David didn’t ask for a break when he faced Goliath. And a church shouldn’t have an inferiority complex because it is small in size. If it reaches out to the “unchurched,” then it’s large in the eyes of God, said Frank Page, president of the Southern Baptist Convention.
Page exhorted small-church pastors attending “Impact 2008” that there is no difference between them and men who pastor in megachurches. It’s a matter of perspective, Page told the group at the conference at Lewisville Baptist Church in Lewisville, N.C. In the end, the roles of SBC pastors are the same, and the “human” foundation of the SBC is the small church, he said.
“God commands the church to be the church, no matter the size,” said Page, pastor of the 4,300-plus-member First Baptist Church of Taylors, preaching from Matthew 16:17-19, where Jesus told Peter at Caesarea Philippi that he would build the church on the rock and the forces of hell would not overpower it.
“Small church, big church, I don’t care what it is. It’s all about spiritual warfare,” he said. “We don’t live in a playground. It’s a battleground. We are supposed to be attacking the gates of hell. Every time the church is serious about doing the work of the Lord, it must engage in the Jesus ministry of attacking the evil one.”
Page said small churches are the future of the SBC. According to a 2006 LifeWay study presented to the conference by Les Puryear, host pastor and conference organizer, nearly 63 percent of all SBC churches have between one and 99 Sunday attendees, and about 21 percent have between 100 and 199 on Sunday.
“Our convention is changing,” Page said. “Most of the megachurches in the Southern Baptist Convention are declining. You don’t know that because most of the pastors won’t admit it to you. But the statistics are there. I don’t say that to depress you, but the future of the Southern Baptist Convention is the small churches.”
Page emphasized that small churches that are relationally driven will reach an unreached generation.