Great Commission Conference Eschews Watered Down Gospel, Encourages Bible-Centered Whole Family Outreach
ASHEVILLE, NC, Oct. 8, 2012 /
Christian Newswire/ -- More than 40 Christian leaders from around the world will gather on October 25-27 for White Unto Harvest: A Great Commission Mega-Conference, the goal of which is to define, defend, and reassert the greatness of the Great Commission. The conference organizers plan to show its full-orbed implications for every area of life, and to equip whole families and local churches to engage in robust Gospel ministry in their communities.
Hosted by the National Center for Family Integrated Churches (NCFIC) at Lifeway Ridgecrest Conference Center located near Asheville, North Carolina, most of the over 40 speakers are family integrated church leaders who will address an array of practical Great Commission topics -- from defining the gospel itself to evangelizing through the home, at the office, and on the street. Over fifty messages will be delivered on a broad range of subjects, including the gospel, missions, street preaching, contextualization and reaching local communities and nations as families with the good news of Jesus Christ.
"Christ's last command should be our first priority to disciple the nations by proclaiming the greatness and glory of Christ and His Gospel," noted Scott Brown, director of the NCFIC and pastor of Hope Baptist Church in Wake Forest, North Carolina. "Regrettably, in many evangelical circles today, the Gospel has been compromised and reduced to a prayer formula. The Church has ignored the all-encompassing demands of the Great Commission which calls us to disciple believers 'to observe all things whatsoever [God has] commanded' (Mat. 28:20) -- from Genesis to Revelation. The result has been a palsied and anemic witness by the Church that has produced many false conversions."
"Our goal at the White Unto Harvest Conference is to reassert the greatness of the Great Commission which involves preaching the message of the gospel as well as the cultural mandate for societal transformation. This last point has been largely lost in today's Church, as the Great Commission has been watered down and redefined with a permissive easy-believism "gospel" that encourages conformity to the world, not cultural engagement on Christ's terms. Our goal is to communicate the full biblical implications of that Great Commission which Christ Himself declares includes "teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you."
Unlike other evangelistic gatherings, the White Unto Harvest Conference is not just designed to equip church leaders. It is also designed for whole families to attend and learn how they can be salt and light and fulfill the Great Commission through their homes, in their communities, and beyond. The NCFIC encourages families to come and participate together at the event.
"Most evangelism conferences draw individuals individualistically," remarked Brown. "This conference purposes to draw, not only individuals, but also whole families and to equip them to fulfill the Great Commission together as families. Of the 2,000 attendees who have registered so far, most are attending with other family members, rather than alone as individuals. This is a conference for parents and their children, for pastors and their congregations together."
Featured speakers at the event include Paul Washer, founder of Heart Cry Missionary Society; Dr. Joel Beeke, President of Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary; Pastor Joseph Morecraft of Chalcedon Presbyterian Church; Kevin Swanson, radio host and pastor of Reformation Church; Doug Phillips, pastor at Boerne Christian Assembly and founder of Vision Forum Ministries; Conrad Mbewe, pastor of Kabwata Baptist Church in Lusaka, Zambia; and forty other speakers who will be bringing messages on how the Great Commission should be advanced today in keeping with God's Word, rather than modern trends.
"The trivialization of the Gospel through gimmicks and worldly appeals must cease in favor of the pure Gospel message and sure commands of the Great Commission found in Scripture," commented Brown. "Our desire is that our families and churches would embrace this vision: that the Gospel would be heralded in the church, in the family, in the city -- to the ends of the earth -- with biblical fidelity and urgency.
"Our prayers are these," continued Brown: "First, for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit for evangelistic fervor in individuals, families, and churches. Second, that we would successfully lay down an audio and print record for churches and families, a resource on critical Gospel issues that can be accessed from all over the world on the Internet for many years to come. Third, we endeavor to bring family integrated church pastors and leaders from all over the nation and world together and cast a vision for global Gospel evangelism."
To interview Scott Brown about the NCFIC's vision for this event, contact Peter Bradrick by e-mail at
pbradrick@ncfic.org or by phone at 210-380-0501.
