The original issue can be found at: http://www.baptistpress.com/issue-06/04/2020 DISCLAIMER: Baptist Press should be credited for any reprinted stories that originate with BP. Suggested credit line: Reprinted from Baptist Press (www.baptistpress.com), news service of the Southern Baptist Convention. Please note that Baptist Press periodically carries stories from other sources by permission. Individuals interested in reprinting non-BP stories should contact the entity where the story originated to seek reprint permission. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Southern Baptist Convention continues statistical decline, Floyd calls for rethinking ACP process by Staff Reports Date: June 04, 2020 - Thursday NASHVILLE (BP) -- For the 13th consecutive year, the Southern Baptist Convention reported a drop in its membership. Total membership in the Southern Baptist Convention fell almost 2 percent to 14,525,579 from 2018 to 2019. The decline of 287,655 members is the largest single-year drop in more than 100 years. While the statistical decline is concerning for the largest Protestant denomination in America, Ronnie Floyd, the SBC Executive Committee's president and CEO, also expressed concern with the length of time and effort needed to collect information from cooperating churches, as well as the lack of uniformity, which combine to prevent a complete statistical picture of the denomination. State conventions set their own procedures and timelines, which can range from several months to a year. "In our high-tech world, our processes cannot have this much lag time," Floyd said. "It simply cannot take this long and be this complicated. It is past time for us to rethink and re-innovate the SBC Annual Church Profile process." According to LifeWay Research, only 75 percent of Southern Baptist congregations participated by reporting at least one item on the profile -- which means 25 percent of Southern Baptist congregations did not report any items. The reporting rate is similar to previous years, but has steadily declined over the past two decades even as reporting technology has increased. "We cannot possibly know how best to meet the needs of our 47,500 churches when we only receive needed data from just 75 percent of them," Floyd said. "Uniformity in our data collection timing, uniformity of the questions asked of our churches, accelerating the response time and increasing the response rate are vitally important for us so that we will have accurate and current data regarding cooperating churches in the SBC." Floyd cautioned that "approximately 12,000 of our churches chose not to participate in any way in the ACP process," adding: "That definitely impacts our statistical data." Scott McConnell, executive director of LifeWay Research – which is charged with compiling the report in cooperation with Baptist state conventions--also noted that for the first time in 100 years, a state convention did not collect total membership numbers. An estimate for Oklahoma congregations is included in the data based on previous reporting from current congregations. Nathan Lorick, executive director of the Colorado Baptist General Convention, stressed the importance of churches reporting the data needed by states and national organizations in order to better serve churches. "Churches that report their ACP numbers are not only joining with others across their state to celebrate what God is doing, they are also helping their convention be more strategic in equipping churches to engage their communities," Lorick said. "ACP reporting gives Southern Baptists the opportunity to learn what areas we need to be more focused on in order to see the Gospel advance like never before." McConnell also emphasized the importance of these cooperative connections within the SBC -- especially during a global pandemic. "The Annual Church Profile is an important annual check-in to make sure other congregations, associations, state conventions, and national entities have the contact information, leadership names, and a few statistics to stay connected with a congregation," McConnell said. "Many contacts have been made during this difficult time that were only possible because information was updated and stored in a national database." One statistical positive was the number of churches cooperating with the SBC. Church totals grew slightly to 47,530, an increase of 74 from 2018. However, the number of church-type missions fell by 477 to bring the overall number of SBC congregations down to 51,138 in 2019. Multisite congregations reported an additional 505 campuses where local church ministry takes place. State-level highlights While the national numbers declined, several state conventions saw growth, particularly some outside of the traditional Bible belt. Colorado, Hawaii-Pacific, Iowa, Minnesota-Wisconsin, Northwest, Puerto Rico, and Utah-Idaho Baptist conventions all reported a more than 30 percent increase in baptisms for 2019. "We are humbled and excited to see Colorado Baptists' baptism numbers increase for the third year in a row," Lorick said. "Our churches are fully committed to see the Gospel advance across our state. Through pastors leading well, people engaging the lost, churches faithfully reporting, and Colorado Baptists' strategic 'Next Step' process, God has given a great increase. We are so grateful for all God is doing and look forward to all he will do!" Florida reported the most baptisms by a single convention with 25,338, while neighboring Georgia had the largest numerical increase with 1,901 more baptisms in 2019 than 2018 (19,641 to 17,740). "This [increase] is a reflection of the commitment of our pastors to reaching the Georgia