The start of discipleship
- The early 1960s was a time where Pastor Ki-Dong Kim had performed great signs of healing and Christ’s powers through his tent ministry. It was in the midst of this that he recognized the importance of discipleship, a means to ensure that God’s powerful works would not be limited to only that period of time. Furthermore, in order to create spiritual leaders, Pastor Kim arranged two different methods of ministry. Pastoral service and campus mission.
The contruction of Sungrak Church
- In 1965, the church had formerly gathered at the house of a saint in Pyeong-dong, Seodaemun-gu. It was where we held our foundation worship. With the hopes of following the Bible and not mere doctrines, we decided to follow baptism by total immersion, and became a member of the Korean Baptist Convention in 1968. Following that year, in November 1969, we founded a new church at Shingil-dong, and to this day, it stands as Sungrak Church.
The start of Berea Academy
- In the mid-1960s, Pastor Kim was preaching at Seoul National University, when he met a professor who taught language at a theology school. The professor introduced Pastor Kim to his students, and this marked the beginning of his bible studies, as he received the opportunity to conduct these studies with the students of many different theology schools. After years went by, in 1976, the bible study for theology students became much more systematically organized, and was coined, Berea.Following these events, Berea Academy started in 1978. Since then, many from all over the world have undergone further learning from these lectures, and are now performing great pastoral works in and outside of Korea.
The growth of Sungrak Church
- The Berean Movement ― which acts as a combination of several micro-movements including the ‘Resembling the Bible Movement’, the ‘New Testament Movement’ and the ‘Laity Movement’ ― together with Berea Academy, are an orderly organized education system that was applied during Pastor Kim’s ministry of powerful sermons. As a result, the church grew from 7 members to 319 members within a year, with 109 that had been baptized.By 1986, the number of church members exceeded 30,000, making it the twentieth largest church in the world. Then, in the following year of 1987, Southwest Baptist University of USA established a theory proposed by Pastor Kim in recognition of the marvelous growth of the church, calling it the ‘Ki-Dong Kim’s theory of church growth’. Furthermore, Pastor Kim was appointed as a special professor and international director.From that point on, to this very day, we are experiencing continual growths within the church.
The establishment of Berea International theological Seminary
- On 5 December 1997, Berea International Theological Seminary was authorized as a purely theological institution for undergraduates and postgraduates. With its motto, ‘The Bible over doctrines, Jesus over theology, the Holy Spirit over notes’, the Berean Movement became more powerful than ever. Berea International Theological Seminary set up a flexible, yet organized curriculum centered around the Bible, which has thereby been used to drive the growth and development of many who are now actively pursuing their calling.
Sungrak Church enters into a new century
- In order to cater for the continual growth of Sungrak Church, a church was built in Singil-dong in 1992, which also happened to be awarded by Seoul Metropolitan City for its architectural design. Shortly after this event, the Christian World Mission Center was built in 2009, with the World Christian Leader Center following after it in 2013.After pastor Ki-dong Kim entrusted the church in the hands of the newly raised overseer, pastor Sung-Hyun Kim, a new generation of faith was opened and the World Berean’s Convention was successfully held in 2013. Since then, Sungrak Church has changed its education system so as to continue the work of God in the most effective and approachable manner. To this day, we strive to ensure that our mission of the 21st Century is made successful.
_2.png)
.png)
