Tim Keller, the pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City, often speaks about God’s mission for the great cities of the world. Below, I’m including a 16 minute video of Keller’s plenary session at Lausanne Cape Town 2010 Congress in which he shares God’s global urban mission.
Here are a few thoughts from Keller’s talk about why we must reach the great cities of the world with the gospel and a few of my own reasons for sharing the Gospel in New York City specifically.
Reason #1: Cultural
According to a Foreign Policy article:
The 21st century will not be dominated by America, China, Brazil or India but by the city.
In an age that is increasingly unmanageable, cities rather than states are becoming the islands of governance on which the future world order will be built. Time, technology, and population growth have massively accelerated the advent of this new urban era.
Already, more than half the world lives in cities and that percentage is growing rapidly.
Just one hundred cities account for 30% of the world’s economy and almost all of its innovation.
[Read more…] about Three Reasons To Reach Cities With The Gospel