Week of Prayer - ONWARD WITH the GREAT COMMISSION - Celebrating 50 Years of LausanneSample

DAY 5: TOGETHER IN MISSION (art. 5-6)

In mission, the role of the church is central. God has chosen to fulfil his mission through the mission of the church.

There is no true evangelisation without Christian integrity (Art. 6). If there is no Christian integrity, i.e., harmony between saying and doing, preaching and action, proclamation and service, the church is a stumbling block to evangelisation. The Gospel of Christ saves all life, breaks down the idols of the soul, of politics, and of the economy, transforms the heart, mind, hands, and culture, and invites us to reach out to our generation, announcing that in Christ alone is salvation and victory over sin and death. Integrity also means fidelity to the God of all, and only Scripture is the beacon that must guide our evangelisation.

Evangelisation is impossible without the unity of the body of Christ and without collaborative actions (Articles 7-8). The first does not depend on us: it is Christ who has earned it and who keeps it in the Spirit. It is distinct from any human brotherhood because it is founded on the sacrifice of Christ and the truth of his Word. Unity has already been given to us and must be shown concretely so that the mandate entrusted to us is effective in reaching the "ends of the earth", not only geographically but also socially and culturally, and so that it is sustainable because it is carried out by sharing spiritual gifts and materials that the Father has given us.

Evangelisation is urgent, and the mission field vast (art. 9). When Evangelical representatives met in Lausanne in 1974, radical historical and social changes were underway throughout the world. Not everything was clear and outlined, the trajectories of history and of nations were mostly unpredictable, but one thing was certain and urgent: the evangelisation of the world. Today, we find ourselves once again at a turning point in the history of humanity: the environmental crisis is at its peak, climate change is giving rise to an increasing number of catastrophic events, new pandemics are spreading globally, political and cultural conflicts are multiplying and arriving at the gates of Europe, refugees have reached impressive numbers in every area of ​​the planet, new technologies impose themselves with absolutely new ethical challenges, communication and information have lost credibility and the generation gap seems to have become an abyss. Fifty years later, facing a similar scenario, there is no more urgent watchword and imperative than this to be pursued together: evangelize. Our mission is not only urgent; our mission field is vast because there is not an inch of the universe over which Christ cannot claim his lordship. We are to take the gospel to all ends of the earth and all corners of life.

THANKSGIVING

We adore the Father who sent the Son into the world for the salvation of all people. We adore the Son who sends each of his own to announce the good news of the Gospel. We adore the Holy Spirit, who sends us to the whole world by His power.

CONFESSION

We ask forgiveness for our lives and those of our churches, which have often been stumbling blocks to evangelism.

We ask forgiveness for the scandals, our compromised lives, and not having behaved "worthy of the Gospel."

We ask forgiveness for forgetting our vocation to be a holy people, a radically different community.

REQUESTS

Let us pray to the Father in the name of the Son to fill this generation with the Holy Spirit, overflowing with zeal for proclaiming His Word, abundant in the knowledge of Him, in discernment and justice to understand and be present in the world.

We pray that the Lord will keep us in unity and love in Christ's sacrifice so that the world will believe you sent us.

We pray that the Spirit gives us wisdom and intelligence to collaborate locally and globally for the evangelisation of our cities and the whole world.

Lucia Stelluti

Vice-President of the Italian Evangelical Alliance