"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." Acts 1:8

What in the world is going on?
In Acts 1:8, Jesus laid out the plan for spreading the Gospel through the rest of the world. We start with "our" Jerusalem: people with whom we are in frequent contact, and with whom we share a common language and cultural heritage (family, friends, and neighbors).

We then move outward to "our" Judea: people with whom we share a common culture, but who may live far away (for instance, Americans who live in another part of the state or nation). We also touch "our" Samaria: people who live nearby, but who are culturally different (the poor, the immigrant, and people of other faith traditions). Finally, we move well outside our comfort zone and touch the world by taking the Gospel to people who live far away, who speak another language, and whose customs may completely baffle us.

After nearly two thousand years of church history, we might ask just how well we're doing in obeying Acts 1:8. What is the state of Christianity today? Where is it waning and where is it spreading the fastest? How are Christians in all parts of the world carrying out the Great Commission?

What about the Christian world?
According to a recent report by the International Mission Board, the Christian world is made up of 141 countries where at least 60% of the population self-identifies as "Christian." Ninety-five percent of the citizens in those nations have heard the Gospel, though obviously not all have responded with faith in Christ. While most research organizations claim that Christians worldwide number around two billion (a little less than one-third of the global population of seven billion), the number of practicing Christians is much lower -- about 1 in 8 worldwide, according to the sponsors of the Jesus film.

In America, for instance, 78% call themselves Christians, but less than half of them go to church weekly. (Sadly, the Pew Research Center reports that the fastest growing group in America is the "religiously unaffiliated," representing 16%, or 49 million, of our fellow citizens.) One indicator of our spiritual luke-warmness is reflected in how we spend our money. People living in these 141 nations hold 52% of the world's wealth. However, we spend 99.9% of our income on ourselves. Only .09% goes to spread the Gospel in the evangelized, non-Christian world, and only .01% is spent on the unevangelized world.

What about the unreached world?
Worldwide, most unreached or unevangelized people are found in what is called the 10/40 window (10-40 degrees north latitude). Over four billion people live in these nations, including 80% of the world's poor. Only 8% of the world's missionaries operate there, so 90% of the people in 10/40 window have limited or no exposure to the Gospel, mainly because their nations are either closed to, or hostile to, Christian missionaries:

• 1.2 billion live under Communist rule
• 1.3 billion are Muslims
• 1 billion are Hindus
• 350 million are Buddhists
• 250 million practice tribal religions

But the most troubling statistic coming out of the 10/40 window is this: 66,000 of them die each day without knowing Christ.

How is the Gospel spreading in our day?
Lest we think the battle for souls is being lost, however, there is much good news to report. Thanks to the efforts of thousands of Bible translators, especially in the last 30 years, 80% of the world's people now have access to at least some portion of the Bible in a language they can understand, and more than 83 million Bibles are distributed each year throughout the world. Christian television programs, radio broadcasts, and internet sites are reaching millions of people living in the 10/40 Window (and other inaccessible places) who might never meet a Christian missionary face to face. Christian radio programs have the potential of reaching 99% of the world's population, with startling impact. For instance, in one month, Trans World Radio saw over half a million downloads in China of their online program. One website tracks the number of visitors to Christian websites around the world (www.greatcommission2020.com) and reveals who has indicated a decision for Christ -- all in real time.

Considered one of the most effective witnessing tools ever, the Jesus film -- now available in more than 1100 languages -- is leading millions to the Savior. Every eight seconds, someone in the world trusts in Christ as the result of watching the Jesus film. That's 10,800 people a day; 324, 000 a month; and more than 3.8 million a year. In fact, since 1979, 200 million people have become Christians after seeing the movie.

The really good news, however, is how indigenous, or national, Christians are reaching their own people -- though often at a cost reminiscent of Tertullian's words: "The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church." Despite facing severe persecution and opposition in places like North Korea, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Nigeria, evangelical Christianity is growing -- especially in Asia and Africa. In China alone, more than 10,000 people a day come to know Christ. Across Africa, more than 16,000 a day become Christians.

How missional are non-western churches?
More than three-fourths of the world's Christians now live outside the West, which is one reason why many experts believe that the day of Western missionary dominance is over. Also, unlike western Christians (whose passion for Christ and for the lost seems to be waning), non-western Christians have picked up the baton of global evangelism and are running hard for the finish line. In one pastor's words, they have "caught the vision and [are] engaged and energized" in reaching what they themselves call the "majority world" (what Westerners call "the third world") -- a shift in terminology that has mission experts in the West readjusting their presuppositions about how to approach global missions in the 21st century.

