At the G26 Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) in Abuja, Nigeria, on March 5, 2026, Pastor Rick Warren delivered a warm, exhortative address to conservative Anglican bishops, archbishops, and church leaders, calling them in his half hour address to anchor a new global Anglican communion in Scripture, obedience, and collaborative mission.

Pastor Warren, who was going to give the address to the 400 delegates attending the G26 conference in person, but had to remain in the United States for health reasons, began by greeting “Anglican bishops and archbishops from all around the world,” calling the meeting “historic” and remarking that he has trained pastors and church leaders in 165 nations and counts many in the room as “dear friends.” He expressed personal affection, saying, “Have I told you lately that I love you? I do,” and stressed his gratitude to be invited again to speak to the traditionalist Anglicans.

Pastor Warren introduced the “Great Commission Allies,” a coalition of over one million congregations, denominations, organizations, and even corporations committed to completing the Great Commission by the 2000th birthday of the Christian Church in 2033. He explained the name by analogy to the World War II Allies, where each nation kept its own identity but joined in a common fight against evil, and urged Anglicans and other traditions simply to “be Anglican,” “be Lutheran,” while collaborating as allies for global evangelism.

He noted he was “personally very proud” of the bishops present, praising their “personal integrity and courageous leadership” and noting that integrity is often uncomfortable and costly, which is why it is rare. He reminded the gathering that he and his wife, Kay, have supported orthodox Anglicans for over 25 years, including paying travel expenses for bishops to attend the first GAFCON in Jerusalem in 2008 and preaching at key events in the formation of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA).

Pastor Warren framed the G26 theme—Joshua 24:15 (“Choose this day whom you will serve”)—as a summons to deliberate, decisive commitment. He insisted that the foundation of any new global Anglican communion must be an “unshakable commitment” to the authority of God’s Word, Jesus’ lordship, and the Bible as the only “rock” on which to build; everything else, he said, is “shifting sands.”

Citing Isaiah and 2 Timothy 3:16–17, he emphasized that the Bible’s purpose is not merely to increase knowledge but to equip the “man of God” for every good work, and that doctrine, reproof, correction, and training are means to that end. He urged the bishops to move forward with “renewed commitment to the spiritual authority of God’s Word” and to carry “the fresh fire of the Gospel into every nation.”

Pastor Warren stressed that it is not enough to believe or defend Scripture; leaders must “do” the Word. Quoting James (“be doers of the word, not hearers only”) and Jesus’ repeated “Go and do likewise,” he argued that the Great Commission calls the church to teach people to ‘do’ everything Christ commanded, not merely to know, believe, or defend it. He linked blessing to obedience, citing John 13:17: believers are blessed when they actually ‘do’ what God reveals.

Warren outlined his vision around the church’s 2000th birthday in 2033, reasoning that Jesus’ birth, ministry, crucifixion, resurrection, ascension, and the Pentecost founding of the church all converge on A.D. 33, making Pentecost Sunday, June 5, 2033, the 2000th birthday of the body of Christ. For the past several years, he said, he has been asking Christians worldwide what they will “give Jesus” on this birthday, and he suggested that the best gift is the return of his “lost children” through evangelism.  

Pointing to the explosive growth of the church in its first 330 years—from 120 believers at Pentecost to roughly half the Roman Empire by 360 A.D.—Warren argued that the early church’s model is what modern Anglicans should replicate. He highlighted three early‑church practices:  

“Everyone shared the Gospel” through testimony rather than formal tract‑witnessing.  

“They collaborated together” across networks, obeying Jesus’ prayer for unity in John 17 so “the world will know” and “believe.”  

“They followed Jesus’ model” of relational discipleship, not just his message.

Warren summarized what Jesus did with his disciples in five tasks, which he condensed into the acronym “PEACE”:   P – Proclaim the good news (evangelism).  E – Equip disciples (teaching and training).  A – Alleviate suffering (care for the poor, oppressed, and hurting).  C – Continually pray (spiritual warfare and dependence on God).  E – Establish churches (church planting and healthy congregations).

He tied these five tasks to passages such as Matthew 9:35 (preaching, teaching, and healing) and Matthew 16:18 (“I will build my church”), and urged the bishops to adopt this same pattern so their communion becomes known as one that “does what Christ commands.”

Warren proposed five measurable global goals for 2033, which he calls “The Beagles”:  

1. “Believers trained to share” their testimony with unbelievers.  

2. “Bibles accessible” in every heart language.  

3. “Bridges of love” showing God’s love in practical ways.  

4. “Breakthrough prayer” for every unbeliever by name at least once before 2033.  

5. “Bodies of Christ established so every person has access to a local church

He reported that Great Commission Allies have already prayed for over 500 million unbelievers by name and invited the Anglican leaders to join these goals.

Warren closed with a call for the Anglican communion to adopt the Great Commandment and the Great Commission as its core driving force, saying, “A great commitment to the great commandment and the great commission will grow a great communion.” He invited bishops and churches to connect with him, giving his email and telephone number to the gathering, so that he could send them free resources and alert them to collaboration opportunities.  

In an era of visible split and realignment within global Anglicanism, Warren’s speech at G26 underscored orthodoxy, obedient action, and worldwide cooperation as the way forward for a global Anglican communion committed to finishing the Great Commission by 2033.