Premier Christianity uses cookies Read our cookie policy.
By 
Joseph D’Souza2025-12-03T09:22:00+00:00
Declarations about “reaching every person with the Gospel by 2033” have been endorsed by prominent Western church leaders including Nicky Gumbel and Rick Warren. Evangelising the world before the 2,000 year anniversary of Christ’s resurrection may sound visionary, but Joseph D’Souza says the target sends the wrong message to the watching world. He’s urging the West to stop putting metrics ahead of mission 
Source: Alamy/Rafal Cichawa
When high-profile, Western-led ministries announce goals like “reaching every person on earth” by 2033 — the 2,000-year anniversary of the resurrection and pentecost — it sounds bold and visionary in conference halls throughout America.
But for our Christian brothers and sisters who are already a tiny minority in their nations, and who often face tremendous persecution, these public declarations are a recipe for trouble.
Every time a slogan like this goes viral, local churches face a new wave of attacks, from negative press and harassment to police raids and even dubious anti-conversion laws. We saw it in the late 1990s with the AD 2000 & Beyond Movement and the Joshua Project.
In the Indian Parliament, the Joshua Project database was used as “proof” of a foreign conspiracy to convert India by the year 2000. Politicians who feel threatened by the gospel, and even those who don’t hold a strong opinion about it, were handed ammunition on a platter.
These date-specific, target-driven campaigns come straight out of a Manhattan-style management playbook — featuring SMART goals, KPIs, dashboards, and countdown clocks.
They are backed by the economic muscle of a few Christian-majority nations and networks. Evangelical Christians in relatively safe environments need to understand that this combination feels imperial, even when the intentions are sincere.
When the majority world hears Western voices say we will “finish the task by 2033,” many don’t hear the Great Commission; they hear the old colonial trumpet.
Moreover, we all need to remember that Jesus never instructed us to operate like a project manager. In Matthew 28, Jesus tells us, “Make disciples of all nations… teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”
He said the Gospel will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, “and then the end will come” (Matthew 24:14). Notice what Jesus did not say. He never told us to check “unreached people groups” off a list like a sales quota. He never said it’s enough that someone merely hears the name of Jesus.
He also made it clear that no one knows the day or hour of his second coming — not the angels, not the Son, only the Father (Matthew 24:36; Acts 1:7).
And Jesus certainly never instructed wealthy, influential churches and organisations to announce global deadlines. Discipling anyone, even our own children, is a lifelong journey of love, grace, failure, and repentance. Nowhere in scripture are we encouraged to set a date by which they must be “reached” or “saved.”
What’s more, Western methods can overlook the nuances of each culture, and even rob our neighbours — who often already adhere to deep-seated, ancient religious traditions — of dignity. Some of these same traditions, by the way, have a values system and ethical guidelines that shame the materialism found in majority-Christian nations.
Lingo like “the unreached,” “finishing the task,” or labelling an outreach event as a “crusade,” still carries unhelpful colonial baggage. It turns image-bearers of God into targets on a map. It assumes the West gets to define what “reached” even means.
Given that context, it’s no wonder that governments react with anti-conversion laws. While freedom of religion is a genuine human right, the abuse of that freedom through heavily funded, deadline-driven campaigns is doing more harm than good.
When the majority world hears Western voices say we will “finish the task by 2033,” many don’t hear the Great Commission; they hear the old colonial trumpet.
What we need instead is humble, authentic, and contextual Christian witness — living out the sermon on the mount in our own nations and neighbourhoods first. Disciples are made when people see Jesus in our lives, not when we hand them a tract. Many of us in India and throughout the Global South do not subscribe to these 2033 declarations.
We want to discern what the Holy Spirit is already doing in the hearts of friends and neighbours, and cooperate with him — quietly, respectfully, over a lifetime — not import someone else’s countdown clock. That is why we are deliberately building self-sustaining churches led by local Christians, which are not dependent on foreign funds, foreign jargon, and foreign campaigns.
We believe God desires all people to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth, but he never turns his sons and daughters into statistics. People are not targets. The kingdom is not a project. And 2033 is not a biblical deadline. Stop the slogans and start living the Sermon on the Mount among the nations. Witness with your life to Jesus. That is the major task Jesus ever asked of us and gave to the whole Church. 
Grab this Deal!
We’re celebrating a remarkable journey from our humble beginnings as Buzz in the 1960s to the vibrant, multi-platform publication we are today. One thing has remained constant: our commitment to connecting faith with the world around us. To celebrate our birthday, we are offering you a Print and Digital subscription for just £24 your first 12 months!
Subscribe Today
*Offer applies in UK only, but check here for our overseas offers
2025-12-02T14:34:00Z
Despite sharing the same vision to see students encounter Jesus, Fusion and UCCF’s relationship has long been one defined by tensions and territorial disputes. Fusion’s Luke Smith reflects on the mistrust that stifled their unity, and the prayer, communication, and reconciliation that have begun to build it
2025-12-01T15:31:00Z
The Californian church formerly led by John MacArthur is being sued by a women who reported domestic and sexual abuse – yet was allegedly told to go home and ‘submit’ to her husband. Shockingly, it is not an isolated incident, says Restored’s Bekah Legg. Many church leaders are not equipped to respond well. Here’s how we can all do better
2025-12-01T12:42:00Z
Kingdom Code’s hackathon saw a room of Christian coders come together to tackle the language barrier isolating churchgoers whose first language isn’t English. Mike Ashelby tells the story behind the innovative AI translation tool they created
2025-12-01T09:07:00Z
Gen Z are finding Jesus, but are they finding a Church ready to help them grow in faith? Emma Fowle explores the clash of culture no one is talking about
2025-11-28T11:01:00Z
A new report by Anglican priest and scholar Dr Mark Durie argues that grooming-gang activity across the UK isn’t connected to ethnicity but to Islamic theology.
2025-11-28T09:50:00Z
Following The Spectator’s critique of “funky vicars”, Rev Michael Coren pushes back, defending his fellow clergy in the public eye and questioning a culture that he says is quicker to sneer than to support
Site powered by Webvision Cloud