09-THE KOREAN PENTECOST

Although it was one of the last nations in the Far East to hear the gospel, a series of revivals early in the twentieth century quickly transformed the Korean church into a powerful force for God, both in transforming Korean culture and society, and in reaching beyond its borders to other nations in Asia.

Dr. R. A. Hardie, a Canadian Colleges medical missionary, arrived in Korea in 1890, a nation that was just beginning to hear the gospel from foreign missionaries. In 1898 he associated with the Methodists; about that time, missionaries first began reporting a turning to Christianity on the part of Korean nationals. While missionaries rejoiced in the interest shown, they lamented the fact these new converts showed no evidence of conviction of sin followed by repentance and saving faith. It appears the first "converts" were entering the church "as interested disciples rather than regenerated members." In August 1903, seven missionaries gathered in Wonsan for a week of study and prayer. Dr. Hardie confessed he "had not seen any examples of plain, unmistakable, and lasting conversion" in his thirteen years of ministry in Korea. Believing the ministry was being hindered by his own failings, he confessed his faults before both the missionaries and Korean church, with others making similar confessions.

Just a few months later, October 1903, missionary advocate Fredrik Franson arrived in Korea and was invited to preach. The meetings were marked by open confession of sins. Many admitted to theft and offered to make restitution. Church members insisted restitution be made to the Lord rather than themselves. As a result, funds were raised for evangelism in the area. During his stay in Korea, Franson impressed upon Hardie and his fellow workers the necessity of prevailing prayer. In 1905, Japan’s victory over Russia resulted in the Japanese occupation of Korea, resulting in a new Korean nationalistic spirit. Christians looked to the church to organize resistance. Instead, missionary and church leaders preached forgiveness and forbearance. This was followed by a second wave of revival in 1905-1906, described as "a spreading fire" and "a continuing religious awakening." Hundreds were converted, more than any previous year in the history of the Korean mission. In Pyongyang, seven hundred conversions were recorded in a two week period. Still, the best was yet to come. The blessing of God continued in 1906. In Pyongyang, a new year evangelistic crusade drew four thousand people to the meetings, twenty percent of the city’s entire population. A united evangelistic thrust in the nation’s capital, Seoul, resulted in a thousand conversions. As had been their custom in recent years, the missionaries gathered at Pyongyang for a week of prayer and Bible study in August 1906. Dr. Howard Agnew Johnston told Korean missionaries of the Welsh Revival and other awakenings in India. Half of the missionaries then in the nation were Presbyterians and were deeply moved by accounts of revival among Welsh Presbyterians and Presbyterian missionaries in Asia. News of the other revivals motivated missionaries to intensify their praying for a similar outpouring in Korea. Throughout the fall and winter of 1907-1907, missionaries gathered in the church each morning at five o’clock to pour out their heart to God. During their week together, the missionaries studied First John which later became their textbook for revival.

It was the custom of the Korean church leaders to gather at Pyongyang each New Years for a ten day Bible conference. In January 1907, fifteen hundred men gathered together representing the leadership of hundreds of churches. For almost six months, missionaries had been praying for a mighty movement of God among the Korean church and anticipation grew as the meetings began. On Monday afternoon, several missionaries gathered together for prayer. They pleaded with God to move among them. One of their number later testified, "We were bound in spirit and refused to let God go till He blessed us." That night, as they entered the church it seemed the entire building was filled with the presence of God.

After a brief message, Mr. Lee, a Korean leader, took charge of the meeting and called for prayer. So many men wanted to pray that Lee announced, "If you want to pray like that, all pray." Across the church, the whole congregation began praying together. The result was not the confusion one might expect, but rather "a vast harmony of sound and spirit, like the noise of the surf in an ocean of prayer." Later this practice was called a “concert of prayer.” In the midst of the prayer, many of the men became deeply convicted of their sin. One after another began rising to their feet in deep agony to confess their sins and cry out to God for His mercy. On Tuesday, the missionaries gathered at noon to discuss what had happened the night before. Only a few missionaries had been present at the meeting. One present expressed a personal concern, because it was common knowledge that two church leaders had a hostile relationship. On Monday evening, Mr. Kang had confessed his hatred for Mr. Kim, but Mr. Kim had remained silent. Several missionaries were concerned about Mr. Kim’s unwillingness to reconcile. That evening, God answered the prayers of the missionaries in a most unusual way. As the meeting progressed, Mr. Kim sat with the elders behind the pulpit with his head bowed down. Suddenly he came to the pulpit. Holding it firmly, he confessed, "I have been guilty of fighting against God. I have been guilty of hating not only Kang You-moon, but Pang Mok-sa." Kim’s animosity toward Kang was well known, but Pang Mok-sa was the Korean name of the missionary who urged others to pray for him. The revelation of hatred toward the missionary came as a complete surprise to all gathered. Then turning to the missionary, Kim continued. "Can you forgive me?" he asked. "Can you pray for me?" The missionary stood to pray in Korean. He began, "Apage, Apage" (Father, Father). That was as far as he got. "It seemed as if the roof was lifted from the building and the Spirit of God came down from heaven in a mighty avalanche of power among us," the missionary later reported. "I fell at Kim’s side and wept and prayed as I had never prayed before." Across the auditorium, hundreds stood with arms stretched out toward heaven calling on God. Others lay prostrate on the floor. Hundreds cried out to God for mercy.

