Evangelism Emphasis Mission Statement

WORLD METHODIST EVANGELISM EMPHASIS 2004-2006

"That the world may know Jesus Christ!"

At the World Methodist Conference in Brighton, England, a resolution was passed which called the Methodist People to prayer and fasting and to spreading the good news of Christ Jesus. In response to this resolution, the World Evangelism Division of the World Methodist Council is launching a series of activities and events in 2004, 2005 and 2006 aimed specifically at further empowering members of the Wesleyan/Methodist denominations around the world to reach out and share the love of Jesus Christ. Initial plans were developed by the World Methodist Evangelism Regional Secretaries in April, 2003 and refined by the World Methodist Evangelism Leadership Summit for the Americas in Havana, Cuba in January, 2004. The following statement is an introduction to the Evangelism Emphasis. The entire booklet can be viewed or downloaded in pdf format for local printing by clicking here.

The URGENCY of this MOMENT

This moment, there is an urgency for spreading the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ! There has never been a moment of greater challenge and urgency for the ministry of World Evangelism.

The Church was born in a mission situation.
The Church today finds itself in a mission situation.
Does it matter to us if persons know Jesus or not?
This world is hurting, lost, confused, distracted, distraught, diseased and disgraced.
This world desperately needs healing, hope and salvation.
This world needs Jesus Christ!

During the planning sessions at the January, 2004 World Methodist Evangelism Leadership Summit in Havana, Cuba, the growing crisis of pluralism in the Americas was lifted up as a key facet in the sense of urgency about offering Christ in our time. In the Wesleyan tradition, we affirm that grace and love of all persons is basic to our expression of faith, however, the casual acceptance of a wide variety of quasi-religious, secular, and sometimes heretical faith expressions has resulted in a weakening of evangelistic outreach in many areas. Because of this, we are urgently being called to offer the unique Gospel of hope and salvation through Jesus Christ to all persons in all situations in all nations.

The UNIQUENESS of this MINISTRY

The ministry of World Methodist Evangelism is unique. There is nothing like it in any other world communion of Christians.

Early 60’s: World Evangelism was first envisioned by Harry Denman and, in 1967-68, the World Evangelism concept was introduced to the World Methodist Council by Bishop Gerald Ensley.
1971: the World Methodist Council established World Methodist Evangelism and called for an intensified period of worldwide mission and evangelism.
Chairpersons of World Evangelism: 1971-Bishop Gerald Ensley, 1976-Rev. George Sails, 1981-Bishop Dwight Loder.
General Secretaries of World Methodist Council: 1971-1976-Dr. Lee Tuttle, 1976-2001-Dr. Joe Hale, currently Dr. George Freeman.
1978: Reverend Sir Alan Walker appointed World Director and Methodism became the only world communion with a full-time director of Evangelism.
1980: First International Christian Youth Conference on Evangelism.
1981: The World Methodist Council established the World Methodist Evangelism Institute — a joint ministry of World Evangelism, the World Methodist Council and Candler School of Theology, Emory University. Dr. George E. Morris served as the founding Director of this ministry that is unique among all world communions of Christians.
1986: Dr. Maxie D. Dunnam elected Chairperson of World Evangelism.
1989: Dr. H. Eddie Fox installed as second World Director of Evangelism.
1991: the “Decade of the Dawning Millennium” launched in Singapore.
1992-2003: Evangelism leaders were raised up through the work of Regional Secretaries of Evangelism, the launch of Connecting Congregations, the introduction of the Order of the FLAME, the development of Faith-Sharing training and resources, the distribution of new evangelism resources, and through major Regional and International Seminars held by the World Methodist Evangelism Institute.

The World Methodist Evangelism movement is unique and poised for a significant unified mission. We have been called and prepared for such a moment as this.

The UNITY in our MISSION

In 2001, the World Methodist Conference called Methodist people to prayer and fasting and to spreading the good news of Christ Jesus around the world. Between Easter and Pentecost, 2003, the Regional Secretaries met to respond to this challenge. They launched the initial plans of a global World Methodist Evangelism Emphasis for 2004-6 designed around the theme, “That the world may know Jesus Christ!”

At the first of several Evangelism Leadership Summits that will be held around the world, morethan one hundred leaders from twenty six Wesleyan/Methodist denominations in the Americas met in Havana, Cuba in January, 2004 to further refine the World Methodist Evangelism Emphasis. This summit called for a uniquely Wesleyan/Methodist emphasis to meet the challenges of evangelistic outreach in the Americas by focusing on these four elements:

First, our evangelism ministries must be informed and shaped by the specific needs and cultural milieu of those to whom we are offering the Gospel. We are called to clearly identify the unique motivations, aspirations, fears, loves, and hopes of persons in our specific area of the world and to creatively shape our outreach to meet those needs without compromising the uniqueness of the Gospel.
Second, our evangelism ministries must be wholistic. We must carefully respond the total needs of persons—physical, emotional, economic, social, political and spiritual—by offering the Gospel of Jesus Christ through ministries of word, deed, and sign.
Third, our evangelistic outreach must be based on our awareness of the power of God's prevenient grace. At all times in all places, God is already at work in the lives of every person that we encounter and our awareness of that grace must shape the ways in which we offer the Gospel of Christ Jesus.
Fourth, our outreach must always be infused by the Holy Spirit. Alone, we are powerless but, empowered by the Holy Spirit, our outreach becomes a dynamic expression of the saving grace of God as expressed in Jesus Christ. Our prayers are for a worldwide Pentecost so that “The World May Know Jesus Christ!”

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