South Carolina’s state evangelism conference was “nothing more than a two-day celebration of Jesus in the midst of his people,” said Marshall Fagg at the end of the Feb. 26-27 meeting at Riverland Hills Baptist Church in Irmo.
(Listen to preaching from the 2007 state evangelism conference.)
Evangelist Bill Stafford brought one of five messages at the state evangelism conference.Fagg, who directs evangelism for South Carolina Baptists, underscored that assessment by saying, “We must make evangelism good news again. Understanding the gospel gives us reason to celebrate together in song, word and deed.”
Carlisle Driggers, executive director-treasurer of the South Carolina Baptist Convention, encouraged a large, Monday night audience as he took note of “an unprecedented movement of God in the world.”
Driggers said that evangelical Christianity, with its “bedrock belief in Jesus Christ as Savior,” is the “fastest growing strain of Christianity in the world.”
He said that volunteers are “going to the ends of earth” to spread the gospel and minister to the other needs of people. “This is a great time to serve Christ, to be a follower of his.”
Driggers also told an enthusiastic audience that whatever their roles as Christians, “you are a part of what God is doing to redeem the lost.”
The South Carolina executive said that the number of believers worldwide is growing – roughly at 2 billion now, but expected to reach 5 billion by the year 2100.
“The church of Jesus Christ,” he proclaimed, “is the largest institution in the history of the world.”
The executive director had prefaced his message by pointing to the fact that the world is “inundated with bad news,” but that he had come to declare that there is “good news for a change.”
He told the South Carolina pastors and lay persons, “This is no time for hanging your heads. Instead, lift up your heads, South Carolina Baptists.”
Convention president Mike Moody, pastor of First Baptist Church, Honea Path, noted that “this is an information age” and South Carolina Baptists “have a story to tell.”
Moody said that each Baptist also has a story to share with others about Jesus, the “author and finisher of our faith.”
Moody said he is encouraged by many things among South Carolina Baptists, including their strong support of the Cooperation Program, and that the denomination’s future looks “bright.”
Johnny Hunt, pastor of First Baptist Church in Woodstock, Ga., said that Southern Baptists were successful in “winning the war for the Bible,” but asked, “Now what are we going to do with it?” He said that in every county in North America, “at least 50 percent of the people are unchurched.”
“I got the Holy Ghost by listening to the word of God when somebody unapologetically preached the gospel,” he said.
Hunt said believers ought to be bold in proclaiming and living the gospel with conviction. “You’re not going to convince anybody out there that the gospel is true unless you’re convinced in your own heart that it’s true.”
The Georgia minister said that believers are “yawning while we should be wide awake to the needs of the world.”
Bill Stafford, an evangelist from Chattanooga, Tenn., said there is “no way you say you believe in the inerrancy, the authority, the sufficiency of the Bible if you don’t preach it.”
“Light,” he said, “dispels darkness.”
The Reggie Saddler Family provided musical inspiration at each session of the state evangelism conference.The problem in church, he noted, is that “not much practical Christianity is being lived out in Christlikeness.” He emphasized, “The best argument for Christianity is goodly, Christian living. We are a lighthouse.”
The lives of believers, he said, should be transparent – and what people should see is Jesus. “God is trying to knock the ‘you’ out of you and the ‘me’ out of me, until there is nothing left but Jesus Christ.”
Michael Cloer, pastor of Englewood Baptist Church, Rocky Mount, N.C., said that evangelism is a “cooperative program, with his (God’s) ability revealed through my availability.”
He emphasized, “We cannot do it without him, and he will not do it without us. God wants to share in his work, to partner with and cooperate with the Holy Spirit.”
Cloer, formerly pastor of Siloam Baptist Church in Easley, said that believers must “surrender to the opportunities” for witnessing provided by the Spirit without seeking an explanation. “God doesn’t explain himself,” Cloer said.
The North Carolina pastor said believers must also “secure the objective of the Holy Spirit,” which is to “call attention to Jesus,” and to “be swift to obey the Spirit.”
“When God tells you to do something,” he said, “do it right then. The Holy Spirit knows when the time is right, and time is always short.”
Mike Thompson, pastor of First Baptist Church in Eutawville, said that Christians must believe certain things about themselves if they are to be effective in evangelism.
They must, he said, believe that they are “victors, not victims, fragrances and not odors, and messengers, not salesmen.”
“We are triumphant in Christ,” he declared. “He always leads us to triumph.”
Thompson, who suffers from multiple sclerosis, said that the road to triumph often is paved with difficulties. “God is leading us to a place,” he said, “and along the way we set up memorial stones as we pass through the fire. Remember the markers, remember that God has led us through this.”
The South Carolina minister said that believers “give the fragrance of life in battle” because God has said, “You are my fragrance.”
Thompson said that Christians often undervalue themselves “with the realization of their imperfections.” He then added a word of caution: “When we feel unworthy, we often view others as not worthy, either.”
“South Carolina Baptists,” he said, “need to start treating each other like the fragrance of Christ.”
Thompson also said that believers are not “peddling the word of God,” but are messengers. “God has given us a story, a message, and when you tell someone about Jesus, all of heaven is standing behind you.”
Herb Reavis, pastor of North Jacksonville Baptist Church in Jacksonville, Fla., told “the parable of the brats” when no one – not John the Baptist or Jesus – could satisfy the religious leaders of that day.
Reavis noted, for example, the controversy over worship styles that has, in some cases, “paralyzed” churches.
“You can’t please everyone,” he emphasized, adding, “but it’s not about pleasing people; it’s about pleasing God.”
The Florida pastor noted that it is faith, not worship styles, that pleases God, but that “unbelief is persistent.” He said that the world will not repent even when “the message of judgment is delivered,” but that “God is honored when that message is faithfully preached whether people listen or not.”
Reavis challenged his audience to open their Bibles and “preach the book and let the chips fall where they may.”
He declared that God’s people are to be “childlike, not childish.” Those who are childish, he pointed out, “have an attitude that says, ‘It’s all about me; I’ve got to have my way.'”
The 2008 state evangelism conference is set for Feb. 25-26 at First Baptist Church in Rock Hill. Steve Hogg, pastor of First Baptist Church, has expressed his excitement at hosting the event, and Mike O’Dell, director of missions for York Association, believes that the churches will “pack out the event.”
Fagg commented, “I can’t wait to be a part of what God is doing in one of the fastest-growing regions of South Carolina. As I preach in that area of the state, I sense a strong moving of the Holy Spirit among the churches.”