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Mission10월 28일 금요일, 북아시아태평양지회 연례회의는 대총회가 제안한 도시선교에 관한 문서를 받고 도시선교에 대한 전략적 계획을 세우고 추진할 것을 결의했다.
2010년 10월 31일이면 전세계의 인구가 70억을 돌파하게 된다. 2008년부터 전세계 인구는 도시와 시골 거주자가 같아졌다. 매일 매분마다 130명이, 하루에 200,000명 이상이, 1년에 남북한 인구에 해당하는 7,000만명이 시골에서 도시로 이동하고 있다.
반면에 재림교회는 대부분이 시골에 위치해 있을 뿐만 아니라 도시에 있는 교회들도 영세할 뿐 아니라 그나마 대부분 교인들의 구성도 고령화되어 있어 도시 선교에 대한 새로운 각성과 계획이 요구되어왔다.
대총회에서는 연례회의에서 도시선교(Mission to the Cities)에 관한 문서를 제안했으며 13개 지회에서는 연례회의를 통해 결의했다. 각 연합회에서도 같은 문서를 결의하게 될 예정이다.
대총회는 2013년 6월에 뉴욕대전회를 계획하고 있다. 1,900만명의 인구가 살고있는 뉴욕에는 800개 언어가 사용되고 있을만큼 전세계의 모든 나라 사람들이 와서 살고 있다. 대총회는 지회와 협력하여 각 언어로 전도회를 경영하게 되고, 이어서 2013년 11월부터 2014년 4월 사이에 각 지회별로 대도시를 정하여 대전도회를 경영하고, 2013년 9월부터 11월 사이에 130개의 연합회별가 전도회를 경영하며, 2014년 1월부터 7월까지 500개의 합회/대회/선교지역이 전도회를 경영할 것을 결의했다.
고기를 잡는 어부가 어장을 찾아가는 것이 당연한 것처럼, 도시로 몰려드는 영혼들을 도시에서 찾아야 하는 것이 하나님의 전략이다.
(도시 선교의 중요성에 대해서 강조하는 대총회장 테드 윌슨 목사)
Annual Council
“Modeling Christ’s Caring Compassion in the 21st Century”
Comprehensive Urban Evangelism
October 2011
THE CHALLENGE
The world’s cities present a formidable challenge for the Seventh-day Adventist Church. More than half of the world’s population lives in cities with approximately 200,000 people moving from rural communities to urban communities every day, globally. This is around 70 million per year, or 130 every minute. (www.worldchanging.com)
“In 2008, for the first time, the world’s population was evenly split between urban and rural areas.” (www.Population Reference Bureau, 2010) “Fewer than 30% of the world’s 2.5 billion people lived in cities in 1950. By 2050 almost 70% of the world’s estimated 10 billion people will do so according to the United Nations.” (Christianity Today, Urban Urgency, August, 2010)
For decades faithful Seventh-day Adventists have been living in and effectively sharing their faith in many of the world’s great cities. This initiative Mission to the Cities strongly affirms the work that these consecrated administrators, pastors, and lay people have done and are doing for Christ in urban areas. It will help nurture existing outreach activities and strengthen what God is already doing through His people. Nevertheless, in spite of our diligent efforts, the Seventh-day Adventist Church has a relatively small presence in most of the world’s major cities. Our impact in the world’s great population centers is far less than our Lord’s desire for His Church. Mission is deeply embedded within the heart of God. He is, “not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). He is a God who desires all “to be saved and come to knowledge of the truth” (2 Timothy 2:4). His heart of divine compassion is broken over lost people. The New Testament Church caught Christ’s vision of reaching people in the cities and planted churches in Jerusalem, Antioch, Ephesus, Rome and throughout the Mediterranean world.
DIVINE COUNSEL
Jesus loves cities because He loves people and cities are where most people live. The Gospels describe Jesus relentless passion to reach people living in the cities of His day.
“And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and disease among the people. But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered like sheep having no shepherd.
Then He said to His disciples, “the harvest is truly plenteous but the laborers are few, therefore pray the Lord of harvest to send laborers into His harvest.” (Matthew 9:35-38)
Underlying Jesus evangelistic strategy to reach the multitudes was caring compassion. What He taught He lived. Christ’s method was simply meeting needs in the Father’s name and sharing the Father’s love and truth in a broken, hurting first century world. (Ministry of Healing, page 143) His first Century strategy has not changed in the 21st Century.
The Holy Spirit moved repeatedly upon Ellen G White’s mind regarding the need to develop broad, visionary plans to reach the teeming multitudes living in the cities. Here are two of her most significant statements regarding our work in the cities.
