March 19, 2023: Sunday School

Order of Service

• Missionary Presentation — Robert and Lisa Stewart, MTW missionaries to Japan
• Pastoral Prayer

---

Sermon Title: Missionary Update from Japan

Scripture: Isaiah 43:19

I. The Mission Field: Japan

A. Demographics and religious context

1. Population of 127 million, roughly the size of California but only one-third inhabitable
2. 98% ethnically Japanese; highly homogeneous society
3. Primary religions are Shintoism (ancestor worship) and Buddhism (cultural identity)
4. Only 0.6% Evangelical Christian — up from 0.4% in 1992, but still under 1%

B. Nature of Japanese religious practice

1. No corporate worship in Buddhism; temple visits are solitary and ritualistic
2. Idol worship is pervasive — idols near train stations, schools, and hiking trails for a sense of protection
3. Prayer requests written on paper and tied to temples; priestly intercession sought for exams, family, health
4. To become a Christian is culturally perceived as becoming non-Japanese — a significant barrier

II. The Work in Shin-Urayasu (2011–2022)

A. Origins of the church plant

1. MTW team invited by two Japanese Christian women who had moved into the brand-new town of Shin-Urayasu (44,000 residents on reclaimed land in Tokyo Bay)
2. Claimed Isaiah 43:19 — Behold, I will do a new thing — as a guiding verse for the church plant
3. First worship service held in 2012 alongside church planter Craig Colburn

B. Growth through difficulty

1. All meetings and worship conducted in Japanese; language barrier was a significant challenge
2. COVID-19 forced six months of Zoom worship; the Stewarts became the sole missionaries on the field
3. God worked through weakness — upon returning from COVID restrictions, 50 people attended worship

C. Community outreach methods

1. Easter egg hunts, Christmas plays, moms-and-toddlers clubs, dads-and-kids clubs, international cooking group
2. Relationships built through children in public schools and diverse community events
3. Any skill or interest can be leveraged as an outreach opportunity

D. Fruit and particularization

1. Shinurayasu Grace Church was particularized in the Presbyterian Church of Japan in 2022
2. Church now has Japanese leadership and a Chinese-American missionary pastor married to a Japanese woman
3. Member testimony: Naoko, diagnosed with breast cancer in 2019, sustained by church prayer and Isaiah 41:10

III. The Philosophy of Long-Term Mission in Japan

A. The Japanese proverb: sit on a rock for three years

1. Japanese people watch to see if missionaries will stay before opening up to deep relationship
2. Trust is built slowly but, once established, relationships are deep and meaningful

B. Suiseki as a metaphor for church planting

1. Japanese hobby of finding river stones that resemble mountains; requires decades of patient attention
2. Illustrates the long-haul commitment required for gospel ministry in Japan
3. Partnership with supporting churches and Japanese believers can shorten the timeline

C. Japan's group-oriented culture

1. Family, school cohort, and club memberships define identity and community
2. Gospel community (the church) can meet this deep need for belonging
3. Framing short-term programs (e.g., 12-week English classes) helps lower barriers to initial engagement

IV. The Next Chapter: Nagoya

A. Call to a new church plant and school

1. Aichi Prefecture is the least-reached region in Japan — one church per 28,000 people
2. Joining the MTW Nagoya church planting team; coming alongside a young church planter currently in language school
3. Starting a Christian school for missionary kids modeled on the Shin-Urayasu school

B. Prayer requests

1. Isabel Stewart's college decision and upcoming interview
2. Family transition as both children leave for college in August 2023
3. New relationships and community integration in Nagoya
4. Recruitment of teachers and students for the new school
5. The young church planter and the future Nagoya church