This is an article from the July-August 1995 issue: GCOWE 1995

The Declaration of the Global Consultation on World Evangelization 1995 (GCOWE ‘95)

The AD2000 and Beyond Movement May 25,1995

The Declaration of the Global Consultation on World Evangelization 1995 (GCOWE ‘95)

Our Foundation We, about 4000 Christians from 186 countries, were graciously hosted by the churches of Korea in Seoul, May 17-25, 1995, for a Global Consultation on World Evangelization. We continue the spirit of earlier consultations committed to the task of global evangelization. Building upon the biblical foundation and call to mission set forth in the Lausanne Covenant and the Manila Manifesto, as well as the Statement of Faith of the World Evangelical Fellowship, and inspired by the vision articulated at the Singapore 1989 Consultation, we desire to move further toward "a church for every people and the Gospel for every person by AD 2000."

Our Mandate Basic to our vision, our mission and our strategy is the incarnational model of Jesus Christ (Galatians 4:4; John 1:14). He alone is the Way, the Truth and the Life (John 14:6). In obedience to Him, the disciples went forth in the power of His Spirit to be His witnesses and to establish His church across the earth (Acts 1:8). The Lord of the harvest calls us to follow Him (Mark 1:17), to take up our cross (Mark 8:34), and to measure our lives by the priorities of His Kingdom (Matthew 6:33). By placing the emphasis on becoming like Him, Christ intended that His disciples grow not only in holiness but also as active participants in His mission (John 14-17). To make reproducing disciples of Christ is a way of life; it is the way our crucified and risen Lord lived His life on earth, and now the way He commands all His disciples to follow (2 Timothy 2:2).

Our Vision We came together around a vision created in us by the command of Christ to "make disciples of all nations" (Matthew 28:19) and to "preach the Gospel to every creature" (Mark 16:15). Our concern is for the whole church to take the whole Gospel to the whole world. Our primary but not exclusive focus is on the "10/40 Window" (the area of ten to forty degrees North of the equator from West Africa to East Asia) where most of the unreached people groups are located. There also we find the greatest degrees of poverty, illiteracy, disease and suffering.

We confess a deep awareness of our failure in the past to do all we could have done to make Christ known throughout the world, especially in the areas where no church movement exists. We also repent of our needless divisions and competitive attitudes that have hindered the advance of the Gospel. We resolve, by God's grace, to no longer ignore the challenges, nor miss the opportunities set before us. This is the time for which we were born (Esther 4:14).

We see the close of the millenium as a unique occasion to reemphasize the urgency of taking the Gospel to the ends of the earth. The year 2000 can serve as a milestone to mark the advance of the Gospel both as a focal point for intensified evangelistic work and a transition to a new century of missionary outreach.

Our Purpose We seek, in a spirit of servanthood, to encourage, network and motivate Christian leaders and churches by inspiring them to obedience to the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20) and the Great Commandment (Matthew 22:37-40). Our intent is to stimulate cooperation among existing denominations, congregations, para-church organizations, missionary societies, and service groups of all kinds in order to work unitedly toward this objective (John 17:20-23). The expected result is the establishment of a mission-oriented church- planting movement among every people of the world, both in rural areas and urban centers. This will ensure that everyone has a valid opportunity to experience the love, truth and saving power of Jesus Christ in fellowship with other believers (John 13:34-35). In the face of widespread tribalism and racism, only the Gospel can bring lasting peace and reconciliation among peoples (Ephesians 2:14; Galatians 3:28).

Our Strategies With this end in view, we wait on God in prayer and fasting. Without heaven-sent revival, all our efforts will be in vain. We yearn for an outpouring of sovereign grace and power in a mighty spiritual awakening across the length and breadth of the Church. The magnitude of this task is beyond our resources, but we know that with God all things are possible (2 Corinthians 10:4; Luke 1:37; Philippians 4:13). Our role is that of a catalyst to arouse concern and accelerate divinely motivated initiatives. As God enables, we will do this by disseminating information and facilitating cooperative missionary efforts, leadership development, compassionate care for physical needs and social justice, and evangelistic efforts across cities, nations and continents. We will endeavor to maintain accurate progress reports of church-planting efforts among the least evangelized peoples, so that all might be aware of people groups everywhere that have not yet heard the redeeming Word.

We recognize that these strategies need to be worked out in specific country-by-country cooperative plans. We gratefully acknowledge the example of the brothers and sisters of our host country, Korea, who have challenged us by their creative plans such as: a 1-1-1 intercessory prayer movement (every member praying for one minute at 1 p.m. every day for one non-Christian friend or one particular country or one unreached people or one missionary friend or one pastor); a call for every Christian living in a country whose per capita gross national product (GNP) is more than $5,000 to give at least $1 a month to help those in poverty; and a summons to courageously stand for the universal upholding of human rights and religious freedom. Strategies, however good, should be matched by commitment to their implementation.

Our Commitment The tremendous potential of the AD 2000 and Beyond Movement was vividly portrayed by the powerful Korean Student Mission 2000 event at the Olympic Stadium. On the evening of May 20, 1995, 80,000 students, assembling under the banner of the Cross, dramatically dedicated themselves to obey the Great Commission.

We, too, covenant to pray and worship as we work together for the evangelization of the world. We must have the empowerment that comes from on High. Therefore, in total dependence upon the Holy Spirit, we dedicate ourselves anew to Jesus Christ, "who loved us and gave Himself for us" (Galatians 2:20).

Despite the difficulties, we look expectantly to the day when the Gospel finally "will be preached in all the world" (Matthew 24:14), and the redeemed of the Lord will be gathered from "every tribe, and language, and people, and nation" to praise Him forever (Revelation 5:9; 7:9). Our commitment to world evangelization directs our energy toward this goal to which history is moving, when the completed church will be presented to the Father in all the beauty of His holiness, and every knee shall bow and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God (Philippians 2:10-11; Romans 10:9-10; 1 Corinthians 12:3).

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