Non-western churches are sending out missionaries in record-breaking numbers, accompanied by the belief that they are both called by God and better equipped to reach non-western peoples, especially Muslims. Consider these facts:

In 2006, Protestant churches in America and Canada sponsored around 112,000 international missionaries. By comparison, the number of non-western, cross-cultural missionaries that year was just over 103,000. Yet churches in South Korea alone have been adding 1200 new missionaries to the field each year -- one missionary for every 4.2 congregations (far ahead of churches in the United States, which don't even make the top ten in this category).

It's not hard to understand, therefore, why Rob Moll in a 2006 Christianity Today article predicted that the church in South Korea would soon surpass the church in America in sending out foreign missionaries -- and with greater effectiveness in winning people to Christ when it comes to ministering in majority-world nations. About half of the Korean missionaries work in Asia, but one-fourth are serving in Muslim countries. In fact, according to Moll, Koreans see their missionaries "as uniquely positioned" to bridge the gap between the West and the Muslim world because they are not stigmatized by negative historical associations (the Crusades) or hampered by the mistrust engendered by the current war against terrorism. Korean churches have determined to send out one million "tent-making" missionaries (those who support themselves while ministering abroad) by 2020, and another 100,000 career missionaries by 2030.

In a similar fashion, the church in China is engaged in the Back to Jerusalem movement, which first started in the 1920s but was severely hampered by the intense persecution suffered by the Chinese Church under Mao, and which continues even today. Chinese Christians recognize that Christianity spread west from Jerusalem, eventually reaching their homeland. Their goal is to reverse that movement, sending at least 100,000 missionaries to take the Gospel east along the "Silk Road" and back to its place of origin. In that way, they hope to bring the Gospel "full circle" geographically. One unique qualification is that many of the Chinese missionaries have personally faced opposition, deprivation, torture, and imprisonment at home; therefore, they are not cowed by the possibility of facing similar trials on the mission field.

Add to this the number of Christians in India, who are particularly dedicated to evangelism and church-planting. My daughter and I recently attended a missions conference where several missionaries to India spoke about how each new convert believes it is his or her duty to go start another house church -- beginning with their family, friends, and neighbors. While exact numbers are hard to come by, the house-church movement in India is exploding. Right now, the percentage of Christians in India is small; but with their attitude toward spreading the Gospel and starting churches, their numbers should rise dramatically in a few short years.

What does the church in America need to do?
When I consider how God is at work in other parts of the world, my heart grieves for what I see in America. Like the church in Ephesus, too many of us seem to have lost our "first love" (Revelation 2:4) and seem content with being lukewarm, Laodicean believers (Revelation 3:16). We desperately need to regain our passion for Christ, our burden for the lost, and our overwhelming gratitude for the grace God has poured into our lives -- gratitude so deep that we can't help but speak about the "unsearchable riches of Christ" (Ephesians 3:8) to others. Until we do, we will not be able to recapture the heart for missions which has so characterized our nation's history, and which has resulted in so much blessing to our people and to the world. Until we do, we will not fulfill the command to take the Gospel to our Jerusalem, our Judea, and our Samaria -- let alone to the "uttermost parts" of our world (Acts 1:8 KJV).

The good news? The growing antagonism toward Christianity and increasing disdain for Christians which we are now seeing in American society, the media, and the courts can work for our good if we will allow it to (Romans 8:28). As we must increasingly count the cost of following Christ, we just might become "hot" rather than lukewarm. We just might choose to become sold-out disciples for Christ. My prayer, therefore, is that my brothers and sisters in Christ here in America will adopt the words of an African Christian martyred for his faith as part of a renewed commitment to being His disciples:

I am part of the "Fellowship of the Unashamed."

The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line.

The decision has been made.

I am a disciple of Jesus Christ.

I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still.

My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, and my future is secure.

I am finished and done with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams,

chintzy giving, and dwarfed goals.

I no longer need pre-eminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I now live by His presence, lean by faith, love by patience, lift by prayer, and labor by power.

My pace is set, my gait is fast, my goal is Heaven, my road is narrow, my way is rough, my companions few,

my Guide reliable, my mission clear.

I cannot be bought, compromised, deterred, lured away, turned back, diluted, or delayed.

I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of adversity, negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity.

I am a disciple of Jesus Christ.

I must go until Heaven returns, give until I drop, preach until all know, and work until He comes.

And when He comes to get His own, He will have no problem recognizing me.

My colors will be clear.

Next steps

What about you? Have you identified your own Personal Mission Field, and are you beginning to work that Mission Field like one who has been sent to it by the Lord for the purpose of making disciples? Download this free worksheet to help you in mapping out your Personal Mission Field. Share this with some Christian friends, and then agree to encourage and hold one another accountable for the work of the Gospel in your own lives.

For more insight to this topic, get the book, The New Shape of World Christianity, by Mark A. Noll, from our online store. Or read the article, “A Bigger – and Smaller – View of Mission,” by John G. Stackhouse, Jr.

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