Where the church stands in Indonesia
Indonesia has more Muslims than any other country on earth — and roughly twenty-eight million Christians, a church larger than the population of many nations. Faith here is intensely regional: some islands are overwhelmingly Christian, others almost entirely Muslim.
The great remaining need is Java, home to well over a hundred million people and some of the largest unreached peoples anywhere, including the Sundanese. Indonesian believers are increasingly the ones crossing into these communities.
Signs of hope
A large, established Indonesian church with the language and cultural standing to reach its own unreached peoples.
The honest difficulty
Regional restrictions on church building, occasional violence, and enormous unreached populations on Java.
What "Less-reached" means
There is a church, but it is small relative to the population, or the Christian identity is far more widespread than active faith. Much of the nation can still live a whole life without meeting a follower of Jesus.
In Indonesia the majority religious context is Islam (~87%), Christianity (~10%). The largest population still considered without meaningful Gospel access is the Javanese, Sundanese (~40 million) and Madurese peoples.
How to pray for Indonesia
Prayer is not a substitute for going; it is how going begins. Take one of these for a week rather than all of them for a day.
- Pray for the Sundanese — around forty million people with very few known believers.
- Ask God to protect churches in regions where building permits are refused or withdrawn.
- Pray for Indonesian believers crossing island and ethnic lines with the Gospel.
- Pray for unity between Indonesia's many Christian traditions.
Questions people ask about Indonesia
Is Indonesia an unreached nation?
Indonesia is classified as less-reached. There is a church, but it is small relative to the population, or the Christian identity is far more widespread than active faith. Much of the nation can still live a whole life without meeting a follower of Jesus. Roughly 10% of the population identifies as Christian and about 6% as evangelical, with an estimated 230 of its 780 people groups still considered unreached. Figures are rounded estimates and vary by source and year.
How many Christians are there in Indonesia?
About 10% of Indonesia's roughly 283 million people identify as Christian — approximately 28 million people. Around 6% are evangelical. The largest group still without meaningful Gospel access is the Javanese, Sundanese (~40 million) and Madurese peoples.
How can I pray for Indonesia?
Pray for the Sundanese — around forty million people with very few known believers. Ask God to protect churches in regions where building permits are refused or withdrawn. Pick one of these, pray it for two minutes a day for a week, and ask one other person to pray it with you.