My sermon/teaching notes for Wednesday, July 29^nd.  Our current Wednesday Summer Series is WHY I LOVE BELONGING TO THE CHURCH. Remember, these are my personal study notes and not a manuscript of the sermon.  To see the sermon each week please visit http://www.fbcap.net

What Does it Mean to Be Baptist – part 3

Symbolic ordinances

There is not saving power within the ordinances of the church.  They are symbolic of what Christ has done for us and our responsibility to live obedient lives in accordance to His Word.

• Baptism – (we already looked at this.  Matthew 28:19-10)

• Lord’s Supper – Luke 22:19-20

Local autonomy

Each Southern Baptist church is governed by its own body.  There is no hierarchy that governs the decisions that are made.  Each SBC church has the freedom to worship and conduct ministry as they feel lead from the Lord.  The key is that the church is not bound by any outside governing body.

Cooperative effort in missions and education

(Specifically, within the SBC)

What makes the SBC so unique is that we are able to cooperate as a denomination to carry out the mandate to make disciples.  We willingly join hands to reach the nations with the Gospel.

Our History as Baptist and as Southern Baptist

Churches

• 1609 in Amsterdam
• 1611 in England
• 1638 in Providence, RI
• 1682 in Charleston, SC
• 1825 in Campbellton, FL – (195 years)
• 1913 in Avon Park

The Timeline of Baptist Associations

• 1707 Philadelphia Association
• 1814 Triennial Convention – General Missionary Convention of the Baptist Denomination in the United States of America for Foreign Missions, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
• 1842 – Florida Baptist Association – Tallahassee
• 1845 – The start of the SBC

Southern Baptist Convention – 1.845.  A split from the Triennial Convention, Northern Baptist. – 175 years

• 47,000 – churches
• 333 members per church
• 41 State conventions

Florida Baptist Convention – Nov. 20, 1854 – 166 years

• 3000 churches
• 49 associations
• 6 Regions

How We Cooperate within the SBC

(a few examples)

Ministry, Mission, and Education

SBC Ministry

Remember… The SBC is made up of State Conventions

Disaster Relief – (Send Relief through NAMB and each State Convention) – https://flbaptist.org/disasterrelief/

• 2,289, 315,000 0- meals
• 817,641 – man hours

Children and Families (within each State Convention) – https://www.fbchomes.org/

• 7,499 children in care
• 243,195 others served

Baptist Collegiate Ministries – (within each State Convention) – https://flbaptist.org/collegiate/

• 768 ministries
• 70,000 students

SBC Missions

International Mission Board – IMB – https://www.imb.org/

• 3615 missionaries
• Lottie Moon – 157 million raised at Christmas(13,400,000 as a State)

North American Mission Board – NAMB – https://www.namb.net/

• 3057 missionaries
• Annie Armstrong – 61,600,000 raised at Easter (6,200,000 as a State)

Florida Baptist Convention – https://flbaptist.org/

• Campus Ministries, Church Plants and Church Planters, Children’s Home, and etc.

SBC Educating and Equipping –

http://www.sbc.net/aboutus/entities/seminaries.asp

• The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary– year founded 1859 – 5,538 students.

• Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary – 1908 – 3,848

• New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary – 1917 – 3,804

• Gateway Seminary of the Southern Baptist Convention – 1944 – 1,826

• Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary – 1951 – 4,765

• Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary – 1957 – 4,000

Baptist College of Florida – Graceville, Florida (with future plans of opening a campus in Lakeland) – http://www.baptistcollege.edu/

Understanding the Giving of the SBC

Each church decides as a church body the dollar amount they want to contribute to the ministry and missions of the Southern Baptist Convention (both from a State and National level)

As Southern Baptist we call this the Cooperative Program. (http://www.sbc.net/cp/) This is the unified plan of giving through which cooperative SBC churches give a percentage of their undesignated funds in support of their respective state convention and the SBC ministries and missions.

At FBCAP every dollar that is given to our church we send our tithe (10%) to missions and ministry.

• 8.75 to SBC (State and National)
• 1% to Pregnancy Care Center in Highlands County – https://choicesfrc.com/
• .25% to Orange Blossom Association

THIS DOES NOT INCLUDE THE SPECIAL OFFERINGS THAT WE TAKE UP.  OUR MISSION OFFERING GO 100% TO THE DESIGNATED MINISTRY.  WE HAVE FOUR SBC OFFERING WE TAKE UP EACH YEAR

• Lottie Moon at Christmas – Foreign Missions
• Annie Armstrong at Easter – North American
• Florida Baptist Children’s Home – Mother’s Day
• State Mission Offering – Sept for our State church planting and revitalization.