Skeúos (σκευος) Gr. 1. a vessel; 2. an implement

Explosive Expansion of Christianity

Never before in the history of the church have so many come to Christ in such a short period of time.    

• In China, for example, the church has grown from 800,000 in 1949 when the communists took over, to approximately 91.5 million today (according to Operation World.)¹ Some estimate that 25,000 a day are currently coming to Christ. It is, perhaps, the greatest expansion of Christianity in the history of the church, yet few in the West are even aware it is going on.
• About 70% of the church’s outreach since Pentecost has been accomplished in this century alone.²
• At least 120,000,000 people are presented the plan of salvation each year.³
• At least 174,000 are daily coming to Christ worldwide.⁴
• In 1790 only 2% of the world’s population was Christian.⁵ By mid 2002, 33% of the world’s population identified themselves as Christian.⁶
• Approximately 50,000 new churches are formed each year. By mid 2002, the number of Christian worship centers worldwide numbered more than 3.5 million.⁷ This creates a tremendous need for trained pastoral leadership.

The Prosperity Gospel

Sunday Recap: May 4, 2008

Romans 12:13 "Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality." Contributing to the needs of the saints is nothing new to the church and there are several clear examples of what this looked like in the New Testament.

Paul was on his third and final missionary journey when he wrote Romans in A.D. 56. According to the time line of Acts he spent the last 3 years of this journey in Ephesus. While in Ephesus he wrote the letters of 1 & 2 Corinthians. After leaving Ephesus he traveled into Greece staying 3 months in Corinth at which time he wrote the letter to the Romans. On his third missionary journey Paul took up a collection for the saints at the church in Jerusalem. The Christians in Jerusalem were predominately Jewish and they were experiencing a great deal of suffering at the hands of the unbelieving Jews.

They became social outcasts for their faith in Jesus as the promised Messiah. Their families disowned them; they lost their jobs, and even their businesses. Because of this hostile environment the believers in Jerusalemlived in a communal environment. (Acts 2:44-45, 4:32-37). When you read these words remember that these early believers gathered together not simply because they wanted to, that was true, but they also needed to because they needed one another.