This is an article from the May-June 1993 issue: The Making of Operation World

“An Appeal to Disciples Everywhere”

“An Appeal to Disciples Everywhere”

Adopt-A-People Consultation II Declaration Northfield 1885- Colorado Springs 1993

The following declaration was approved at the Second Adopt-A-People Consultation in Colorado Springs on April 27, 1993. It was given the same title as a declaration issued 108 years ago in Northfield, England. Please see the note at the bottom of the previous page for more information on the first "Appeal to Disciples."

Introduction

We the 230 participants at the Second Adopt-A-People Consultation, meeting in Colorado Springs, USA, April 25-27, 1993 make the following appeal to fellow disciples everywhere. We come from more than 107 churches, denominations, mission agencies and other Christian organizations, including some participants from other countries. We met to consider the goal of a church for every people by the year 2000. God strongly impressed upon us the need for prayer mobilization and unity along the pathway to that goal.

The appeal has two sections, shared convictions and ongoing recommendations. With God's help we believe that a church for every people by the year 2000 is an attainable goal. We do not believe that the date of this goal is necessarily the precise time of the return of Christ nor do we predict certain success by that date but we are convinced that it is a goal that still can be accomplished by the enabling grace of God.

Our Shared Convictions

  1. We recognize the reaching of unreached peoples is primarily and ultimately a spiritual battle in which God's grace and power are indispensable.
  2. We affirm the goal of a church for every people is essential in making the Gospel accessible to every person by the year 2000.
  3. We rejoice in reports of God's sovereignty expressed through peoples reached for Christ. They strengthen our faith, increase our hope and galvanize our commitment to a church for every people.
  4. We recognize that we have not done all that we could in making Christ known to the unreached peoples. For this we repent.
  5. We celebrate our love for Christ by commitment to Him and the Great Commission, a bond which draws us together to find ways to accelerate the establishment of spiritually vital churches among every people.
  6. As we approach the year 2000 we recognize that God has placed Christians in a time of unprecedented opportunity created by the opening of restricted access countries, dedicated prayer networks, and the availability and widespread distribution of the Word of God and other gospel resources.
  7. We celebrate the growth, vitality and missionary endeavors of the Two-thirds World Church. We recognize their crucial role as full partners in the attainment of the goal.
  8. We recognize that research information is essential for concerted prayer and to design appropriate strategies to establish Christ's church among every people.
  9. We believe that a focused attention on unreached peoples requires churches, denominations and missionary agencies to set new priorities in the use of finances, deployment of personnel and strategic focus of energies.
  10. We rejoice in the strategic opportunities that all believers now have to champion the cause of the unreached peoples.
  11. We realize that our common love for the Lord Jesus Christ and trust in His finished work on Calvary, combined with our desire to work together toward our AD2000 goal, are stronger than the differences that tend to divide us.
  12. We praise God for the growing prayer movements for unreached peoples.
  13. We rejoice in the imminent availability of the Registry of Peoples and Languages (ROPAL) information to researchers as a tool in the development of unreached peoples strategies.
  14. We rejoice in the formation of the Peoples Information Network (PIN) and encourage mission agencies to participate in the network.
  15. We affirm the diligent, persevering initiatives taken by the Adopt-A-People Clearinghouse and express our gratitude to them for calling this consultation.
  16. We rejoice that the Unreached and Adoptable Peoples Listing has been issued as a working document and encourage individuals and agencies everywhere to continue efforts to update and improve it.
  17. We rejoice in the cooperation and unity that is evident in our midst and the firm conviction that the task can be done by working together in reliance upon the grace and power of God.
  18. We hold that each participant in the conference is a voice for the voiceless peoples and their representative to seek to focus energy, budget and personnel for these unreached peoples.

Recommendations For Practical Steps To Accomplish The Goal.

  1. Encourage the mobilization of Christians in all countries, regions and continents of the world to take up the challenge of reaching the unreached peoples of our world.
  2. Seek increased participation of our churches and agencies in prayer mobilization focused on the unreached peoples of the world, noting two special prayer events: Praying Through the 10/40 Window in October 1993 and the Day to Change the World on June 25, 1994.
  3. Encourage mission agencies from the developed world to seek partnership with similar agencies from the Two-thirds World in planning new strategies towards reaching the unreached peoples of the world by the year 2000.
  4. Encourage every mission agency and church group to continue research and input to the Peoples Information Network (PIN) about the stage of "reachedness" of peoples within their ministry areas.
  5. Encourage deployment of an increasing percentage of our resources for work among unreached peoples.
  6. Commit ourselves to cooperate with the Adopt-A-People Clearinghouse in the production of profiles for the intercessory prayer movement.
  7. Increase support to make research functions operational in each country that will provide current, accurate information on the status of reaching a people.
  8. Encourage mission agencies and churches to make the most effective use of local and global resources to accomplish the goal.
  9. Encourage the development of resources to mobilize local churches to adopt unreached peoples.
  10. Encourage local churches to take steps in relation to their commitment to world evangelization such as, 1. recognize the high priority of the unreached people groups, 2. establish a budgetary process whereby they can contribute to this kind of outreach, 3. encourage weekly or monthly fellowship for those who wish to pray and work toward this goal, 4. accept the challenge of the local congregation adopting an unreached people group by working through a specific denominational or interdenominational mission agency and 5. seek to? pass on the passion for the unreached peoples to three or more other congregations.
  11. Within a year plan to hold a small working consultation to address remaining issues and strengthen implementational strategies.

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