To the Ends

BIG Idea: Our work isn’t over until everyone hears.

This is the last installment of the “World Mandate” series I preached back in January. In Acts 1:8, Jesus gave his disciples the World Mandate that has changed the course of human history, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Today we’re going to talk about the ends of the earth.

It’s amazing to recount just how Christ has fulfilled his prophecy to the church and brought the gospel to the ends of the earth. To start with, look at where church tradition has the twelve disciples giving their lives as martyrs for the gospel: only James was killed in Jerusalem. The others were scattered throughout the ancient world: Syria, Turkey, Greece, Rome, Iraq, Ethiopia, Iran and India. The disciples literally gave their lives fulfilling this World Mandate.

What has the Holy Spirit done since then? In their book 2020 Vision, Bill and Amy Stearns share some incredibly encouraging statistics:

• Every day another approximately 74,000 people across the globe come to faith in Christ. That’s 3,083 new fellow believers every hour of every day.
• In 1950, when China was closed to foreign missionaries, there were one million believers in the country. Today conservative estimates say there are well over 80 million. An average of 28,000 people become believers every day in the People’s Republic of China.
• In A.D. 100 there were 360 non-Christians per true believer. Today the ratio is less than seven to every believer as the initiative of the Holy Spirit continues to outstrip our most optimistic plans! Throughout history the growth of the body of Christ has outdistanced the increase of world population.

How about this? See if you can find half of these countries on the map. As of last figures available (2000), where in the world is the fastest growing percentage of born-again believers in Christ?

1. Northern Mariana Island
2. Cameroon
3. Aruba
4. Guinea
5. Togo
6. French Guiana
7. Nepal
8. Jordan
9. Oman

What does all this mean? Christ is fulfilling his World Mandate. The church is growing. The nations are being reached. The question is this: will we choose to be a part of it or let the greatest movement in human history pass us by?

QUESTION: What part can we play as American Christians in the story of the gospel spreading to all nations?