Inside the Persecuted Church of North Korea

How is the church in North Korea growing amidst persecution? In this episode of Hard to Reach, Steven Morales talks with Eric Foley, the CEO of Voice of Martyrs Korea, to learn how the North Korean church is not only growing, but has played a role in missionary work in some of the hardest places on earth. Then, we hear from Luke, an Afghan pastor, who first heard the gospel from Korean Christians who bravely shared the gospel with him in Afghanistan.

00:00 A Building is Not a Church
9:37 Revive our Hearts
13:00 Blue and Yellow Hills
16:36 Conclusion

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Steven Morales

Created and Narrated by Steven Morales
Directed by Josh Zaid
Written by Jairo Namnún
Cinematography by Josh Zaid and Jose Figueroa
Edited and Scored by Robbie Herrera
Design by Raúl Ángel
Animation by Roberto Aldana
Thumbnail Design by Esteban Gramajo
Production Management by Carolina Holguín
Social Media Content and Management by Jose Figueroa and Ashleigh Park

[jty]

My grandparents were children in South Korea shortly after the war. They grew up in poverty and near-famine conditions. My grandfather found a church as a child and led his (still remaining) family to it. My grandmother was a pastor's daughter. Not only have they set an example for me on what Christians can and should look like, but also how a husband and a wife shoule love each other. My grandfather is now ill and nearing the end of his days, but I have faith that God will receive his spirit. Pray for us if you would, that God's will would be done in our lives and that he would use us for his purposes even til the end of our lives.

Edit: Thank you everyone. Hope to see you all in heaven!

[OTSunny.]

Busy and distracted by comfort, whereas they only have Christ. Deep man, deep

[Antpaok]

the Church always prospered and grew under persecution, because people understand their need for God as their only hope in this fallen world much clearer

[davidli]

I'm a New Zealander of Chinese descent and I went to South Korea in 2014 to teach English. God saved me in South Korea and Christianity there has had a huge impact on my life. Praise God! I hope and pray for another revival in South Korea and I am so glad to hear about what God is doing in North Korea.

[alphonml]

All these make me remember a singular verse.

‭Psalms 23:4 (A Psalm of David)
Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff— they comfort me.

[TacticaIFire]

Great journalism as always! North and South Korean christians are very brave people, and I'm amazed by the strength of their faith. May God be with the people of Korea through these daring times.

[astoria]

I was a missionary in Korea in the 70's. My favorite church was in a village in a hut on a dirt floor. The people asked me about America. They said they would pray that God would send missionaries to America. Their simplicity touched me deeply. I found the Koreans to be in love with Christ. Many were persecuted for various reasons. Once I spoke in a youth rally for Campus crusade for Christ. There were over 3, 000 young adults enthused for Jesus. I will never for get their vibrant singing. Their faces aglow. Their politeness warmed my heart. One of my most impressive memories was a time I sat by a lake at a Christian college watching students stand on a raft holding candles in the evening glow. They sang from their heart, "I'd rather have Jesus than anything?" That after glow remained with me! From the orphans singing gustily, "With Jesus in the family-happy home and Yes Jesus loves me.' To a Bible study with 20 adult singing acapella- "Jesus is all the world to me." I learned that music was their way of expressing their deep faith in Christ! They converted me.

[proseminded]

So powerful to learn how the North Korean church is growing at a faster rate than ever, wow 😮‍💨 Living in Thailand as a believer, it’s just amazing to see how the Lord is working out here in Asia, in Korea, China, Japan, Thailand—no obstacles are too great to withstand the trumpets of salvation; so many people are coming to Jesus irrespective of culture race or ethnicity—Hallelujah!

