True Jesus Church

True Jesus Church
Traditional Chinese 真耶穌教會
Simplified Chinese 真耶稣教会
The True Jesus Church in Port Dickson, Malaysia.

The True Jesus Church is a Christian Church that originated in China during the Pentecostal movement in the early twentieth century.[1] The TJC is currently one of the largest Christian groups in China and Taiwan,[2] as well as the largest Chinese Pentecostal church and the largest independent church in the world.[3]

History

The TJC emerged independently alongside other indigenous Christian groups of that period such as the Little Flock, the Jesus Family and The Christian Tabernacle [4]

Established in 1917, the church’s early adherents in Hebei and Shandong[5] were influenced by certain charismatic practices of the Apostolic Faith Mission in China,[6] the Seventh-day Adventist Church, and the Pentecostal Assemblies of the World, especially faith healing, baptism of the Holy Spirit, footwashing, Sabbath keeping and Oneness Pentecostal theology.[7]

Early leaders of the TJC included Lin-Shen Chang (b.1863-?), Paul Wei (Wei Enbo, d.1919), and Barnabas Chang (1882-c.1960).[8]

By 1949, the membership grew to around 120,000 in seven hundred churches [9] and today there are officially 1.5 million members in fifty three countries.[10]

Current organization


Auckland

In Auckland there are only two churches, Auckland and East Auckland. Even though the number of churches are small, there are many church members.

Mainland China

In mainland China most of the True Jesus Church congregations are members of the Three-Self Patriotic Movement, and usually meet on Saturdays in TSPM church buildings as separate sabbatarian sub-congregations.[11] However, since TJC practices such as healing and tongues are "frowned upon"[12] in the TSPM other congregations are independent Chinese house churches.[13]

Taiwan and the United States

Outside China member churches of the TJC look to the central synod of the TJC in California.[14] In 1967 TJC church leaders from outside mainland China met for the first World Delegates Conference in Taiwan, and an international headquarters was established in Taichung, Taiwan, where a seminary was opened. The headquarters was subsequently moved to California in 1985.[15]

United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom, True Jesus Church congregations were established as a result of immigration patterns in the 1960s and 1970s, coming largely from Malaysia and Hong Kong, the latter especially from Ap Chau.[16] This would result in a number of congregations being established throughout the country, particularly in Northern England and Scotland, such as Leicester, Newcastle, Sunderland, Elgin, and Edinburgh.[16][17][18]

Beliefs

  1. Jesus Christ, the Word who became flesh, died on the cross for the redemption of sinners, resurrected on the third day, and ascended to heaven. He is the only Savior of mankind, the Creator of the heavens and earth, and the only true God.
  2. The Holy Bible, consisting of the Old and New Testaments, is inspired by God, the only scriptural truth, and the standard for Christian living.
  3. The True Jesus Church, established by our Lord Jesus Christ, through the Holy Spirit during the time of the 'latter rain', is the restored true church of the apostolic time.
  4. Water baptism is the sacrament for the remission of sins for regeneration. The baptism must take place in natural living water, such as the river, sea, or spring. The Baptist, who already has had received baptism of water and the Holy Spirit, conducts the baptism in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. And the person receiving the baptism must be completely immersed in water with head bowed and face downward.
  5. Receiving the Holy Spirit, evidenced by speaking in tongues, is the guarantee of our inheritance of the kingdom of heaven.
  6. The sacrament of footwashing enables one to have a part with the Lord Jesus. It also serves as a constant reminder that one should have love, holiness, humility, forgiveness, and service. Every person who has received water baptism must have his/her feet washed in the name of Jesus Christ. Mutual footwashing may be practiced whenever is appropriate.
  7. The Holy Communion is the sacrament to commemorate the death of the Lord Jesus Christ. It enables us to partake of the flesh and blood of our Lord and to be in communion with Him so that we can have eternal life and be raised on the last day. This sacrament shall be held as often as possible. Only one unleavened bread and grape juice shall be used.
  8. The Sabbath day, the seventh day of the week (Saturday), is a holy day, blessed and sanctified by God. It is to be observed under the Lord's grace for the commemoration of God's creation and salvation, and with the hope of eternal rest in the life to come.
  9. Salvation is given by the grace of God through faith. Believers must rely on the Holy Spirit to pursue holiness, to honor God, and to love humanity.
  10. The Lord's Second Coming will take place on the last day when He descends from heaven to judge the world: the righteous will receive eternal life, while the wicked will be eternally condemned.[19]

Practices

The church practices baptism for both adults and infants, with holy communion.[20] Speaking in tongues is practiced and usually occurs as a group act.[21]

The Church believes that the sacraments must fulfill three requirements according to the Scripture. Firstly, they must have been performed by Jesus Christ himself as an example. Secondly, the sacraments must be directly related to one's salvation, eternal life, entering the Heavenly Kingdom, and having a part with Jesus. Lastly, they must be of the sacraments which Jesus Christ instructed the disciples to perform as well. There are ten essential doctrines and beliefs[19] that the True Jesus Church believe in order to worship God correctly. According to them, one must speak in tongues as evidence of having the Holy Spirit The mode of baptism also determines salvation. The correct mode should be with the head facing down (in the manner of Jesus' death) and only in natural ("living") water.

