Acts 19:20
“The word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power.”
God’s word has influence. It impacts lives and changes communities. It spreads. It grows.
Today, every third person on the planet is a Christian.
In Ephesus Paul’s preaching brought change. There was spiritual renewal among “some disciples” (Acts 19:1-7) whom he baptised. God’s power routed evil and “a number who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls together and burned them publicly” (Acts 19:17-19). There was cultural change as the gospel clashed with the worship of idols to Artemis (Acts 19:23-41).The word spread.
This was the pattern everywhere.
- Acts 6:7 “So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.”
- Acts 12:24 “But the word of God continued to increase and spread.”
- Acts 13:49 “The word of the Lord spread through the whole region.”
- Acts 19:20 “In this way the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power.”
Despite what a secular western media may imply, nothing has changed. The gospel still has influence. God’s word still spreads. Never dismiss this truth! Never lose sight of the power of Jesus.
In the last 100 years Christianity has spread to Africa where the church has grown from 9% of the population to 50%.The growth of the church in Asia since 1950 has been equally impressive.
While the West has become more secular, turning away from the gospel heritage that has given so much, the “word of the Lord” has continued to spread. Christianity has not declined, it’s centre has shifted.
Here are some 2010 facts about Christianity*
- There are 2.3 billion Christians which is one third of the world's population
- 1.5 billion people are church attenders
- Christianity has more adherents than any other religion on the planet
- The most exciting growth of the Christian church is happening in Africa and Asia
- An average of 178,000 Christians are martyred each year
- Spanish is the leading language of church membership in the world
And here are two more interesting facts
- At the close of each day there are 85,000 more Christians in the world
- And, 300 fewer Atheists!
I know there are challenges. Christianity in the west is declining, Islam is growing faster than Christianity, 800 million of the world's Christians don’t turn up in church and many don’t live up to the ideals Jesus calls us to. But none of this changes the fact that God’s word spreads and grows even today. The word of the Lord still “grows in power”. There is work to do and much to celebrate.
Christianity is not antiquated. Christians are not a marginal group on the planet. The gospel of Jesus has made a massive impact which cannot be eclipsed by a few sarcastic quips in a novelette or the dismissive rant of an angry journalist.
Global Christianity has great strength. Jesus’ vision for our planet is not dead, it’s not even sick. It requires faithful followers of Christ to pray, live holy lives, love our neighbours, witness and believe!
- What encourages you or discourages you about global Christian witness?
- How do you contribute to the spread of "the word of the Lord"?
Wow! What encouraging statistics! 85,000 more Christians a year IS SO encouraging, especially when you feel like your 'friends' aren't seeing God despite your sharing Him with them. Encouraged to pray more for those beyond my circle and those I don't know, who don't know Jesus! What a positive note to end the day on - Thanks Allan :)
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