with the Gospel," said Thomas Hammond, Georgia Baptist executive director. "It shows they are focused and passionate in leading their churches to reaching their community and mission field." Congregations in the Hawaii-Pacific, Iowa and Michigan state conventions grew membership by more than 20 percent in 2019. Kentucky had the largest numerical membership jump, adding 42,315 people to their congregations last year. Attendance drops In addition to the decrease in membership, average weekly worship service and Sunday School or small group attendance each dropped by less than 1 percent. Average worship service attendance fell to 5,250,230, while average small group attendance declined to 3,236,196. Total baptisms fell by more than 4 percent, dropping from 246,442 in 2018 to 235,748 in 2019. In 2019, there was one baptism for every 62 Southern Baptists. "These numbers are not able to tell the story of all the evangelistic efforts that many individuals and churches have put in this past year," McConnell said. "They do indicate, however, that the efforts of the same number of people in a congregation on average are seeing fewer people come to Christ and being baptized. "The Southern Baptist Convention is not immune to the increasing secularization among Americans that is seen in more of our children and our neighbors not having interest in coming to Jesus." An evangelism task force was formed in 2017 and gave a report with recommendations at the 2018 SBC Annual Meeting in Dallas. Recommendations from the task force included churches conducting annual evangelism training events and adopting baptism goals as well as pastors modelling personal evangelism and presenting public Gospel invitations. Matt Queen, professor of evangelism at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, served on the task force. "Those recommendations have not yet reversed our baptism decline," Queen said. "I continue to believe wholeheartedly that these recommendations, if practiced by Southern Baptists, can become a catalyst that God might use to see an increase in disciples made both here and around the world." Declines in giving Total church receipts and undesignated receipts were both down in 2019 after two years of growth. Total church receipts reported through the ACP fell 1.44 percent to $11.6 billion. Undesignated church receipts decreased 0.01 percent to $9.6 billion. Congregations reported total mission expenditures of $1.1 billion and Great Commission Giving of $541 million. Giving through the SBC's Cooperative Program is not included in the ACP statistical summary. Actual giving totals are available through Baptist state conventions and the SBC Executive Committee, which processes the mission gifts. Individual congregations voluntarily report their ACP data to their local Baptist associations and/or their state conventions, and the data is released when all cooperating state conventions have reported. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Church reaches the world from small Alaska town by Karen L. Willoughby Date: June 04, 2020 - Thursday VALDEZ, Alaska (BP) -- David Bradley, pastor of First Baptist Church of Valdez, isn't hard to find. That's because Valdez is a small town. Check the post office, grocery store, hardware store, senior center, or numerous eating establishments, and you'll find him. Bradley looks for people to talk with. "I really love to do outreach," Bradley said. "I like to say, we at First Baptist seek to serve God as we gather for worship and Bible study, and we scatter for evangelism and service. The church should do both, gather and scatter. The Lord's work is still going on. COVID-19 can't stop Him." The Cooperative Program helps extend the Lord's work far beyond Valdez, Bradley said. That's why First Baptist Valdez has chosen to allocate nearly 20 percent of its offerings to missions including 10 percent through CP, the way Southern Baptist churches work together to tell people worldwide of God's unconditional, unrelenting love for them. "It's stewardship," Bradley said. "It's one way to expand our ministry globally. What a great opportunity we have to participate in His work -- and it is His work, not ours. What a privilege it is to be on mission with Him!" Bradley and his wife Cindy lead by example. She is the assistant activities director for a long-term care center in Valdez. She has been helping the residents Facetime with loved ones who are unable to visit in person because of the COVID-19 global pandemic. "The residents are getting more visits than ever before," the pastor said. "They're loving it!" She also gets shopping lists from the residents and goes to the grocery store for them since they can't get out because of the virus. "What has been interesting during COVID-19 is that I'm posting my sermons on the church's website. I never did that before," Bradley said. "I preach verse by verse, passage by passage -- I've been in the book of Acts since last June -- and my teaching slides are posted online along with my sermons. People can start and stop as they make notes or whatever. It's pretty cool. Since he began posting sermons online, "the Gospel has gone a lot further than just our four walls," he said, adding: "Also, we've never had online giving as an option before until now. We're grateful for the faithfulness of our members supporting the church and missions financially with their tithes and offerings. God always provides. He sure does." Each Wednesday during the months of the pandemic, Bradley has been emailing church members a devotional message produced by the North American Mission Board. Each Friday, he emails that week's digital Sunday School lesson from LifeWay