Please allow me to start this presentation with the end in mind and then move on to some thoughts on the birth, growth, and development of the Ibero-American missionary movement, which I am qualified to speak about this morning.

In 1987, the first Ibero-American missionary congress COMIBAM ’87 was held in Sao Paulo, Brazil, with the participation of over 3,200 attendees, including missionaries, pastors, and observers. They gathered to hear God’s voice concerning the role and responsibility of the Latin church in global missions. It was during this congress that the famous phrase was proclaimed: “Latin America ceases to be a mission field to become a missionary force,” in response to the 1916 declaration of the International Missions Congress in Panama City, where international agencies divided up missionary work and declared Latin America a “mission field.”

I am convinced that the leaders of COMIBAM ’87 did not foresee the extent and power of such a declaration, which came about in an atmosphere of faith and celebration, not of pride. Over 37 years have passed since that declaration, and under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the missionary movement has grown, matured, and embraced it. But there is still much work to be done.

Recently, the COMIBAM Research Department provided me with official data from the study “The Ibero-American Church and the Global Mission of God,” with the participation of approximately 1,200 pastors from across Ibero-America. The information is both revealing and challenging, though I must caution that these are not final numbers, as they are updated daily.

However, I take this opportunity to share with you some highlights of the research:

1. On Ibero-American Missionaries:

– There are over 30,000 Ibero-American missionaries serving full-time in 200 countries.

– 36% serve in indigenous and tribal contexts.

– 27% serve in Islamic contexts.

– 21% serve among the Latin diaspora in the USA and Europe.

– 12% serve in Hindu contexts.

– 9% serve among the Islamic diaspora in Latin America, the USA, and Europe.

– 9% serve in Buddhist contexts.

2. On the Latin Church’s Participation in Global Mission:

– Over 60,000 churches are directly involved in sending and supporting missionaries in the field.

– More than 137,000 churches across Ibero-America are actively involved in various forms of God’s Global Mission.

– 19% of churches pray for missions and missionaries.

– 25% of churches give offerings for missions and missionaries.

These figures represent years of work, mobilization, prayer, investment, faith, tears, and joys. In 1987, there were only around 1,300 known missionaries in Latin America and a few churches involved in missions. Today, 37 years later, the Latin missionary force has grown, and the number of churches engaged in missions has multiplied. We are not yet the “missionary force” that was declared, but I am convinced that, under the Lord’s guidance and for His glory alone, we are on our way to becoming one.

I grew up in one of the suburbs of San Jose, Costa Rica, where I witnessed the work of missionaries from the United States, Europe, or South Korea. I was what Carlos Cardoza calls in his book "the object of the mission." Somehow, I was blessed by those who left everything to preach the gospel in our countries. But I never imagined that one day I would no longer be the “object of the mission” but the “subject of the mission,” as Carlos Cardoza proposes in the same book, meaning “the one who must now bring the gospel to others.”

Latin America: A Declared Mission Field

As I mentioned earlier, in 1916, the World Missions Congress was held in Panama, organized by foreign missions. During that congress, Latin America was declared a mission field, and countries were assigned to different international missions. Historical records show that at that time, 50 missionary societies were working in Latin America, with 235 delegates attending the congress. Of those, only 27 participants were Latin.

The official language of the congress was English, meaning the voice of the Latin church was very small, if not almost nonexistent. This fact is relevant because it indicates that, at that historical moment, the small Latin church was not considered a participant in global missions. Furthermore, foreign missionaries did not consider Latinos as a possible missionary force, as Pablo Carrillo mentions in his book Huellas en el Desierto: “The predominantly foreign missionary community in Latin America did not imagine that the people being reached with the gospel would one day become a missionary force within and outside their countries.”

The Influence of Lausanne on Latin America

The Lausanne Congress on Evangelization, held in Lausanne, Switzerland, in 1974, was the most important milestone in the history of evangelical missions at that time. Its influence reached Latin America through the many Latinos who attended, as well as through literature and subsequent consultations organized by the Lausanne Movement. More accurately, pioneers of Latin American evangelical missiology, such as Samuel Escobar, Rene Padilla, and others, made significant contributions to the Lausanne Congress in forming a missionary mindset based on a comprehensive understanding of the gospel.

The emphasis on the theology of the Kingdom of God and the consequences of the church’s presence in society greatly impacted the direction of global missiology and global missionary work. We praise God for this Latin American contribution to the global evangelical community.

The Birth of the First Latin Missionary Movements

In 1976, the first national missionary association on the continent, the AMTB (Brazilian Transcultural Missions Association), was organized through the initiative of several national leaders and foreign missionaries working in Brazil, with Jonathan Dos Santos as its first president. The AMTB was founded by nine missionary agencies, with the participation of several denominations.

A few years later, another Latin American country took on the challenge of becoming a missionary force. Thus, in 1982, in a small town in Córdoba, Argentina, Villa Giardino, under the leadership of pastors and missionaries, the World Missions Network (RMM) was born to mobilize the Argentine church to reach all nations.

The Birth of COMIBAM: From Field to Missionary Force

The leadership of AMTB and RMM was prophetic in their time for the church, emphasizing the need for our continent to take responsibility in God’s mission. Consequently, the Latin American Evangelical Fraternity (CONELA) convened a meeting of leaders in 1984 in Mexico to discuss organizing an international congress to promote the development of the missionary vision in the region.

COMIBAM ’87 was thus held, where more than 3,000 representatives from all Latin American nations, Spain, and Portugal, as well as observers from other countries, gathered to discuss global missionary work and commit to the formation of a missionary movement from Ibero-America. It was during this occasion that Luis Bush emphatically proclaimed: “In 1916, Latin America was declared a mission field. Today, in 1987, Latin America declares itself a missionary force.”

COMIBAM International developed relationships worldwide with other national, regional, and global networks, helping to establish working groups, convening consultations, and producing books in Spanish and Portuguese.

The Development of the Ibero-American Missionary Movement

To systematically understand this process, we must remember some key dates in the development of COMIBAM and its concrete contributions to the missionary movement:

1987 – First Ibero-American Congress in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Mobilization efforts are strengthened throughout Ibero-America, and serious commitments to global missionary work emerge.

1991-1992 – Consultations in the area of cross-cultural missions are promoted. More missionary training centers are established, and those already in existence grow and are strengthened.

1992 – The Adopt a People (AUP) strategy is disseminated, promoting outreach to the “unreached.” The results include the establishment of a regional prayer program, the creation of manuals and materials on AUP, and an increase in the number of missionaries sent to the field.

1997 – The Second Ibero-American Missionary Congress, COMIBAM ’97, is held in Acapulco, Mexico. It was an opportunity to evaluate and project what the mission is, what it needs, and what elements are necessary to carry it out. As an Ibero-American missionary movement, an analysis is conducted of new trends in global missionary work.

2000 – The First General Assembly of COMIBAM is held in Lima, Peru, bringing together over 100 leaders from Ibero-America with the aim of structuring and consolidating the work, formulating a basic organization, and emphasizing the three main networks of the missionary process.

2003 – The First Leadership Summit of COMIBAM International is held in Guadarrama, Spain, with a focus on developing proposals and strategies to strengthen the movement.

2006 – The Third Ibero-American Missionary Congress, COMIBAM ’06, is held in Granada, Spain, under the theme: “Results and Challenges among the Unreached.” The goal was to evaluate the missionary movement from the field’s perspective. Over 1,800 movement leaders and 300 active Latin American field workers gathered.

2017 – The Fourth Ibero-American Missionary Congress, COMIBAM ’17, is held in Bogota, Colombia, under the theme: “With Jesus on Mission.” More than 1,700 leaders, missionaries, and observers gathered.

2023 – The 2nd Ibero-American Consultation on Unreached Ethnic Groups is organized in Panama City, with the participation of more than 130 delegates from all over Ibero-America to reaffirm our commitment to 1,850 unreached or unevangelized ethnic groups.

We could say that COMIBAM has gone through several historical stages since its inception, development, and growth. Currently, I dare say that we are in a stage of reinvention and growth. We are in a process of maturity, moving towards becoming a polycentric movement, developing several centers of action. An example of this is that we have already started the work of COMIBAM Asia, COMIBAM Europe, and very soon COMIBAM Middle East. The purpose is to first serve the Latino workers who serve in these regions but also the Latin Christian diaspora that has moved to these areas for work reasons and to collaborate with the global missionary movements of these regions such as: IMA, KWMA, and many others.

COMIBAM in Motion

Therefore, we can conclude that over these years, COMIBAM International has been a space for national missionary movements in the region and the church to meet, formulate strategies, and collaborate with the global missionary community. We have dedicated ourselves to supporting and serving the Ibero-American missionary community. We seek to stay attentive to changes and new opportunities in the global missionary context, serving as a bridge between missionary organizations in our region and those in other parts of the world.

To date, we thank God for the thousands of churches and pastors who participate in God’s Global Mission, and as I mentioned earlier, for the commitment to accompany the church in the task of praying and taking the gospel to at least 1,850 unreached ethnic groups.

We are on the verge of celebrating our 5th Ibero-American Missionary Congress, COMIBAM 2025, in Panama City from April 22 to 25, 2025. We expect more than 1,500 leaders, pastors, missionaries, and mobilizers. We are convinced that the congress will be a point of meeting, reflection, and celebration, but it will also be a time to listen to the Lord regarding the future of the Ibero-American Missionary Movement.

By faith and in dependence on God, we dream for the future with: 10,000 new Latin missionaries, for a total combined of 40,000 workers in the field; seeing 200,000 churches mobilized, praying, sending, and supporting missionaries in the field; and Latin workers reaching the 1,850 unreached ethnic groups targeted by COMIBAM.

It excites me to know that we are not alone in this pilgrimage. I feel accompanied by each one of you and the emerging movements we represent. I ask the Lord to give us the humility to continue carrying His word together to all nations, especially to the least evangelized.