An ancient Chinese proverb reminds us that ‘to prophesy is extremely difficult, especially with regard to the future’.
This is certainly the case as we try to anticipate the future of evangelicalism, and is heightened still further by the fact that we live in a context of considerable social and political volatility, confront a rising and more aggressive secularism, and live within communities with growing non-Christian religious affiliation. But most of all, humility is called for because of the most significant reality of all – God’s sovereign engagement in the life of the church and in the realities of our world. In the midst of so many unknowns, we trust His good purposes.
One way of assessing likely futures is to project from existing features on the evangelical landscape, and here are seven issues, with a simple exhortation for each from the first chapter of Philippians.
