The True Jesus Church is a nondenominational Christian church that originated in Beijing, China in 1917. The church believes it is a restoration of the original church established by Jesus Christ and the Apostles. Here is an overview of the key beliefs and practices of the True Jesus Church:
Restorationism
The True Jesus Church considers itself to be a restoration of the original apostolic church. They believe that over time, mainstream Christianity has deviated from the true teachings of Jesus and the Apostles. The goal of the True Jesus Church is to restore these original doctrines and practices.
They believe this restoration began with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit during the Azusa Street Revival in Los Angeles in 1906. This revival sparked a renewed emphasis on spiritual gifts like speaking in tongues, prophecy, and divine healing.
Baptism
The True Jesus Church believes baptism is essential for salvation. They practice full immersion baptism, following the pattern found in the New Testament. Candidates for baptism must be at least 12 years old.
The church also believes footwashing is an ordinance directly instituted by Jesus. Based on John 13:1-17, footwashing reminds believers of the need for humility, forgiveness, and service to others.
Holy Spirit
The True Jesus Church places great emphasis on the person and work of the Holy Spirit. They believe the spiritual gifts mentioned in the New Testament are still in operation today. This includes speaking in tongues, prophecy, interpretation of tongues, etc.
They encourage members to seek the baptism of the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues. This signifies the indwelling presence of the Spirit that empowers Christians for ministry.
Divine Healing
Following James 5:14-16, the True Jesus Church believes God still heals people miraculously in answer to the prayers of church elders. They regularly practice anointing the sick with oil and praying for divine healing.
They believe all doctors and medicine come from God and are good, but spiritual healing brings glory to God. So they encourage members to seek God first for healing, but doctors second if needed.
Second Coming of Christ
The True Jesus Church believes the second coming of Christ is imminent. Most members take a premillennial, pretribulational approach to end times prophecy. They prepare for Christ’s return through watchfulness, repentance and righteous living.
Sabbath
The Sabbath day is Saturday, the seventh day of the week. Following the Fourth Commandment, members are encouraged to devote Saturdays to rest and the worship of God. While participation is voluntary, most refrain from secular work and attend worship services on the Sabbath.
Holiness Standards
The True Jesus Church promotes strict ethical disciplines based on Bible teachings. Some key standards include:
- No smoking, drinking, gambling or illegal drugs
- No extra-marital affairs or premarital sex
- Modest clothing – women do not wear pants or short skirts
- No cosmetics, jewelry, or adornments
- Men wear short haircuts; women wear long hair
These standards are encouraged but usually not strictly enforced. The focus is on inner holiness and separation from worldliness.
Church Structure
The True Jesus Church has a connectional polity. Local churches are linked under regional districts, national organizations, and an international General Assembly. Lines of authority flow from the General Assembly down to local churches.
There are no formal divisions between clergy and laity. However, the church ordains deacons, elders, and preachers based on spiritual qualifications outlined in the Bible. Elders and preachers provide spiritual leadership for local congregations.
Worship
True Jesus Church worship services are typically charismatic, Pentecostal gatherings focused on Bible teaching, prayer, praise, testimonies and the cultivation of spiritual gifts. The order of a typical worship service includes:
- Opening prayer
- Congregational hymn singing
- Sermon message
- Speaking in tongues with interpretation
- Testimonies of praise and healing
- Offering collection
- Announcements
- Closing hymn and benediction
The Lord’s Supper is celebrated once a month using unleavened bread and grape juice. Footwashing usually precedes the Lord’s Supper.
Outreach Methods
Typical outreach methods in the True Jesus Church include:
- Revival/crusade meetings with healing testimonies
- Distribution of literature (tracts, books, magazines)
- Door-to-door visitation and Bible studies
- Social services and disaster relief to the needy
- Television, radio and internet evangelism
- Establishing new churches and mission points
Lay members are actively involved in outreach through inviting friends, contacts in the community, workplace evangelism, and overseas missions.
