Christ’s People
Many millions of people who identify themselves as “Southern Baptists” In the United States and out across the world. That is a secondary description, because if they are truly Southern Baptists in the sense of ultimate values, they would first say, “We belong to Christ. We are his people.” They do not say this exclusively. They freely recognize that Christ has many loyal peoples and most of them are not Southern Baptists. However, every religious group must clearly identify itself in its relationship or lack of relationship with Christ, and Southern Baptists profess for themselves, “Jesus Christ is Lord.” He, by their choice and decision, is their Lord. The constant challenge is to acknowledge and obey Him in all things.
Southern Baptists began as a group of Baptist churches in the Southeastern part of the United States who in 1845 organized the Southern Baptist Convention as their cooperative instrument for missions, starting with international missions. It sent missionaries out into a few countries, at first.
A Biblical People
Most Southern Baptists, at the beginning, were members of small rural churches spread across the Southeastern part of the USA. Many, if not most pastors had to supplement their income by farming or other work. Educational standards were low and seminary training was almost unheard of. Even so, Baptists were surprisingly united in doctrine, believing that the Bible should be their only authority for doctrine and practice. The Bible was the primary text book of the pastors, churches and members before other Christian literature became commonly available.
A Great Commission People
Southern Baptists were moved to organize as a convention when they realized that the challenge of world wide missions required resources that most churches alone would never have. When they organized the Convention in 1845, in Augusta, Georgia, they created the “Foreign Mission Board” and appointed their first foreign missionaries. Soon after, they formed the “Home Mission Board,” primarily charged to use cooperative resources to take the gospel into western lands being settled on the American continent.
A Church People
Southern Baptists have always been “church people.” The local church, for them, has been the central focus of their ministries. The local Southern Baptist church is an autonomous democratic body of believers professing to be under Christ’s direct rule and authority. Most of the churches honor and respect their pastors as the spiritual leader of the church while retaining the ultimate responsibility for the congregation in its practice as a spiritual democracy. This has important implications for missions. One is that the Great Commission mandate of the church will be most effective when the pastor is guided to use the pulpit to speak for Christ in its behalf. Another is that
A Cooperative People (Denominational)
Southern Baptists fiercely hold to the autonomy of every one of their churches. Historically, the denomination was created by the churches and not the churches by the denomination. Ecclesiastically, therefore, the churches, collectively, are superior to the boards and institutions they created. It might be thought that a denominational program created by the vote and support of independent churches would be weak, but that has not been true of Southern Baptists. The churches have wanted their denomination to
Spontaneous Missions Efforts–Apostolic Partnerships
Long before Baptists or any other group of churches or Christians formed conventions or mission boards, Christians naturally sought ways to work together through partnerships. This is true of the earthly ministry of Christ himself and of the Apostles. Acts 13:1-3 reports how the Holy Spirit spoke to five leaders of the Church in Antioch telling them to “set apart” two of their members for mission work to which the Spirit called them. “So, after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them on.” Acts 13:3 No mention is made of finances or even of a public commissioning service by the church itself.