Archive for the 'Join the Movement' Category
A Cooperative Program for Today and a Cooperative Program for the Future
Last fall before speaking at one of our state conventions, I had the privilege to meet a man employed by another major denomination. As we were talking, I asked what he felt was one of the biggest challenges in their denomination.
He said their biggest problem is their churches not funding missionaries like they used to. He stated they are searching for a new way to get this done because when the missionaries come to their churches to raise their individual financial support, the churches are doing so much themselves, they no longer feel they need the missionaries. Additionally, due to the changing nature of church life and the economy, churches are struggling to support missionaries individually and consistently.
Then he stated, “You guys seem to do that so well.” I told him about the Cooperative Program and the way it functions. I explained it is not just the way we fund our international missionaries, but also our ministries and mission work statewide and nationally. He was amazed and very complimentary.
I believe a Cooperative Program for today and a Cooperative Program for the future has to be built upon five major convictions.
Conviction #1: MISSION, NOT MONEY
The driving engine of the Cooperative Program is not money, but the mission of God to redeem the world from sin. The final orders of Jesus before He ascended to heaven were the words given to us in Acts 1:8,
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
His final words were not, “Give money to the Cooperative Program.”
The compelling mission of Jesus Christ to be His witnesses regionally, statewide, nationally, and internationally is what the Cooperative Program has been built upon, is built upon, and must be built upon in the future.
This is why churches give through the Cooperative Program, not to the Cooperative Program. We give through the Cooperative Program in order to fund our work together with one compelling cause: presenting the gospel of Jesus Christ to every person in the world and to make disciples of all the nations.
I am convinced the more we talk about what we are doing to accomplish this mission, the more dollars will flow through the Cooperative Program.
Conviction #2: UNITY, NOT UNBELIEF
The Cooperative Program is our unified plan of giving. It places us shoulder-to-shoulder in our work together, regardless of the size of our church, the color of our skin, or our location in America.
When we continually question this plan, we represent uncertainty to generations of Baptists. Clashing opinions lead to an unseemliness that affects our mission effectiveness.
Entertaining societal methodology jeopardizes our unified plan of giving. Just as it would damage a church’s fellowship and mission, it would even more so in our convention. We need to continue believing in the value of our unified plan of giving.
Conviction #3: COOPERATION, NOT COMPETITION
The spirit of cooperation is so important in funding our work together. A societal method of financial support would fuel competition between our state, national, and international work. The Cooperative Program eliminates competition between our entities as it provides a balanced approach for support.
Each state convention has the privilege to annually evaluate the percentage of monies utilized for their statewide ministries versus what is forwarded on to our national and international work. This is why each church needs to have representation in their state convention. As this is evaluated annually, the desires of the churches are fulfilled. The financial formula for the allocation of monies received nationally from the churches through their state conventions is regularly reviewed by our Executive Committee. I have stated this for one purpose: to let each of you know change is possible and does occur. We are working together toward a common goal.
The Cooperative Program exists to serve the churches in helping them accomplish their God-given responsibility to fulfill the Great Commission; it does not exist for the churches to serve it.
Conviction #4: PARTNERSHIP, NOT PERSONALITIES
Partnership is the key to the Cooperative Program. Churches partner with other churches through their state conventions and our national Southern Baptist Convention. Each state convention partners with other state conventions in funding the work of the Southern Baptist Convention. And our national entities partner with each other and state conventions to present the gospel of Jesus Christ to every person in the world and make disciples of all the nations.
Partnership, not personality, drives our mission. If we keep our eyes on personalities and things occur that cause tension, we may be tempted to consider our financial support as optional. This is not the wisest approach nor best for our work together.
Refuse to let personalities determine your support. If concerns exist, each state convention has an Executive Board and each national entity has a Board of Trustees. In other words, a process is in place to deal with a personality that may concern you. Baptist work is built upon our partnership together for the gospel, not on human personalities.
Conviction #5: HISTORY, NOT JUST THE HERE AND NOW
While the relevance of the here and now is important, we must never disregard the lessons from history. Southern Baptists do not need to make the same mistake our nation is making today.
Just think how many times we hear in our society that things have changed and we need to adjust our moral beliefs because of it. In other words, what is valued as truth in the here and now is more important than our own history as a nation.
I believe the Southern Baptist Convention must be relevant today. In regards to funding our work together, we do not need to return to what we walked away from ninety-one years ago, a societal method of financial support. The Cooperative Program is not perfect. But I believe this unified method of support that began in 1925 is still relevant today, and have seen others marvel at how we are able to work together to accomplish our mission.
Therefore, Southern Baptists, let’s continue forward in our work cooperating for the cause of Christ. Built upon these five convictions, we will have a Cooperative Program not just for today, but a Cooperative Program for the future.
Now is the Time to Lead,
Ronnie W. Floyd
Senior Pastor, Cross Church
President, Southern Baptist Convention
*******
Dr. Ronnie Floyd is currently serving as the President of the Southern Baptist Convention. The Southern Baptist Convention is America’s largest Protestant denomination with more than 15.7 million members in over 51,094 churches nationwide.
To request an interview with Dr. Ronnie Floyd
contact Gayla Oldham at (479) 751-4523 or email gaylao@crosschurch.com.
Visit our website at http://ronniefloyd.com
Follow Dr. Floyd on Twitter and Instagram @ronniefloyd
Dr. Ronnie Floyd is the President & CEO of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee.
