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Miscellaneous

Resolution: “Destined to Multiply”

By July 13, 2011July 24th, 2014No Comments

The messengers of the General Association of Regular Baptist Churches, meeting together in regular conference June 27—July 1, 2011, in Denver, Colorado,

Believing that the local church is to be evangelistic and multiplying in nature (Acts 2:40, 41),

Recognizing our Savior’s passion for the lost and His commission to make disciples of all the nations (Matt. 28:19, 20),

Knowing that we have His blessing when we follow that commission (Acts 2:47),

Understanding that our responsibility is to witness to the saving grace of Christ through our personal testimony, the preaching of the gospel, and a consistent, godly lifestyle (Acts 1:8; 8:4; 1 Pet. 2:12),

Bearing in mind that effective evangelism should lead to the formation of Bible-believing local churches (Acts 14:21–23), we

Proclaim our commitment to present the gospel message to those who are unsaved,

Reassert the historic position of the GARBC (as set forth in our founding documents, previous resolutions, and our organizational principles) in support of missions at home and abroad, with a strong emphasis on evangelism, cross-cultural outreach, the planting of independent Baptist churches, and the interdependence and cooperation of Regular Baptist churches wherever they may exist,

Applaud the work of local churches, mission agencies, and individual missionaries who are actively involved in the work of evangelism and church planting, knowing that the work they are doing today will produce “fruit that abounds to [their] account” long after they are with the Lord, should He tarry (Phil. 4:17),

Appeal to every local church to be involved in church planting in some way, such as participating as a mother church, partnering with several churches of like faith to start a new work, training and mentoring young men for future ministry in evangelism and church planting, strategic planning with a view to establishing local churches in promising locations, and financially supporting those who are working in church-planting ministries,

Urge our churches to give priority to the proclamation of the time-honored message of the gospel in this undertaking (1 Cor. 15:1–4), while understanding the times and reaching out in a manner that clearly and urgently presents that message to the people of our day,

Call upon all of our churches to make church planting a matter of urgent prayer (2 Cor. 1:11; Eph. 6:19), asking God for strength, resources, workers, and fruit in this essential aspect of our individual, ecclesiastical, and associational ministry.

For more information about the historic GARBC position on missions, see “Organizational Principles—Our Mission,” “What Is the General Association of Regular Baptist Churches?” (GARBC literature item by Robert T. Ketcham), “Need for New Churches” (1954 resolution), “Evangelism” (1966 resolution), “The Mission of the Church” (1969 resolution), and “Worldwide Missions” (1973 resolution).