Dr. Alvin Low is president of ACTS International.  Though he graduated at the top of his class in the Business Department of his college in Singapore, he chose not to take the path of a lucrative career in the business world. 

He earned two Doctorates of Theology (Dallas Theological Seminary and Trinity Theological Seminary) and founded ACTS International.  Additionally, he has more than thirty years of preaching and teaching experience in over forty countries and is the author of fourteen books.  He is an adjunct professor at both the Dallas Seminary and the Denver Seminary. 

The mission/vision statement of ACTS is:  "ACTS International seeks to plant churches among the unreached peoples of Asia by equipping indigenous missionaries.  ACTS envisions the planting of churches in every unreached people group of Asia by the year 2020."  Their mission is based on Acts 14:21-23.

ACTS realizes that the training of local national pastors and church planters is more efficient than sending foreign missionaries.  The native trainees already know the local language and culture.  They are able to access unreached peoples and villages that are inaccessible to foreign missionaries.  Estimates show that the cost to support ONE foreign missionary per year is around $80,000.00.  This same amount will train more than fifty native pastors and church planters per year!  It is also estimated that only 0.001% of Christian giving is targeted toward reaching the unreached (those who have not heard the Gospel of Jesus).

Asia has more than 55% of the world’s population, and the most unreached peoples in the world. The chart below was taken from the ACTS website:

        Country        Peoples        # Unreached Peoples

        India                 2332            2082

        China                 499              406

        Pakistan             401              386

        Bangladesh       370              336

        Nepal                  315              292

In the world today there are approximately 7 billion people.  It is estimated that 1.6 billion of them have never heard of the Gospel. There is no opportunity for them to hear it by any Christian witness that lives close to them, unless missionaries who know the local culture and can speak their language, go to them and tell them the Good News.  

This means that nearly 41% of the people in the world have never heard of Jesus.  And, nearly 50% of those who have heard of Him have not yet become Christians. China has approximately 1.4 billion people.  About one hundred million of them are believers (only God knows exactly how many for sure.)  Though that number seems large, it is just a small percentage of the entire population of that country.  

God is making the training of local servants of God possible for the ACTS organization. He has His own timing for opening the door to those areas which are very dangerous and may even be under siege, areas which could expose the trainees to persecution and war. The people of ACTS are careful to wait on Him. While they wait, they pray and prepare by translating their training material into the local languages of the peoples of Asia. 

Sadly, the unreached may never hear the Gospel in their lifetime.  Many do not have any hope of hearing a Christian witness, unless a missionary from their own country is able to reach them where they live.  Some of the churches that have been planted are made up of only a handful of believers.  Other churches may have as many as several dozen believers.  The Word of God is often preached from house to house with permission granted by the chiefs of the village.  Bible studies are frequently held at night.  Overall, efforts are in place for millions to hear the Good News of the Gospel and that Jesus is going to come again.  The timing is in God’s hands.

The ACTS website may be found at:  www.actsinternational.net