Southern Baptists and the Power of God
Far too many pastors, leaders, laypersons, and churches live life and do ministry without the power of God. Spiritual mediocrity leads to a lukewarm spiritual condition. Jesus severely rebuked a lukewarm life and church.
An Honest Evaluation of Ourselves as Southern Baptists
The Scripture warns us against deceiving ourselves. Modern day leadership warns against leaders who are not aware of their limitations. Both can happen personally, in a church, and even to a convention like Southern Baptists.
Almost 74% of our churches are plateaued or declining in attendance. The number of people we have reached and baptized has been declining for a number of years. In fact, this last year, we reached the same number of people as in 1948. Additionally, we are now witnessing our global missions personnel diminish by 1,132 people, 983 of which are God-called missionaries.
Simultaneously, many churches are filled with schisms and divisions. Our Southern Baptist family comprised of churches, associations, state conventions and national entities has continual challenges both internally and externally as we strive to walk in unity.
What are the answers to these challenges and others not mentioned?
The Power of God
I will never forget what Dr. Adrian Rogers and Bob Sorrell, Senior Associate Pastor of Bellevue Church in Cordova, Tennessee told me years ago: You cannot spiritualize management problems.
I agree with their words one hundred percent! Some challenges we face in our churches and within our convention are management issues that cannot be fixed by trying to spiritualize them. This only leads to further and deeper problems.
Yet, I am convinced that our greatest problem today is a lack of deep conviction of our need for the power of God. Far too many of us are living life, providing leadership, conducting and attending worship services, and doing ministry without the power of God. This has become so glaring within our churches and convention that we must not be deceived by where we are and what we do.
Activity is not spirituality. And spirituality by itself does not result in effective leadership. We need spiritual leadership! An effective spiritual leader maximizes their giftedness and is ignited by the power of the Holy Spirit at the same time.
When the Power of God is Released
I am convinced the power of God is released upon us when we walk in obedience to Jesus. Although this is not an exhaustive list, I humbly submit a few ways we can become recipients of His power together.
1. Preaching the Word of God
A practice I began years ago is standing upon 1 Corinthians 2:4-5 in prayer before I teach and preach the Word of God. It says, “My speech and my proclamation were not with persuasive words of wisdom but with a powerful demonstration by the Spirit, so that your faith might not be based on men’s wisdom but on God’s power.” Oh, how I want to preach God’s Word faithfully, but I also want it to be with a demonstration of God through me.
Eloquence of speech or cleverness of mind is nice, but without God’s power upon the preacher, they are empty. Charles Spurgeon knew deeply his need for the Holy Spirit in preaching. In fact, Spurgeon stated that he or any other preacher were “only skeletons without the Holy Ghost.”
Too much preaching today is done by nothing more than skeletons absent from the power of God’s Holy Spirit. Pastors, preach the Word of God in the power of the Holy Spirit. Crying out to God in prayer is a major part of your preparation in preaching. Do not minimize it. Laypersons, call upon God to anoint the preaching of your pastor with His Spirit.
2. Sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ
We read these words in Romans 1:16, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is God’s power for salvation to everyone who believes, first to the Jew, and also to the Greek.” The gospel is the power of God unto salvation.
When my evangelism professor, Roy Fish, taught personal evangelism at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, he talked about how the power of God is always commensurate with our sharing the gospel. As he taught us this from Acts 1:8, he said God’s power will go to the level of our willingness to witness for Jesus Christ.
By the present state of affairs in our convention, the evidence is clear and convicting: We need an awakening in our commitment to personal and church evangelism. The power of God will go to the same level that we are willing to be witnesses practicing evangelism.
3. Crying Out to God in Prayer
Acts 4:31 says, “When they had prayed, the place where they were assembled was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak God’s message with boldness.” Prayer was dominant in the New Testament church. The power of God shook the place where they were meeting because of prayer!
The church has never needed to pray more than today. We need the power of God to shake us and shake the churches of America! This will lead to a fresh filling of the Holy Spirit and we will speak the message of God to this world with boldness.
We need to cease giving more time to promoting the church in our worship services than we give to calling out to God in prayer. No great move of God ever occurs that is not preceded by the extraordinary prayer of God’s people.
4. Walking in Unity
The power of God comes upon the church that walks in unity. Jesus said in John 17 the world will only know we are His by the oneness we have together. Walking in unity is imperative to the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon us.
Before the outpouring of the Spirit on Pentecost, they were in one accord. The power of God is released upon a church when a church walks in unity. The power of God is released upon a family when they walk in unity.
The Southern Baptist Convention needs to recommit to walking in unity. When we are unified in our doctrine, mission, and fellowship, we will position ourselves for the release of the Holy Spirit’s power upon us.
This is Why
This is why we all need to come together in St. Louis, Missouri, on June 14-15, 2016. We need to agree, unite, and pray. We need the power of God more than ever before. Please adjust your schedule, find the funds, and make your way to St. Louis.
Let’s refuse to do ministry apart from the power of God.
Now is the Time to Lead,
Ronnie W. Floyd
Senior Pastor, Cross Church
President, Southern Baptist Convention
*******
Dr. Ronnie Floyd is currently serving as the President of the Southern Baptist Convention. The Southern Baptist Convention is America’s largest Protestant denomination with more than 15.7 million members in over 51,094 churches nationwide.
To request an interview with Dr. Ronnie Floyd
contact Gayla Oldham at (479) 751-4523 or email gaylao@crosschurch.com.
Visit our website at http://ronniefloyd.com
Follow Dr. Floyd on Twitter and Instagram @ronniefloyd
Dr. Ronnie Floyd is the President & CEO of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee.