North Korea: Why we need an act of God

The world has been watching, as the situation on the Korean peninsula gets closer to a boiling point. Where are we at, and why is it so hard to solve the issues?

At this moment, North Korea may be only months away from being able to mount a nuclear weapon on an intercontinental ballistic missile, and the surrounding countries have been unable to stop the progress. This is mainly because of the ambiguous attitude of China. Although they are not happy about the North’s nuclear development, they see instability in the North Korean leadership and a potential North-South reunification as a greater threat to their national interests. That is why they have been making sure that no matter what sanctions were passed by the UN, Kim Jong-Un always has enough money to keep his regime afloat. This has effectively made the sanctions useless to accomplish what they meant to accomplish, which is putting the regime in a place where they feel they have no choice but to give up the nukes.

The US is getting increasingly annoyed with this attitude, which strains the relationships between the Chinese and American leadership. But there is more trouble brewing. The US and South Korea have started with the installation of the THAAD missile defense system in South Korea. In this way, they can shoot down missiles from North Korea before they reach their target. China however, sees this as a threat to its national security and is now implementing sanctions against South Korean companies.

Where China is not prepared to sacrifice their interests to prevent North Korea acquiring nuclear weapons, they are prepared to pressurize and bully South Korea when it wants to defend itself against this threat. This makes clear where China’s loyalties ultimately lie.

Without China’s support, the only thing that could prevent North Korea from becoming a full-fledged nuclear power may be military action, an option which is now openly on the table. But this may very well cause a chain reaction and set the region on fire. Again, the question is whose side China will take. And even in the best-case scenario of a short and decisive war, there will be massive casualties in South Korea.

Because the stakes are highest for South Korea, the population is understandably divided on how to handle North Korea. South Korea is now officially without a president and it will be another two months before a new leader takes office. It is not clear what line the new president will take. North Korea exploits the lack of unity in South Korea and between the powers in the region to accelerate its nuclear program.

The political battle we witness also has a spiritual side. Many South Korean missionaries involved in ministering to North Koreans in China have recently been arrested and/or deported. The situation in which missionaries in the China/North Korea area work is becoming increasingly tense. A BTJ partner involved in bringing Bibles to North Korea was also arrested.

It seems the enemy, the murderer from the beginning, is determined to keep North Koreans in bondage, both spiritually and politically. We know these powers of evil have not got the last say, and will have to let go when God speaks the word. We rejoice as we hear how individual North Koreans, against all odds, are brought in the kingdom of God. But we must continue to pray that the powers that desire war and destruction will be held back, and freedom to hear the gospel and worship the true God will soon be experienced by all those now kept in darkness.