Another Convention Embraces Acts 1:8!

It is refreshing and a blessing that we continue to see state conventions embrace an Acts 1:8 paradigm of missions. The latest is Minnesota-Wisconsin. Check out the Baptist Press article below. --Tim

Acts 1:8 mandate to churches underscored by Minn.-Wis. Exec
By David Williams
Dec 6, 2005

WAUKESHA, Wis. (BP)--"Let's Go Minnesota-Wisconsin!" was the theme of the two-state convention's annual meeting, challenging messengers to share the love of Christ with people at home and around the world.

A total of 88 messengers and 86 visitors attended the Nov. 3-5 sessions at the Country Springs Hotel and Conference Center in Waukesha, Wis., representing 40 churches from six of the convention's eight associations.

"It's back to the basics tonight," Leo Endel, executive director of the Minnesota-Wisconsin Baptist Convention, told the crowd, asking them to read Acts 1:8 in unison: "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

Endel shared his conviction that a biblical church follows the mandate of that verse and sees itself as a worldwide mission center.

"If we are going to be His witnesses in our Jerusalem, weíre going to have to get out of the walls and into the streets where the people are," he said, asking, "If your church closed tomorrow, would your community miss you?"

Each church also has a responsibility beyond its local community and must also find ways to reach its state, its nation and its world, Endel continued.

"You and I continue to write Acts 1:8 as we are His witnesses to the world," Endel said.

Other speakers echoed that theme.

John Avant, vice president of the evangelization group of the North American Mission Board, said Southern Baptists have gotten used to getting "boxes" from NAMB containing the latest evangelism initiative.

"When I came to this position nine months ago, I put a moratorium on creating new products," Avant said. "No longer are we going to send you a box and say, "Hereís the NAMB product we want you to use."

Instead, Avant said, churches need to "make evangelism good news again" by doing it "the Jesus way."

"We need to return to that place where evangelism is not just something super-Christians do once a week but is the joy of our life," Avant said. "If we ever return to the joy of evangelism, then almost any box will do, any program will do."

R. Philip Roberts, president of Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kansas City, Mo., noted that the Christian church is plateaued in North America and declining in Western Europe.

"Everywhere else the church is growing," he said, citing growth in Latin America where 400 people an hour are joining evangelical churches, Korea where the Christian percentage of population has grown from 1 percent to more than 40 percent in the past 45 years, and China where a house church movement has resulted in more than 100 million believers in a communist society.

An International Mission Board representative to the Far East who was back in Minnesota-Wisconsin temporarily, challenged the convention to consider whether God might be calling it to take an international assignment.

"Is Minnesota-Wisconsin the end of the line for you, or could God be calling some of you to the ends of the earth?" asked the missionary, whose name cannot be identified for security reasons.

Kendall Moore, national literacy missionary with NAMB, encouraged churches to consider using literacy training as a tool for reaching people.

"I would encourage you to look out your door," Moore said. "There are people out there who are waiting for you to teach them how to read and write."

The Minnesota-Wisconsin meeting was without conflict or controversy, with no resolutions offered, all three officers elected by acclamation and the only other motion -- that the recommended budget be approved -- passing unanimously.

Shelby Alcott, a member of Layton Avenue Baptist Church in Greenfield, Wis., was elected president; Les Stevens, a member of Emmanuel Baptist Church in Rochester, Minn., first vice president; and Arne Gulbrandsen, pastor of New Beginnings Church in Racine, Wis., second vice president.

The 2006 budget of $2,211.652 is down 1.8 percent from the 2005 budget. As in the 2005 budget, 13 percent of Cooperative Program receipts will be forwarded to Southern Baptist Convention missions and ministries, while 87 percent will be used for M-W causes. Principal changes in the budget, Endel told messengers, included 2.5 percent salary increases, the doubling of disaster relief funding and a downward adjustment of church planting funds due to decreased support from the Baptist General Convention of Texas.

Also during the meeting:

-- A Jan. 31 retirement date was announced for Norman Wallace, M-W church growth and health director, after 21 years on staff.

-- An offering of $827.29 was received to assist churches damaged by Hurricane Katrina in the Mobile Baptist Association in Alabama.

-- Special prayer was voiced for the pastor of a Hmong Baptist church in Minnesota facing possible deportation.

There were light moments during the sessions, including a rap which Guidestone representative Mike Harris wrote for his report after hearing special music during a previous session from a church that uses Christian rap in worship:

"I'm from Guidestone and Iím here to say,

"No one's going hungry when they're old, no way!

"Retirements, investments, insurance, too,

"What we do is all about you!

"We can help one way or another

"So you wonít have to move in with your mother."

The resolutions committee also used humor in its report: "Whereas, no messenger has found sufficient reason, resolve or bellyaching to set forth a recommended resolution, be it resolved that we, the resolutions committee, have no resolution, fallacious or otherwise, to offer this body. Praise God, weíre free at last."

