Article | Missions magazine

A New Song

Jan 15, 2025
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BY JOHN PEASLAND

Last year, CMML kicked off a renewed focus—in our publications, conferences, and digital communication—on the “Unfinished Task.” We printed maps of the 10/40 Window showing the 31 largest unreached people groups in that region of the world and included one with each copy of the 2024 Missionary Prayer Handbook we sent out. The messaging challenged thousands of believers across the US assemblies to consider going to the 10/40 Window, sending believers there, and supporting missionaries already serving there.

Praise the Lord for what has been accomplished as believers accepted the challenge and joined Christ in His mission to build His church, seeing Him save souls from people groups around the world. Much progress has been made over the past 2,000 years: of the 17,260 people groups in the world, over 10,000 have been substantially reached with the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. And the established evangelical church is committed to reaching the remaining groups.

However, the stark reality remains: over 7,200 people groups still must be reached, which amounts to about 3.4 billion people. These numbers are not just a statistic but a call to action, a reminder of our mission’s urgency.

Psalm 96:1–3 says, “Oh, sing to the Lord a new song! Sing to the Lord, all the earth. Sing to the Lord, bless His name; proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day. Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples.” Then, in verse 4, the psalmist continues that his reason to sing and proclaim salvation among the nations is God’s greatness.

Now, dear believer, our God’s greatness has never changed. He was great thousands of years ago when this psalm was written, and He will always be “greatly to be praised.” (Psalm 145:3) He deserves to be glorified among the nations, among all peoples, including the 7,200 yet to be reached with the proclamation of “the good news of His salvation.”

Oh, that the Lord would fill His church today with the psalmist’s great longing to see His glory declared among the nations: “The Lord reigns; . . . He is coming to judge the earth. He shall judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with His truth.” (Psalm 96:10, 13)

The day is coming when a new song will be sung: “And they sang a new song, saying: ‘You are worthy to take the scroll, and to open its seals; For You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us kings and priests to our God; and we shall reign on the earth.’” (Revelation 5:9–10)

May each child of God in the North American assemblies recognize the great privilege and responsibility we, as His ambassadors and colaborers on the earth, have to be about His mission until He returns!

In 2025, CMML begins a journey across the regions of the 10/40 Window, focusing on specific areas and the unreached in each. This year, our focus, as previewed at our recent Annual Fall Conference in New Jersey, is the region of South Asia.

As you receive your copy of the 2025 Missionary Prayer Handbook, join us in praying for those the Lord has sent out and is using worldwide. Learn more about South Asia and the 1.8 billion unreached people there. Pray by name for the 30 largest unreached people groups in South Asia (plus another large group: the deaf in South Asia), and ask the Lord to send more laborers into this harvest field. And, as you pray, ask Him, “How would you use me to declare Your glory among these nations?”

May the new song of the Lord’s salvation echo across these Gospel-barren lands, and may many unreached come to a saving knowledge of our wonderful, great Savior! n

John Peasland, CMML executive director

Originally published in Missions magazine, December 2024. For more content, sign up for a free subscription (US and Canada) to Missions at CMML.us/magazine/subscribe