This semester, I’m researching and writing a paper with one of my professors. I’ve chosen to focus on answering the question,
How can pastors of Southern Baptist Churches lead their churches through change (with relatively little conflict) to become more successful in fulfilling the Great Commission?
I’m excited about this semester and the opportunity to spend countless hours researching something extremely practical for my future, (and I’m floored by God’s providence in working this out, considering I go to a public university!), but before I can move forward with my research, I have to establish what “success in fulfilling the Great Commission” actually is.
These are the definitions I’m currently working with:
From a theoretical and individual perspective, success in the Great Commission is essentially obedience to Christ’s command to “make disciples of all nations” (Mat 28:19, ESV). I know that I can’t make a disciple out of anyone, and that God is the active agent in turning someone to faith in Him (1 Cor 3:6, ESV). Therefore, individual success in the Great Commission is achieved when I am faithful to present Christ crucified and leave the results to God.
In my view, the fulfillment of the Great Commission, (actually making disciples of all nations), isn’t beyond God’s reach, and in fact, it is His desire that all would believe in Him (1 Tim 2:4, ESV). However, our churches have long had evangelism as a token ministry. Since God has chosen to use the church as his primary means of spreading the good news of Christ, success in fulfilling the Great Commission hinges on our willingness to restructure our churches to have the Gospel and evangelism at the center of who we are.
For the purposes of my research, (that is, taking the theoretical and individual success and applying it to the wider church), success in the Great Commission is essentially organizing the church in such a way that the Gospel of Christ is so central to its mission that everything it does is Great Commission work.
Essentially, I believe we have to think of our churches in a more unified way. Sure, there is benefit to having specialized ministries within our churches, (i.e. student, senior adult, married adult, mercy ministries, missions, small group ministries, etc.), but the danger is that we could think that fulfilling the Great Commission is something that happens in our Sunday morning worship experiences, on mission trips, or somewhere beside “our” ministry.
In short, corporate success in the Great Commission is being so committed to seeing it fulfilled that it is at the center of everything we do.
Maybe this visual will help articulate this more successfully.
What are your thoughts on this?
Am I completely off base here, or does this line of thinking make sense?
Pingback: Measuring Success « Bradley A Mills
I think this to be very much it…what is the point of having a church if it isn’t ready to let go, and change things to support the only mission we have been given: the great commission…legit, I encourage you to stick with this fearlessly, I hear truth and Jesus in it…I have seen many churches (inevitably) struggle with this, and the lost just see us as going after our own thing…I know I did when I was lost, I didn’t think I could trust a church that had huge buildings, very separate and personality-based ministries, and little willingness to let go of custom…hope this has encouraged you, if not, forget about it, and delete my comment…all the best
and by “it” (in the first sentence) I mean what you are saying on this page…cheers
Charlie,
Thanks for the kind words. Thanks for reading.