Fifty years ago, Billy Graham delivered the opening address at the first International Congress on World Evangelization (ICWE)—a gathering that would become more widely known by the Swiss city it was held in—Lausanne. 

Nearly 2,500 delegates from 150 countries joined 1,300 other attendees in Lausanne, Switzerland, for the 10-day meeting in July 1974, sponsored by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA). The theme was “Let the Earth Hear His Voice.”

“From the time of the early apostles to the present, evangelism has been the lifeblood of the church,” Mr. Graham declared during his keynote address. “The Word of God never changes. Christ never changes. The power of the Spirit to change lives never changes. The demand for obedience never changes. Our commission to go to the ends of the world never changes. And Christ’s promise to be with us ’til the end never changes.”

During the historic global conference, Mr. Graham cited three reasons for what he described as the evangelical church’s diminished vision and zeal for world evangelization: “the loss of the authority of the message of the Gospel; the preoccupation with social and political problems; and the equal preoccupation with organizational unity.”

Mr. Graham’s vision was to promote the proclamation of the Gospel. While acknowledging the Biblical mandate “to alleviate human suffering and to correct injustice wherever it’s found,” he warned of competing agendas that could usurp the church’s primary mission to fulfill Christ’s Great Commission to make disciples of all nations.

He asserted: “Jesus said, ‘What shall it profit a man if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul?’ What if we developed a materialistic utopia—which sinful man cannot do—in which every inhabitant on the planet would be fed, clothed, housed and cared for in every way? Men still would not find the purpose, the happiness, the meaning, the peace and the joy that his heart craves for apart from God.”

David Bruce, executive vice president of the Billy Graham Archive & Research Center and Billy Graham Library, and longtime personal assistant to Mr. Graham, said the evangelist’s resolve to hold high the primacy of proclamation evangelism remains the core tenet of BGEA today, and Mr. Graham would want to remind the ICWE—and all believers—of that priority.

“Mr. Graham wanted to lay a marker down, and the ’74 meeting was basically a theologically oriented meeting,” Bruce said. “The theology of evangelism. They were hammering down on that. The church in general was pulling away from proclamation evangelism toward an over emphasis on the social gospel, the same thing we see today—neglecting evangelism.”

Five decades after the historic Congress in 1974, and following meetings of the ICWE in 1989 in Manila, Philippines, and in 2010 in Cape Town, South Africa, evangelicals from around the world will convene in September in Seoul, Korea, to commemorate Mr. Graham’s advocacy for and commitment to itinerant evangelism around the globe.

And this time, grandson Will Graham is calling the international assembly of evangelicals to recommit themselves to the Lausanne Covenant for world evangelization that was established in 1974 on the authority of God’s Word.

“The necessity of proclamation evangelism is as great today as ever,” Will said in his recorded video greeting to be shown at the ICWE conference. “Even though we’re living in a world that at every turn is working to cancel Christ and the Bible in order to exalt itself, my friends, we must say, ‘Not on our watch!’ Now is not the time to stand down. It’s not the time to give up. It’s not the time to retreat. It’s not a time to turn inward. Now is the time to take spiritual ground. Now is the time to stand boldly for Jesus Christ, to preach Christ unashamedly and in the spiritual power of the Holy Spirit.”

Evangelism is not the only work of the church, Will said, but we must never neglect persuasive preaching, personal soul winning, and the necessity of proclaiming the Good News. 

“At every turn we take, we must continue to proclaim the Gospel and to make disciples worldwide, whether it’s in cities, small communities, on the mountain peaks or in the valleys, on the plains, or in the desert. Whether one person on the street, one table at the restaurant, or thousands in an arena, with the help of the Holy Spirit we must proclaim the Gospel and make disciples.”

Will says he is convinced that Billy Graham and the conveners of the Lausanne 1974 Congress would want to see those at the September meeting go into all the world, Bible in hand, preaching the saving message of Jesus Christ—doing good and alleviating personal pain and need, but never neglecting the primacy of evangelism. 

“My grandfather has gone home to his heavenly reward,” Will said, “but that hasn’t changed our mission or purpose. At the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, we are working as hard as ever to preach Christ by every effective means, and we would count it a privilege to be partners in this wonderful and great mission.” ©2024 BGEA 

Above: Congress Chairman A. Jack Dain and Billy Graham sign the Lausanne Covenant.

Photo: Russ Busby / ©1974 BGEA