Next year's meeting will be Nov. 2-3 at the Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites in Duluth, Minn., with Paul Berthiaume, pastor of Jacobís Well in Eau Claire, Wis., scheduled to preach the annual sermon. There are 13,781 members of 145 churches and missions in the Minnesota-Wisconsin convention.
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David Williams is editor of the Minnesota-Wisconsin Baptist, newsjournal of the Minnesota-Wisconsin Baptist Convention.

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Acts 1:8 Challenge in Indiana!

Below is an article on the Acts 1:8 Challenge by Stephen Davis, executive director for the State Convention of Baptists in Indiana. His article was printed in the April 13, 2005 issue of the Indiana Baptist to encourage SBC churches in the state to accept the Acts 1:8 Challenge. --Tim

Acts 1:8 Challenge

By Stephen P. Davis

The Acts 1:8 Challenge is a passion, not a program. There have been many programs and slogans in the history of Southern Baptists, but the “Acts 1:8 Challenge” is different. It defines the passion and focus of Jesus and is His final word to the apostles and the church. Acts begins with “…about all that Jesus began to do and to teach…” and then Jesus ascends to the right hand of the Father. The rest of the book of Acts is a continuation of our Lord’s desire carried out by the Apostles and the early church. We are excited that Southern Baptist leaders and entities are uniting around a clear, harmonious commitment to carry out our Lord’s last challenge – to take the gospel to the ends of the earth. Acts 1:8 outlines our task, our commitment and our challenge until Jesus comes. It is not a fleeting motto, program or slogan. It is our mandate as we seek to obey Jesus to fulfill the Great Commandment and the Great Commission in order to empower Kingdom growth.

“…you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you…” One thing is clear from Jesus – we cannot fulfill the Acts 1:8 challenge apart from His Spirit. Only the Holy Spirit working in us and through us will enable us to have the passion and commitment to be an Acts 1:8 Christian and an Acts 1:8 church. So the bottom line is this: unless the Spirit takes over our lives and churches, we will be malnourished in our effectiveness.

“…and you will be MY witnesses…” Anyone who studies this phrase in the Greek knows that the word order places emphasis on the pronoun “My.” In other words, Jesus is telling us that when the Holy Spirit is truly in charge of our lives, we will have the power and make it our priority to be a witness exclusively to Him in our world.

“…in Jerusalem…” – the local church and associational challenge. If acceptance of the Acts 1:8 Challenge does not happen here first, it will not happen. We are asking every pastor and church in Indiana to make the commitment to go on record that we accept Acts 1:8 as our strategy for reaching our communities, state, nation and world. Leaders in our churches must lead out in this commitment.

“…in all Judea…” – our state. On the state level, it is the desire of the SCBI to be a strategic partner with our pastors, churches and associations to work together to fulfill the Acts 1:8 challenge by adopting as our theme for the next three years, “Taking the Cross to the Crossroads.” Themes may come and go, but our commitment is that Acts 1:8 will be our marching orders and our mandate that will not change in focus, priority and, most of all, our passion.

“…and Samaria…” – our nation and Canada. Our strategic partner for extending the gospel to the North American Continent is the North American Mission Board (NAMB), and the guiding principle for our partnership is Acts 1:8. We are working together to equip believers to be witnesses, to start churches, to strengthen churches and to expand the influence of the gospel in every segment of society.

“…and to the ends of the earth.” – our world. We are excited about what God is doing in our world. Over a thousand people a day are coming to Christ overseas under the direct contact or influence of our missionaries. As our strategic partner to take the gospel to the ends of the earth, the International Mission Board is also united with us around Acts 1:8. They are committed to doing all they can to assist our churches in overseas partnerships with unreached and unengaged people groups. The opportunities in the days ahead, however, are unlimited for churches to impact the world, not only through prayers and giving, but personal involvement. God has given the Acts 1:8 challenge to every local church. Our commitment is to assist in every way possible the desires of our churches to fulfill the Acts 1:8 challenge and connect to people overseas who need to hear the gospel.

90% of our world is considered to be lost! When we contemplate that statistic, it is obvious that we cannot do it in our own strength, ingenuity, resources, talents and abilities, but “…by My Spirit, says the Lord!”
We want to encourage every pastor and church in our state to officially commit to the Acts 1:8 challenge. You can access it online at our web page – www.scbi.org. It will only take a minute to fill out the form; it will take until Jesus comes to carry it out. Many of our churches already have, but we are praying for every church to make that official commitment. If you do not have access to the web page, then call or write us, and we will get the brochure to you. Think about it. What Jesus has outlined for us in Acts 1:8 is His comprehensive strategy to reach our world. Every church needs to put into place each piece of the strategy. Let’s have a clear focus, uniting around our common commitment to be Acts 1:8 churches.

Our prayer? That this will be our passion, not a program. If it’s just another program, then it is doomed to eventual obscurity. If Acts 1:8 is our passion, then we will stay faithful to the task until Jesus comes!