International (MNN) — This Christmas, we remember the gift of Jesus Himself, our Prince of Peace who brought true joy to the world. But not everyone has the gift of knowing this message today.
“While we’re enjoying all of our wonderful Christmas celebrations, we also need to remember those who have no clue what Christmas is all about,” says Jeff McLinden with Alliance for the Unreached.
“The wonderful gift that we received at Christmas, the birth of Jesus, the Savior, has not been realized for more than 3 billion people, a third of the world’s population.”
That’s what the Alliance for the Unreached wants you to hear today: A third of the world has never heard of Christ. But this darkness is not where God intends these people to stay.
“[The Great Commission] is a command from the One who has the most authority, both in heaven and on earth, and He’s giving this responsibility to believers, His followers — you, myself, the millions of Christians across the globe — to do this work to fulfill this command, to make disciples of all the nations,” says McLinden.
(Photo courtesy of Alliance for the Unreached)
He notes that “nations” does not simply mean countries or political boundaries. It means people groups, tribes, tongues, as in Revelation 7:9-17. That roughly 3 billion people break out into more than 7,000 people groups that have never had the chance to accept Christ as their Savior, McLinden says.
That means if you know Christ, your life matters in the Great Commission. So find your place in God’s story!
“It always begins with prayer. Prayer is our most important, most powerful, most potent weapon against the wiles of the evil one and to move heaven and earth in order to reach the unreached across the globe,” says McLinden.
“If you have no idea about how to pray for the unreached, it begins with knowing who they are. I encourage you to visit our friends at the Joshua Project at their website joshuaproject.net. You will find complete listings of all of the unreached people groups across the globe. Pick out one to begin praying for, even on Christmas Day.”
Click to visit the Joshua Project. Then, to join with others to reach the unreached, connect with the Alliance for the Unreached and the movement A Third of Us.
Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of Leon Oblak via Unsplash.
