A Thai church held a record-breaking night of baptisms right after Thailand effectively contained the coronavirus pandemic.
Thai Church
Thailand was the first nation outside China to be hit by the coronavirus. Analysts feared a long-term and overwhelming outbreak, however, that was not what happened. The country is now being praised as one of the only places worldwide that were able to effectively contain the virus.
A countrywide lockdown and continued precaution were observed in the country. In the first week of September, the nation celebrated 100 days without a positive case of COVID-19. A few days after the declaration, the Free in Jesus Christ Church Association (FJCCA) celebrated another milestone of their own for their record-breaking mass baptism.
Largest Baptism
The Thai church held its largest baptism in history and claims also the largest in the history of Thailand. On September 6, FJCCA baptized 1,435 people from 200 villages in five cities in the nation.
During the 2-hour event, ministers lined up across the waist-level reservoir. To proclaim their faith and be baptized, one-by-one, new believers came from the shore.
Gospel
Bob Craft of the Reach A Village ministry, a ministry that supports the FJCCA, believed that it is God who has allowed the Gospel to spread during this testing time.
“It is truly a mystery to the world as to why Thailand has been spared during the COVID pandemic,” Bob said. “We believe it is the merciful hand of God to allow the gospel to spread at this crucial time.”
Record-breaking
In 2019, the same church also held the largest baptism the predominantly Buddhist country has ever seen. They were able to baptize 520 people, the recent baptism was nearly triple its size.
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Reference: Christianity Today