International (MNN) — World Mission is passionate about taking the Gospel to people groups who don’t know Jesus. To better reflect the ministry’s heart, World Mission is changing its name to Unknown Nations!
The moniker change comes from Jesus’ last words in Acts 1:8 when He told the disciples, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
Greg Kelley has been the CEO of World Mission – now Unknown Nations – for 25 years. Kelley says, “We would love to see people really analyze that in their own world, whether it’s as an individual or in their local church, and say, ‘What is our expression of the last thing Jesus said? The ends of the earth?’
“With that in mind, we are changing our name because our laser focus is on that mission to unknown nations. So World Mission is no longer. We’ll now be Unknown Nations. We’re very excited about it, and we believe that it says a lot more specifically about what God has called us to.”
(Photo courtesy of Unknown Nations)
Out of 8 billion people worldwide, roughly 3.4 billion live in unreached people groups — meaning they have no access to the Gospel. A people group is generally considered “reached” with the Gospel when at least 2% of the population begins following Jesus Christ.
The highest concentration of unreached people groups live in a geographic region known as the 10/40 Window. The region stretches from 10 to 40 degrees north, from Morocco to Japan and all the countries in between.
Unfortunately, only 1% of Christian giving in Western churches goes towards sending the Gospel to unreached people groups.
Kelley says, “The most needy spiritual countries that are filled with hundreds and hundreds of people groups don’t live in the places that we primarily do foreign missions. So that’s a problem. We need to start paying attention to the spiritual conditions. If everybody who comes in contact with Unknown Nations does that assessment, then we view that as a win.”
Unknown Nations’ heart and mission have not changed from when they were known as World Mission. But with a new name, the ministry seeks to put a spotlight on peoples who desperately need Jesus — if only they could hear the Gospel!
Check out Unknown Nations’ new website and learn how to get involved!
Header photo courtesy of Unknown Nations.
