UK churches are reading the Bible with refugees and it's leading them to Christ

As we mark World Refugee Day, we’re once again faced with images and headlines that speak of fear, the ‘other’, and displacement. Just last week, I was horrified to see the stories in my homeland, Northern Ireland, of racially-motivated attacks and violent rioting. I was saddened and angered that it left families fearing for their lives.

But this isn’t just a problem that is out there. Many Christians still don’t see welcoming the stranger as a call to mission right where we are, to embrace those living among us.

You don’t need to be a theologian. You just need to be a faithful page-turner

Yet throughout the Bible, we see God’s heart for the stranger. Jesus was a refugee as a child (Matthew 2:13-15), fleeing violence and seeking shelter in Egypt. Later, he radically (and controversially) engaged with those shunned by society. It was unheard of that a Jew would eat with tax collectors, sex workers, Samaritans, working-class women and those living in poverty.

Jesus’ movements didn’t just shock the religious leaders; they caused an uproar. But they speak to his kingdom mindset. Everyone needs God’s forgiveness and grace, and so everyone is welcomed and brought into his family.

Turning to Christ

In churches across the UK, a quiet revolution is unfolding. People are turning to Christ - including individuals and families arriving in the UK. Despite the assumption that the Church is on its way out, that secularisation and atheism are the religions of the 21st century, that’s not what we’re seeing up and down the country. From Inverness to Epsom, Bournemouth to Belfast, congregations are opening their doors - and their Bibles - to those arriving from Ukraine, Iran, Hong Kong and beyond.

I’ve been struck time and again by how God often works through simple, honest conversations, especially when they’re rooted in his word. You don’t need to be a theologian. You just need to be a faithful page-turner – open to how God might speak into people’s lives through the power of his Spirit. Our world may look different, but our calling remains the same as the one Jesus gave his disciples 2,000 years ago.

Take Highland International Church in Inverness, where youth leaders welcomed Ukrainian teenagers displaced by war. Alongside ceilidh dancing and traditional Scottish food and hospitality, they began to read through John’s Gospel using The Word One to One in English and Ukrainian. After months of being part of this community, one teen moved away and, on a return visit, said it felt like “coming home”.

Or take one of our contacts in Bournemouth, where there are many internationals and nearly 40 language schools. They have led both Ukrainian and Iranian refugees to new life in Jesus through reading John’s Gospel together.

Step up and step out

When we step outside of our comfort zone, conversations can be awkward. We may fear inadvertently offending or overstepping the mark. But just because something does not come easily or naturally to us, it doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try. It is a tragedy that so many newcomers to the UK have never been inside a British home. Few have connections outside of their own culture, and fewer still have any real friendships here. If our home is really our ‘castle’, we miss the opportunity to share our lives - and our Christian hope - with those who might need it the most.

God works through simple, honest conversations, especially when they’re rooted in his word

I’ve found this personally challenging. It begins with my own heart: asking God to uncover anything that might hold me back, whether fear, bias or even apathy. Then I begin to pray more intentionally, asking God to reveal who he is placing in my path, be it someone new at church, a friend at the gym or a neighbour I’ve known for years. And when the moment feels right, I’ve started asking people if they’d be up for reading a bit of the Bible together, for us both to listen, learn and explore it together.

I am also learning to be ready to receive. Many who arrive as refugees also come bearing gifts: stories, cultures, food and friendship. Many are already Christians, and as we get to know them they enrich and enlarge our view of God’s family.

A global God

Globally, more than 123 million - or 1 in 67 people - have been forcibly displaced from their country of birth. Many are fleeing conflict, climate crisis or persecution. But while people are on the move, so is God. As John Stott wrote: “We must be global Christians with a global vision, because our God is a global God.”

So this World Refugee Day, let’s not settle for the easy route out. Let’s challenge ourselves, our churches and the communities around us, to step out in ways that bring us closer to Jesus’ call to discipleship and faithful service.