In an impassioned call for Christian leaders to follow Jesus’ model of ministry, noted evangelist and church planter Rick Warren listed five things faithful believers must do to win the world for Christ. It also includes “one of the most overlooked verses in the Bible.”
Speaking to an in-person audience of more than 900 international Christian leaders from 161 countries and more than 5,000 Korean missionary leaders gathered at Saran Church on Monday night on the first day of the 14th General Conference of the World Evangelical Alliance, Warren, who founded and led California’s Saddleback Church for more than 40 years, said the methods he uses are not the American or other countries’ methods, but God’s methods, and that means “that.” It’s perfect. ”
Warren’s efforts through the Mission Complete Coalition, which led “the only church in Christian history” to establish churches in 197 countries, are consistent with WEA’s mission to fulfill the Great Commission by 2033, the 2000th anniversary of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. This year’s General Conference theme is rooted in Ephesians 2:13-18 and reflects WEA’s commitment to ensuring that all people have the opportunity to hear and respond to the gospel over the next eight years.
Expressing gratitude to the more than 60,000-member Saran Church brothers and sisters for their dedication to sharing the gospel around the world, Warren said he knows of megachurches that are “not healthy” and are not interested in sharing the good news on a global scale.
So why, he asked, should WEA and other like-minded people, pastors and missionary leaders take up the Jesus model over the next eight years?
In answering that question, Warren pointed to Jesus’ own words as “one of the most overlooked verses in the entire Bible.”
“Perhaps most pastors in this room have never preached on this passage: John 12:49.” In this verse Jesus said, “I did not speak on my own authority, but the Father himself who sent me has given me commandments what to say and what to speak.”
Warren previously said he has baptized 54,000 new believers in more than 40 years of ministry, and listed “five things Jesus did in ministry” that the global body of Christ must address to complete its immediate mission. Warren echoed Jesus’ words in the Book of John, saying that knowing “how to say it” is the “biblical basis for completing the task of carrying out the Great Commission.”
“If there was a better way to conquer the world, Jesus would have used it,” he added, lamenting that “many people in our church have adopted this message and are only getting half of the blessings of Jesus, yet we are not adopting this method.”
Warren said Jesus’ methods work everywhere. “I’ve seen Jesus’ missionary model at work in the desert, in very small villages, and in huge cities. It’s cross-cultural,” he assured, summarizing the step with the acronym “peace.” Prepare the disciples. Alleviating suffering – preaching, teaching, and healing. Pray constantly and finally plant a new church.
“If you want God’s blessing in your life, if you want God’s power in your life, if you want God’s anointing in your life, you have to care about what Jesus cares about most. Jesus wants lost children to be found, and we are commanded to keep reaching out as long as there is even one person who doesn’t know Jesus,” he declared, pointing to John 4:34, John 5:36, and John 6:38.
When Jesus talked to his 12 disciples and told them he set an example for them to follow, Warren said Jesus was “not just talking about washing their feet,” but everything Jesus taught his disciples over the course of three and a half years. “That is the model,” Warren argued, pointing to John 13:17 and John 17.
“This is something that most Christians don’t understand: We are not blessed because we know the Bible, we are blessed because we act,” he declared. “The Bible says to be doers of the Word. In almost every sermon, Jesus says, ‘Go and do likewise.'”
Jesus preached and healed, and the world’s church has followed that model by preaching, teaching and healing by building churches, schools and hospitals, he added. “This is part of the Christian model. This is why the first hospital and the first university in any country in the world were founded by a Christian mission.”
Warren concluded his 55-minute sermon on following Jesus’ example by calling on those gathered at WEA to not only preach the message of Jesus, but to receive guidance on how to follow his example.
“If we learn not only the message of Jesus but also the method, we will be able to conquer the world in the next eight years.”
On Wednesday night, Warren plans to introduce two more models. One is how the first church in Jerusalem in the book of Acts carried out Jesus’ commands, and the other is a third model of God’s Word seen in Paul’s example.
Originally published by The Christian Post.
