On the 8th of May, 293 delegates from nine states met in Augusta, Georgia. Within a few days the Southern Baptist Convention was formed.  Article 2 of the new constitution stated, “It shall be the design of this Convention to promote Foreign and Domestic Missions.” Estep in his book, Whole Gospel – Whole World, writes, “The heartbeat of the Southern Baptist Convention is missions.  It has been so from its beginning in 1845.”  Out of the SBC’s desire to participate in making disciples of all people groups, there were two mission boards created to “promote Foreign and Domestic missions.”
 
170 years later our focus has not changed. The basis for our commitment to the Great Commission is the commitment to biblical truth. For the last 170 years, we have continued to work together to promote biblical truth and participate in making disciples of all people groups.  These two things have allowed us to have a common focus and accomplish more together than apart. 
 
As Baptists, we have a rich inheritance both historically and theologically. What has held us together and will continue to hold us together, in the future, is our common commitment to biblical truth and to making disciples of all people groups.  In the months and years ahead, we will continue to remain loyalty to both.

I’ve been reading the history of San Antonio Baptist Association in a book titled: A Baptist Century Around the Alamo 1858 – 1958 by Ramsey Yelvington.  SABA was organized at the New Salem Church in 1858.  The geographical boundaries, at the time of the first annual meeting, were “from the Guadalupe to the Rio Grande, from the Mountains to the Gulf Coast.”  We thank God for the pioneers of the faith who have gone before us.  They prayed fervently, gave faithfully, and worked diligently to start new churches and see them develop into stable congregations, which have lasted for many generations.
 
SABA was formed in 1858 with 14 churches spread out over an area of 50,000 square miles - one church for every 3,500 square miles.  The development of SABA progressed over time.  Here is a snapshot of our history: 
- 1883 - 26 churches over 34,182 square miles
- 1908 - 36 churches over 28,000 square miles
- 1933 - 48 churches over 4,000 square miles
- 1958 - 68 churches over 1,700 square miles  
 
You can see a growth pattern emerging with at least four main factors at work. First, as SABA decreased in geographical size, other Baptist Associations were birthed to help cover the vast areas of this region of Texas.  Second, each new Association gave rise to a more focused strategy of missions in a smaller geographical area.  Third, new churches were started as part of a long-term growth strategy.  Fourth, developing new church starts into enduring congregations was a focus of SABA in its Great Commission efforts.
 
Back to the future, a 157-years later, the 2015 challenges have not changed.  We still need a focused strategy of making disciples of all the people groups living in this geographical area.  In the months ahead, we will be assessing our efforts and our effectiveness in assisting churches as they make disciples. 

Another distinction of Associations of the future is their kingdom mindedness.  In our recently expanded structure here at the San Felipe Baptist Association, we did two things.  We set forth a balance of maintaining our theological and historical heritage as Southern Baptists while setting the stage to connect with other Great Commission Christians for Kingdom work.  The San Felipe Baptist Association updated constitution is based on the following.  1) We reaffirmed our theological and historical heritage as Southern Baptists.  We did not want to forget our rich history of theology and Great Commission efforts.  SFBA is and will continue to be an Association of Southern Baptist churches.  We reaffirmed our common statement of faith in the revised SFBA constitution.  David Dockery in Southern Baptists, Evangelicals, and the Future of Denominationalism, states that in the 21st century, “denominations that thrive will remain connected by conviction to Scripture, the gospel, and their tradition . . . So do denominations still matter? Yes! . . . they do matter and they will continue to matter, but only if they remain connected to Scripture and orthodox tradition.”   2) We recognized that God is at work among other Great Commission groups with whom we could join efforts to extend God’s Kingdom.  Dockery again writes, “Perhaps more important for the twenty-first century than the denominational future will be the importance of networks. . . . while working and exploring ways to partner with affinity groups and networks moving out of their insularity and seeking to understand better the changing global context around us.” Christ’s commission to make disciples of all the nations challenges us to partner with other Great Commission Christians with common doctrine and common vision.  A short list of a few examples of partners can be found on the ‘affiliates’ tab of www.starsnetwork.co.

