Did you know that Baptists worldwide are celebrating the Four Hundreth anniversary of Baptist witness in the world? We have a wonderful history to celebrate. In 1609 a small group of Christians led by John Smyth and Thomas Helwys fled persecution in England, travelled to Holland and founded the first Baptist church. The early Baptist believers were courageous pioneers who were willing to pay a price for their deeply held convictions. These daring men and women became convinced that the Bible should be their only rule of faith and practice and that they needed to be free to worship God according to their consciences without interference from the King or organized religion.
Even a passing study of Baptist history shows that Baptist people have been visionary, resourceful, adaptable, and indomitable of spirit. As the Convention of Atlantic Baptist Churches we are part of a wider family that stretches across Canada and around the world. We are members of the Baptist World Alliance, a fellowship of 214 Conventions and Unions comprising a membership of more than 37 million baptized believers and a community of 105 million.
From humble beginnings Baptist Christians have made a mark on the world. As Christians from Atlantic Canada we have impacted our region with the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and sent missionaries around the world. We do have something to celebrate. But, we must be careful not to rest on our laurels or revel in the past. God is not through with Atlantic Baptist Christian people.
I believe we live in what Charles Dickens called, “the best of times and the worst of times.” For over two hundred years Baptists in Atlantic Canada have enjoyed growth and blessing in proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ. We have approximately 500 churches with many success stories of people coming to faith in Christ and impacting their communities and the wider world for the sake of the Kingdom of God. Yet, we must admit that in some ways we are in a time of decline as a denomination. Just a few years ago we would have boasted of having 550 churches in our Convention. Fewer people in our communities are interested in organized religion in general and more and more congregations are losing visibility and viability.
What do we do about the negative signs around us? I believe we should be concerned but I also believe we should be willing to dare to hope and believe that we can continue to be a vibrant, significant force influencing the culture for the sake of the Kingdom of God. I want to briefly outline my dream for a healthy Convention. I believe we should focus on three primary areas if we are going to continue to have a fruitful ministry in Atlantic Canada and beyond.
“Missional” churches are committed to their membership but are equally committed to their non-members. Missional churches are deeply committed to extending the Kingdom of God to their communities with holistic ministries through evangelism and social action. Ed Stetze writes, “Missional churches are deeply connected to the community. The church is not just focussed on its facility, but is focused on living, demonstrating, and offering biblical community to a lost world.” It is so important to remember that God is already at work in the world and that God cares deeply for unchurched people. Let me quote Reggie McNeal who will be the guest speaker at Oasis this summer, Reggie critiques the evangelical Church in North America,
...the Church has largely forsaken its missional covenant with God to be a part of kingdom expansion. It has, instead, substituted its own charter of church as a clubhouse where religious people hang out with other people who think, dress, behave, vote, and believe like them. (Reggie McNeal – The Present Future – Six Tough Questions for the Church)
If our churches are going to be healthy in this present time they will learn to be comfortable building relationships with people who do not, “think, dress, behave, vote, and believe like us.” My dream is that we will catch the vision to become “missional churches” impacting our communities for the Kingdom of God.
This is a lifelong process whereby people cooperate with the Holy Spirit who is shaping and forming a person’s character to become more like Jesus Christ. To encourage Pastors and leaders to develop the kind of spiritual discernment and spiritual disciplines that lead to what Richard Foster calls, “the with God” kind of life. It is a plea for Pastors and leaders to live a more balanced life giving emphasis to physical, emotional and spiritual health. Too often we make our plans and ask God to bless them. When spiritual formation is emphasized; pastors, leaders and congregations spend time praying and listening to discern God’s will in decision making.
I have a dream of building bridges and encouraging our sense of family in the Convention of Atlantic Baptist Churches. We have a great story to tell and we need to be telling it in a way that encourages our sense of being stronger together as a fellowship of five hundred churches. We must find new ways to promote listening and understanding among the people of this wonderfully diverse family known as the Convention. Paul writes about our need for one another in Romans 12: 4-5, I really like how Eugene Peterson renders these verses, “In this way we are like the various parts of a human body. Each part gets its meaning from the body as a whole, not the other way around. The body we're talking about is Christ's body of chosen people. Each of us finds our meaning and function as a part of his body.” I am more convinced than ever we need each other and need to find ways to strengthen our bonds together as a Convention of churches.
Four hundred years ago our Baptist forefathers were courageous pioneers who dared to pay the price for what they believed. We are living in difficult and challenging days but my plea to Atlantic Baptists is that we have the courage, faith, vision and perseverance to walk into the future that God has for us. As we write the next chapter of Baptist history may it be marked by the same indomitable spirit as our ancestors!
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