07-13-2023 CHRIS MITCHELL
SEOUL, South Korea – At the end of the Korean War 70 years ago, North and South Korea were divided. For 7 decades, Koreans have prayed and cried out to God to bring the two countries together, and one church is planning a unique conference to see this dream come true.
At a prayer house in the South Korean countryside, Pastor Sang Gil Jang has a vision to bring Koreans, Israelis, and the nations together to pray for Korea’s reunification. He began an effort through a gathering of both Jews and Gentiles for the Zion Conference, 2023, Reunification Through the Holy Spirit.
Pastor Jang leads the Songdo Jusarang Church. He believes that blessing Israel and bringing Jews and Gentiles together in repentance and prayer can be the first step in a journey to seeing the two nations come back together as one.
“Jews and we have shared spiritual things. We thought that we should serve the people of Israel well in Korea, so we decided to invite them here and hold the Zion Conference in Korea. This is the first reason of Zion Conference,” Pastor Jang told CBN News.
He says prayer and turning from sin, both as a nation and individually, is vital.
“To achieve the reunification of the two nations on the Korean Peninsula, it is necessary for the Korean people to first repent of their sins and the sins of the nation. I believe that when people of all ages, from children to the elderly, repent of their sins and the national idolatry, and worship before the Lord, a shift will occur.”
Pastor Jang sees the 70th anniversary of the 1953 armistice that ended the fighting between the two nations as a significant milestone and also a biblical jubilee year for freedom and restoration.
He expects the fulfillment of Matthew 4:16: “The people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.”
When the fighting stopped 70 years ago, North and South Korea took different paths.
Under liberal democracy, South Korea developed into one of the most prosperous countries on earth.
Under one of the worst dictatorships in history, North Korea became a totalitarian regime.
A nighttime satellite image from space shows the startling difference between the countires, as the south is flooded with bright lights and the north is nearly completely swallowed up in darkness.
It’s why North Korean defectors such as Yeon Hee Shin want to reveal what’s happening in her country.
“I want the world (to) know that because of one dictatorship the whole country, the whole people in North Korea is suffering,” Yeon said. Their human rights are violated and all of the people are being treated like animals, and we can’t even express our faith, and we can only live on 10 percent of our labor, and 90 percent the government takes away. So, this is what I want the world to know about.”
One day during the conference, the nations will gather in front of Seoul’s City Hall.
Joy El, Co-President of the Zion Conference 2023 Preparation Committee, explained, “Over 100 organizations are coming together to pray and plan. We invited intercessors from over 30 countries to pray for the reunification of South Korea and North Korea and we invited Israelis to a 9-day, 10-night conference free of charge.”
The church is getting ready to host representatives from Israel and the nations, including the children.
Nine-year-old Korean Christian Yi-An Park said, “I’m praying and singing praises for the Zion Convention. I am wholeheartedly praising with this ukulele. I want presidents and pastors from all over the world to come to this Zion Convention.”
“We pray for the unity of North and South Korea by the Holy Spirit. And I look forward to and dream of the day when Jew and Gentile will be one,” said Je-Yoon Kim.
Me So Park believes the gathering is part of South Korea’s calling. “God has chosen Korea to be a nation that prepares the way for Jesus’ return in the end times, a nation used for the restoration of Israel. It is my hope that (through the Zion Convention) Korea will be united and prepared as a nation to prepare the way for Jesus’ return, and that it will be used for the restoration of Israel,” Park said.
Musician Su Min Kim said the participants would be grateful for prayers from around the world. “I am preparing prayers and harp music for the Zion Convention. I hope that through the Zion Convention, North and South Korea can praise as one. I would really appreciate it if people from other nations would pray and bless my country.”
Pastor Jang pointed out that many political efforts have failed to bring North Korea and South Korea together. He believes the division transcends political solutions and that the key is the anointing of the Holy Spirit to bring down spiritual strongholds.
“We have come to realize that prayer is the only way to combat the spiritual battles and darkness that bind the Korean Peninsula. “Because the evil spirit of Satan is holding the Korean Peninsula, there is no other way to unify it.”
He continued, “Only when the prayers of God’s children ascend to His throne will the entire spiritual system of division holding the Korean Peninsula crumble, and the two nations will become one in the Holy Spirit. All chains will be broken in His presence. Many people try to unify politically or economically, in other words, in worldly ways, but it will never happen. Unification will be accomplished by the hand of God and through the children of God.”
If Pastor Jang’s vision comes to pass and the prayers of the saints answered, North Korea will be free and the north and south will be one nation.