[NamudduPromise-bdmt]

Thanks for the video. I'm Ugandan and in my country Christianity is given boundless freedom. We barely notice what a treasure we have this video has opened my eyes. Let's all join together and pray for the church in North Korea and the world at large😊

[imadethiscuziwsbored]

I grew up christian but fell away from the Lord as I got older. In 2021 i moved to Korea to teach and was invited to an English church here. It has changed my life and restored my faith and I’m so thankful. I never imagined this is what my life would look like after moving here tbh. The ppl here are very passionate and its so interesting how many different services and outreach works there are. I am saddened that Korea unfortunately also has a lot of false teachers (사이비/cults) but there are many biblically based churches here working to help those in these cults.
Anyways great work on these videos and I pray one day North Koreans will be able to practice their faith openly. 축복합니다!

[rubenconcha]

I never comment on videos but this time I had to.
As I finished this third episodes, I fall on my knees crying, realising how great our Lord is ! I realised how strong the faith of our brothers and sisters in North Korea is, them who suffer and die because of their faith in Christ even though they may have not access to the whole Bible !
I cried because I realised how I struggle to put Jesus in the center of my life with all the comfort I have. I cried because I've realised how in my country in the center of Europe, we struggle to proclaim His Kingdom and we may need to be strengthened by the Holy Spirit because we may be spiritually poor.
I pray that here in my country, Switzerland, and in Europe, we could see again generations fulfilled by the presence of God and not afraid to walk and die for Him, because He is the one that matters !
Radical team, I'm always astonished by the quality of your videos, continue the good work !

[jonhilderbrand]

Years ago, when news of humongous revivals and church attendance in S. Korea was going around, I heard someone once joke, to the effect of, "If the numbers are to be believed, the entire population of S. Korea has been saved three times."
On a serious note, I also read the following about house churches in communist China, "In China, a small group of believers gathered weekly in the back room of a small store to worship together. Since they could easily be overheard by anyone who entered the store, they engaged in what they called, 'silent singing.' Someone would whisper the name of the song they would like to sing, and they would silently move their lips as they simply thought of the words and music." Such powerful beauty, even in silence.

[shobhanapeters]

I am a Believer from India and now in Canada for 50 yrs in Canada there is south Korean believer in our Street ministry,
I hear Iran, Chiana, Afganistan, and, Muslims from India thank You Lord.
Maranatha

[johnpetermakesyoufree]

I am a South Korean praying for North Korea. Although I have no ancestors from North Korea, I want to pray for North Korea and dedicate myself to unification until my last moments. God's law states that when there is an ebb of the sea, there is a high tide. Just as the gospel spread from Pyongyang to South Korea, now is the time for the gospel to spread from South Korea to North Korea. I believe that when pessimistic thoughts reach the bottom, they change back to positive and the direction is reversed. When Jesus was killed, it was despair, but when he came back to life and was resurrected, it becomes the gospel to us. The coming of missionaries to Korea was not just a coincidence; it was God's plan for the country of Korea, and we who lost our country and were uncivilized now exist by the grace of God. For those who have forgotten it, God wants them to remember and return. Korea!! confess your sins and return to God Again, I believe God is preparing us.

[averyalgie]

I went on the world clock and found that it is 5:35 am in Pyongyang right now. I have joined them in prayer. May you all also!

[stevenskinner]

Two weeks ago God put it in my heart to start praying for North Korea & specifically for Kim. Be encouraged and let us faithfullly believe our God is able. Thank you for this production. One recommendation, footnote the sources you were reading from.

[hypoken]

My father is a Korean missionary and this video sums Korean christian culture perfectly, wow.

[henokeyob]

It's South Korea in a huge risk. You know the saying "Nero Killed Christians and Constantin killed....". Comfort is a big hurdle for Christianity. May the Spirit of the Lord ignite places like the South Korea, USA.... But Glory be to God for the North. The Gospel will always win.

[tychicus]

Praise the Lord! Prayers for our brothers and sisters in the Korean Peninsula!

[rucellegarciano]

Yeah, prayer has been the hallmark of the Korean church...

We've studied Korea in our Asian history in high school... And I've heard how poor South Korea was after the Korean War...

Like dead poor kind of poor...

But man...

Hearing of the zeal of the Korean church in praying... That's awesome!

There are no such thing as "super Christians" but... Prayer do change the praying person...

If you want to change as a Christian... Wow... Pray...