Over 5,000 Christian leaders from 202 nations just lately gathered in Seoul, South Korea, for the 4th Lausanne Congress. This international motion, began in 1974 by Billy Graham and John Stott, has linked church buildings worldwide to advance the Great Commission. During the occasion, individuals discovered that 40% of the world has but to be evangelized, regardless of 97% of Christian missionaries presently specializing in areas that have already got entry to the gospel.
Looking forward, research predict a big shift in international Christianity by 2050, with solely 20% of Christians residing in the Global North (Europe, North America), whereas 80% can be in the Global South, together with Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Since the Eighties, Christians in the bulk world have outnumbered these in the West, resulting in a decline in missionaries despatched from Western nations. In their place, nations like India, Kenya, and Brazil are stepping as much as unfold the message of religion.
To handle these adjustments, Dr. Jonas Kang of the Korea World Missions Association launched a brand new initiative referred to as Christ Over Asia, Africa, and Latin America (COALA). The motion seeks to create a extra polycentric strategy to missions, empowering native church buildings to steer evangelism efforts in their very own communities. “The best way is for local people to preach to local people,” Kang defined. “Missionaries should act as midwives, helping rather than leading.”
Dr. Isac Soundararaja, National Director of the India Missions Association, echoed this sentiment, envisioning a future the place church buildings from Asia, Africa, and Latin America unfold the gospel even to Western nations. The COALA motion goals to equip extra missionaries to speed up international evangelism and revive Christianity in the Global North, together with North America and Europe.
However, Reverend Hwa Yung, Bishop Emeritus of the Methodist Church in Malaysia, emphasised that COALA will not be about changing Western efforts. “Our hope is for a true partnership between the churches in the West and those in the Majority World,” he mentioned, stressing the necessity for mutual development, with Western church buildings reviving and people in the Global South maturing, as they work collectively to share the gospel of Jesus Christ.