Christian Resources. "Now everybody is having family Sunday School classes and worship," the pastor said. "Families all over town are having family home church together maybe for the first time. What a blessing that is!" Valdez is a town of fewer than 3,800 residents at the south edge of Alaska's mainland. The town has the northernmost year-round ice-free port in the nation. "If you've always dreamed of seeing a calving glacier or walking on one, Valdez is the place to visit," Bradley said. And visit they do. First Baptist ministers to hundreds of visitors in the summer months, holding a Sunday morning worship service in Prince William Sound aboard the glacier tour boat Lu-Lu Belle. The church also ministers to the residents at the town's long-term care center through a weekly Sunday afternoon worship service. Nearly 100 children each year -- though not this summer because of the pandemic -- attend Vacation Bible School at First Baptist Valdez, including many children from other churches. After their VBS week concludes, leaders pass on their LifeWay VBS curriculum and materials to other Southern Baptist churches in Alaska. The church's community outreach includes an annual Christmas "Walk to Bethlehem and a a goal of praying in front of each of the town's 1,645 residences. "When you work together, and you follow the Lord, His work spreads way more than we can do on our own," Bradley said. "Alaska is a mission field. Alaskans are not against the church, but many are just not interested. That's definitely a challenge." First Baptist Valdez, 260 miles from the nearest Southern Baptist sister church, affiliates with the Alaska Baptist Resource Network, a ministry of the Alaska Baptist Convention. Despite the geographic isolation, the church has both given and received help from sister churches -- something that has been put on hold during the pandemic. "Ministering and serving the Lord together," Bradley said. "What a blessing that is. I've been missing folks. God created us for fellowship with Him and with each other. We have the great news of salvation in Christ. We want to serve the Lord and be faithful in everything: our lives, our families, our jobs, and our church. "With every aspect of who we are, we at First Baptist Church of Valdez want to help others find the Love in Christ that we have." -------------------------------------------------------------------- Podcast focused on racial reconciliation launches by Tess Schoonhoven Date: June 04, 2020 - Thursday BRENTWOOD, Tenn. (BP) -- "The Reconciliation Conversation," a podcast aimed to "encourage love, expose hate, equip for reconciliation and emphasize unity, so that red and yellow and black and white can know our value together," debuted its first episode Wednesday (June 3). The podcast, co-hosted by Jason Dukes, church multiplication minister at Brentwood Baptist Church in Brentwood, Tenn., and Derrick DeLain, pastor of the soon-to-be-launched Proclamation Church plant in Nashville, features conversations about racial unity, the Gospel, and the role Christians have to play in cultivating a culture in which people value each other. Both DeLain, who is black, and Dukes, who is white, said they hope the podcast can serve as a resource for Christians to learn about facilitating meaningful, productive conversations and about actions that bring real change to current, oppressive systems. Dukes, who brought the idea of a podcast to DeLain, said creating a space to explore these issues had been a goal. "I really desired to see more individuals who call themselves Jesus followers to engage in the conversation, to feel a little bit more of what is felt outside of privilege," Dukes said. "The notion of doing this kind of thing has been on my heart for a long time." Delain said many of the conversations covered in the podcast will likely also take place among new churchgoers when Proclamation Church is launched in Nashville in January 2021. "We essentially want to have this podcast be a challenge to a lot of the systems that are set in place," DeLain said. "We want to see a lot of this racial disunity in America come to an end." DeLain acknowledged that as Christians, they know that an end to racial division comes only through the Gospel and will only be truly achieved in heaven (Revelation 5 and 7). But the men hope to see some of heaven's unity on earth. "There's always hesitancies in stepping into this conversation on a larger scale," DeLain said. "There are people who are coming in who view this as an anti-Gospel. But the reality is that if you really begin to dig into the Bible and the whole counsel of Scripture, we see that this is a Gospel issue." The podcast was originally planned to launch in mid-June, but recent events convinced them to launch earlier. "I'm heavy about what this could mean," Dukes said, "and understanding that we're facing a stronghold here. And obviously there comes a lot of difficulties, so that's a lot of what Derrick and I have been talking through. Are we willing to link arms and face the difficulty that may come if we really stood up on this issue and challenged leaders to pay attention to it?" In the first episode, Dukes and DeLain unpacked the goals of the podcast, diving deeper into the aspects of the mission statement -- encouraging love, exposing hate, equipping for reconciliation and emphasizing unity. Dukes believes silence on these issues demonstrates a lack of care for racial justice and unity. "If the cross declared anything, it declared that everyone of us are worth dying for," he said. "And we want people to know that they're worth dying for, instead of watching people die on videos. It's a lack of that, that hurts us. It's