FINISH Europe Summit: Day One Press Release

September 4, 2023

Hundreds Will Assemble to Synergize and Mobilize in Order to Finalize the Great Commission by the 2,000th Birthday of the Church

ZURICH, September 1, 2023 — To coordinate and apply the collective time, energy and resources of the Global Church to finish the Great Commission, Global Church Network will welcome nearly 400 Christian leaders representing 39 European countries next week for the FINISH Europe Summit, to be held September 4-6, 2023, in Zurich, Switzerland.

For nearly 20 years, the Global Church Network has synergistically partnered with thousands of organizations and more than 700,000 churches, spanning virtually every denomination and world region. In 2017, they added a finish line: 2030 — the 2,000th birthday of the Church.

Referred to as FINISH 2030, the collaboration offers a new overarching strategy for pursuing the Great Commission — one that is synergistic, global in scope and capable of outpacing population growth and getting the Church to the finish line sooner than we ever dreamed possible.

Following FINISH 2030 Summits previously held in Asia and West Africa, leaders in attendance at the FINISH Europe Summit in Zurich will set collective, missional goals for:

  • The launching of 39 ministry hubs throughout Europe; 
  • The equipping of at least 100,000 new pastors and ministers in the next ten years; 
  • The establishment of Global Church Divinity School campuses in every nation;
  • The mobilization of prayer in local churches throughout Europe.

“FINISH 2030 is about reaching the hardest places in the world with the Gospel—sooner rather than later,” said Founder and President of Global Church Network, Dr. James O. Davis. “This is not something that any one person, church, denomination or ministry organization can do alone. We are moving past ego and logo to ‘we go together.’ The Church is moving from competing with each other to working together to complete the Great Commission.”

Amid the ongoing, unpredictable turmoil in Ukraine, Dr. Valerii Reshetinsky, President of the International Center of Christian Leadership in Kiev, is driving 1,300 miles each way to speak at the FINISH Europe Summit. Dr. Reshetinsky will bring one of the final messages of the Summit, sharing the dynamic, supernatural ways he has witnessed God protect the people there since the Russian invasion.

“We’re living in the greatest battle of lives. Our Lord has commanded us to fight the good fight of faith and to finish the Great Commission,” said Dr. Reshetinsky. “The FINISH Europe Summit gives us the opportunity to join forces with Christian leaders, from throughout Europe, to synergize our energies together to win the battle for millions of souls throughout our world region.”

Dr. Tim Hill, Church of God Overseer, Cleveland, Tennessee, shared, “The Church of God is committed to challenging and completing the Great Commission in our generation. It is a joy to unite our efforts with Dr. James O. Davis and the Global Church Network at the FINISH Europe Summit to mobilize Christian leaders toward the finish line.”

“For more than a century, the Church of the Nazarene has focused on preaching the Gospel to all people groups,” said Carla Sunberg, Church of the Nazarene General Superintendent. “I’m honored to speak at the FINISH Europe Summit in Zurich in order to further mobilize prayer throughout the Body of Christ. We are living in the generation where Church leaders are synergizing their efforts in evangelism and church planting in the hardest regions of the world.”

“We are living in the greatest revival in my lifetime, perhaps ever,” said Dr. John B. Sorensen, President and CEO of Evangelism Explosion. “How critical it is to join together to evangelize the lost and to equip young evangelists to carry the Gospel to new, uncharted areas. I believe that we are living in the days of the fulfillment of the Great Commission of Jesus Christ!”

FINISH Europe Summit co-hosts include Andi Bachmann-Roth (Co-General Secretary, Teamleitung), James O. Davis (Founder, Global Church Network), Marco Hofmann (President, Swiss Pentecost Mission), Urs Daniel Schmid (Founder, LiFe Evangelism) and Florin Cimpean (Administrative Bishop, Church of God).

For more information about FINISH 2030 or to register online for the FINISH Europe Summit, visit finisheurope.com. Those unable to attend are encouraged to partner in prayer.

About Global Church Network

Established in 2001, Global Church Network is a growing coalition of more than 2,700 Christian ministries and denominations synergizing their efforts together to build the premier community of pastors worldwide to help plant five million new churches for a billion soul harvest. The Global Church Network now consists of more than 700,000 churches and has become the largest pastors network in the world. For more information, visit gcnw.tv.

About FINISH 2030

On November 1, 2017, commemorating the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation, Finish 2030 was launched at the graveside of Martin Luther at Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany. More than 600 distinguished leaders representing every major stream of Christianity and all 12 world regions together declared to work collaboratively to finish the Great Commission by the 2,000th birthday of the Church. FINISH 2030 seeks to network and partner with synergistic-minded leaders, churches, and organizations from every denomination, every stream and every region of the world. The Western Church cannot finish the Great Commission by 2030, but the Global Church can — and working together with effective, proven global strategies to FIND, INTERCEDE, NETWORK, INVEST, SEND, and HARVEST, we will. For more information, visit finish2030.com.