Prominent Megachurch Pastors to Gather for Resurgence Event to Discuss Changing Social Climate for Christians
A half-dozen megachurch pastors, arguably at the top of the most recognizable names list within and outside the Christian community, are scheduled to discuss how believers can live out their faith in a culture that appears to be embracing biblical values less and less. Evangelical leaders including Rick Warren, Matt Chandler, Greg Laurie, James MacDonald, and Crawford Loritts will be joining host Mark Driscoll at the Resurgence Conference 2013 at Mars Hill Downtown Church in Seattle, Wash., Tuesday and Wednesday.
Driscoll recently told The Christian Post that he will open the conference by speaking about the changes in culture that he outlines in his book, A Call To Resurgence, as well as the obstacles and opportunities that are ahead of the church for the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
"I am asking the Holy Spirit to use the instructional and relational aspects of the conference to help leaders from various tribes waste less time fighting and more time learning so we can all invest our energy in evangelizing," Driscoll said. "I will close out the conference with the findings from a massive research project we have undertaken about the most common objections to Christian faith by the unchurched and de-churched ages 18-44 that is the basis for my next book due out next fall that I am currently writing as the follow up to A Call To Resurgence. The tentative working title is My Problem With Christianity. This is the biggest research and writing project I've ever been a part of and the findings are surprising and enlightening while also discouraging."
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In addition to hosting the main speakers at the Mars Hill Church downtown Seattle location, satellite locations are set for Bellevue, Wash.; Reno, Nevada; Orlando, Fla.; and Albuquerque, N.M. The conference will be hosted at venues in those states, respectively, by pastors Judah Smith, Larry Osborne, Bob Coy, and Levi Lusko.
The event will also be live webcast for free for individual viewing on the Resurgence Conference website: http://theresurgence.com/conference.
"As well as being Pastor Mark's friends, these are Gospel-centered preachers who love preaching about Jesus," conference press director Justin Dean told The Christian Post. "That's why they were mainly invited, for their direct preaching from the Bible."
Driscoll said he was deeply honored that the speakers have given their time and insight for this conference. "Each of these men is someone I greatly admire and appreciate and I am certain they will bring a timely word from God's timeless Word."
The Seattle pastor said his heart has always been for ministry leaders – especially young men aspiring to or active in ministry leadership.
Some of the speakers, including Pastor Warren spoke at last year's Resurgence conference. Prior to the event in 2012, Driscoll said he invited Warren because "he is a godly man" and he added, "We want to learn from Pastor Rick as he teaches us on how to maximize our influence for Jesus."
Warren, who is the lead pastor at Saddleback Church based in Lake Forest, Calif., returned to the pulpit in late July after not preaching for 16-weeks since the passing of his son, Matthew, who committed suicide on April 5. The church, which reports an average attendance of 20,000 people on weekends, has several regional campuses in Southern California and recently launched locations internationally, including in Hong Kong, Berlin, and Manila.
Laurie, who is the lead pastor at Harvest Christian Fellowship Church in Riverside, Calif., and Harvest Orange County, recently completed the evangelistic Harvest America event. Almost 3,600 locations hosted Harvest America nationally and globally. At age 19, Laurie led a 30-person Bible study, that is now one of the largest churches in the U.S.
Chandler is the lead pastor of teaching at The Village Church in Highland, Texas. He replanted a church of 160 people and has helped grow it to more than 10,000 regular attenders. MacDonald is the founding pastor of Harvest Bible Chapel in the Chicago area. His preaching reaches 3 million people annually through his ministry, Walk in the Word. Loritts is the senior pastor of Fellowship Bible Church in Roswell, Ga. He is considered one of the top influential pastors in the professional sports world and was invited to speak to teams at three Super Bowls.
On the Web: http://theresurgence.com/conference.
