A TIDAL WAVE OF CHRISTIANITY [ENCOURAGING NEWS THIS LORD'S DAY]

September 11th focused a lot of attention on the growth of Islam. What most pundits and scholars have missed is the incredible growth of Christianity, and where it's growing. Today more Presbyterians worship in the African nation of Ghana than in Scotland. And more Anglicans worship in Nigeria than in Britain. We like to think of ourselves as the Christian West. But there is growing evidence that the center of Christendom has moved. Africans are running to accept Jesus Christ. It is a scene playing out all across the developing world.

It may sound like an exaggeration, but it's not: Christianity is sweeping across the southern hemisphere and Asia like a tidal wave. "The scale of Christian growth is almost unimaginable," said Dr. Philip Jenkins, distinguished professor of History and Religious Studies at Penn State University.

Jenkins shocked and probably panicked some of America's political and media elite with his acclaimed book, The Next Christendom: The Coming of Global Christianity. Jenkins argues the greatest movement of the past century was not communism or capitalism. Do the math and the winner is spirit-filled Christianity, or what he terms in his study as "Pentecostalism." "

The modern Pentecostal movement begins at the start of the 20th century," Jenkins said. "So say this begins with a few hundred, a few thousand people… today you're dealing with several hundred million people, and the best projections are by 2040's or 2050's, you could be dealing with a billion Pentecostals worldwide. By that stage there will be more Pentecostals than Hindus. There are already more Pentecostals than Buddhists." Jenkins says in just 20 years, two-thirds of all Christians will live in Africa, Latin America or Asia."

Back in 1900, there were about 10 million Christians in Africa, representing about 10 percent of the population. Today there are 360 million, representing just under half the population.

That is one of the most important changes in religious history, and I think most of us didn't notice it," he said. A lot of people still haven't noticed it. When scandal or controversy hits an American church, the U.S. news media tends to treat it like a worldwide crisis for that denomination.

But it is not a crisis for those churches in the developing world. Most of them are not gripped by debates over homosexuality or abortion that is a problem for European and American liberals — they believe the Bible. "The Bible is alive in Africa and Asia and Latin America,"

Jenkins said. "Overwhelmingly, th[is] kind of Christianity is one which is very Bible-centered, which takes the Bible very seriously, takes authority very seriously, both the Old and the New Testament, in a way which I don't think western Christianity has done probably since the Enlightenment." But the growth of Christianity threatens Islam, and Christians are being slaughtered in places like Nigeria and Indonesia.

Jenkins thinks the conflict will intensify in nations where the two faiths compete. And he debunks the notion that Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world. Christianity is growing faster." If you look at the 25 most populous countries in the world in the mid-21st century, 20 of those are going to be divided to a greater or lesser extent between Christianity and Islam," Jenkins said.

Then there is China. There are about 80 million Christians in China, according to former Time Magazine Correspondent David Aikman, who predicts China will be a Christianized nation in 20 to 30 years. He does not predict a Christian majority, but a China that is 25 to 30 percent Christian. Enough, he says, to change society and government. "If you have a Christianized China, the leadership of China would reflect a Christian worldview to some degree," Aikman said. "A China that's Christianized would not be a threat to the United States."

And Aikman says the Chinese church leaders have a burden to take the gospel the rest of the way across the globe, to the Muslims. "It's part of a sense that they call 'back to Jerusalem,'" Aikman said.

"They believe that just as the gospel originally came out of Jerusalem and went to the West and to North America and Europe and came to China, now the Chinese need to bring it back to Jerusalem, not in the sense of evangelizing the Jewish, but in the sense of completing the circle so that the gospel message is available to everybody in the world."

Imagine Chinese reaching the Muslims, Koreans evangelizing Indians, Africans taking the gospel back to a largely godless Europe.

African Matthew Ashimolowo is the pastor of the fastest growing church in England. "God is sending people who used to receive missionaries to now be missionaries around the world," Ashimolowo said. Kenyan Bishop Gilbert Dya has one of the largest churches in London.