History
The True Jesus Church originated with Chinese co-founders Paul Wei, Barnabas Zhang, and Yu-Chen Wang in Beijing in 1917. They established an independent church based on the teachings of the Bible and the experience of Spirit baptism.
The fledgling church expanded rapidly. Within 7 years it had spread to over 100 congregations in China with about 20,000 members. This growth continued through the 1930s despite war and occupation by Japan.
After World War II, the True Jesus Church spread beyond China to southeast Asia. Immigrant church members brought the denomination to countries like India, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Taiwan. Missionaries later targeted the West, planting churches in North America, Europe, Africa and Australia.
Today the True Jesus Church has members in over 80 countries worldwide. However, the majority of about 400,000 adherents still reside in Asia. The highest concentrations are in Taiwan, Malaysia, Indonesia, India and China.
While small by global standards, the True Jesus Church has maintained steady growth over the past century. They continue to emphasize evangelism and claim to be the fastest growing indigenous church in Taiwan.
Beliefs
Here is an overview of some of the major doctrines and beliefs of the True Jesus Church:
- The Bible alone is the inspired, inerrant Word of God
- There is one eternal God existing as three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit
- Jesus Christ is true God and true man, conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary
- Sin entered the world through Adam’s disobedience, bringing both physical and spiritual death
- Salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone
- The church administers two ordinances established by Jesus: baptism and the Lord’s Supper
- Baptism is by full immersion in water and is vital for salvation
- Footwashing reminds believers of the need for humility and service
- Baptism of the Holy Spirit, with the evidence of speaking in tongues, gives power for life and ministry
- Spiritual gifts like healing, prophecy and tongues are still active and relevant today
- Christ will personally return to judge the living and the dead
- The righteous will inherit eternal life; the lost will suffer eternal punishment
Relation to Other Churches
The True Jesus Church considers itself the restoration of the true, New Testament church. Mainstream Christian denominations are viewed as having compromised biblical truth.
The Roman Catholic Church in particular came under scrutiny by early True Jesus Church pioneers. Catholicism was dominant in China at the time, and seen as diluting the gospel with non-biblical traditions.
Today, relations between the True Jesus Church and other churches varies. Some evangelical groups appreciate the church’s zeal and devotion to the Bible. There is also some limited cooperation with Pentecostal groups who share similar pneumatological views.
However, more liberal and ecumenically-minded groups criticize the church’s claims of exclusively restoring original Christianity. The True Jesus Church in turn avoids ecumenical bodies like the World Council of Churches.
Within Christianity, the True Jesus Church is closest theologically to classical Pentecostalism. Like Pentecostals, they emphasize Spirit baptism, divine healing, strict ethics and eschatology. However, they also differ significantly in areas like governance, avoiding formal clergy titles, footwashing, Sabbath keeping and legalism.
Controversies and Criticisms
The True Jesus Church has faced some controversies and criticism over the years:
- Exclusivism – Their claim to be the one true church restored is seen as arrogant by some.
- Authoritarian leadership – Leaders have too much control in the church.
- Legalism – Strict rules go beyond biblical standards of holiness.
- Prosperity gospel – In some areas, healing and blessings are overemphasized.
- Status of women – Women are excluded from top leadership positions.
The church has worked to combat legalism and authoritarianism. They also argue their holiness standards aim for modesty and wise living, not legalism. However, exclusivist claims, limitations on women, and prosperity tendencies still generate criticism today.
Conclusion
The True Jesus Church seeks to revive New Testament Christianity with an emphasis on the Holy Spirit, spiritual gifts, strict ethics and end times urgency. Their passion has fueled rapid growth, especially in Asia. Adherents sincerely believe they are recapturing the vitality of the original apostolic church.
Critics argue exclusive claims and authoritarian tendencies undermine their professed goal of restoring the purity of the early church. But supporters say any weaknesses are outweighed by their stand on biblical truth and focus on spirituality, evangelism and holy living.
