Why I Am Active as a Southern Baptist

Latest article for the Arkansas Baptist News.........................

“Why are we active with the SBC/ABSC?” Every week I am asked this question. Sometimes it comes from a family visiting our church. They may have a different faith heritage – or no church affiliation at all – and they ask what it means to be a “Southern Baptist Church.” It also comes from church members who wonder about our church’s involvement with the ABSC and giving to the Cooperative Program (CP). This is a time when resources can be scarce. Economic times make things tough on families and thus churches. Families are busier than ever, reducing the time they have to serve. Pastoral time and resources also are at a premium because so many families are hurting – marriages, issues with children, financial crises. This means people wonder why pastors are giving hours to the ABSC with so many counseling needs, ministry demands, etc.

It is imperative that Pastors understand why we are involved in our Convention and then teach the church. If we are less than clear, our leadership to the church also will be less than clear. On the other hand, a clear, well-reasoned explanation is a strong method for casting vision and affirming the church’s resolve. A weak answer simply creates more questions in the mind of church members. Relying upon “We have always done it this way” will not stir a deeper passion for missions giving at your church. We must consistently affirm the vision for our churches to remain engaged.  

Here are a few clear reasons why I am committed to partner with our Convention. First, the Bible is the only infallible statement from God that defines man’s condition and His plan for salvation. Baptists still have a vibrant, strong commitment to the Bible. Second, the Bible, our instruction manual, commands us to evangelize. The ABSC helps our church create effective evangelism opportunities. We have been involved in numerous ABSC partnerships and we have more people involved in missions because of that partnership. Third, the SBC, through the CP, sends more missionaries around the world than any other mechanism. We are directly sending out missionaries by our giving. Moreover, it is often the SBC missionaries who make it possible for us to work in countries where our church sends teams, such as Guatemala.

Finally, this partnership helps disciple my church towards a greater commitment to missions. When we fight to maintain our giving or send people on a mission event, we make a conscious decision to keep our focus on missions. Every meeting where we squeeze our nickels in order to give, we are making a decision of faith to prioritize evangelism. When we teach/preach on giving, I regularly ask our church this question: “Do we want to be a church that balances our budget by cutting missions support or by giving more so we can send more?” This discourse in our church helps disciple our people to make the commitment to be an evangelistic church. Isn’t that the Great Commission after all?