The Lord has blessed the global body of believers and He wants us to bless all peoples on earth (Genesis 12:2,3).
Many of us sit comfortably in the pews on Sunday, while hundreds of millions of the people Jesus died for around the world have heard little or nothing about the awesome news of Jesus and they are entering a Christ-less eternity.
In 1974, it was more difficult to get many Christians, especially from different denominations, to agree upon some things. Yet, something remarkable happened after the Rev. Billy Graham and his evangelistic association helped initiate Lausanne I: The International Congress on World Evangelization in Switzerland. In July of 1974, more than 2,300 evangelical leaders from 150 countries agreed upon the Lausanne Covenant to be more intentional about world evangelization.
The following paragraph is quoted from the Lausanne Covenant of 1974 and would be an excellent centerpiece or core value of any church missions program or personal missions involvement.
9. THE URGENCY OF THE EVANGELISTIC TASK
"More than 2,700 million people, which is more than two-thirds of all humanity, have yet to be evangelised. We are ashamed that so many have been neglected; it is a standing rebuke to us and to the whole Church. There is now, however, in many parts of the world an unprecedented receptivity to the Lord Jesus Christ. We are convinced that this is the time for churches and para-church agencies to pray earnestly for the salvation of the unreached and to launch new efforts to achieve world evangelization. A reduction of foreign missionaries and money in an evangelised country may sometimes be necessary to facilitate the national church's growth in self-reliance and to release resources for unevangelised areas. Missionaries should flow ever more freely from and to all six continents in a spirit of humble service. The goal should be, by all available means and at the earliest possible time, that every person will have the opportunity to hear, understand, and to receive the good news. We cannot hope to attain this goal without sacrifice. All of us are shocked by the poverty of millions and disturbed by the injustices which cause it. Those of us who live in affluent circumstances accept our duty to develop a simple life-style in order to contribute more generously to both relief and evangelism." (Emphasis added.)
Please E-mail the web-servant if you have any problems with this site.
