Origin and Name

Radical trust and willingness to sacrifice were distinctive marks of early WEC. Faith and obedience characterised members of the new movement. Out of passion for Christ, trust in his leading and a deep desire to bring the gospel to those who had no opportunity to hear, C.T. Studd was led by God to Central Africa in 1913. Others joined in the work and with the valuable help of his wife Priscilla in England, the Heart of Africa mission was born. C. T. Studd named the earliest principles the “Five Smooth Stones” from the stones David selected for his battle against Goliath:

  • Absolute faith in the deity of each person of the Trinity.
  • Absolute belief in the full inspiration of the Old and New Testament Scriptures.
  • Total commitment to know and to preach only Jesus Christ and him crucified.
  • Obedience to Christ’s command to love all who love the Lord Jesus sincerely, without partiality, and to love all people.
  • Absolute faith in the will, power and providence of God to meet all our needs in his service.

Focus and urgency marked their methods. Their strategy was to identify the parts of the world that were unevangelised. Then by obedience to the Spirit’s leading, faith, prayer, commitment, and sacrifice they sought to make Christ known in those places as quickly as possible. God’s promise to C.T. Studd was that his journey was not only for Africa. It was for the whole unevangelised world. The work expanded and the name Worldwide Evangelisation Crusade was adopted in 1919. In 1982 the name became WEC International. In this name WEC stands for ‘Worldwide Evangelisation for Christ’. WEC has grown over the years and although our name has changed, our core passion remains – loving Christ and making him known. Radical trust, willingness to sacrifice, faith and obedience, focus and urgency mark our lives. We value the past while remaining committed to following the Spirit’s leading for effectiveness today.

Motto

If Jesus Christ be God and died for me, then no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for Him. (C. T. Studd)

Our Vision

To see Christ known, loved and worshipped by the unreached peoples of the world.

Our Mission

Empowered by the Holy Spirit, with a sense of urgency and a commitment to work with others, we:

  1. Proclaim the gospel by word and deed, so that people come to a living faith in Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord and become his disciples.
  2. Gather believers around Christ, establishing churches in the Word of God so that they make disciples in their communities and beyond.
  3. Mobilise for missions, recruit, train, send and care for workers in fellowship with the wider Church.

Our Core Principles

The following principles, known as the Four Pillars of WEC, are core to the way we seek to live in order to honour Christ and fulfil our God-given mission. We recognize that these are possible only through the indwelling Christ and transforming work of the Spirit.

Faith

God is worthy of our absolute trust. We are totally dependent on him as the supplier of every need in our lives and ministries. We trust him to fulfil his revealed purposes despite opposition, difficulty and apparent impossibility. We believe in:

  1. The power of the gospel to transform the lives of people from every culture and background.
  2. The power of the Holy Spirit to accomplish God’s purpose and build his church.
  3. The ability of the Holy Spirit to reveal God’s will and purpose to his people as they earnestly seek him.
  4. The power of God to supply every need in every situation, so that his work is not determined by circumstances but rather by the ‘great and precious promises’ in his Word.

Holiness

God is holy and has created us in his image. Our desire is to please him in every part of our lives through the power of the Holy Spirit. Holiness of life:

  1. Brings glory to Christ as individually and collectively we live to please him above all else.
  2. Is made possible through our union with Christ in his death and resurrection.
  3. Is evidence of a Spirit-filled life.
  4. Is essential for an effective witness to the gospel.

Sacrifice

Loving Christ is our core passion. The cross, with its principles of denying self and of losing one’s life to bless others, is a defining symbol of life as a Christ-follower. With Christ as our model, we:

  1. Accept a discipleship lifestyle, involving a willingness to risk all, placing God’s will before personal goals, comfort or desires.
  2. Are ready to set aside current patterns of thinking and standards of living, economic security and even be despised for the sake of the gospel.
  3. Seek to identify with the people among whom we minister. This may require us to accept hardship and loneliness, be separated from family members and from Christian fellowship, endure persecution, imprisonment or even death.
  4. Are willing to temporarily put aside a personal goal or ministry in order to fit in with the overall objectives of the team.

Fellowship

We are a community of God’s people drawn from various backgrounds and cultures, reflecting the diversity of the global Church. We are united through one head – our Lord Jesus Christ, and are part of one Church – those who love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity and truth. Our oneness in Christ makes it possible to serve together as brothers and sisters. To live in Christ-honouring fellowship means that:

  1. Our fellowship is shaped by the Spirit’s transforming work in us as disciples more than by cultural or personal expectations.
  2. Our fellowship is strengthened by the use of the gifts of the Spirit and expression of the fruit of the Spirit.
  3. We make every effort to maintain unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace, working together with openness and humility, avoiding unhelpful emphases in doctrine or experience.
  4. We strive to find the mind of the Lord together, believing that as we wait on God his mind can be discerned by the fellowship through the leading of the Holy Spirit.
  5. We accept, support, and submit to one another in mutual accountability and love.
  6. We value ethnic, cultural and denominational diversity and refuse any form of prejudice in the life and appointments of WEC.