The twenty-first century ekklesia is growing vibrantly through house churches. The global shift of God's Kingdom is to the south and east as documented by Phillip Jenkins in his recent book, The Next Christendom. This new surge of mission outreach began as China closed its doors to missionaries seventy years ago and the underground church met in homes. Banned from church buildings this movement has demonstrated the power of Pentecost in our modern age. This type of mission outreach is concentrated among the poor and oppressed of Africa and South America as well, but is evident in every strata of global societies.
While visiting Desuya, Punjab, India, in 2004 I was privileged to experience similar Spirit power for four days with Pastor Daniel and Everlasting Life Lutheran Church. Twenty-two house church leaders had developed several hundred homes who held Bible study in that area of India sixty kilometers from Pakistan. The vibrant worship one of these homes extended past dusk into the darkness with about one hundred worshippers in the courtyard of the household. My four decades of leading home Bible studies in Minnesota and Michigan never saw such outpouring of spiritual power through prayer and numbers of people as I experienced in that little slice of God working on the other side of the world.
Perhaps the iPray effort of house church planting in this new century through Pastor James Buckman will be the breakthough to vibrant growth in North America similar to what is going on in cells of believers on the other side of the oceans.
Rodney Otto
