As news of Rev. Dr. Billy Graham’s passing at 99 years of age spread through the world today, the Christian community said goodbye to the one who helped defined the Christian message of the past few decades, more than any other. Bp Efraim Tendero, Secretary General of the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA), noted: “No one has more defined the essence of evangelical faith than Dr. Graham. He was God’s gift and instrument to the growth and development of today’s evangelical movement.”
He reportedly preached face to face to some 100 million people in his many public meetings since the middle of the past century. He gave focus and definition to what it meant to be born again in Christ and to what He calls us to in giving witness to the love and message of Jesus.
Rev. Dr. Billy Graham (c) BGEA.org
During his time, Dr. Graham was the voice of evangelicals, a community of Christians that grew from 90 million in the early 1960s to 600 million today. During his global travels, his prophetic and pastoral presence were trusted. His clear biblical message and deeply regarded leadership gave evangelicals a voice, an identity and clear vision. Not only did his preaching reach into millions of people, but his vision and energy translated into the lives of generations of leaders.
Throughout his life, he also had a deep interest in the world of the WEA. In 1968, at a time when the WEA needed added impetus he stepped in and provided resources for the relaunch and internationalization of the work.
WEA leaders were heavily engaged in the Lausanne Congress in 1974, where Graham and John Stott called 2,500 church leaders together in Lausanne, Switzerland, and there reshaped the evangelical witness, calling Christians to move away from just seeing the Gospel as an inward work of grace but to view ministry and calling to the world in all its need. The Lausanne Covenant became a theological and missional backdrop against which ministry was carried out. A legacy of enormous importance.
The week after the Congress ended, Dr. Graham took time to attend the WEA General Assembly nearby at Chateau d’Oex. Throughout his long ministry he continued to give much encouragement to the WEA and each of the national alliances to ensure that the results of his evangelistic efforts would be shepherded into the church, which the WEA is devoted to work with.
Living for almost a century, he had said, “I’ll preach until there is no breath left in my body. I was called by God, and until God tells me to retire, I cannot. Whatever strength I have, whatever time God lets me have, is going to be dedicated to doing the work of an evangelist, as long as I live.”
His ministry befits one who has been cited as one of the most liked persons of his generation. Avoiding political affiliation, his ministry drew together Christians from all communities. His humility, an earmark of his life, not only enabled people of all sides to join in common witness, but the clarity of his message never wavered. His faithfulness to the cross of Christ, its centrality in life and death, was an invitation for millions to accept the payment of sin and to live a Christ-centered life.
Dr. Graham’s passing leaves a vacuum that inevitably will be filled as the Spirit raises up new leadership for these coming generations.
500 years after Martin Luther asserted the vital importance of Scripture in his famous 95 Theses, which became a watershed moment in the lead up to the Protestant Reformation, evangelical Christians across the world have been re-affirming the Bible’s role in Christian discipleship.
The World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) recognizes that the Reformation helped churches to re-establish core aspects of faith and personal salvation. In a meeting in Bad Blankenburg, Germany, a few hours’ drive from the home of the reformation, Wittenberg, leaders from all regions issued a statement:
While only some of our churches trace their heritage back to Luther, we are all bound together by the spirit of Reformation that desired to bring the Church back to the essence of its faith: Solus Christus, Sola Scriptura, Sola Gratia & Sola Fide – Christ alone, Scripture alone, by grace alone & by faith alone.
The message of the reformers is as relevant today as it was five hundred years ago. Therefore, we commit ourselves to prayer, asking God to continue to guide us by His Holy Spirit that through the study of Scripture, we may all be brought together in finding common faith in Jesus Christ, our God and Savior.
Bp Efraim Tendero, Secretary General of the WEA, speaks to WEA leaders gathered at the Allianzhaus in Bad Blankenburg, Germany, to commemorate the Reformation anniversary.
The leaders of the WEA Mission Commission have further affirmed this year that, “as we learn from the Reformation movement of the 16th century, the fact is that there is a need to again call the Church to return to Scripture; searching for answers to the key questions of the world today.”
Recognizing this need, the WEA has named Dr. Lloyd and Dahl Estrada from the Philippines as International Facilitators for Bible Engagement to promote increased and meaningful Scripture engagement in churches, beginning with evangelical Christians. This year, the Estradas are facilitating conversations in a number of Asian contexts, so that national church groups, together with like-minded partners, can develop Bible engagement strategies.
