Amsterdam 2000 concludes with message from Billy Graham

CW STAFF
From BGEA Releases

Some 10,000 evangelists received their final instructions on the final night of Amsterdam 2000. It was a message to inspire and encourage them as they return to cities, towns and villages throughout the world. The words that carried them home came from Billy Graham, who did not attend the conference due to his health.

“I am asking that you take from here the light that you found during these days,” said Graham, who addressed 10,732 participants on videotape via satellite. “Hold that light high as you return to your home, and with the light of the thousands of other participants from around the world we can make a fire that will shine brightly, and will never be put out.”

Sponsored by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, the conference attracted evangelists from 209 countries and territories. It featured 900 plenary and teaching sessions conducted by some of the world’s most-recognized Christian leaders including Chuck Colson, Ravi Zacharias, Bill Bright, Anne Graham Lotz and Franklin Graham.

The conference of itinerant evangelists—75 percent of whom were from developing nations—united people of different cultures and backgrounds with the purpose of preparing them to use new and more effective ways to present the gospel.

On the final day, three task groups presented their findings on the future of evangelism in The Amsterdam Declaration, a 5,000-word document that addresses a variety of issues including social responsibility and evangelism. It read: “We pledge ourselves to follow the way of justice in our family and social life, and to keep personal, social and environmental values in view as we evangelize.”

Participants signed a one-page Covenant for Evangelists (see sidebar). They pledged, among other things, “to practice a life of constant personal prayer, Bible study and devotion to God” and “serve the needy and oppressed, remembering the mercy and compassion of Jesus.”

Conference organizers are considering a follow up program that will provide resources for evangelists. According to registration statistics, 73 percent of conference participants have email and Internet access in their home countries.