"I am in this country, believing that God sent me here in Great Britain to make a voice on His behalf to let them know that they need to repent and come back to God," he said.

The developing world is not only a growing base for world Missions, Jenkins says it is becoming the center of Christendom…again. "Jessus said His church would last until the end of time. He never used the word, 'Europe.' Christianity is returning, I think, to its roots. It is a religion that originated in the Middle East and in Africa. Perhaps it went away for a while, but now it's back," Jenkins said.

Luke 21:28 "And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh."

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Such as bringing in power factions struggles into church. I know it exists in the West as well, but it is nothing when compared with Chinese-language churches. Office politics has long been a favourite past-time for tragically far too many Chinese, that even many born again in Jesus Christ are still indulging in this very sinful habit. They go on in removing who and who from the church daily management committee, sometimes a pastor colludes with so-and-so to force someone to leave church ministry and even stop attending church together. I have seen many churches that put someone into ministry just because he is famous rather becuase he is spiritually mature enough or he has spiritual gifts in that area.

BTTT by the way!

Much agree.

HUMANITY IS SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

wellllllllllllllllllllllllllll

HUMAN! EVERYWHERE!

It has been interesting to me in Taipei--Chinese there more or less deplore the Chinese ran churches because they are sooooo stilted, structured, rigid, formal etc. So, many go to Westernized churches--only to whine about lack of structure; lack of rigidity etc.

LOL.

Then there's the precious couple running the largest Charismatic church with many branches all over the island. They really are precious. But the husband has the greater wisdom, imho--and certainly plenty of mandate from The Lord, Scripture and the people. But Mamasan has a reputation for running things--evidently, often to ill effect based on her strong biases and political--maneuvers. Sigh.

I hate such junk.

I can't believe The Lord is thrilled with it.

PRAISE THE LORD.

I PRAY THEY MEANT SOMETHING SIGNIFICANT! PROBABLY SO IN THAT CONTEXT.

Let us all take up our crosses daily . . . as well as haul whatever needs to be hauled to THE CROSS daily.

And may we each choose and enjoy His Resurrection Life accordingly.

BTTT

I believe you are right.We have become a nation of spoiled and complacent children.The article was from CBN and since I'm Catholic, I doubt it will have any direct impact on me. I would not however, have a problem with sitting under the authority of a priest who came from West Senegal for example.

you know, a lot of Catholic diocese have priests from other countries,or who were born in other countries.

Tulsa diocese has priests from Africa, Asia, and South America. Ironically, the one from Asia and one American priest ordained two years ago are graduates of Oral Roberts Univ...but then, we are "mission territory", so tend to get outsiders to volunteer to work here.The next parish has a priest from new Zealand.

And many diocese have Vietnamese priests, either who were born there or who were born of refugees.

We have a young Brazilian couple in a church near us, pentecostal believers, and they're missionaries to NYS. They had a burden for Central New York. We know of countries of which the author wrote that are on fire for the Lord and they're sending their missionaries HERE. What goes around comes around and now we are beginning to benefit from the seed we sowed so many years ago in these nations. You never hear about what's going on in these third world countries because the media avoids them. No big secret there, huh? I don't know what it is about Christ that scares liberals so much (smile). Mxxx

AGREED.

THX.

Oh, I think you know what scares people about Jesus!

He calls them to die that they might live eternally.

. . . to take up their cross and die daily . . .

. . . to lose their lives that they might find them.

Instead, they'd rather be a god in their own mirrors.

They'd rather kick God out of the public square and pretend He won't kick them out of Love and Perfect Peace in eternity.

They'd rather murder infants for convenience and pretend that God doesn't care; doesn't notice or won't respond with His discipline.

They'd rather do their own thing in their own selfish ways and pretend that selfish arrogance makes them attractive to God and man.

They'd rather lie, steal and party today for tomorrow they die--while they at least pretend that they don't give a d*mn.

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