L4 Summary
History of Lausanne:
The first Lausanne Congress was initiated in 1974 and organized by theologian John Stott and revival preacher Billy Graham. It was significant in that it represented one of the first modern attempts to gather the global church, across denominations, and from as many countries in the world as possible. Time Magazine referred to it as “a formidable forum, possibly the widest ranging meeting of Christians ever held.” The original congress’s most enduring contribution is the Lausanne Covenant which has been used by many churches around the world as a sort of creed, or summary of core Biblical teaching and a clear statement of Christian mission. Additionally, Lausanne 1974 set the tone for the following decades of Christian missionary work by introducing the notion of “unreached people groups” which the Joshua Project defines as “a people group among which there is no indigenous community of believing Christians with adequate numbers and resources to [reach with the message of Jesus] this people group without outside assistance.”
Since 1974 the congress has convened three additional times (1989, 2010, 2024), each time with the goal of restating core Christian teaching and mission in the context of large-scale shifts in culture, economics, and politics around the world. Lausanne as an organization also produces high level research on emerging global trends as they effect and influence the health of the church and its progress towards accomplishing the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20).
Seoul/Incheon 2024:
The fourth Lausanne Congress (L4) was convened in the wake of the Covid 19 pandemic and in recognition of major global changes wrought by advances in technology and consequential shifts in geo-political power. Over 5000 delegates were selected through a multi-year process and gathered from 202 countries to represent the global church. The Korean church hosted the congress, which is notable since in 1900 Korea was less than 1% Christian, but today is at 30%, and is in the top five missionary sending countries in the world.
Unique to L4 was the publishing of the Report on the State of the Great Commission which was released in seven languages – over five hundred pages of high-level data and analysis garnered from years of research by 150 experts worldwide.
At the congress delegates listened to Christian leaders and influencers from around the world give updates on their regions and speak to aspects of Christian mission and concern in 2024. After these plenaries, delegates gathered in curated table groups to discuss key issues and initiatives. In the afternoons, delegates reorganized into “collaborative action groups” to engage 25 gaps in fulfilling the great commission identified by the report: a global aging population, the new middle class, reaching the next generation, Islam, secularism, least reached peoples, scripture in a digital age, church forms in a digital age, discipleship in a digital age, evangelism in a digital age, AI & transhumanism, sexuality & gender, holistic health, polycentric mission, polycentric resource mobilization, integrity & anticorruption, integrated spirituality in mission, developing leaders of character, people on the move, urban communities, digital communities, ethnicism & racism, radical politics & religious freedom, caring for creation & vulnerable people, and societal trust and influence.
The congress also included the release of the Seoul Statement, which focuses on specific theological topics identified by the Lausanne Theology Working Group as needing greater attention by the global church, consistent with and building upon themes from previous congress documents.
Analysis of five key themes:
Through the course of the congress several key themes emerged, bubbling up again and again through different documents, speakers, presentations, and group discussions. Below is a summary and analysis of five select themes.
1. The Global North and Global South[1] face similar and different challenges
We live in a hyper-connected world that has been brought closer through technology. Youth in India, Kenya, and Canada are growing up with access to the same youtube videos, websites, and apps. This means that certain social trends, although they may vary in scope, are now common across cultures. One key example of this is depression and anxiety among young people, which is spiking globally, and not just in Western countries. Other common issues include the Church’s general failure to pass the leadership baton from Boomer and Gen X generations to Millennials and Gen Z. Many countries are now facing leadership crises with record numbers of church leaders set to retire, and little representative leadership from emerging generations, which the church desperately needs to incorporate.
There are other issues however that disproportionately affect Christian groups in one zone over the other. The Church in the Global South suffers more due to ecological disasters, war, economic failure, and religious persecution – all of which are on the rise. Mass migration in response to these problems leads to “brain drain” leaving churches to struggle when it comes to maintaining stability or producing leaders.
On the other hand, churches in the Global North struggle with growing inward and distracted – increasing beset by internal divisions, doctrinal disputes, domestic political crises, and controversial social-cultural issues. There has been an overall pattern of withdraw from sending missionaries and less money going towards Gospel centered work overseas.
Overall, L4 called upon the Global North to reorient itself towards coordination with the Global South and refocus on reaching the world for Christ.
2. We are in a new era of polycentric missions
Polycentric, means “multi-centered.” A polycentric missions philosophy recognizes that missions sending is no longer unidirectional, from the “Christian” West to the non-Christian East, as it appeared to be in the 19th and 20th centuries. The general epicenter of Christianity is shifting to the Global South. For instance, should trends continue, by 2050 Africa will have the highest percentage of global Christians. Brazil, South Korea, South Africa, and the Philippines are among the more aggressive missionary sending nations in the world. Many of these non-Western mission movements lack the financial resources and expertise of well-established traditional mission agencies in the United States and Great Britain. But they have the potential to penetrate important areas mostly inaccessible to Westerns. For instance, there are already one million Filipinos dispersed through the Middle East working as migrant laborers. Filipino missionaries are entering otherwise closed countries through these communities. Similarly, Latin America’s increasing economic ties to China have allowed many Brazilians in particular to relocate there as tentmakers (working secular jobs) with ambition to share the Gospel and make disciples.
L4 made the case that polycentric missions represent a great opportunity for Great Commission progress. Churches in the Global North, and particularly those in the United States, should develop stronger connections with sending churches and missions agencies in the Global South in order to share financial resources and training.
