Churches today have the best opportunity since the Second World War to bring hope to people shaken by the Coronavirus pandemic by telling them about the love of Jesus.
That was one of the key messages of the Revd. Gavin Calver, CEO of the Evangelical Alliance, who was the guest speaker at the Gwent Baptist Association’s online Autumn Council meeting on 30th September.
Gavin said that church attendances in the UK immediately after the war were huge but then fell back to pre-war levels. Why? The world was looking for hope but the Church wanted to get back to normal. It spent too much time and energy looking after itself and getting back to normal. By the time it was ready to reach out to the lost, who had been desperately looking for hope, the lost had got over the moment and moved on.
“I think the season we are now in is the closest since the end of the Second World War. I am not comparing Covid to a world war but people are still desperately looking for hope in their lives. They will probably not come to our buildings so we must go out into our communities and demonstrate the love of Jesus with acts of kindness and compassion.”, Gavin continued. “In my view, we will never, ever get this great opportunity again.”
Go to link for meeting interview with Gavin and his full talk.