that simple understanding that everyone has such beautifully declared value. "Most of us are not even willing to stick it out in the church family when reconciliation is required. If we're struggling with that as followers of Jesus inside church culture, no wonder we're struggling with that in the culture at large. We should be as salt and light shaping that culture." The men hope to continue the podcast as long as they are able, bringing in other speakers and leaders to engage racial issues. "Unfortunately, racism is a continuing issue in our society," DeLain said, "and there's gonna be more and more people who need to understand the ins and outs of reconciliation, with God and with each other. Until Jesus comes back we know this is going to be a continuing issue. So, to continue to be a voice in that, my hope is that we'll continue to go for as long as we see fit." The first podcast episode, along with other resources and information from Dukes and DeLain can be found at reconciliationconversation.com. -------------------------------------------------------------------- FIRST-PERSON: Who's Your One is not just a slogan by J.D. Greear Date: June 04, 2020 - Thursday EDITOR'S NOTE: J.D. Greear is president of the Southern Baptist Convention and pastor of The Summit Church in Durham, N.C. DURHAM, N.C. (BP) -- I grieve at the news that our reported baptism numbers fell again this year, continuing our 50-year decline. Many Southern Baptists labor faithfully but unseen, in difficult places, and their success is not shown in numbers they can report. We salute and commend them. But many of us are disturbed at our increasing spiritual infertility in the midst of communities wandering further and further away from the Gospel. In the time I have remaining as president of the Southern Baptist Convention, I want to work closely with SBC Executive Committee President and CEO Ronnie Floyd, North American Mission Board President Kevin Ezell, our state convention executive directors, and our associational missions strategists to examine our reporting structures and process. We want to put every option on the table to revise the way we collect and report out annual church profile data. The better our processes, the more we can know and understand our landscape. I join many in the call for awakening in our churches and in our land, but I am honestly afraid that often our call for awakening can become a smoke screen for inaction. The Son of Man came to do one thing: Seek and save the lost. Too many of us care more about whether our side is winning in the news cycle than we do the souls of our neighbors, sow division on secondary issues more than we point people to Jesus, and focus more on preserving our traditions than reaching our grandchildren. Regardless of our systems and structures, we know the Lord is the One who saves. God alone gives the increase. We also know that the more the Gospel is proclaimed, the more our hearts yearn with implacable grief for the lost around us. The more we pray according to God's promises, the more God will fulfill His promise to us to give us abundant fruit that remains, and the more we will look like the early church where "God added to their number daily those that were being saved." "Who's your one?" is not just a slogan, but something that needs to be the very heartbeat of every Christian, every pastor and every church. I call on Southern Baptists to lament this trend with me and ask God what He would have each us do about it. I pledge myself to lead in that. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Economic impact of COVID-19 pandemic slows Cooperative Program giving by Staff Date: June 04, 2020 - Thursday NASHVILLE (BP) -- Gifts to the national Cooperative Program Allocation Budget for May 2020 were below budget by more than $1.5 million as the COVID-19 global pandemic continues to impact churches financially. The $14,802,344.02 given through the Cooperative Program was 16.08 percent less than the same month last year. Nearly every church across the Southern Baptist Convention has been restricted in some form from meeting in person for worship by state and local policies on social distancing and limits on gatherings. These restrictions have negatively impacted giving in churches. National CP receipts in May dropped by $2,837,139.31 from the May 2019 total of $17,639,483.33. "This is one moment where we must all come together to give through the Cooperative Program like never before," said SBC Executive Committee President and CEO Ronnie Floyd in a statement. "This is what will result in Gospel advancement across our regions, our states, our nation, and the entire world. Our team here is monitoring our giving through the Cooperative Program daily. We are not surprised to see the reverberations of the COVID-19 global pandemic on Cooperative Program receipts. And while many of our churches are thriving financially, we know others are struggling. "Churches in many of our states are slowly beginning to open up again. While we may also see this downward trend of giving through the Cooperative Program in the month ahead, we do anticipate that in the next three to four months we will see an upsurge in giving. That said, I really want to thank our churches for being faithful in forwarding their financial gifts through the Cooperative Program. This is the financial fuel that provides us the resources to take Good News to the whole world. "I want to remind each of our churches: Your faithfulness in giving through the Cooperative Program is what will keep our missionaries on the mission fields here in America and across the world. This is our number one concern at this time. What each local