Can the Great Commission be fulfilled in our lifetime?
That was the big question at the heart of a recent session at the North American Call2All Congress in Dayton, Ohio.
“Absolutely," responded Steve Douglass, president of Campus Crusade for Christ International, reiterating a message he delivered one year earlier.
"From the way God is moving today, even without some terrific eye of faith, I have been persuaded it will be fulfilled in our lifetimes and I personally think in the next decade,” he told some 300 attendees during the evening session last week.
Throughout the week, hundreds of Christian leaders gathered for the special four-day congress in Dayton to form a cohesive global network to work in synergy to complete the Great Commission, to help the Body of Christ around the world cross-pollinate and share best methods and practices with each other, and to use a common global map to identify the greatest needs and win the least reached.
Starting with a special pre-Congress on the eve of the US presidential inauguration, hundreds came together to confirm their hope for change – but not through one man. The resounding theme of the evening was that only God can truly change the course of a nation; real change only comes through Him.
“It’s no accident that we’re meeting together the same week that our new President is inaugurated. We are entering a new phase of world events,” said Mark Anderson, president of Call2All and the Global Pastors Network.
“It’s not going to be ‘business as usual’ for the church anymore,” he added. “We are experiencing increasing shakings all around the world; this is a prelude to the greatest ingathering into God’s Kingdom we have ever seen. The time is now! It is imperative we plan and work together to see the Great Commission completed.”
The North American Call2All Congress is one of 38 worldwide congresses that the Call2All movement plans to hold over the course of three years, and one of at least four this year that will bring together mission agencies, educators, entrepreneurs and all others involved in the missions. Organisations that have partnered with the movement include prominent groups such as Campus Crusade for Christ International (CCCI), Youth With a Mission (YWAM), Mission America, and the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA).
During Tuesday’s evening session, CCCI leader Douglass, who has over 40 years experience across the globe, offered 10 reasons why he believes the Great Commission will be fulfilled within our lifetimes.
The first four concentrated on God, who Douglass said (1) intends to fulfill the Great Commission, (2) has commanded us to fulfill the Great Commission, (3) offers us the power to fulfill the Great Commission, and (4) is moving today.
“I’ve watched God operate through the years and I’ve seen him do incredible things and much more incredible things in the last 5-10 years,” said Douglass, who spent all of his adult career in ministry.
According to Douglass, the trend right now is “not a little up; it’s up a lot”.
