The recommendation of “Great Commission Baptists” as a descriptive name and the prospective election of the first-ever African-American president are on the horizon for the Southern Baptist Convention’s June 19-20 meeting in New Orleans.
LuterMessengers will decide whether to adopt the informal, non-legal “Great Commission Baptists” descriptor as recommended by the SBC Executive Committee, embracing the suggestion of a special task force appointed to study changing the SBC’s name, deemed by some a regional barrier to the gospel.
“The overwhelming acceptance of the Executive Committee was the first major step,” SBC president Bryant Wright said of the proposed descriptor. “Obviously, the decision of the convention will be most important. If approved, our entities will lead the way in using the descriptor. I think it will be a 10- to 20-year process of helping Southern Baptists and the general public to think ‘Those people really are Great Commission Baptists’ when they think of us.”
Fred Luter Jr., senior pastor of Franklin Avenue Baptist Church in New Orleans and current SBC first vice president, was unopposed for the SBC presidency as the Courier went to press. Luter would be the first African-American to hold the post, on the heels of the SBC’s historic 2011 measure calling for greater accountability among its entities regarding ethnic diversity in leadership. David Crosby, pastor of First Baptist Church in New Orleans, is expected to nominate Luter.
“Our election of Fred Luter as the first African-American president of the SBC will send a great, hopeful, powerful message to our city, our culture, our convention and our country,” Crosby has said. “For many, it will make them rethink who Southern Baptists are, and it will help us reach the new diversity that we find in our cities. It is a statement that people of all ethnic groups make up the Southern Baptist Convention and are honored.”
The annual meeting will be held at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, where thousands suffered hunger, thirst and lack of medical care as victims of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The center has undergone $92.7 million in improvements since the storm, according to press reports.
Theme
“Jesus: To the Neighborhood and the Nations” is the annual meeting theme, drawn from Luke 24:47-48 and worded to convey the importance of dual missions at home and abroad, Wright said.
“Last year in Phoenix, God moved so powerfully that it seemed more like a missions conference than a denominational business meeting,” Wright said. “It is my hope that with ‘Jesus: To the Neighborhood and the Nations,’ we will once again see God’s Spirit convicting us and motivating us to fulfill Christ’s Great Commission.”
Wright said his prayer is that messengers will have a “loving and caring Christian witness” at the annual meeting, “that the spirit of our messengers will be Christlike to all we come in contact with.”
Concluding his final term as SBC president, Wright described his tenure as faith-enriching, energizing and exhausting, referencing the godly passion of young seminarians, the church-planting efforts of the North American Mission Board, and frequent travel and communication opportunities, among other experiences.
Crossover
Hundreds of volunteers will participate in Crossover mission outreach projects June 15-16, including church planting, evangelistic block parties, health screenings, prayerwalks and servant evangelism.
New Orleans Baptists aim to launch four new churches in the city this year, two of them during the annual meeting, said Jack Hunter, executive director of the New Orleans Baptist Association.
Southern Baptists have ministered extensively in New Orleans since 2005’s Hurricane Katrina, helping to rebuild the city.
To learn more about Crossover New Orleans and to volunteer, visit joinnoba.com/crossover.
Other highlights
– Woman’s Missionary Union will hold its missions celebration in the convention center’s La Nouvelle Orleans Ballroom, 3-7 p.m., June 18, and continuing throughout June 19, beginning at 9 a.m. Speakers will include Wanda Lee, WMU national executive director; David Crosby, pastor of First Baptist Church in New Orleans; Jay and Kathy Shafto, IMB field personnel; Damian Emetuche and Stacy Smith, NAMB field personnel; and Debby Akerman, national WMU president. Participants are encouraged to bring donations to area ministries, including hygiene kits, snack packs and gift cards.
– NFL quarterback Tim Tebow’s mother, Pam Tebow, will address the 2012 Pastors’ Wives Conference, scheduled from 8:30-11:45 a.m. Monday, June 18, in the convention center’s Hall B-1. After ESPN aired the portion of an interview with Pam Tebow that focused on her refusal to abort “Timmy” when she was advised to do so, she has gained a national platform for the pro-life message. Attendees will also hear a testimony from Jeannie Elliff, wife of International Mission Board president Tom Elliff, and a roundtable discussion about parenting children of ministers. Registration is not required.
Registration for annual meeting
Register online at www.sbcannualmeeting.net, under the “Messengers” tab.