Men & Women, Young & Old, Risking Their Lives for the Gospel
The headlines I’ve seen so far say something like this …. “Southern Baptists Vote to Oppose Use of I.V.F.,” “Southern Baptist Ban on Women Pastors Fails in Historic Vote” or “Southern Baptists’ Nuanced Divides on Display at Annual Meeting.” As someone who was in the room when all the votes and discussions took place, I’m not surprised these are the headlines.
This was my first time to ever attend the Annual Meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention. I was in attendance with five other messengers from our church. While the business items were a lot to process for someone who has never attended before, I enjoyed spending time with fellow church members and the opportunity to see it all in action. There is no way to explain how all of this works without seeing it in person. Therefore, I’m grateful for that experience.
The headlines are definitely worthy of attention and subsequent discussion. However, I would also like to point out that there were several moments during the Annual Meeting that I was deeply moved. SBC President Bart Barber delivered a powerful message from Romans 15 that challenged the convention to strive for one voice and one mind. Dr. Jeff Iorg, former president of Gateway Seminary and now the president of the SBC Executive Committee, confronted the tendency towards mission drift. In so doing he called out the issues that are currently distracting the convention and did so with an unbelievable mixture of grace and accountability. When I listened to these men speak, the Spirit of God was definitely at work. The question was how the 8,000+ in attendance would listen.
In addition to these meaningful sermons the worship was incredible. Led by Southwestern Seminary students, several of whom have led us in worship at UBC in the past, I was constantly stirred by the beautiful praise that was lifted up in honor to God. But perhaps my favorite part was the commissioning and prayer over the 80+ missionaries preparing to leave for their assignments. We got to hear from each one as they shared where they were going and ways we could pray. At one point, we prayed for those who were being sent to parts of the world where the security concerns are so high, the identities were kept confidential as well as their voices. Other representatives would read their prayer requests on their behalf due to the danger of their work. It was a powerful picture of the reality that many of our brothers and sisters are truly risking their lives for the Gospel.
I realize there is an appropriate need to talk about the headlines. And we will. I’m going to spend the next week on a vacation with my family and I anticipate this time away will provide the space to reflect and process all that I observed and the implications for our church. When I return, I intend to process further with the fellow messengers who were with me as well as our deacon body. At some point, after those conversations, we will set up a time to process with the church as a whole. So, please be in prayer as we seek the Spirit of God to lead us in wise and mature discernment.
With all that said, I wanted to send this letter today to offer a different headline. “Men and Women, Young & Old, Risking Their Lives for the Gospel.” While this is not an exaggeration, we also know it is not going to garner the same amount of clicks and tweets as the other subjects. And yet, I would submit that this is the headline that should impact each of us the most. The Church (not just Southern Baptists) has struggled with doctrinal unity since its inception. Pursuing doctrinal unity is not an insignificant task and it is absolutely necessary. However, we should not be surprised that nuanced divisions are on display within the convention. This is the current state of affairs and I’m sure it will remain a consistent reality for us for years to come. My request at this point is for us to take a moment to consider the greater headline. “Men and Women, Young and Old, Risking their Lives for the Gospel.”
I’d like to call you to pray for them today. Pray for their families and the loved ones that are watching them go. Pray for their example to stir your own heart to the point that you also would be willing to risk anything for the sake of Jesus. Pray for our church. Pray that we would be so consumed for a love for the nations that we would do everything within our power to make sure the hope of Jesus is known and proclaimed in the hardest to reach corners of the world. Pray that our greatest example would be fueled by the fact that we are a church filled with men and women, young and old, who are willing to risk their lives for the Gospel.