Over thirty National Evangelical Alliances in Europe and around the world have used the Reformation anniversary to focus on Scripture engagement and are holding commemoration events this month. Some have also achieved public or legal recognition, such as establishing October 31 as a public holiday for Protestants in Catholic and Orthodox majority countries, or having access for the first time to state universities to represent evangelical beliefs.
Bp Efraim Tendero, Secretary General of the WEA, who has been speaking at Reformation celebrations in several countries, including Kosovo, Albania and Germany, commented: “We are thankful to the Reformation, which is an enduring testament to how God powerfully, and in surprising ways, moves in history and through the lives of men and women, who even in immense difficulties faithfully seek to obey His will.“
“As we confront challenges in our day, which may be very different from what the Reformers faced, how can we continue to appropriate, in our lives and in our churches, the valuable lessons of the Reformation?” Bp Tendero asked, and said: “May we continue the legacy the Reformers handed down to us, especially and above all, to do all things for God’s glory alone. Soli Deo Gloria.”
The World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) joins the National Association of Evangelicals, its member body in the United States, in condemning white supremacy and any other form of racism.
“As evangelicals we follow Jesus, the Prince of Peace, who even gave His own life in order to break down the wall of hostility (Ephesians 2:14). We pray that the peace that comes from Jesus will reign in communities where diverse ethnicities come together, in the USA and all other countries,” said Bp Efraim Tendero, Secretary General of the WEA.
“We also uphold the Biblical teaching that the inherent dignity of everyone is based on the fact that every person is created in the image of God, and that because of what Christ Jesus has done for humanity, we join the Apostle Paul in declaring that there is ‘neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus’ (Galatians 3:28).”
The NAE’s statement reads in full:
The National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) mourns over the senseless violence that took place in Charlottesville, Virginia, last weekend. We join fellow Christians throughout the nation in praying for the families who lost loved ones and for healing in our country.
In times of national tragedy and crisis, evangelical Christians turn to the Word of God for direction. God created human beings in his image, and thus all people share in divine dignity (Genesis 1:26). No race or ethnicity is greater or more valuable than another. Evangelicals believe that the good news of Jesus Christ has the power to break down racial and ethnic barriers (Ephesians 2:14-18).
Evangelicalism within the United States is a diverse movement, with evangelical beliefs being held by 44 percent of African Americans, 30 percent of Hispanics, 29 percent of whites, and 17 percent of people from other ethnicities. [1] There are also millions of others around the world who hold evangelical beliefs. Evangelicals look forward to the day when believers from “every nation, tribe, people and language” will join as one and celebrate the redeeming work of Jesus Christ together (Revelation 7:9-10).
The NAE condemns white supremacy and all groups, such as the KKK and Neo-Nazis, that champion it. Racism should not only be addressed after tragic events, but regularly in our communities of faith. Churches in the United States can lead the way in combatting attitudes and systems that perpetuate racism.
[1] LifeWay Research conducted this study Sept. 8-21, 2015 through a random digit dial phone survey (50 percent landline, 50 percent cell) of 1,000 Americans. In this study “evangelical” is defined using the NAE LifeWay Research Evangelicals Beliefs Research Definition based on respondent beliefs.
19 years after the establishment of the Global Christian Forum, the representatives of the world Christian community met together in Geneva for a historic meeting to decide on its continuation.
(Bonn, 13th June 2017) Two decades after the Global Christian Forum first began with the goal to intensify communication between Christian churches, this communication has become a matter of course.
The 4 so-called ‘pillars’ of the Global Christian Forum (the Vatican, the World Council of Churches, the World Evangelical Alliance and the Pentecostal World Fellowship), as well as other represented confessions, such as the Orthodox Church met together for 2 days in Bossey near to Geneva. They are in agreement that the Global Christian Forum must definitely be continued. For everyone it is important that the Forum remains a discussion platform which is open to new guests but does not form any kind of ‘super church’, become an institution or emit theological or canonical declarations of principles.
Each of the five-person delegations were headed by Bishop Brian Farrell, secretary of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, Olav Tveit, general secretary of the World Council of Churches, Bishop Efraim Tendero, secretary general of the World Evangelical Alliance and David Wells, vice-chair of the Pentecostal World Fellowship.
The World Evangelical Alliance delegation was composed of the secretary general Bishop Efraim Tendero (the Philippines), his deputy Thomas Schirrmacher, who is also responsible for interchurch relations, the secretary general of the Asian Evangelical Alliance Richard Howell (India), the ambassador to the Vatican Thomas K. Johnson (Czech Republic) and the director of the Business Coalition Timo Plutschinski (Germany).