References

  1. ↑ J. Gordon Melton (2005). Encyclopedia of Protestantism. p. 536. ISBN 0816069832. Page 536 "The True Jesus Church is a Sabbatarian Pentecostal church founded in CHINA early in the 20th century. SABBATARIANISM had been introduced into China in 1847 by missionaries of the Seventh-day Baptists Church .."
  2. ↑ Eric Patterson, Edmund Rybarczyk (2007). The Future of Pentecostalism in the United States. p. 130. ISBN 0739155423.
  3. ↑ Allan Anderson An Introduction to Pentecostalism: 2013 1107033993 Page 50 "The largest Chinese Pentecostal church and the largest Independent Church in the world is the True Jesus Church, which also observes the Sabbath. "
  4. ↑ Peter Tze Ming Ng (2012). Chinese Christianity: An Interplay between Global and Local Perspectives. p. 205. ISBN 9004225757.
  5. ↑ Daniel H. Bays Christianity in China: From the Eighteenth Century to the ... 0804736510 1999-- Page 425 "The roots of the True Jesus Church go back to the 1910s. The church's founders, from Hebei and Shandong, were Christians who were looking for a deeper spiritual experience. This they found in Pentecostalism. They took Pentecostal ideas ..."
  6. ↑ Gerald H. Anderson (1999). Biographical Dictionary of Christian Missions. p. 125. ISBN 0802846807.
  7. ↑ Allan Anderson (2013). An Introduction to Pentecostalism: Global Charismatic Christianity. p. 50. ISBN 1107033993.
  8. ↑ J. Gordon Melton, Martin Baumann Religions of the World: A Comprehensive Encyclopedia 1598842048 2010 article p.2894 "The True Jesus Church was an early product of the introduction of Pentecostalism into China. Among the pioneers was Alfred Goodrich Garr, Jr. (1874–1944), and his wife, Lillian Anderson Garr, who had received the baptism of the Holy Spirit in Los Angeles in 1906 and soon after left for China... In 1917 the name was shortened to simply True Jesus Church. In 1918 Lin-Shen Chang (b.1863) made his way to the True Jesus Church, where he met and convinced Wei that the church should observe the seventh-day Sabbath. .. Paul Wei died in 1919... Barnabas Chang defected from the movement in 1929 and created a rival movement in Hong Kong.
  9. ↑ Jason Kindopp, Carol Lee Hamrin (2004). God and Caesar in China: Policy Implications of Church-state Tensions. p. 109. ISBN 0815796463.
  10. ↑ True Jesus Church International Assembly. "A Chronology of the establishment of TJC in various countries". tjc.org. Retrieved June 1, 2014.
  11. ↑ Daniel L. Overmyer - Religion in China Today 0521538238 2003- Page 189 "Because the True Jesus Church is Sabbath-observant - that is, they worship on Saturday - TSPM churches where they are present usually have a Saturday service."
  12. ↑ Daniel L. Overmyer - Religion in China Today
  13. ↑ Francis Khek Gee Lim Christianity in Contemporary China Socio-cultural Perspectives 2013 - Page 186 "The main congregations are the 'True Jesus Church' (Zhen Yesujiao) and the 'Group of the Shouters' (Huhanpai).4
  14. ↑ Murray A. Rubinstein The Protestant Community on Modern Taiwan 087332658X 1991 Page 129 "Congruence, Inculturation, and Indigenization: The Roots of the True Jesus Appeal The True Jesus Church is not simply a transplanted Pentecostal church, like the Taiwan Assemblies of God. Rather, the True Jesus Church is a Chinese ..."
  15. ↑ Melton Protestantism p.537
  16. 1 2 "My Church - United Kingdom General Assembly 英國總會 / 英国总会". members.tjc.org. Retrieved 24 October 2016.
  17. ↑ Liu, Garland (1998). "The Role of the True Jesus Church in Communal Development of the Chinese People in Elgin, Scotland". In Sinn, Elizabeth. The Last Half Century of Chinese Overseas. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press. pp. 425–446. ISBN 978-962-209-446-8.
  18. ↑ Li Wei (1994). Three Generations, Two Languages, One Family: Language Choice and Language Shift in a Chinese Community in Britain. Multilingual Matters. p. 64. ISBN 978-1-85359-241-6.
  19. 1 2 True Jesus Church International Assembly. "Statement of Faith". True Jesus Church. Retrieved June 1, 2014.
  20. ↑ Melton Religions p.2894
  21. ↑ Melton Protestantism p537
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