by Mark Hodges
When Jesus left this earth for heaven, He left behind a mission for us to complete (Matthew 28:19-20). Down through the centuries, men and women have paid a great price to see that the Lord’s marching orders have been carried out. His church still lives today.
Almost 60 years ago, a group of godly men banded together to start a Fellowship of pastors. These men were church planters who built some of the largest churches in the world. Henry Blackaby, in his book, Spiritual Leadership, could have been speaking of these men. He says, “Spiritual leaders do not try to satisfy the goals and ambitions of the people they lead but those of the God they serve. Spiritual leaders must be spiritual statesmen and not merely politicians.”
Thank God He used men like G. B. Vick, John Rawlings, W. E. Dowell, Noel Smith, and James Combs to birth the Baptist Bible Fellowship. I am proud to be a part of that Fellowship which has made an impact on our world. Yes, our challenges are quite different than they were for my dad or grandfather. Blackaby states, “Much more is expected from leaders today than in years past.” This means we have a greater opportunity to complete the task set before us.
During this September Fellowship meeting in Canton, Ohio, you will once again be reminded that our world is in great need for the gospel — perhaps more than ever. You will be challenged to give to our Projects Offering so that we can continue to build churches and provide homes for our missionaries. Yes, we are facing a worldwide financial crisis, but our God is a great God and He is not quite done with us yet. Fred Donnelson stated years ago that the strong right arm of the Fellowship would be missions and that has been true all these many years — Praise God!
In the Baptist Bible Tribune of November 24, 1950, there was a short article entitled, “What Do You Think of Them?” It states, “On the front page of today’s TRIBUNE you read the incredible story of what a bunch of kids are doing in Japan. They are Olson Hodges and wife, Isaac Foster and Mrs. Foster and Lavern and Evelyn Rodgers — and now Alvin Marsden and his wife. Eighteen months ago we heard Hodges and Foster talking about ‘opening up a mission work in Japan.’ In fact, they were ‘preparing to go.’ Who was going to guarantee them a salary? Nobody. Some churches were going to help them. What missionary training had they had? Bible study and preaching. What did they know about Japan and the Japanese people? They knew that most of them were going to hell, and they knew that if they would accept Jesus Christ as their Savior they would not go to hell but would go to heaven.”
On that same page was another article about the Hooges and Gullions in the Philippines. The article concluded by saying, “Here is the thing to remember about the Baptist Bible foreign mission work: Our missionaries get there…they start preaching the Gospel. Then, as soon as they have enough converts to organize a native church, they organize it. Then they go and do the same thing somewhere else.”
This summer I had the opportunity of observing firsthand our younger generation of missionaries. In one term, missionaries Jason and Nadia Kratochvil have built a great work in Managua, Nicaragua. Their facilities were too small so they added a second floor. Jason has trained leaders to take over that ministry and also leaders who will soon assist him in starting another church.
Dan and Vicki Weaver went to Belize seven years ago and literally dug out a ministry in a jungle village called The Valley of Peace. In July, a group of men from our church built steel trusses for a new church facility. Then we had our first service in the new facilities with almost 300 people attending. Dan has also pastored and helped other churches there in Belize. He too has trained leaders and is now starting another church in a nearby village. On Wednesday evening in this new work, there were 70 in attendance with 2 teenagers trusting Christ.
Almost 60 years later I can tell you that the Baptist Bible Fellowship is still sending soul-winning, churchplanting missionaries. We can’t reside in the past; we must look to the opportunities of the future with great expectations. It is imperative that we see more young men and women involved with our movement. Our prayer should be “God, don’t ever let me be satisfied with business as usual. Help me to always have a sense of urgency for sharing the gospel with every nation, every people group, and every person.”
Pastor Mike Frazier and the good people of Canton Baptist Temple in Canton, Ohio, have been so gracious to invite us to their great church and host an awesome meeting. In that meeting we will experience the joy of approving more laborers for the vineyard. Join us as we work together as a Fellowship to reach this world for Christ!