Another distinction of Associations of the future is their flexible design.  Former paradigms of thinking included certain commonly accepted structures.  Such structures were appropriate for their time.  The modern environment in which Associations find themselves is quite different than with former generations.  Today’s Association must deal with situations, which arise out of multi-cultural, multi-linguistic, multi-religious and multi-racial contexts.  The world is at our doorstep like never before.  Associations must be willing to change any structure, which does not allow for continual growth.  Anytime an organization’s configuration becomes inflexible, the organization will become less effective and efficient.  Structures should never hinder the growth and fulfillment of an organization’s purpose.  The fulfillment of purpose is primary and a flexible organizational design helps accomplish the purpose for which Associations exist.  Flexibility is a characteristic of future Associations.  Associational frameworks should be pliable to assist, encourage and resource churches to meet the changing challenges of various ministry contexts.  Such adjustable designs enable the Association of the future to better support churches to fulfill their unique expression of Great Commission efforts.  The Association’s fulfillment of the mutually held purpose statements, core values and priorities must be primary.  Structure or design serves purpose, core values and priorities.  Associations of the future will change any configuration, which does not promote growth and vision fulfillment. 

Associations of the future are driven by vision and affinity.  Vision is defined as the ability to visualize today what can exist and should exist in the future.  Vision is a clear and challenging picture of the future.  Affinity is an inherent likeness or agreement; a close resemblance or connection.  Churches and Great Commission organizations will be drawn to the vision because of their affinity with the vision.  Churches choose to voluntarily cooperate based on a common vision and affinity.  Churches choose to align themselves with organizations and networks, which help advance the God-given vision for their specific congregation.  Because of the limitations of time and resources, churches choose to be strategically connected with those entities that compliment the essence of their unique design.  In other words, churches who desire to live out their Spirit –led DNA are looking to affiliate and participate in like-minded visions.  There is a growing movement, a re-alignment of churches in Associations and networks, along the lines of vision and affinity.  Associations of the future are characterized by those two components and not by geography.  If an Association wishes to be a vibrant part of the future of what God is doing, especially among the younger generations, it must position itself to assist, encourage and resource churches as they participate in the Great Commission and the two Great Commandments.

Another distinction of Associations of the future is being a church-first organization.  Associations do not exist for themselves.  They exist to serve churches as churches fulfill their God-given calling of making disciples of all the nations.  Associations do not compete with churches for ministry.  Churches do the ministry and Associations assist, encourage and resource those churches.  Its purpose statement justifies the very existence of an Association.  In other words, to assist, encourage and resource churches to participate in the Great Commission and the two Great Commandments is the purpose for existing.  When Associations do not fulfill their purpose, to be church-first, they violate their very essence.  Associations of the future will always remain a church-first organization not an Association-first organization. 

As one Baptist leader stated, “We are seldom comfortable with change, but someone has observed that if the external changes exceed the internal changes of an organization, it is moving toward irrelevance and ineffectiveness.”

Associations must adapt to meet current and future challenges if they are to survive and even thrive in the future.  The classical design of Associations of the past was successful to meet the challenges of its time.  A new paradigm of thinking is needed.  To restate the quote above, if the changes in the world around us exceed the adaptations within the Association, the Association is moving toward irrelevance and ineffectiveness.  This is a stark reality, which is facing all Associations in the United States.  The vast majority of Associations have not made the transition into a new model.  These Associations seem to be prisoners of the past.  The future does not look bright for such Associations.  The Association of the future cannot be the Association of the past or in many cases of the present.

There are a number of characteristics, which describe Associations of the future.  A number of Associations have made the transformation and exemplify the following characteristics.  One distinction of Associations of the future is not being limited by geographical boundaries.  Tomorrow’s Associations will be characterized by vision and affinity not by geography.  Under the former paradigm, in which many still operate, Associations were and are characterized by geographical boundaries.  Yet, our current technology allows us to remove geography as a barrier.  Individuals can ‘facetime’ or ‘skype’ each other on a cell phone or computer while being on different continents.  Because of modern technological advancements, Associations of the future are characterized by a global vision and affinity.  Associations must see themselves as making a global impact.  Associations are able to create partnerships with other Great Commission Christians worldwide.  Such partnerships help churches within a given Association broaden their ability to implement an Acts 1:8 strategy.

The purpose of the local Association is to assist, encourage, and resource churches to participate in the Great Commission and the two Great Commandments.