“There is no change in the messages that God has sent in the past. The work in the cities is the essential work for this time. When the cities are worked as God would have them, the result will be the setting in operation of a mighty movement such as we have not yet witnessed.”—Medical Ministry, page 304
“The importance of making our way in the great cities is still kept before me. For many years the Lord has been urging upon us this duty, and yet we see but comparatively little accomplished in our great centers of population. If we do not take up this work in a determined manner, Satan will multiply difficulties which will not be easy to surmount. We are far behind in doing the work that should have been done in these long-neglected cities. The work will now be more difficult than it would have been a few years ago. But if we take up the work in the name of the Lord, barriers will be broken down, and decided victories will be ours.”—CME 14
APPLYING DIVINE COUNSEL
Ellen G White’s divinely inspired view of ministry in the cities includes comprehensive urban evangelism integrating physical, mental, social and spiritual outreach approaches to model the ministry of Jesus. It envisions pastors and laity united in mission, departments and ministries cooperating together, church-based lay training schools, city centers and rural training retreats working in unison to impact the city for Jesus. It includes the involvement of every entity and church member in an all out visionary strategy to reach as many people as possible.
The proposal in this document includes a comprehensive and sustained approach to reaching people living in the cities including fostering spiritual revival, establishing friendships, building relationships, personal witnessing, health ministry, youth ministry, community service, home groups, literature distribution, centers of influence, ministry to the impaired and disadvantaged, media outreach, public evangelism, and church planting. It includes all of our medical and educational institutions. It envisions the active involvement of every segment of the Church including administrators, departmental directors, pastors, educators, health workers, chaplains, literature evangelists, and most importantly lay people. It encourages every church member living in the world’s cities and those living around the cities to become actively involved in sharing their faith. It urges each member of the
We cannot be content when tens of millions of people in the cities do not know Christ and are totally unaware of His last day message to the world. Yet the task of reaching the teeming multitudes in the cities is beyond our capacity to accomplish. No carefully crafted strategy will accomplish God’s goal. Only as the Holy Spirit gives life to our plans and empowers our actions will they be effective. Spiritual renewal is at the heart of all we do. Revival is paramount for “Only the work accomplished with much prayer, and sanctified by the merit of Christ, will in the end prove to have been efficient for good” (DA 362). The call to reach the cities is personal. It is a call to a deeper experience with Christ ourselves and a call to earnest intercession as well as comprehensive planning and implementation. It is built completely on the foundation of revival and reformation for it is only going to be accomplished by the power of the Holy Spirit.
IMPLEMENTING DIVINE COUNSEL: THE PLAN
This plan envisions comprehensive evangelism initiatives in over 650 of the world’s major cities from 2012-2015 beginning in New York City. Why
Speaking of New York City, the messenger of the Lord declares, “This work should be continued in the power of the same Spirit that led to its establishment. Those who bear the burden of the work in Greater New York should have the help of the best workers that can be secured. Here let a center for God’s work be made, and let all that is done be a symbol of the work the Lord desires to see done in the world.”—7T 137
The General Conference, the North American Division, the Atlantic Union, the Columbia Union, the Greater New York Conference, the Northeastern Conference, the New Jersey Conference, and the Allegheny East Conference are cooperating to develop visionary, comprehensive evangelistic strategies for New York City including plans for fostering spiritual revival, equipping church members, broad-based, multi-faceted community outreach, personal and public evangelism, church planting and nurturing new converts on a sustained basis. It is imperative that we inspire and equip church members to be actively involved in a sustained and ongoing evangelistic approach that does not culminate with a major public evangelistic meeting. A continuous emphasis on urban evangelism under the guidance of the Holy Spirit will constantly reach more people for the kingdom.
A major focus of “Mission to the Cities” is conducting 150-200 evangelistic meetings in New York City targeting varied ethnic and language groups in June of 2013. World Divisions will be invited to send some of their best evangelistic workers to participate in this massive outreach which will be a culmination of intense ongoing and sustained preparation and seed-sowing evangelistic activities. As indicated, these activities will continue after the June 2013 evangelistic outreach. During the June 2013 evangelistic outreach, an International Field School of Urban Evangelism focusing on all aspects of city mission and outreach will be conducted for the local and overseas evangelists during the evangelistic series.
As part of the overall plan for this quinquennium, in the very near future each of the thirteen World Divisions will choose a city within their Division territory based on the timetable included in the Addendum of this document and develop comprehensive strategies to reach the people in their designated city. Division leadership will need to consider strategies which are applicable and sustainable in their respective Divisions. Master plans to reach these large urban areas, as well as budgets, will need to be put in place.
The target goal is for each Division to conduct their major evangelistic reaping campaigns targeted at one city in their division by early 2014.