church determines to give through the Cooperative Program every month makes this possible." As of May 31, gifts received by the EC for distribution through the CP Allocation Budget total $130,106,855.38. This is $3,718,745.23 or 2.78 percent less than last year's budget contribution of $133,825,600.61. The amount given is slightly below the $131,000,000.00 year-to-date budgeted projection to support Southern Baptist ministries globally and across North America by $893,144.62 or 0.68 percent. The final amount received in May 2020 was $1,572,655.98 (9.6 percent) less than the monthly budgeted amount of $16,375,000.00. Designated gifts received in May amounted to $13,266,133.00. This total was $4,720,433.18 or 26.24 percent below gifts of $17,986,566.18 received last May. Also, this year's designated gifts through the first eight months of the fiscal year amount to $139,369,577.55, which is $7,735,205.91 or 5.26 percent less than the $147,104,783.46 given through same period in the previous fiscal year. Designated contributions include the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering for International Missions, the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions, Southern Baptist Global Hunger Relief, Southern Baptist Disaster Relief and other special gifts. This total includes only those gifts received and distributed by the Executive Committee and does not reflect designated gifts contributed directly to SBC entities. The CP is Southern Baptists' channel of giving, begun in 1925, through which a local church can contribute to the ministries of its state convention and the missions and ministries of the SBC through a unified giving plan to support both sets of ministries. Monies include receipts from individuals, churches and state conventions for distribution according to the 2019-2020 Cooperative Program Allocation Budget. State and regional conventions retain a portion of church contributions to Southern Baptists' Cooperative Program to support work in their respective areas and forward a percentage to SBC national and international causes. The percentage of distribution is at the discretion of each state or regional convention. The convention-adopted budget for 2019-2020 is $196.5 million and is disbursed as follows: 50.41 percent to international missions through the International Mission Board, 22.79 percent to North American missions through the North American Mission Board, 22.16 percent to theological education through the six SBC seminaries and the Southern Baptist Historical Library and Archives, 2.99 percent to the SBC operating budget and 1.65 percent to the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission. If national CP gifts exceed the $196.5 million budget projection at the end of the fiscal year, the Executive Committee's portion of any overage falls to 0.0 percent while IMB's portion increases to 53.4 percent of the overage. The other entities' percentage distributions of the overage remain the same. The SBC Executive Committee distributes all CP and designated gifts it receives on a weekly basis to the SBC ministry entities. Month-to-month swings reflect a number of factors, including the timing of when the cooperating state Baptist conventions forward the national portion of Cooperative Program contributions to the Executive Committee, the day of the month churches forward their CP contributions to their state conventions, the number of Sundays in a given month, and the percentage of CP contributions forwarded to the SBC by the state conventions after shared ministry expenses are deducted. CP allocation budget gifts received by the Executive Committee are reported monthly to the executives of the entities of the convention, to the state convention offices, to the state Baptist papers and are posted online at sbc.net/cp. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Bible Study: Do you have 'saving faith' in Jesus? by Staff/LifeWay Christian Resources Date: June 04, 2020 - Thursday NASHVILLE (BP) -- This weekly Bible study appears in Baptist Press in a partnership with LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention. Through its Leadership and Adult Publishing team, LifeWay publishes Sunday School curricula and additional resources for all age groups. This week's Bible study is adapted from The Gospel Project curriculum. Bible Passage: Luke 17:11-19 Discussion Questions: -- Why should a heightened sense of our own unworthiness lead to a grateful attitude and worship of God for our salvation in Jesus? -- How does salvation by faith set Christianity apart from all other religions and worldviews? Food for Thought: Read Luke 17:11-19. The one former leper to return to Jesus was a Samaritan, a "foreigner," as Jesus called him. That a Samaritan was the one to return is shocking and provided Jesus with a meaningful opportunity to demonstrate the reason He came. Presumably, the other lepers were Jewish men with a lineage that enjoyed the benefits of a relationship with God firsthand. The Samaritan, on the other hand, was not part of the people of God. Yet the Samaritan was the one to express worship to God and thankfulness to Jesus. As the Samaritan fell before Jesus to thank Him and give glory to God, he received a word from Jesus weightier than any healing of any disease. He found the assurance of eternal salvation because He came to Jesus in faith. We find the same when we come to Him in faith. Jesus came to save sinners from their sin, and by faith we receive the salvation Jesus purchased through His death and resurrection. What is saving faith? It is comprised of three things, at least. First, we must believe the right things about the true God. The leper believed that Jesus was worthy of worship. So he not only cried out for mercy at the beginning but also returned in worship at the end of his healing. He knew that God was present in Jesus to grant salvation. Second, saving faith is an assurance that what we believe is true. The leper not only acknowledged who Jesus was; he also truly believed in Him. His knowledge didn’t stay at the surface level. It affected His worship. Third, the leper acknowledged the personal implications of faith in Jesus. He returned in worship to Jesus not only because he knew the right things and accepted the truth of those ideas, but also because he trusted Jesus and relied upon Him. The leper trusted that only Jesus could make him well, because only Jesus had made him well. Saving faith is just that. Saving faith is looking to the whole Christ for your whole need and knowing He alone can save. The Gospel Project The Gospel Project is a chronological, Christ-centered study for kids, students and adults. The Bible is not a collection of stories. It is one story of God’s plan to rescue His people from sin and death. It is the story of redemption, the gospel message of Jesus Christ. More information can be found at LifeWay.com/gospelproject . Other ongoing Bible study options for all ages offered by LifeWay can be found at LifeWay.com/SundaySchool or ordered at LifeWay Christian Stores. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Sanidad Racial, Gran Comisión, Programa Cooperativo encabezan SBC Advance by Por Diana Chandler Date: June 04, 2020 - Thursday NASHVILLE (BP) -- En medio de desafíos sin precedentes resultantes de la pandemia COVID-19, además del descontento racial y el tumulto después de la reciente muerte de un afroamericano en custodia de la policía, El Comité Ejecutivo de la Convención Bautista del Sur (SBC) ofreció un bálsamo sanador el martes (2 de junio) con SBC Advance. El evento de dos horas no tuvo la intención de reemplazar la reunión anual de la SBC 2020 (originalmente programada para el 9 y 10 de junio en Orlando, que fue cancelada debido a la pandemia del coronavirus), sino proveer en vez a los bautistas del sur la oportunidad de oír cómo Dios ha continuado la obra a través de la SBC. SBC Advance destacó los logros bautistas del sur en la Gran Comisión, el Programa Cooperativo, la libertad religiosa, la educación de seminario, la diversidad, el alivio en desastres y las misiones en casa y en el extranjero. Líderes de las entidades, pastores, convenciones estatales y ejecutivas de la Unión Femenil Misionera (WMU) se unieron para resaltar la obra bautista del sur. "Nuestra meta con SBC Advance es informarles de todo lo que está sucediendo en la SBC, e inspirarlos a continuar uniéndosenos en este trabajo," dijo Ronnie Floyd, presidente y director ejecutivo del Comité Ejecutivo de la SBC. "Cuando el COVID-19 empezó a impactar las grandes reuniones a lo largo y ancho de nuestro país, el Comité Ejecutivo comenzó el proceso constitucional de cancelar la reunión anual 2020 con los directivos de la SBC y con las cabezas ejecutivas de las juntas de la convención e instituciones." En observaciones introductorias, Floyd abordó el racismo y la actual inquietud que agitaba la nación desde la muerte el 25 de mayo de George Floyd en Minneapolis. La llamó "otro horrendo acto de injusticia racial." "A nuestras iglesias y pastores afroamericanos en todo Estados Unidos: Estamos con ustedes y guardamos luto con ustedes," dijo Floyd. "Este es un momento en el que iglesia tras iglesia y pastor tras pastor deben defender la justicia y la santidad. Una iglesia a la vez, un pueblo a la vez, una ciudad a la vez, debemos ver en el espejo y ver en total realidad dónde estamos individual y colectivamente. "Nosotros, las iglesias en Estados Unidos, somos los que tenemos que ser fieles en recurrir a Dios para que venga y nos dé su sabiduría y nos provea su senda a la sanidad de nuestra nación," dijo Floyd. "Somos los llamados a responder en este momento." Presidente de la SBC, Greear El presidente de la SBC, J.D. Greear animó a los bautistas del sur a perseverar durante la turbulencia nacional. Mencionó el crecimiento de Dios de la iglesia cristiana, como está registrado en el libro de Hechos, como evidencia de la fidelidad de Dios. "Lo que para nuestro enemigo significa maldad, Dios lo vuelve en bueno," dijo Greear. "Dios está soberanamente usando este momento para el avance de la misión." Greear dijo que la congoja históricamente ha provisto terreno fértil para el Evangelio, así como la mayor incertidumbre ha llevado a una increíble expansión en la vida de la iglesia. "Cualquiera puede ser misericordioso y cualquiera puede ser generoso cuando los tiempos son abundantes, pero es cuando la misericordia te cuesta algo que somos capaces de mejor desplegar el Evangelio," dijo Greear, "y esa es la clase de momento en el que estamos." Greear planea dar un discurso presidencial completo en Facebook Live el 9 de junio a las 10 a.m. CDT (hora de verano del centro). Convenciones Estatales La Convención Bautista de South Carolina (SCBC) presentó las misiones locales y nacionales promovidas por el Programa Cooperativo como un ejemplo de los alcances del Evangelio conducidos por 41 convenciones estatales bautistas del sur. La SCBC ayudó a varias iglesias a sobrevivir la caída económica del COVID-19 y trabajó para reedificar comunidades dañadas por tornados. A través de donaciones financieras, la SCBS ayudó a las convenciones estatales en New York y New England a llegar a comunidades impactadas por el coronavirus. "Nuestra habilidad de responder es prueba de que nuestra manera de hacer ministerio a través del Programa Cooperativo realmente