Because of the historically unique composition of the delegations, it was not only the future of the Global Christian Forum that was discussed in the premises of the Ecumenical Institute in Bossey near Geneva, but also the current state of unity of worldwide Christianity. While there was great openness about the differences in points of view in theological but also increasingly ethical questions, it was agreed that there should be no reluctance to work together on social issues. In view of the great global challenges that need a powerful response from the Christian side, it is good to be assured of mutual support in many questions. This includes questions such as: persecution of Christians worldwide, right to life at the beginning and end of life, as well as the challenges of human trafficking, global corruption or the consequences of climate change for the Global South.
The World Evangelical Alliance’s (WEA) newly launched Peace & Reconciliation Network (PRN) is co-hosting an Eastern European Conference on Peace, Reconciliation and Social Justice in Chisinau, Moldova, on May 17-22, 2017. Focused specifically on the unique context of CIS1 countries, the conference aims to establish a regional network that enables participants from different nations to together address the needs and challenges of their region.
Co-sponsored by Micah Global and INFEMIT Europe, the conference invites Christian leaders from the Baltics, Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, Georgia, Armenia and Central Asia with some 150 participants registered so far. Speakers include Micah Global International Director Sheryl Haw, Dr. Chris Wright (UK), Dr. Peter Kuzmic (Croatia), Dr. Ester Petrenko (Latvia), Dr. Fiodor Raichinez (Ukraine) and Dr. Johannes Reimer, WEA’s Director for Peace & Reconciliation.
“As Christians, we are called to be agents of peace and reconciliation. The Bible is full of stories and instructions where God calls us not only to be reconciled to Himself but also among each other. Jesus saying the peacemakers are blessed and will be called ‘sons of God’ is just one example,” Bishop Efraim Tendero, Secretary General of the WEA, commented and added: “Conflict is the root cause of so much suffering: poverty, loss of life, forced migration, and more. Lack of education and opportunities due to prolonged conflict situations also robs people of their hope for the future and makes them vulnerable to human trafficking and exploitation. Therefore, if we as believers can contribute to restoring peace and help accomplish true and lasting reconciliation, we will also have prevented other suffering as a result.”
Speaking about the specific Eastern European and Central Asian context of the conference, Dr. Johannes Reimer who heads up the preparations states: “The Evangelical Alliance movement and the movements towards unity in Eastern Europe and Central Asia in the past have only had limited success. The launching of an Eastern European network for Peace and Reconciliation and Social Justice creates a unique opportunity to foster unity and joined action of evangelicals in the region. At the same time the region is facing numerous ethnic post-Soviet-made tensions. Evangelicals in the region and the WEA movement in general are able to contribute to finding creative solutions strengthening both, the Church in particular and society in general.”
The WEA PRN has only recently been relaunched under the leadership of Dr. Reimer who has been working with the WEA as Commissioner for Peace & Reconciliation to Russia/Ukraine since 2014 and brings extensive experience in the field.
At a strategy conference in the Netherlands earlier this year, its five-pronged T-R-A-I-N strategy was affirmed as foundation for rolling out regional, national and local peace networks. TRAIN stands for Teaching of peace and reconciliation processes, Restoration in communities post-conflict, Assisting with resources and personnel, Initiating peace alliances, and Networking for knowledge and resource transfer.
“To bring peace and restoration we need to equip local and national players with new capacities, so that they are able to engage with their community in unrest. TRAIN not only helps to assists actors for peace and restoration but also to initiate alliances where there is no peace initiative existent. It uses resources from the global network to teach and to establish centers to train them,” Dr. Reimer comments.
Commissioner Christine MacMillan, Associate Secretary General for Public Engagement whose portfolio includes the PRN, said: “We as Christians have a Savior depicted and named as the Prince of Peace. Addressing conflict he walks into chaos with gifts of forgiveness, truth and healing. Our Peace & Reconciliation Network is gaining the skills and intention to enter darkness with conversations that explore peace and discover reconciliation.” > To learn more about WEA’s peace & reconciliation engagement, visit: wea.peaceandreconciliation.net
> To contribute to WEA’s peace & reconciliation work in general or the upcoming Eastern Europe conference in particular with a gift, click here Picture: Dr. Reimer speaking at a peace & reconciliation conference co-hosted by WEA and its Ukrainian partner “Bearer of Peace” in Kiev, Ukraine earlier this year.