While they had been praying for revival for months, when it came the missionaries were terrified. Many in the church were in deep mental anguish. Others struggling to resist God were seen clenching their fists and banging their head against the ground. They feared allowing the meeting to continue would result in some going crazy, yet they knew they dare not interfere with the work of the Holy Spirit. Finally, they agreed to end the meeting at two o’clock in the morning, six hours after it had begun. Throughout the rest of the conference, similar events were repeated daily. The deep reviving of the Korean church leadership had an immediate impact on both the churches and communities those churches sought to reach. The men returned to their homes as carriers of revival. As the story of the Bible conference revival was retold, a similar revival gripped the churches. As the churches were revived, they were gripped by a burning passion to reach the lost in their community. Everywhere, revived churches began to see "drunkards, gamblers, adulterers, murderers, thieves, self-righteous, Confucianists and others" transformed into new creatures in Christ. The revival had an almost immediate impact in the nation’s Christian colleges. Ninety percent of the students at Union Christian College in Pyongyang professed conversion in February 1907. Many also sensed God’s call upon their life as evangelists. They also carried the revival beyond the city into village churches throughout Korea. From 1905 to 1910, the Korean church recorded 79,221 additions in church membership. That was more than the total number of Japanese church members after fifty years of missionary effort. It was also twice the number of Chinese Protestants after eighty years of missionary labors. By 1912, there were about 300,000 Korean church members in a nation of twelve million people. The Korean Pentecost was quickly recognized as a movement of God by Christian leaders around the world. The Edinburgh Conference of 1910 declared, "The Korean Revival . . . has been a genuine Pentecost, for Korean church membership quadrupled in a decade." The Student Volunteer Movement cited six evidences of "the present day work of the Holy Spirit in Korea" the same year. These evidences included "(1) the unity and cooperation which prevailed among Christians, (2) the remarkable numerical growth of the churches, (3) the wonderful religious awakening of 1907 which affected 50,000 converts, (4) the noteworthy interest in the Word of God, (5) the dedication of national Christians to service, including generous giving, and (6) the wonderful prayer life of the Korean Church."

Although the Korean church only represented about one percent of the entire population in Korea, its influence in daily life was far greater because of two unique conditions imposed upon new converts. First, missionaries required illiterate Korean adults to learn to read Korean in a simple phonetic alphabet before they could be admitted to membership. Second, Korean patriots viewed Christians as Japanese collaborators because they cut their hair like the missionaries and Japanese rather than the traditional Korean style. To distinguish between collaborators and Christians, the church required Christians to recite chapters from the Bible to prove they were Christians. The result was a hundred percent literacy rate among Christians in a largely illiterate nation. Their ability to read made Christians the natural leaders of the Korean society. The Korean Revival was born out of intense prayer and prayer remained an integral part of Korean church life throughout the twentieth century. In many churches, “concerts of prayer” is still practised in Sunday morning services, the whole church confessing their sins to God and calling on God for His blessing in unison. Called the “Dawn Meetings,” Koreans gathering every morning at their church at five o’clock for prayer. Also Friday nights are devoted to all night prayer meeting. Fasting and prayer is widely practised. Over five thousand "prayer mountains" have been established where Christians go for days or weeks of prayer. The prayer life of the Korean church remains a challenge to Christians around the world. By the Year 2,000 A.D., a third of the Korean population were members of a Christian church.

In the Year of Our Lord

February, 1908