funciona," dijo Gary Hollingsworth, director ejecutivo y tesorero de la SCBC. "Hay otras [40] convenciones estatales que trabajan juntas para alcanzar a su estado, a nuestra nación y al mundo con el Evangelio. "Nuestra cooperación está guiada por 7 billones de personas perdidas alrededor del mundo, con 2 billones de esas que nunca han oído el nombre de Jesús ni una vez. Más de 300 millones de estadounidenses y 3.6 millones de habitantes de South Carolina están espiritualmente perdidos." Entidades, WMU El SBC Advance incluyó reportes del presidente de la Junta de Misiones Internacionales Paul Chitwood, el presidente de la Junta de Misiones Norteamericanas Kevin Ezell, el presidente de Recursos Financieros GuideStone O.S. Hawkins, el presidente de Recursos Cristianos LifeWay Ben Mandrell y el presidente la Comisión de Libertad Religiosa y Ética Russell D. Moore. La directora ejecutiva y tesorera de la Unión Femenil Misionera Sandy Wisdom-Martin y la presidenta Linda Cooper también dieron un reporte. Los presidentes de los seis seminarios bautistas del sur actualizaron a los bautistas del sur sobre su trabajo también. Aunque la pandemia COVID-19 forzó las alteraciones, el consenso fue que el continuado trabajo de la educación teológica no ha sido interrumpido. "Inclusive en este momento de desafíos sin precedente, Dios todavía está haciendo un extraordinario trabajo en su fundado seminario por el Programa Cooperativo en Fort Worth, Texas," dijo Adam W. Greenway, presidente del Seminario Teológico Bautista Southwestern, expresando así un sentimiento al que le hicieron eco cinco homólogos. Diversidad del CE de la SBC En su primer año como presidente del CE de la SBC, Floyd se conectó con los líderes Willie McLaurin, vicepresidente del CE de la SBC para las relaciones y la movilización de la Gran Comisión; Julio Arriola, director ejecutivo de los hispanos del CE de la SBC; y Peter Yanes, director ejecutivo del CE de la SBC para las relaciones asiático estadounidenses y la movilización. Los tres hablaron de su pasión por movilizar una diversidad de bautistas del sur en el cumplimiento de la Gran Comisión. "La Convención Bautista del Sur es la convención más racial y étnicamente diversa reunida de la Gran Comisión," dijo McLaurin. De alrededor de 47,500 iglesias bautistas del sur, indicó "cerca del 23 por ciento son racial y étnicamente diversas." Sirviendo una creciente congregación de población hispana en EE.UU., unas 3,500 iglesias bautistas del sur tienen una mayoría de congregaciones hispanas. Arriola animó a los bautistas del sur hispanos a las misiones, la plantación de iglesias y la predicación del Evangelio. "Nuestro enfoque es hacer esto desde la comunidad hispana donde tenemos la oportunidad de presentar la necesidad," dijo Arriola, "y presentarles las diferentes opciones para que se alisten a alcanzar a cada persona en Estados Unidos." Yanes tiene la oportunidad de movilizar a una población asiático estadounidense que abarcan 20 lenguajes y que actualmente es servida por ocho compañerismos bautistas del sur. Las congregaciones bautistas del sur asiático estadounidenses suman cerca de 2,000 y abarcan alrededor de 170,000 miembros. "Podemos estar compartiendo culturas similares con diversos trasfondos, pero es muy desafiante porque al juntarnos ... necesitamos hablar en una lengua común, si me lo permiten, y ese es el Evangelio de Jesucristo," dijo Yanes. "Compartimos el mismo propósito, compartimos nuestras metas comunes y compartimos lo que pretendemos hacer juntos y colectivamente, y eso es ser fieles a la Gran Comisión de Jesucristo." Entrevista a Frank Williams Floyd entrevistó al pastor de New York Frank Williams, quien compartió la angustia de su esposa, hijos y muchos miembros de la congregación que contrajeron el COVID-19. Williams pastorea Bronx Baptist Church y Wake Eden Community Baptist Church en el Bronx, que ha sufrido como foco del COVID-19. Williams contó la experiencia de pastorear sus rebaños cuando el diácono por largo tiempo Jeremiah Simpson murió de la enfermedad. "Esto ha sido muy desafiante, especialmente para el servicio de vuelta al hogar del diácono Simpson," dijo Williams. "Las emociones que experimenté fueron diferentes a cualquiera que haya experimentado antes. El mismo día que realicé el funeral del diácono Simpson fue la misma tarde que tuve que llevar a mi esposa a la sala de emergencias. Ella tenía muchísimo dolor; estaba literalmente sentada en el carro del dolor durante el servicio, porque tuve que llevarla a la sala de emergencia inmediatamente después de que el funeral terminó." Williams también contó de una miembro de la iglesia que perdió a su esposo y a un hermano, y de otro que perdió a 11 familiares. Floyd guio a los bautistas del sur en oración por Williams y muchos otros pastores en toda la nación impactados por la pandemia. SBC Advance está disponible en SBCAdvance.net. -------------------------------------------------------------------- EDITORIAL: Con alma de convicción y con voz de valentía by Octavio J. Esqueda Date: June 04, 2020 - Thursday LA MIRADA, Calif. (BP) -- "Con alma de convicción y con voz de valentía" (A Soul of Conviction, A Voice of Courage) es una frase que utilizó la Universidad Biola hace unos años y que acertadamente refleja la actitud que necesitamos para enfrentar la situación que estamos viviendo. En estos momentos en los que los que el mundo se enfrenta a una pandemia mundial que ha trastornado y seguirá afectando la vida y economía de todos los habitantes del planeta, en los Estados Unidos se ha abierto la profunda herida del racismo que ha estado presente siempre, pero los videos y las redes sociales la han expuesto de tal manera que no se