1 CIS stands for Commonwealth of Independent States, the majority of which are former Soviet Republics.
Watch these thought-provoking videos and learn more about what people think of the role of women in the Bible, in the Church, in leadership, in marriage and more! Click on the link after each video to open up questions that help you engage with the topic and discuss with others.
Share the videos with your friends, in your church and beyond and share your thoughts on social media using the hashtag #WomenAndTheChurch!
Do you have any ideas, questions or suggestions for us? E-mail Amanda Jackson!
10 women who are tenacious, daring, faithful and influential
Discussion Questions:
Read about the women chosen in the video.
Abigail – 1 Samuel 25
Zelophehad’s five daughters – Numbers 27: 1-1
Ruth – see the Book of Ruth, especially Ch 1 and 3
Esther – see her book, especially Ch 4,5 and 7
Mary – Luke Ch 1: 26-56
All of the women are tenacious (firm, persistent, purposeful). How can you see that quality demonstrated in each passage? Do you see yourself as tenacious?
All of the women dare to speak up. Track what they say and how they say it. What impact do they have?
Can you describe a time when God has inspired you to speak up? What happened?
Who would you choose as your favourite woman/women?
Jesus and Women
There is a lot of intimacy, sympathy and practical love
Discussion Questions:
The video touches on five different stories in the gospels:
Jesus is anointed with tears and perfume by the woman Luke Ch 7:36-50
The women who supported Jesus Luke Ch 8: 1-3
The Samaritan woman John Ch 4
Jesus’s mother John 19: 25-27
Woman caught in adultery John 8: 1-11
Which perspective on women did you like most in these interviews? Why?
Did anything surprise you?
In your experience, does the Church follow Jesus’s example in the way it treats and values women?
Valuing Women
“God allows me to be who I am as a Christian woman – the gift of being me”
Discussion Questions:
What are some issues/barriers raised in the video faced by women in the church that might discourage them from knowing their true worth?
For women: Have you ever felt limited by your culture or the church’s expectations?
Can you say now that you are of ‘enormous value’?
How have you gained that confidence?
Feminism
Doesn’t God want us all to rise up to our destiny? Women and men?
Discussion Questions:
During the video, you will hear people say:
“God’s heart is for equality, regardless of gender.”
“We need to understand God’s imprint on our life – women and men”
“There are off the wall examples of feminist ideas – feminists can be abrasive”
“The idea of feminism can be complicated for Christians by the debate around abortion”
“The ‘feminist’ label can be difficult.”
Which of these points do you affirm? Do you find any of the statements difficult to accept? Should Christians be feminists? Are you?
All of the women are tenacious (firm, persistent, purposeful). How can you see that quality demonstrated in each passage? Do you see yourself as tenacious?
All of the women dare to speak up. Track what they say and how they say it. What impact do they have?
Can you describe a time when God has inspired you to speak up? What happened?
Who would you choose as your favourite woman/women?
Equality in Marriage
“Decision making is mutual, co-operative, sharing… and there might be some conflict.”
Discussion Questions:
What words leap out at you from what you saw on the video?
How could those words become tools for making good and equal decisions?
Words like ‘mutual’ and ‘co-operative’ sum up the discussion but there was also talk of conflict. Is conflict bad?
Gender and Leadership
If you’re gifted, you should lead
Discussion Questions:
Both men being interviewed said it is important that men be willing for women to lead and to encourage women leaders. Why did they stress this?
Do you think women lead differently to men? Is this positive or negative?
Do you ever get ‘frazzled’ by your roles in the home, community, church or work? What could God be saying about that?
Love and Submission
Love and submission is our model for doing every relationship
Discussion Questions:
A vital point for discussion and understanding behind views on love and submission is that we need to take scripture as our authority and we need to take context into account.
How do you understand Ephesians Ch 5 v22 in the light of that point?
How should we look at verses like I Corinthians Ch 11 v6? (it talks of a woman covering her head)
Tricky Bible Passages
What is Paul really talking about?
Discussion Questions:
There are 2 aspects of ‘headship’ covered here (from a term that appears in I Corinthians 11:3) – in the family and in the church
Look at what Steve says about Ephesians 5: 21 and 22 What does he say about submission and headship in the family?
Look at what Steve says about I Timothy 2: 12-15 How can we see these verses as radical for women and men in the early church?
WEA Media Release