As part of the overall plan, each of the nearly 130 Unions, in the near future and in conjunction with their division leadership, will choose a city within their Union Territory and will develop comprehensive strategies to reach the people in their designated city. Strategies will be formulated and action plans implemented in harmony with the cultural diversity and unique character of each Union. Research and discussion will take place with those who have been engaged in urban evangelism. The goal is for each Union to conduct a major evangelistic reaping series in their target cities during the last quarter of 2014.
Again, as part of the overall plan, each of the over 500 Conferences/ Missions/Fields will choose a city within their Conference and will develop comprehensive strategies to reach the people in their designated city. Conference/Mission/Fields administration along with local pastors will develop plans that reach both their chosen city and also their local churches for a comprehensive evangelistic initiative in 2015 just before the General Conference Session in
To accomplish an initiative this large will involve administrators, departmental directors, pastors, and lay people. It will involve churches and institutions, conference and supporting ministries, adults and youth, men and women, children—all of us. This is much more than 650 evangelistic meetings in major cities. Although there is a strong reaping component, this initiative is an all-inclusive comprehensive strategy urging every entity of the Church to place priority on mission and reaching lost people, especially in the urban centers of population on a sustained and ongoing basis.
A DIVINE APPEAL AND PERSONAL COMMITMENT
God’s heart is broken over lost people in the world’s cities and large metropolitan areas. It will take extraordinary vision and faith to put these plans into action but can we do any less than our Lord asks of us? Can we be content when tens of millions in the cities are totally unaware of Jesus and His love? Can we be satisfied with our current growth rates when the majority of earth’s population is unaware of God’s special truths and three angels’ messages in this critical hour of earth’s history? May our hearts beat with His in participating with Him in His mission to reach the cities. May the burden of His heart be the burden of our hearts. With eyes divinely anointed may we look beyond what is to what can be and what will be. May we by faith catch the vision and see tens of thousands of Seventh-day Adventists actively involved in witness, mission and making disciples for the Master. May each department be focused on mission. May every church be alive with the spirit of mission and thousands of new churches be planted in the world’s major cities and tens of thousands of new believers rejoicing in the glorious hope of the three angels’ messages. Remember that “When the cities are worked as God would have them, the result will be the setting in operation of a mighty movement such as we have not yet witnessed” (MM 304). God has promised the mighty movement. He will fulfill His promise as we humbly submit to Him, laying our plans at His feet, following His instruction in the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy, and plead with the Holy Spirit for the power to accomplish the task entrusted to us by heaven itself. We enthusiastically anticipate Christ’s soon second coming when thousands upon thousands of saved people from the large cities and the rural areas will ascend together to meet the Lord in the air and be taken to our homes in the New Jerusalem, the ultimate city and safe haven for God’s people throughout eternity. Let us dedicate ourselves to God’s comprehensive plans for “
ADDENDUM: SUGGESTED TIMETABLE
October 2011 — Annual Council Presentation – Mission To the
Cities–Comprehensive Urban Evangelism
November 2011 — Division Year End Meetings Presentation –
Mission to the Cities
Evangelism Symposium at the General Conference
April 2012 — Division Target Cities presented at GC Spring
Council
May 2012 — Mission to the Cities launched in the 13 Division
target cities. Comprehensive strategies and action
plans developed
October 2012 — Union Target Cities presented at Annual Council
November 2012 — Union Target Cities presented at Year End
Meetings
April 2013 — Mission to the Cities launched in Union Target
Cities. Comprehensive strategies and action plans
developed
June 2013 — New York City evangelistic meetings in 150-200
sites coordinated by the North American Division
with General Conference President, Ted N.C.
Wilson, and participation by GC, Division, Union,
Conference, pastors, and church members June 7-
29.
— International Field School of Comprehensive Urban Evangelism for local and world participants
— New York City initiative continues following
meetings/seminars/events
October 2013 — Mission to the Cities Division-wide Reports
Presented at Annual Council
— Division-wide evangelistic meetings launched in
the 13 World Divisions between November 2013
and April 2014
April 2014 — Mission to the Cities reports of Division-wide
Meetings presented at Spring Council
September-December 2014 — Mission to the Cities Evangelistic meetings
Begin in 130 Unions between September and
December. They will vary in both the length of
the meetings and the exact time they begin due to
local factors.
October 2014 — Mission to the Cities Union Reports at Annual Council
November 2014 — Mission to the Cities Division and Union Reports
presented at Year End Meetings
— Union presidents present reports of Conference-
wide Mission to the Cities initiatives
January- July 2015— Comprehensive evangelistic approaches in one
major city in each of our 500 plus Conferences.
Although this proposal focuses on the larger urban areas, its principles can be applied to every church in the world field. We encourage each church to be actively involved in mission and ministry sharing Jesus with lost people everywhere. Mission to the Cities is part of the General Conference Tell the World initiative which includes Reach Up, Reach Out, and Reach Across. From January to July 2015 we encourage every congregation to participate in some form of evangelistic outreach.
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