Then Jesus came near and said to them, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:18-20, HCSB).
Southern Baptists have always been a Great Commission people. Christ’s command to go, disciple, baptize, and teach is woven into the very DNA of our churches. By God’s grace, over the last thirty years, the SBC has undergone a Conservative Resurgence that has brought substantive changes to many of our churches and all of our Convention’s seminaries and boards. We are thankful for the Conservative Resurgence and believe that God has also called Southern Baptists to a Great Commission Resurgence as the next step in the fulfillment of our mandate in missions and evangelism which will result in the renewal of our Convention.
In my opinion, the very first sentence of the very first paragraph says much to the need for a Great Commission Resurgence: "Southern Baptists have always been a Great Commission people." Amen and amen. No one would argue with that and every true Southern Baptist (SB)would wholeheartedly affirm it. However, as many studies have shown, well over half of all SB churches are declining. In addition, the IMB came up $40 million short toward their LMCO goal this past Christmas. As a result around 2,000 God-called missionaries are being told there is not enough money for them to go through the IMB right now. Yet, more buildings are being built here in North America. More staff are being hired. More 'material' things are being purchased to support our programs.
Please hear me and do not misunderstand: I am not saying all buildings are bad or that hiring staff is bad or that programs are bad. But I am saying something is bad wrong about our priorities if the Great Commission isn't being fulfilled while we, here in the Bible-Belt, continue to increase things that are not the MOST effective.
So, whether one likes the Great Commission Resurgence document or now, if it is true that SB's have always been a Great Commission people then SOMETHING has got to change. Something is going to have to give. Someone is going to have to ask the tough questions. Thus, everyone must at least admit that something has to change in order for Southern Baptists to be who we say we are, i.e., Great Commission People. Having a task force to AT LEAST evaluate how things and entities are run so as to help us be most effective to reach the nations
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