Internet evangelism
Internet evangelism is, as the name suggests, the process of evangelizing and spreading the gospel using the internet.
Since its inception, Christianity has seen a consistent and dramatic increase in its number of adherents.[2][3] In the 1940s the Lausanne Movement was started in order to help Christendom evangelize globally with greater effectiveness and thousands of Christian leaders from around the globe meet regularly to increase the effectiveness of Christian evangelism.[4]
CRU is one of the world's largest evangelism organizations within Christendom and has over 25,000 full-time missionaries. In 2006, Alan Beeber of CRU predicted that internet evangelism will result in more conversion that all other forms of evangelism for CRU combined.[5] Internet evangelism is effective at spreading Christianity globally - especially in countries where there is Christian persecution and evangelism is more difficult.
The Christian internet evangelism organization Global Media Outreach indicates that as of September 2019 over 1,900,000,000 "gospel visits" have occured via their websites.[6] Global Media Outreach works with many Christians around the world (see: Global atheism).
The Christian internet evangelism organization Network211 indicates that as of September 2019, over 37,000,000 web visits have occured on their websites.[7] Network211 works with many Christians/churches throughout the world.
There are other significant Christian internet evangelism efforts as well. For example, the Billy Graham Association is also active in internet evangelism.[8]
The Billy Graham Association says about its desire for volunteers for its internet evangelism program:
“ | People around the world are searching for answers online. Many find hope through Search for Jesus. Would you join us to make a lasting impact for God’s kingdom and see lives changed by Christ? You can serve with us as an online counselor, discipleship coach, or email responder, or get your church involved. If you have a heart for sharing the Gospel, an Internet connection and a few hours a week, consider making Search for Jesus your own personal ministry–a way for God to use you by reaching hurting people around the world in their time of need.[9] | ” |
The Christian Post states:
“ | Online evangelism is producing real disciples for Christ, according to a recent study.
Over half of those who made a decision for Jesus over the Internet have subsequently shared their faith with others, Global Media Outreach's study reveals. Additionally, 34 percent read their Bibles daily and nearly half pray for at least 10 minutes a day... The study, called the Christian Growth Index, measured the responses of more than 100,000 people from around the world... Fifty-one percent of those surveyed said they shared their faith three times or more and 37 percent said they shared their faith at least once or twice. Global Media Outreach is a global ministry that presents the Gospel online through websites such as WhoisJesus-Really.com and GrowinginChrist.com. There are more than 5,500 trained online missionaries worldwide who respond to questions asked by seekers through emails.[10] |
” |
Also, many churches stream their services online in real-time and/or provide them on a platform (such as Facebook or YouTube). This is not only for the benefit of members who cannot attend services due to illness or old age, as well as people who live in areas with no Bible-believing church nearby, but also for visitors who want to check out what the church believes and how it conducts services before deciding whether to visit in person and ultimately become members.
Contents
Global Media Outreach
Global Media Outreach is an Internet-based ministry began in 2004 by Campus Crusade for Christ (CRU).
Since 2004, Global Media Outreach has registered over 1.6 billion Gospel Visits, defined as visitor views of a website containing the gospel message, like http://faith.godlife.com, http://caniknowGod.com or http://whoisJesus-really.com.
Network211
Network211 is a world missionary outreach focused on global evangelism and discipleship via the Internet.[12]
Network211 currently has a project called Project 100Million.
Project 100Million is an evangelism and discipleship ministry of Network211. Their goal is to reach 100,000,000 people worldwide with the Gospel online.
Project 100Million is multilingual, ministering in English, Farsi, Vietnamese, Indonesian, Mandarin, Spanish, Filipino, American Sign Language and Easy English. Other languages are under development. Network211 has reached people in over 200 countries and territories.
As of June 22, 2015, their online ministry has reached over 16,727,000 people.[13]
Internet creationism
See also: Internet creationism
On February 24, 2015, the Science Nordic website declared:
“ | Creationism, the belief that a god -- not evolution -- shaped life on Earth, is ... spreading in the very stronghold of evolution, Europe. That’s the conclusion of five years of research that’s been put into new book on creationism. The book details how creationism is on the march throughout most of Europe.
"Creationism is most dominant in Eastern Europe and Turkey, but even some schools in the Netherlands are teaching creationism," says one of the book’s authors Hans Henrik Hjermitslev, University College South Denmark. "Politicians in some German federal states are advocating that schools use creationist books alongside those about evolutionary theory in their lessons. This kind of struggle is going on on a small scale in many places."... "Over the last ten years we’ve seen the emergence of big-city creationism. London is a good example," says Kjærgaar. Here, noticeably more young people have been signed up to various local and religious groups. "And this doesn't just apply to young Muslims as many people might think. Christian groups are also recruiting young people... Creationism has particularly been on the rise in step with the internet, which according to Peter Kjærgaard has made it much easier for people to become activists...[14] |
” |
YouTube Christian evangelism
YouTube is a popular online video sharing site that provides a method distributing Christian/creationist videos across the world. The YouTube search engine is the second largest search engine in the world.[15]
Recently, Christians and Christian creationists have faced problems with atheist cyberbullies, but they have developed methods to overcome this problem.
Internet evangelism: Christians vs. atheists
See: Internet evangelism: Christians vs. atheists
See also
- Essay: Sharing your Christian/creationist videos on the internet
- Resources on becoming a Christian
- Resources for leaving atheism and becoming a Christian
- Creation vs. Evolution Videos
- Christianity
- Internet atheism
External links
Internet evangelism news and general information:
- Digital revolution creating new evangelism opportunities, Christianity Today
- Internet evangelism - YouTube video
Analysis of internet evangelism:
- Study Reveals Internet Evangelism Is Effective - Christian Post, 2011
Internet evangelism methods:
Social media:
- Christian ministries using social media to connect to millions all over the world, Christianity Today
Podcasting:
Internet evangelism day:
- Evangelical Website Promotes 'Internet Evangelism Day', Christian Post
References
- ↑ Is Christianity taking over the planet?
- ↑ http://users.adam.com.au/bstett/BChristianIncrease12.htm
- ↑ http://pewforum.org/Christian/Faith-and-Conflict-The-Global-Rise-of-Christianity.aspx
- ↑ http://www.lausanne.org/about.html
- ↑ http://www.lausanneworldpulse.com/pdf/issues/LWP0206.pdf
- ↑ Global Media Outreach - Impact
- ↑ Network211 - visits
- ↑ Billy Graham Association - Internet evangelism
- ↑ Biiy Graham Association - Internet evangelism
- ↑ Study Reveals Internet Evangelism Is Effective, Christian Post
- ↑ Network211 - our results
- ↑ Network211 - About us
- ↑ Network211 - our results
- ↑ Scientists warn: creationism is on the rise in Europe, Science Nordic
- ↑ http://www.tgdaily.com/trendwatch-features/39777-youtube-surpasses-yahoo-as-world%E2%80%99s-2-search-engine