There should also be a stronger category for sending and supporting people to go as tentmakers, especially to large urban centers where there are high concentrations of unreached peoples. Developing strategies around sending missionaries this way could be key both for financial sustainability and in increasing the volume of sending.
Key to engaging polycentric missions is understanding global migration. Reaching Iranians for instance no longer requires being in Iran. In fact, the current Christian revival happening in Iran is very much the result of decades of missionary work and spiritual movement among the 4 million and counting Iranians living abroad. For this reason, missionaries are now being sent to places like Turkey, but for the purpose of reaching Syrians (3.3 million) – and even the United States, but to reach Indians (4.9 million). These missionaries are, as stated earlier, coming from all over the world.
3. The role of collaboration
L4 emphasized the need for a higher level of collaboration than ever before in global mission and evangelistic work. Legitimate Christian groups can’t afford to duplicate efforts and compete. There needs to be more resource and data sharing between missionaries, ministries, and churches. Much of this is in recognition of the fact that our interconnected world has made the task of reaching all people, in a sense, more complicated. There is a greater need for layers of local knowledge, and nuance in understanding what is happening in particular places. Identifying true needs and coming up with effectual solutions is more likely when we are working with multiple lines of sight. Culture is also changing at such a rapid pace that there is need for flexibility and continual adaptation in mission strategy. Churches and organizations that aren’t plugged in will miss significant shifts that ought to inform their efforts.
Another aspect of collaboration L4 emphasized is developing digital ministry tools. The Jesus Film was first made in 1979 and is estimated to be responsible for 665 million people deciding to follow Christ since that time. Now it is being distributed online and branching out new projects. The ubiquitous nature of internet access and smart phones, especially in crowded urban centers around the world, means that many people are now “reachable” even though they don’t know a single Christian. Ministries dedicated to developing apps, websites, and other strategies for sharing Christ and discipling people online need funding and help in adapting their product to new mission fields.
4. The work of the Holy Spirit
The history of the Church since the ascension of Jesus and the descension of the Holy Spirit is one of ebb and flow. The original primal church burst out with power and took the message of Jesus from backwater Judea to the outer reaches of the Roman Empire, East Africa, and even India within the lifespan of its first generation. Since that time there have other seasons of radical growth, like the Christianization of Europe through the 5th and 6th centuries. There have also been seasons of regional decline, like when Christianity was all but eradicated from the Middle East under the Ottoman Empire in the 1500’s. But the big picture is a miraculous one that points to the overwhelming love and power of God. Today there are 2.4 billion people in the world who claim to be followers of Jesus. Christianity is the world’s only global religion, unrestrained and unspecific to any ethnicity, language, or culture. There are Christians in every country on earth, worshiping God, and sharing his love and forgiveness with others.
L4 emphasized that despite our mandate to strategize and coordinate for the sake of the Gospel, God is ultimately the one who draws people to Himself through the Holy Spirit. Stories from around the world of spiritual revival and growth in unlikely places and under difficult circumstances make this more than evident. Christianity is surging underground among Iranians, in China, in India, and other places where it is outlawed or openly persecuted. Representatives from many of these places participated at L4 and even spoke about their experiences at great personal risk for the sake of encouraging the global church.
5. There is much to do
Overall, L4 delivered a sobering message regarding the state of the Great Commission. Despite major gains in key parts of the world, the church is falling behind in its fundamental purpose and mission. The main reason for this is demographic in nature. Population growth is declining among wealthier nations with higher percentages of Christians and surging in places where there is no significant Christian witness. As an example, research shows that 86% of all Muslims and Buddhists don’t know a single Christian. There are still more than 3 billion people alive today who haven’t heard the Gospel message.
While there are technically less unreached people groups today due to decades of faithful missionary work, there are more unreached people than there were before. Many of these people, due to migration, urbanization, and other social factors, are no longer found in distinct geographic regions, but have now been dispersed between different cities, language groups, and sub-cultures.
Lausanne CEO, Michael Oh, pointed out that it simply isn’t enough for people to be faithful where they are at. Even if every true Christian shared Jesus and reached their immediate neighbors, by 2050 we still won’t have made a significant dent in the growing non-Christian population of the world. These peoples will only be reached through an increase in creative missionary enterprise and with the power of the Holy Spirit.
Controversy:
There was some controversy stirred up by the general process of L4 as well as a couple of the speakers. Costa Rican professor Ruth Padilla offended some participants by decrying injustices committed by Israel against Palestine but failing to address Palestine’s role in the conflict. A number of delegates wrote an open letter expressing disappointment that the Seoul Statement did not place a greater emphasis on Christians cooperating to effect climate change. They also would have preferred clearer statements regarding economic and racial inequality. Lausanne responded to this by affirming that the Seoul Statement was meant to build on previous Lausanne documents, and the Report on the State of the Great Commission – not to be an exhaustive address of all world issues worthy of Christian work and concern.
Separately, some American evangelical leaders[2] expressed concern that Lausanne as a movement is getting off focus from proclaiming the Gospel, in favor of emphasizing holistic ministry and other areas of Christian responsibility.
[1] The Global South and North refer respectively to majority world poorer countries, generally located in southern hemispheres, and minority world wealthier countries, generally located in the north.
[2] See J.D. Payne https://www.jdpayne.org/2024/04/lausanne-state-of-the-great-commission-report/, Ed Stetzer https://churchleaders.com/voices/497595-ed-stetzer-my-appeal-to-lausanne-dts.html, and Craig Ott https://churchleaders.com/voices/exchange/497883-reflections-on-the-lausanne-movement.html
