The Third Lausanne Congress concluded Sunday night with a multi-faceted musical presentation, pageantry and a glorious display of Christian unity. One week to the night after Cape Town 2010 began, 4,000 Christian evangelicals from 198 nations – representing scores of denominations and Christian organizations – brought the historic Congress to a close with worship.

British evangelist Lindsay Brown called in his sermon for a “a ringing affirmation of the uniqueness of Christ”, echoing what other keynote speakers had preached throughout the conference – that Jesus is the only way to salvation. “He is incomparable,” stated Brown.

Brown said that not only should the Lausanne Movement continue its commitment to see the Gospel preached among every people group on earth, but that it should also commit to impacting every sphere of society.

Both in his sermon and an earlier press conference, he emphasized that there is no aspect of one’s being that God does not want to claim as His own. He decried secularism that attempts to confine Christian expression only to one’s church and home.

Tickets to Robben Island where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned sold out fast during the Lausanne Congress. That didn’t surprise me. How can one fail to admire Mandela for overcoming great adversity to lead a nation to democracy?

I can’t help but wonder if Mandela, imprisoned under harsh conditions for 27 years, could have imagined that one day he would have opportunity to impact not only his own country of South Africa, but the world.

On a very basic level, there is something so compelling about his story. Humankind fears captivity and treasures freedom. Mandela emerged from captivity unbowed to lead others to stand proud and ultimately to claim freedom.

Participants at the Third Lausanne Congress have awaited with similar anticipation to see what will come out of this gathering of 4,000 evangelicals from 198 nations. Aside from all of the wonderful worship and interaction, what will Cape Town 2010 say to the global church?

How do you distill hundreds of talks, plenary sessions, discussions and conversations at Lausanne into a single document? That’s the conundrum facing Chris Wright and his team as they work to prepare “The Cape Town Commitment” – the definitive, final summary document that will emerge from the Third Lausanne Congress.

“It’s like standing under the Niagara Falls with a hosepipe,” said Wright, chairman of the Lausanne Theology Working Group. “We’re trying to get everything that’s been said here into something small.”

Jason Mandryck, author of the latest edition of “Operation World,” discusses how this definitive guide to praying for the nations was compiled, and how it can best be used by believers around the world. ‘Operation World:’ Author Jason Mandryck Interview

Russian Ministries President Sergey Rakhuba discusses how much work is still needed in the countries of the former Soviet Union. Sergey Rahkuba — Russian Ministries Interview

Terence Ascott, CEO of SAT-7, and Rita Elmounayer, Programming Director, talk about about broadcasting “hope” into the Middle East.

Asian Access President Joe Handley discusses the theme of “reconciliation” at Cape Town 2010: The Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization. Interview with Joe Handley, president of Asian Access

CAPE TOWN – In a world where about half the people live on less than $2.50 a day, a gospel that promises material wealth and health brings hope of relief from grinding poverty. But a prominent African evangelical leader disputes this prosperity message as grossly out of step with biblical teaching.

“Seeing the wider body of Christ gather like this is a little taste of heaven.”