Major Decisions Face SBC
by T. C. Pinckney Vol. XXIII, No. 4, April 2010
editor, The Baptist Banner
Most theologians (at least those I’ve read) agree that God often permits us to face major problems in order to lead us to grow in faith. After all, when everything is going great, our fallen hearts tempt us to attribute it to our own wonderful abilities and so lead us away from reliance on God. But when we face really tough times, circumstances we obviously cannot control, faith in self withers and we cry out to God. Then we progress in realizing just who He is and who we are.
Organizations, large and small, can also face difficulties. Take Toyota for an example. One of the world’s largest and most prosperous car manufacturers, sales growing, competitors hurting. Then come the unexplained accelerations: sales plummet, lawsuits loom, and the company’s entire future is in doubt.
Denominations are not exempt from critically important decisions, decisions which can have serious impact on their future effectiveness in winning souls to the Kingdom. The Southern Baptist Convention faces just such a moment.
In the November/December 2009 Baptist Banner I published a front page article, “A Time of Transition”, which addressed open or soon to be open top leadership positions at three of our most important entities: the International Missions Board, the North American Missions Board, and the Executive Committee. [To review that article, go to www.BaptistBanner.org, click “Articles from Past Issues”, click “SBC 1996-to date”, and read “A Time of Transition: Three key SBC leadership changes Nov/Dec 2009".]
But that’s not all. The “Transition” article barely mentioned the Great Commission Resurgence Task Force which was authorized by SBC messengers last June, appointed by SBC President Johnny Hunt, and chaired by Rev. Ronnie Floyd, pastor of First Baptist Church, Springdale, Arkansas. For some months the Task Force released no substantive information but on 22 February they issued an initial 32 page report, and have scheduled their final report for release 3 May. Then their recommendations will be discussed and voted upon during the SBC annual meeting 15-16 June in Orlando. Obviously, a 32 page report is too long to be reproduced in The Baptist Banner, but you can read the entire document by searching online for “GCRTF report”.
The GCRTF report contains six “components”, their major recommendations. These are quoted below without comment. Others articles in this Banner will provide a spectrum of reactions condensed slightly from Baptist Press articles. Now to the components:
Component #1: We believe in order for us to work together more faithfully and effectively towards the fulfillment of the Great Commission, we will ask Southern Baptists to rally towards a clear and compelling missional vision and begin to conduct ourselves with core values that will create a new and healthy culture within the Southern Baptist Convention. We believe our missional vision needs to be the following: As a convention of churches, our missional vision is to present the Gospel of Jesus Christ to every person in the world and to make disciples of all the nations. [In the report each component section includes lengthy comments. Those comments have been omitted here due to space limitations.]
Component #2: We believe in order for us to work together more faithfully and effectively towards the fulfillment of the Great Commission, that our North American Mission Board needs to be reinvented and released. Therefore, in order to do this, we will ask Southern Baptists that the North American Mission Board prioritize efforts to plant churches in North America and to reach our nation’s cities and clarify its role to lead and accomplish efforts to reach North America with the Gospel.
Component #3: We believe in order for us to work together more faithfully and effectively towards the fulfillment of the Great Commission, we will ask Southern Baptists to entrust to the International Mission Board the ministry to reach the unreached and under-served people groups without regard to any geographic limitations.
Component #4: We believe in order for us to work together more faithfully and effectively towards the fulfillment of the Great Commission, we will ask Southern Baptists to move the ministry assignments of Cooperative Program promotion and stewardship education from the Executive Committee of the Southern Baptist Convention and return them to being the work of each state convention since they are located closer to our churches. Our call is for the state conventions to reassume their primary role in the promotion of the Cooperative Program and stewardship education, while asking the Executive Committee of the Southern Baptist Convention to support these efforts with enthusiasm and a convention-wide perspective.
Component #5: We believe in order for us to work together more faithfully and effectively towards the fulfillment of the Great Commission, we will ask Southern Baptists to reaffirm the Cooperative Program as our central means of supporting Great Commission ministries; but in addition, we will ask Southern Baptists to celebrate with our churches in their Great Commission Giving that goes directly through the Cooperative Program, as well as any designated gifts given to the causes of the Southern Baptist Convention, a state convention or a local association.
Component #6: We believe in order for us to work together more faithfully and effectively towards the fulfillment of the Great Commission, that a greater percentage of total Cooperative Program funds should be directed to the work of the International Mission Board. Therefore, we will ask Southern Baptists to support this goal by affirming an intention to raise the International Mission Board allocation for the 2011-2012 budget year to 51%, a move that is both symbolic and substantial. At the same time, we will ask Southern Baptists to reduce the percentage allocated to Facilitating Ministries by 1% as part of our initial effort to send a greater percentage of total Southern Baptist Convention mission funds to the nations.
Now you can search online for “GCRTK report” and then open “GCRTF Progress Report— SBC Voices” to read the full report. Also, read the several articles in this Banner presenting various views of the impact of these recommendations.