Church Planting
Our great desire is to proclaim the gospel to all the world that the Lord may be glorified (Rom. 11:36) and that sinners might be spiritually raised from the dead and brought to maturity in Christ (Jn. 3:3; Eph. 2:1, Col. 1:28). In his wisdom, God gathers people into his Church—his covenant people—through the preaching of the Word by the power of the Holy Spirit. As we read the New Testament it is quite apparent that the Apostles and early missionaries placed a high premium on church planting. Paul, for example would go from city to city, preaching Christ, calling the lost into the Church, shepherding believers and appointing leaders. In Acts 14 we read that after Paul had visited many cities, he appointed elders: “And when they had appointed elders for them in every church, with prayer and fasting they committed them to the Lord in whom they had believed” (Acts 14:23). Thus the churches were established and continued to multiply. Although the Call family is now working with the Church in Belize, our prayer is that the Lord would see fit to continue raising up churches for all of Uruguay, Latin America and beyond!
As of now, there are four Reformed works in Uruguay – two in Montevideo, another in Mercedes and a third in Rivera. These churches maintain fraternal relations with one another and hope to form into a presbytery one day soon, Lord willing.
The newest work is a church plant initiated by the Orthodox Presbyterian Church (OPC) originally in the neighborhood of La Blanqueada in the capital city of Montevideo. Iglesia Presbiteriana Salvos por Gracia desires to glorify the Lord and reach the community with the message of the Lord Jesus and is now located in Barrio Cordón closer to downtown.
The other church in Montevideo is called Iglesia Presbiteriana del Uruguay (IPUY). This is a mission of the IPB (Brazilian Presbyterian Church). While ministering to those in and around Montevideo, the church also ministers to a group of believers in Mercedes who have become members of IPUY (though they continue to meet in Mercedes). This small group hopes to form the first Presbyterian Church in Soriano Department.
The oldest Presbyterian church of a conservative nature is located in Rivera. La Iglesia Presbiteriana Conservadora en Uruguay continues to minister in Rivera while also reaching out across the border into Brazil and is led by Uruguayan leadership.
Our prayer is that the Lord will continue to bless these church works as the Uruguayan church partners with the IPB and the OPC going into the future!