportunities for soul-winning I started to pray and seek out ways to reach people. Using email, Facebook, Twitter (now x), Chatroulette, OmeTV, and Omegle (no more as of November 23') I decided to take some time every day to actually share the gospel with people all around the world as part of my routine starting in April of 2022. In 2023 alone there was a total of 194 Salvation Confessions, 145 Salvation Affirmations, 81 very close, and over 500 rejections. It was an incredible year for soul winning, which I don't think will be topped since Omegle shut down. There were many many spiritual battles, but overall I was just amazed at how God transformed so many lives. The gospel truly is the power of salvation. I recorded some of the memorable conversations on YouTube here. If you have never shared the gospel before, I want to encourage you to take a look, pray about it, and try it yourself sometime. What do you have to lose?

Another amazing opportunity happened when my long-term missionary friend introduced me to a native pastor in India who was going all over rural villages in his area preaching the gospel almost every day. After a period of healthy skepticism, testing, and prayer I decided to start helping him by giving him learning resources, connecting him with a mentor, and helping him preach once a week over the internet. Our time zones are 3.5 hours apart so it made it possible to help him each week. I pray that many can be reached through this man's ministry in a very difficult area. He and many like him are doing incredible work in hard to reach areas of India.

At the very end of the year after having a slow go for church planting here we started praying about renting an area for use for ministry purposes. We had been finding it difficult to meet with people in the home and thought it would be better to just take the risk and rent out a place to use for teaching Bible and English. So, after much prayer and negotiation we decided to rent a first floor of a small building nearby. We will have to put a lot of work into it to get it operable, but it will be a start to a new direction. We feel peace from God about this and are excited to see what the future holds. We have had some ups and downs but believe that God is good and his tender mercies are over all his works. We are looking forward to 2024.