It’s now Thursday of the GAFCON Conference in Rwanda and tomorrow is our final day.  I am blessed to be a witness to this historic moment. I’m honored to stand with representatives of 85% of the global Anglican denomination, who are clear about the authority of Scripture and the centrality of Jesus as Lord. The conference theme is “To whom shall we go?” in reference to Peter’s words in John 6:68. Our answer is that we go first to Jesus as our Lord and then to the world with his Gospel. This GAFCON theme is both encouraging and clarifying. For more than two decades these conservative leaders have been demanding that the Church of England and the Archbishop of Canterbury exercise their leadership authority and bring discipline to the Episcopal Church and other provinces, who have strayed from the clear teaching of Scripture. They have succumbed to current cultural changes, especially in the matters of marriage and human sexuality. Check out this recent press statement from the Global South Bishops on Ash Wednesday following the Church of England’s decision to bless same sex unions. 

Reformations are often confusing as old structures diminish and new ones develop. In such times it can be hard to discern what is the hand of God, what are the schemes of the Devil and what is good or sinful human behavior. Still, we must trust that God is sovereign and his purposes will prevail. 

At a local level, the proceedings of GAFCON will have little impact on the day-to-day ministries of our church. Our commitment to the word of God and Jesus will not change. We remember what it was like to be under the progressive and compromising Episcopal Church USA before we left in 2006. We have come to appreciate the godly oversight and encouragement first from the Rwandan Anglican Church (into which I was ordained in 2007) and then from the leadership of the Anglican Church in North America. This is why right now is a key moment. We’re not an independent church. We are under the authority of our bishop and he is under the authority of our province (ACNA). We are choosing the mutual accountability of walking together with our faithful Anglican brothers and sisters throughout the world. There is strength in numbers! 

It’s important to realize that there are two overlapping groups of conservative Archbishops, which have seen a fair degree of redundancy. These groups are GAFCON (Global Anglican Futures Conference) and GSFA (Global South Fellowship of Anglicans). The GFSA is moving toward the structures necessary for a new seat of the Global Anglican Communion. GAFCON is merely a “movement” to encourage faithfulness among Anglican leaders. In the words of those leading us this week, GAFCON has been primarily about these things:

• training Bishops to lead well
• rescuing weaker dioceses from ungodly oversight
• raising up younger leaders
• bringing support to the persecuted church throughout the world

Our conference schedule has been full, with few times for rest. We’ve heard excellent, expository preaching from Paul’s letter to the Colossians each morning. We’ve had times of worship and lots of prayer. We’ve been assigned seats to intentionally intermingle with people who are not like us. Personally, I’ve been sitting near leaders from Tanzania and Nigeria. There has been much networking with old and new friends in the margins of the schedule.

Most significantly, the Bishops and Archbishops have been taking private council together daily to build consensus and strengthen their ministry partnerships. They are working on a draft statement which will be released at the conference end. All delegates, besides the Bishops, have seen the first draft and had some opportunity to comment, however 1300 people wordsmithing a single letter is nearly impossible. We’ve been asked not to share any of the specifics until the final draft is released. However, I can say that the first draft is highly encouraging as it speaks clearly, biblically and directly to the moment in which we find ourselves. It also has the endorsement of a significant majority of the global Archbishops in both GAFCON and GFSA.

The question we’ve all been wondering is whether this conference is going to form a new instrument for unity to replace the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Church of England as the global seat of the true Anglican Communion. It’s a complex and somewhat political question, but my answer is “not yet.” There is more relational work to be done between GAFCON and GSFA and more clarity needed in the specific purposes of both groups.

I’ve spent the better part of the week just trying to figure out what my purpose is in being here. I’ve concluded that the Lord sent me here primarily to do two things.

1. Encourage the courageous leaders from around the world who are standing up for the truth of Scripture. This is accomplished merely by my presence here.
2. I’m also here to pray for unity among the Bishops and Archbishops. Unless the Lord brings these leaders together across cultural and ethnic differences, this whole effort will fail due to human sinfulness and pride.

Psalm 127:1 states it well. 

“Unless the LORD builds the house, those who build it labor in vain.
Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.”

Please pray for the leaders of both GAFCON and the GSFA. The statement that will be released tomorrow is a step in the right direction, but there is a lot more work to be done.

Also, if you want more specific details, I commend to you Sam Horowitz’s daily updates from this conference, which include pictures of our team. Click this link:  https://www.gulfatlanticdiocese.org/events/gafcon-iv/