To summarize the different situations mentioned above, we cannot carry out the Chinese-speaking work in the same way we did two years ago. At that time, I considered that the Chinese-speaking work was transitory in nature and would serve as a bridge for those with a language problem. Every year forty thousand Chinese have been coming to the United States, and most of them are not proficient in the English language. I studied this situation and felt that if many of the immigrants want to get over the language problem, it would be best if they could come to America under the age of fifteen. If they come after they have graduated from college, they can study, do business, or get a degree, but they will still feel handicapped in the meetings. They cannot thoroughly grasp the meaning of the messages, nor can they freely express themselves in prayer. If after finishing junior high, they come to America to study in high school and college, then after seven years of learning English, they will have just enough to meet the needs of the church life.
We have to admit that language is a problem. If the saints who immigrated here cannot get through this problem within the first three to five years, then it is likely that they will not be able to get through it in their lifetime. They may be able to do grocery shopping, make phone calls, and greet people, but they will not be able to prophesy or pray in the meetings. Therefore, there is a definite need for the Chinese-speaking work. If the Lord allows, I will fellowship with the elders that from now on the Chinese-speaking meeting and work are no longer temporary in nature but are a part of the local church. The American government not only passed the new immigration law but also made preparations to receive the new immigrants by establishing schools and hiring teachers to teach them English. Today the church here cannot be a typical American church; it has to be a local church, a church that includes all the saints in that locality. Since there are many Chinese among the saints, the church will naturally have to make arrangements to include them.
The book of Acts also shows us a problem with language. In chapter six it says that as the disciples were multiplying in number, the problem of language began to appear. The Hellenists murmured against the Hebrews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily dispensing. Therefore, the apostles made arrangements for the appointment of some deacons to take care of the need (vv. 1-6). This indicates that the church must solve the language problem and meet the need of all the saints. For the past twenty years, the Chinese-speaking saints have been somewhat neglected in America. Therefore, we should now make the proper arrangements for them. That is, the churches should accept the fact that there should not only be a Chinese-speaking work, but that such a work should be considered also a part of the church.
The Chinese in America can be categorized into two groups. One group is composed of those who come as foreign students. Many on the honor rolls in the American schools are students of Chinese descent. In many of the universities, the greatest number of foreign students are Chinese. The hearts of these Chinese students are wide open to the gospel. There is a university near Dallas that has many Chinese students. One time, over a hundred of them came to a gospel meeting of the church, and nearly all of them received the Lord. The second group is composed of overseas Chinese, including those in the industrial and business circles. They came to America to study when they were young, and after they graduated, they stayed to work, spreading in all classes of society. Because they left their homeland and came to struggle in a new country, they also are very open to the gospel.
Man is a social being; no man can leave society and live alone. The best social group is the Christian group, and the best society is the church. The Chinese left their homeland to come to America. Since they do not have many relatives or friends here, they have a great need to belong to a group. Under this circumstance, to preach the gospel to them will be very effective. They are Chinese, and we also are Chinese. Therefore, for us to meet in a foreign land, we naturally feel very intimate with one another. Moreover, as believers in the Lord, we are always happy and rejoicing; this invariably stirs their admiration. Therefore, their hearts have been prepared by the Lord. Now it depends only on whether or not our spirit is released in our gospel preaching. If we are thick-skinned, open our mouth, and release our spirit, the gospel will enter into people, and they will be saved.
The new immigrants are the best targets for our gospel preaching. The older immigrants have become deeply rooted. They have a crowd of relatives and friends, and they are not moved by the gospel. Take Taiwan as an example. Those who migrated to Taiwan from mainland China have already been there thirty years. They have become rooted and have branched out and spread, so it is hard to preach the gospel to them. However, some of them do not intend to stay permanently, and their heart is still soft, so it is still easy to preach the gospel to them. The hardest ones are the local people, the Taiwanese. Their hearts cannot be moved. However, regardless of where the people were originally, once they come to America, they all are immigrants and have all been uprooted, so they are wide open to the gospel.