puede ignorar ni ocultar. Las protestas y manifestaciones a lo largo del país están clamando por justicia y equidad para todos, pero sobre todo para los afroamericanos que desgraciadamente han sido víctimas de racismo y discriminación por parte de una nación que, en teoría, pero no en la práctica, afirma que "todos los seres humanos son creados iguales; que son dotados por su Creador de ciertos derechos inalienables; que entre éstos están la vida, la libertad y la búsqueda de la felicidad". Esta situación tiene y debe cambiar y como seguidores de Cristo necesitamos ser parte esencial de este cambio. En nuestra lucha por la justicia y equidad no estamos solos, sino que el Espíritu Santo nos acompaña. De hecho, la Biblia declara que donde está el Espíritu del Señor, ahí hay libertad (2 Cor. 3:17. La libertad que brinda el Espíritu Santo abarca todas las esferas de la vida y es a través de la presencia y poder del Espíritu que como cristianos podemos ser agentes de paz (Shalom) y reconciliación. Hace unos meses tuve el privilegio de escribir el libro Enseñando con unción: cooperando con el Espíritu Santo con el gran educador cristiano Robert Pazmiño. La primera sección del libro aborda diferentes áreas en las que el Espíritu Santo ofrece libertad comunitaria a todos y cómo Dios por su gracia nos permite colaborar en la obra del Espíritu Santo. El capítulo "La enseñanza y la libertad de expresión" explica las maneras en las que podemos abogar por los demás "con alma de convicción y con voz de valentía" debido al poder del Espíritu Santo. Me gustaría compartirle algunos párrafos de este capítulo para animarnos a no tener temor sino unir nuestra voz a los propósitos de liberación del Espíritu Santo en beneficio de los oprimidos y marginalizados. La enseñanza cristiana no debe quedarse callada frente a los problemas que existen a nuestro alrededor. De hecho, el silencio es una muestra clara de una postura indiferente ante las necesidades de los demás. El reverendo Martín Luther King atinadamente expresó en su Carta desde la cárcel de Birmingham: "En esta generación nos tendremos que arrepentir so solamente por las palabras y acciones de odio de la gente mala, sino por el terrible silencio de la gente buen". Por lo tanto, los creyentes no podemos mantenernos al margen ante las injusticias. No se puede ser neutrales ante la opresión como bien nos recuerda Desmont Tutu al afirmar que "si te mantienes neutral en situaciones de injusticia, has escogido estar del lado del opresor". Así que, como educadores cristianos tenemos el llamado a usar nuestra libertad de expresión en defensa y apoyo por los más necesitados. Evidentemente nuestra labor es ser fieles al Señor y a enseñar la palabra de Dios. Al hacerlo así, honramos lo que Dios honra y valoramos lo que Dios valora. Una enseñanza guiada por el Espíritu siempre está centrada en la edificación y bienestar de los demás. Bernard de Clairvaux acertadamente nos muestra la diferencia que marca el enfoque de nuestro aprendizaje: "hay muchos que buscan el conocimiento por el conocimiento mismo: eso es curiosidad. Hay otros que desean saber para, de esa manera, llegar a ser conocidos: eso es vanidad. Pero hay algunos que buscan el conocimiento para poder servir y hacer virtuosos a los demás: eso es amor". Como líderes cristianos, necesitamos abogar por los más oprimidos y buscar que sus voces sean escuchadas … Para la sociedad en general, pero especialmente para los seguidores de Cristo, es muy importante que por fin reconozcamos las voces de aquellos que claman por justicia, igualdad y dignidad. La Biblia enseña que tanto el hombre como la mujer son creados a la imagen de Dios y que ambos son valiosos y dignos (Gen. 1:27) … Por lo tanto, cualquier actividad que denigre el valor y dignidad de los seres humanos debe ser rechazada, perseguida y castigada. Nuestro Señor Jesucristo durante su ministerio de enseñanza también nos muestra que la unción del Espíritu Santo era la base de sus palabras y que su mensaje traía libertad a los oprimidos. Lucas 4:14-15, describe el inicio del ministerio público de Jesús en donde la el poder del Espíritu y su enseñanza siempre estuvieron unidos, "Y Jesús volvió en el poder del Espíritu a Galilea, y se difundió su fama por toda la tierra de alrededor. Y enseñaba en las sinagogas de ellos, y era glorificado por todos". Por lo tanto, Jesús proclamaba con toda claridad que su llamado era proclamar las buenas nuevas del reino de Dios para todos. Lucas continúa describiendo que Jesús anunció su misión mesiánica en Nazaret, donde se había criado, leyendo en la sinagoga un pasaje de Isaías que claramente describía su misión en esta tierra, "El Espíritu del Señor está sobre mí, Por cuanto me ha ungido para dar buenas nuevas a los pobres; Me ha enviado a sanar a los quebrantados de corazón; A pregonar libertad a los cautivos, Y vista a los ciegos; A poner en libertad a los oprimidos; A predicar el año agradable del Señor (Lucas 4:18-19). La enseñanza centrada en Cristo y guiada por el Espíritu Santo tiene un mensaje de liberación. Este mensaje recupera la voz y la acción en defensa de los más necesitados. Estos no son tiempos para quedarse callados esperando que pase la tormenta. Al contrario, Dios nos invita a tener un alma de convicción y una voz de valentía en defensa de los demás por medio del Espíritu Santo quien nos invita a unirnos a su obra para traer paz y reconciliación a este mundo tan necesitado. La unción del Espíritu Santo usa nuestras palabras y acciones y no nuestro silencio para proclamar que Dios está presente, que todos los seres humanos son valiosos y que Jesús desea que todos disfrutemos la plenitud de la vida abundante que nos ofrece.