the unfinished task status of world evangelization
TRANSCRIPT
The Unfinished Task
Status of World Evangelization
We’re Going to Talk About 5 Things:
1. The Big Picture - Jesus’ last words
2. The Status of the Great Commission How are we doing?
3. The Gospel to the ends of the earth What are we doing?
4. Dramatic recent progress
5. Challenges of the unfinished task
1. Jesus’ Last Words
The Results:God’s glory and Kingdom filling the earth – worship from “every nation, tribe, people,
and tongue” Rev 7:9, Hab 2:14
“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations” Matt 28:19 - A church for every people group
The Command:
Nations = ethne = ethnic people groups
“Preach the Gospel to all creation”Mark 16:15 – The Gospel to every person
A Church for Every People:What is the Status?
2. Status of the Great Commission
How Many People Groups Are There?
Total People Groups(A People Group is counted for each country it is in) 16,500
2. Status of the Great Commission
How Many People Groups Are Considered Unreached / Least-Reached?
(Using criteria of less than 2% Evangelical and less than 5% Adherent)
Best current estimate of unreached / least-reached
ethnic people groups: 6,800
2. Status of the Great Commission
Countries with the Most Unreached Peoples
Country
# Peoples Total
# Unreached Peoples
India 2501 2202
China 516 427
Pakistan 389 374
Bangladesh 400 353
Nepal 332 310
2. Status of the Great Commission
What strategy can the Church use to “make disciples of all the nations?”
Is this a realistic goal to present the Gospel to every person on earth?
3. The Gospel to the Ends of the Earth
Since we do not know who is part of God’s family, we ought to have it as
our goal to give every person the opportunity to respond to the Gospel.
Mark 16:15 says “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to all creation.”
Vision of Coca-Cola:
“A can of coke in the handof every person on the planet.”
3. The Gospel to the Ends of the Earth
3. The Gospel to the Ends of the Earth
10% Coke Fans (True Followers of Christ)
20% Cola Drinkers (Nominal Adherents of Christianity)
40% Non Cola Drinkers (Heard, but not responded)
30% Cola Unknown (Virtually no exposure to Gospel)
World as Coke Drinkers
Approximate Percentages
What are some ways being used to reach every person?
3. The Gospel to the Ends of the Earth
Bible Translation
The New Testament has been translated into the mother tongue of over 82% of the world’s population. However the remaining
approximately 18% will require over 2,500 new translations.
Bible Translation Status
0
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
0 500 1000 1500 2000Cu
mu
lati
ve B
ible
Po
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Year
What happened after 1500 that caused
such a dramatic rise?
3. The Gospel to the Ends of the Earth
3. The Gospel to the Ends of the Earth
Jesus Film
730
3,600
6,225
488
0
1,000
2,000
3,000
4,000
5,000
6,000
7,000
1990 1995 2000 2008
Acc
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ted
Mil
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of
Vie
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Jesus Film Viewers
There have been approximately 6.225 billion cumulative viewings or hearings to the Jesus Film. It is available in languages known by over 90% of the world’s population.
What is the most viewed film in history and what film has been translated into
the most languages in history?
Christian Radio Broadcasting
It is estimated that Christian radio broadcasts cover at least 91% of
the world’s population.
3. The Gospel to the Ends of the Earth
A Church for every People GroupGlobal Total 16,500Unreached / Least Reached 6,800
Status Summary
The Gospel to the Ends of the EarthTrue Believers 10%Nominal Adherents 20%Heard, no response 40%Virtually no exposure 30%
3. The Gospel to the Ends of the Earth
4. Dramatic Recent Progress
* Explosion of the non-western Church *
• True Christianity has grown by more than 300 million believers in the past ten years.
• About 10 million of these new Christians are from North America and Europe
• The rest – 290 million – are from developing countries like Nigeria, Brazil, India and China.
The Global South: The new faces of Evangelical Christianity
4. Dramatic Recent Progress
1990 – ~ 10 tiny groups
1997 – ~ 300 fellowships
2005 – 1,000 churches
2005 – new church every week
2005 – 100,000 believers
* Unprecedented growth of the Church in the Global South *
Cambodia
4. Dramatic Recent Progress
1975 – 3,000 churches
2005 – 55,000 churches
2010 – Expect to send out 100,000 contract workers into the 10/40 Window in the next 15 years as tentmaking missionaries … the most of any country!
* Philippines *
4. Dramatic Recent Progress
• 1948 less than 1 million believers.• 2008 upwards of 125 million believers. Most all
of the growth has been in the last 30 years.• There are more followers of Jesus Christ in
China than in North America.• More people are born in China every year than
live in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, Philadelphia, San Diego, Phoenix, Dallas, El Paso and Denver combined.
• Over 12,000 new Chinese believers every day! Great need is for pastoral training.
* China *
4. Dramatic Recent Progress
Developing World Missions Initiatives in the 10/40 Window
Estimated missionaries sent by various countries over the next 15-20 years.
Chinese: 50,000 Missionaries10/40 Window
Koreans: 30,000 Missionaries
Filipinos: 100,000 Contract labor
tentmakers
Nigerians: 15,000 missionaries
Micronesian: ? missionaries
Why hasn’t the Great Commission been completed?
5. Challenges of the Unfinished Task
* Spiritual Challenge *
Satan does not give up ground without a battle.
More Christians have been martyred in the 20th century than in the
previous 19 centuries combined.
5. Challenges of the Unfinished Task
* Population Challenge *
5. Challenges of the Unfinished Task
5.5 billion lost people in the world …Viewing 5 per second it would take 35 years to see everyone.
Related video from International Mission Board-SBC at: www.churchmedialink.com
Remaining people groups are the most difficult to penetrate.
• GEOGRAPHIC BARRIERS: remote, harsh climate, difficult access, or nomadic.
• LINGUISTIC BARRIERS: illiteracy, no scripture in their language, unwritten language, terminology confusion.
• CULTURAL BARRIERS: persecution, closed to change, Christianity viewed as a “foreign” religion.
* People Group Challenge *
5. Challenges of the Unfinished Task
Countries with the highest % of unreached tend to be the most closed to Christianity
* Political / National Challenge *
5. Challenges of the Unfinished Task
• Open Doors ranks North Korea #1 in Christian persecution.• Government severely represses all religious activity and there is
systematic oppression, imprisonment and execution of Christians.• Physical and spiritual starvation of 23 million people.
North Korea
Imbalance in Missionary Distribution
• Over 87% of all cross-cultural foreign missionaries minister among nominal Christian peoples.
* Church Challenge *
5. Challenges of the Unfinished Task
Imbalance in Missions Finances
Question: For every $1 of Christian giving to all causes how much goes to financing pioneer church planting among unreached peoples?
Answer: Half a penny
For every 1 million unreached Muslims there are less than 3 missionaries
That There Might Be Worshippers
“After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude, which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before
the throne and before the Lamb” Rev 7:9
