What began as another Jesus march through an American city became something Sean Feucht and his team never planned.
And for Feucht, the unexpected encounter in downtown Chicago carried a message he believes the American church cannot afford to ignore.
During a recent Let Us Worship Jesus march, Feucht and other Christians arrived in downtown Chicago prepared to worship, march and publicly proclaim the name of Jesus. When they arrived, however, Feucht said thousands of Muslims were gathered in the same area for a separate event.
According to Feucht, the Let Us Worship march had been planned months in advance, making the convergence completely unexpected from his perspective.
But he doesn’t believe it was unexpected to God.
“I feel like to the Lord this was totally planned,” Feucht said, describing the moment as a visible picture of what he believes is a spiritual battle taking place across America.
Yet Feucht’s warning wasn’t primarily directed toward Muslims.
It was directed toward Christians.
“The church is not ready,” he said, pointing to division, apathy and infighting among believers.
That distinction matters.
Feucht explicitly rejected hostility toward Muslim people, saying, “It’s not the people that are the enemies.”
Instead, he characterized the conflict as one involving ideology and spiritual principalities. He also expressed his belief that millions of Muslims will come to Christ, pointing to his ministry’s work throughout the Middle East.
Then, as a thunderstorm swept through Chicago, the two gatherings crossed paths.
Feucht said the Muslim march had stopped at a street corner when the Christians marched through the area proclaiming Jesus. He described the completely unplanned encounter as a “holy confrontation.”
The gospel proclamation didn’t end there.
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Feucht said he eventually took a bullhorn beneath Chicago’s famous Bean and preached as rain poured around them. According to him, people raised their hands to pray and receive Jesus.
But Feucht believes what happened that day represented something far greater than one dramatic encounter in Chicago.
Turning to 2 Corinthians 10:3-5, he reminded Christians that spiritual warfare cannot be fought with worldly weapons. Scripture instead points believers toward spiritual weapons with divine power to demolish strongholds.
And Feucht made clear what he does not want Christians to take away from the encounter.
“I’m not coming on here to provoke rage and anger towards the Muslim community,” he said.
His message to the church was instead unmistakable: Wake up.
If America is entering a season of increasing spiritual confrontation, an apathetic, distracted and divided church cannot afford to remain asleep.
The answer is not hatred. It is not fear. And it is certainly not violence.
It is a church surrendered to Jesus, united around the gospel, filled with the Holy Spirit and unashamed to proclaim Christ publicly.
Feucht’s challenge to pastors and Christian leaders is to reject apathy and division and take the gospel boldly into their cities.
The storm over Chicago may have provided a fitting picture.
The spiritual battle may be intensifying.
And Feucht left the American church with one urgent question:
“Will the Christians of America rise up?”
Abby Trivett is a writer and editor for Charisma Media and has a passion for sharing the gospel through the written word. She holds two degrees from Regent University, a B.A. in Communication with a concentration in Journalism and a Master of Arts in Journalism. She is the author of the newly released book, The Power of Suddenly: Discover How God Can Change Everything in a Moment. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact [email protected].
