| Republic of KOREA
The Korean Peninsula extends southward from
the northeastern part of the Asian continent. The standard meridian
of the peninsula is 135, fourteen hours ahead of New York time.
The Amnokgang and Dumangang Rivers border both China and Russia
to the north, and Japan is just across the East Sea. Since 1945,
as a by-product of the Cold War, the peninsula has been divided
at 38 North Latitude into the capitalist Republic of Korea, or South
Korea, and the communist Democratic People's Republic of Korea,
more commonly known as North Korea.
The total area of the peninsula is similar
in size to that of Utah. South Korea is as big as Indiana and North
Korea as Louisiana. About 70% of the land is mountainous. And there
are about 3,000 islands of
various sizes.
Population
South Korea - 46.9 million (1997)
North
Korea - 25 million (estimated)
Religion
Religious freedom is guaranteed by the Constitution
of the Republic of Korea. Of the 300 or so registered religions,
Buddhism and Confucianism were dominant, and have shaped both the
way of life and the attitudes of Koreans since the 5th century.
Christianity has developed a vast following since its introduction
in the late 19th century.
Prospect
There are more than 67 million Koreans (37
millions in South Korea, 25 millions in North Korea, and 5 millions
abroad) who have not committed themselves to our Lord Jesus Christ.
God has the iron gate of North Korea slowly and gradually opened.
There appears good signs that the God's fixed time is at hand that
the 25 million North Koreans must hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
About 8,200 ethnic groups out of 24,000 in
the world are not reached yet by the Gospel of Jesus Christ. And
about 90 percent of them live in the central Asia that was mostly
a part of the old Soviet Russia. They are mostly Mohammedan and
the strongest anti-Christianity groups. However, there are about
500,000 Koreans in the central Asia known as pro-Christianity group
who fast accept the Gospel of Jesus Christ. These Koreans were scattered
in the region of eastern Russia, north of Korea peninsula border
at the time of Japanese occupation. To make matters worse, Stalin
had these Koreans moved in the central Asia by force without taking
anything on a sudden in the October of 1937. In addition, there
are also about 2,200,000 Koreans in China who speak both Chinese
and Korean. If a sizzling disagreeable summer is good for the growing
crops, it is God's will for this harvest time that Koreans were
scattered in the central Asia and China long time ago. As you know,
it was the Diaspora Jews lived in the western end of Asia that Paul's
missionary journey was successful. Likewise, the scattered Koreans
in central and eastern Asia are also God's prepared vessels for
the salvation of Asian ethnic groups. What are better, most Asian
groups belong to the same Altaic family of languages. So the Korean
is one of brotherly ethnic groups although they differ from one
another very much.
This is one reason that we must engage in
Bible centered education and help Christians be alert in truth,
maximize their talents, and love their unbelieving neighbors of
the world.
"Go and make disciples. . . baptizing
them!"
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