Pastor Rick Warren, internationally known writer of The Purpose Driven Life and The Purpose Driven Church, addressed the General Assembly of the Association of Evangelicals in Africa (AEA) via livestream on Wednesday, calling on African Evangelical leaders to take the lead in completing the worldwide mission of the Church.
Speaking from California to Evangelical representatives from African nations, Warren emphasized Africa’s central role in the longer term of Christianity, urging the continent’s churches to step forward in global leadership.
“There are more Christians in Africa than there are people within the United States,” Warren said.
“Africa is now probably the most Christian continent on Earth, with over 430 million believers. The Church in Africa must lead the remainder of us.”
Warren, founding father of Saddleback Church in California, which has sent missionaries to each country on the planet, shared his vision for Finishing The Task, a world initiative committed to completing the Great Commission by the Church’s 2,000th anniversary in 2033.
An experience in South Africa that modified Warren’s course of ministry
Warren recounted the moment twenty years ago in South Africa that fundamentally reshaped his understanding of mission and ministry.
“I had come to Johannesburg to show pastors,” Warren said. Over three days, he provided training for leaders, which was livestreamed to different sites across the continent. “But when it ended, I asked to see a typical South African church,” he continued.
He was taken to a distant village far off the major road — a spot without electricity or running water — where a small congregation was meeting under a tent.
“They had a garden to feed the kids, a number of schoolbooks, but no beds. The children slept within the tent at night,” he said. “And I noticed this small African church was doing more to alleviate suffering than my large, well-funded church in America.”
That moment pierced his heart. “I wept,” he said. “And I repented. I had spent years training leaders but hadn’t cared deeply enough about those that were suffering.”
The encounter became more personal when a young local pastor, just 25 years old, approached him and said, “I do know who you’re. You’re Pastor Rick. I download your sermons every week on the post office — you’re the one training I’ve ever had.”
“I couldn’t imagine it,” Warren said. “This young man walked two hours every week simply to download a sermon and walk back to show it to his congregation. That moment modified me endlessly. I knew then I might spend the remainder of my life serving men like him.”
That evening, Warren sat on the red African soil under the celebs, reading through the Gospels and asking God to point out him His strategy for reaching the world. From that point of prayer and reflection emerged the “P.E.A.C.E. Plan” — a five-part approach rooted within the ministry of Jesus: proclaiming the Gospel, equipping leaders, assisting the poor, caring for the sick, and educating the following generation. The model has since been adopted by 1000’s of churches worldwide.
“God revealed the P.E.A.C.E. plan to me in Africa,” he said. “So in some ways, I became an African. I even hold dual citizenship — I serve on the President’s Advisory Council in Rwanda.”
Today, among the largest churches in Europe are led by Africans
Warren went on to explain how, during the last century, the middle of Christianity has shifted from the worldwide North to the worldwide South. “One hundred years ago, 95 percent of all Christians lived in Europe and North America,” he said. “Today, 95 percent live in Africa, Latin America and southern Asia.”
The way forward for the Church, he said, could be summed up in three words: “Southern, urban and young.”
“Half of the world is under 30 years of age,” he added. “If we’re going to succeed in the world with the Gospel, we must reach young people in the worldwide South and on the planet’s cities.”
Warren also highlighted the worldwide influence of African Christian leaders. “The largest churches within the United Kingdom, Paris and Moscow are all led by African pastors,” he said. “You aren’t just the longer term — you’re the current.”
Equipping local churches for global mission
A key point in Warren’s message was the empowerment of local churches. He recounted how Saddleback Church mobilized its members to perform the “P.E.A.C.E. Plan” in every country on the planet. “Our goal was to prove that churches — not only mission agencies — can do that,” he said.
Warren emphasized that past efforts to meet the Great Commission failed because they were often created by a number of individuals from the West and barely involved churches within the Global South or local congregations in any respect. “Of 700 previous plans to finish the Great Commission, not one succeeded,” he said. “And not one included the entire Church.”
Now leading Finishing The Task, Warren said the strategy is inclusive, collaborative and centered on the local church. “A church of 10 or 20 people can do that,” he said. “It’s about equipping every believer to play their part.”
Warren concluded by encouraging African leaders to take leadership of worldwide missions. “I think with all my heart that God has called the Church of Africa to steer,” Warren said. “The task is urgent. And Africa is prepared.”
