Before his ascension into heaven Jesus commanded His disciples, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and also, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:19-20)
We call this command, The Great Commission because it gives us the inspiration and authority we need to extend the kingdom of God everywhere. There is no use in worrying about people in other nations if we are delinquent in sharing the gospel in our own neighbors, to our family members and friends right here where we live. When Jesus said, “…all the nations,” He was talking about our neighborhoods, our communities as well as neighborhoods and communities across the oceans and throughout America. We are to be a church that has no borders and no limitations when it comes to our preaching, witnessing and praying. Grace Baptist Church is to be a WORLDWIDE enterprise for Jesus.
What makes Grace a WORLDWIDE enterprise for Jesus? In the 2019 Church Budget, there are three places that launch the ministry of Grace beyond the place where we are located to reach people with the gospel. One is the contribution we make to the Chattahoochee Baptist Association. Our church participates with over 70 other local churches to share Christ throughout the Hall County and North Georgia region. We contribute $1,200 per year to local mission work which has resulted in hundreds of salvations through ministries like The Good Samaritan, Camp Hope, Secret Santa, starting of new churches and countywide evangelism events. Jesus told us to witness in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria (Acts 1:8). This involves not only the outreach we do through our own block parties, Vacation Bible School and special events like the Christmas Tree lighting in Flowery Branch, but also includes ministries of the Chattahoochee Association that extend our influence all over North Georgia.
How do we spread the gospel beyond the borders of our country? We have an item in our budget called the Georgia Baptist Mission Board through which we contribute $1,800. These funds support missionaries throughout Georgia and the world. We give to statewide missions supporting the work of 170 missionaries here in Georgia. We also support over 4,000 missionaries throughout America and the world. If we only give $1,800 a year and support 4,170 missionaries with that such a small amount, these missionaries only realize 43 cents each for an entire year of work. That’s true, but when our $1,800 is combined with he contributions of 47,000 other churches across the country, the support for missions becomes more than $462,600,000. Our church may be a small part, but it is a part of the largest missionary force in the evangelical world. Grace Baptist Church is worldwide in its outreach through the associations we have with other churches here locally and throughout America.
Today, we will hear Reverend Earl Pirkle preach about his missionary calling and ministry. God sent Brother Earl and his dear wife Sherry to Grace this year to share in the worldwide ministry of our church family. Earl works to start and strengthen churches, extend education and ministry to pastors, organize and build facilities to improve health and well-being in the countries of Tanzania and the Ukraine. Our church has placed $2,400 in its 2019 budget in support of Brother Earl’s ministry and outreach to these countries. Brother Earl is our Up-Close-and-Personal Missionary. What if other churches in the Chattahoochee Association or the Georgia Baptist Mission board targeted two countries in the world sending members and money to extend the gospel to people who need to hear about Jesus. Brother Earl will be our missionary to these counties in the coming year and through his work and witness our church will accomplish its Great Commission mandate. I praise God today that Grace Baptist Church is faithful to the Great Commission command of Jesus and is a worldwide missionary force that sends the gospel to the ends of the earth.
We call this command, The Great Commission because it gives us the inspiration and authority we need to extend the kingdom of God everywhere. There is no use in worrying about people in other nations if we are delinquent in sharing the gospel in our own neighbors, to our family members and friends right here where we live. When Jesus said, “…all the nations,” He was talking about our neighborhoods, our communities as well as neighborhoods and communities across the oceans and throughout America. We are to be a church that has no borders and no limitations when it comes to our preaching, witnessing and praying. Grace Baptist Church is to be a WORLDWIDE enterprise for Jesus.
What makes Grace a WORLDWIDE enterprise for Jesus? In the 2019 Church Budget, there are three places that launch the ministry of Grace beyond the place where we are located to reach people with the gospel. One is the contribution we make to the Chattahoochee Baptist Association. Our church participates with over 70 other local churches to share Christ throughout the Hall County and North Georgia region. We contribute $1,200 per year to local mission work which has resulted in hundreds of salvations through ministries like The Good Samaritan, Camp Hope, Secret Santa, starting of new churches and countywide evangelism events. Jesus told us to witness in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria (Acts 1:8). This involves not only the outreach we do through our own block parties, Vacation Bible School and special events like the Christmas Tree lighting in Flowery Branch, but also includes ministries of the Chattahoochee Association that extend our influence all over North Georgia.
How do we spread the gospel beyond the borders of our country? We have an item in our budget called the Georgia Baptist Mission Board through which we contribute $1,800. These funds support missionaries throughout Georgia and the world. We give to statewide missions supporting the work of 170 missionaries here in Georgia. We also support over 4,000 missionaries throughout America and the world. If we only give $1,800 a year and support 4,170 missionaries with that such a small amount, these missionaries only realize 43 cents each for an entire year of work. That’s true, but when our $1,800 is combined with he contributions of 47,000 other churches across the country, the support for missions becomes more than $462,600,000. Our church may be a small part, but it is a part of the largest missionary force in the evangelical world. Grace Baptist Church is worldwide in its outreach through the associations we have with other churches here locally and throughout America.
Today, we will hear Reverend Earl Pirkle preach about his missionary calling and ministry. God sent Brother Earl and his dear wife Sherry to Grace this year to share in the worldwide ministry of our church family. Earl works to start and strengthen churches, extend education and ministry to pastors, organize and build facilities to improve health and well-being in the countries of Tanzania and the Ukraine. Our church has placed $2,400 in its 2019 budget in support of Brother Earl’s ministry and outreach to these countries. Brother Earl is our Up-Close-and-Personal Missionary. What if other churches in the Chattahoochee Association or the Georgia Baptist Mission board targeted two countries in the world sending members and money to extend the gospel to people who need to hear about Jesus. Brother Earl will be our missionary to these counties in the coming year and through his work and witness our church will accomplish its Great Commission mandate. I praise God today that Grace Baptist Church is faithful to the Great Commission command of Jesus and is a worldwide missionary force that sends the gospel to the ends of the earth.
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