I have a crazy, beautiful dream. God’s Word is clear that he desires that the entire world should hear the good news of Christ. His Word is equally clear that He desires that no one should suffer severe physical need. Yet these statistics remain:
People groups in the world: 16,351 - 6.8 billion individuals
People groups in the world still not reached with the gospel: 6,645 - 2.75 billion individuals
Today, over 1 billion people live (and die) in desperate poverty (less than $1 a day).
700 million in slums.
500 million on the verge of starvation.
93 million beggars.
200 million children exploited for labor.
26,000 children today will die due to either starvation or a preventable disease.
And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Matthew 28:18-20
What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
James 2:14-17
So… what if, what if… picture this in your mind. What if God had a grand and wonderful plan to actually accomplish those goals and created a nation, and blessed that nation in such a way that it had the means to comfortably meet all its needs - actually go beyond simply meeting needs but also to live with blessings of physical comforts the world had never previously imagined, AND still have enough left over to bring His good news to every people group on earth. And then still enough left over to meet the basic need for water, food, and shelter for every child and family on earth. Really… stop and paint that picture in your mind. What an incredible thing. God’s ultimate plan from the foundation of the world, expressed to Abraham and later throughtout the prophets and New Testament… accomplished. Who knows what that might usher in. Imagine His joy, imagine the joy in being a part of that. Imagine the blessing that would be and let your spirit long for the creation of a nation with that kind of wealth.
In case you haven’t realized it, that dream is not a dream. God does have a plan (or do we presume He is impotent?). In fact, we see His effort to create that nation and provide that wealth FOR THAT PURPOSE with Abraham and Israel. But they failed Him. They lived for themselves and turned from Him and His plan to their own destruction. And now, we see His plan again. In person. It’s us. There can be no debate that our nation was founded on His principles, and that He has built and prospered this nation. Prospered us in such a way that statistically, we comfortably… COMFORTABLY, can accomplish the dual goals of bringing His gospel to all the earth and meeting the basic phyical needs of all our neighbors. I gave statistics on the need, here are some on our wealth:
Average annual American Christian household income: $42,409. This in the top 2.5% of the richest people in the world.
North American Christians give an average of 2.5% of their income to the church.
North American churches given an average of 2% of these funds to missions overseas.
For every $100 a North American Christian makes, we give 5 cents to missions overseas - that’s less than 1% - in fact, it is five one-hundredths of one percent. God help us.
“Today Christians spend more money on dog food than missions.”
Leonard Ravenhill
Americans spend $40 billion every year on pets.
Americans spend $60 billion every year on weight-loss programs.
Churches spend $10 billion every year on church buildings.
It is estimated that $10 billion could bring clean water to every person on earth.
“In the early 1990s, Americans spent annually twice as much on cut flowers as on overseas Protestant ministries, twice as much on women’s sheer hosiery, one and a half times as much on video games, one and a half times as much on pinball machines, slightly more on the lawn industry, about five times as much on pets, one and a half times as much on skin care, almost one and a half times as much on chewing gum, almost three times as much on swimming pools and accessories, approximately seven times as much on sweets, seventeen times as much on diets and diet-related products, twenty times as much on sports activities, approximately 26 times as much on soft drinks, and a staggering 140 times as much on legalized gambling activities.”
Craig Blomberg
(Statistics from generousgiving.org; joshuaproject.net;globalrichlist.com; compassion.net)
God has a plan. It is us. He has done His part. The “dream” I described ealier is real, already in existence. However, that is only part of the dream. The rest of my dream is that we will respond by living simply and giving sacrificially. That we will turn to Him, respond to His commands, and stop living in envy, greed, and self-indulgence. Unfortunately, that part of my dream remains just that - a dream. But He is powerful, and He is calling this nation to repentance and wholeness in His plan. Spread the dream, begin living it. It can and must become reality. God, let it be through this nation, this time… don’t let us fail you with the blessings you have given us for this purpose. Guide us and inspire us, lead us into your ways.