There are two central truths that define the Association and help clarify what the local Association is and what it is not.  First, the Association is not a church.  It is a para-church organization.  The Association is a network of churches, which voluntarily work together in cooperation to accomplish more together than apart.  Churches give to and receive assistance from the Association and each other.  The Church, the Bride of Christ, in the New Testament, is God-ordained to carry out His purposes on earth.  Second, the role and function of the association is to assist, support and resource the unique, God-given vision of churches to carry out the Great Commission and the two Great Commandments.  The role of the association is to ‘assist’ in ministry and not to ‘do’ ministry.  Associations do not compete with churches to fulfill ministry.  Churches ‘do’, associations ‘assist and resource.’

Jerry Rankin in his booked titled, To The Ends Of The Earth, correctly identifies the purpose of the local Association.  He states the following “Every SBC entity – whether an association, a state convention, or missions agency – exists only to serve, equip, and enable churches and the people of God to fulfill the Great Commission.” He further clarifies, “The Holy Spirit can empower the growth of the kingdom. But it is the role of the denominations at every level to empower the churches in the sense of facilitating, equipping, and enabling them to fulfill God’s purpose.”

There are at least three basic principles of any good mission and/or ministry strategy plan. We will avoid many pitfalls of mission and ministry work when we are guided by these basic principles.

In short, the three principles are N. I. R.   In order to develop a highly affective mission and ministry strategy plan, we must be N. I. R. (near) sighted, so to speak.  In other words, we need to filter all goals, activities, and action plans through the N. I. R. Principles.

The third letter of the N. I. R. principles is "R", which stands for reproducibility.

When we apply the principle of reproducibility to ministry and missions, we see its potential impact. Consider this principle in relation to fulfilling the Great Commission to make disciples. Here are several examples.  The first example is a short list demonstrating a chain of reproducible influence from one generation to the next.

• Hellil, a famous Jewish scholar, influenced his grandson Gamaliel

• Gamaliel (Acts 5:34-40) was a mentor to Paul - Acts 22:3

• Jesus was a mentor to the Disciples/Apostles - Luke 6:12-16

• The Disciples/Apostles were mentors to Barnabas - Acts 4:35-37

• Barnabas was a mentor to Paul - Acts 9:26-27; 11:22-26

• Barnabas and Paul were mentors to Mark - Acts 12:25; 15:39

• Mark is the author of the Gospel that bears his name

• Paul was a mentor to Silas - Acts 15:40-41

• Grandmother Lois and mother Eunice were mentors to Timothy - 2 Timothy 1:15

• Paul was a mentor to Timothy - Acts 16:1-3; 2 Timothy 2:2

• Timothy was a mentor to faithful men - 2 Timothy 2:2

• Faithful men were mentors to others - 2 Timothy 2:2

Second, consider a contemporary example from the life of a missionary in Africa.  The way in which we influence others is the way in which we should expect them to imitate our actions. For example, some years ago a cross-cultural missionary told me that during his first term in Africa he had trained six men to start six new churches in communities which had no Gospel witness.  Before he returned to the United States for furlough, he asked each man to start a new church in one of the surrounding villages during his absence. The missionary left for the United States believing that he had effectively equipped six church planters.

A year later when the missionary returned he expected to find six new churches. Yet to his frustration he found that his six disciples had not even started one new church, much less six.  When asked why there was not even one new church, they replied, "We're not able to start new churches."  The missionary was perplexed since he had poured his life into theirs. He asked why they couldn't start a new church since he had personally taught them step-by-step how to do it.  The six men told him that they did not have an overhead projector.  The missionary asked what an overhead projector had to do with starting churches. Their reply is very enlightening when we consider the principle of reproducibility.

Since the missionary had modeled his church planting efforts by using an overhead projector, (something not indigenous to their way of life - principle two), the six men determined that in order to start a new church they must also have an overhead projector.   All six men determined in the equipping process with the missionary that certain items were necessary to accomplish their specific mission objective of starting new churches.  When the missionary did not provide each man with an overhead projector, in their thinking, they were handicapped and could not reach the next village with the Gospel.

Third, consider other contemporary examples of the principle of reproducibility.   We must begin with the end in mind by asking ourselves, "What type of Christ follower will be produced if we continue to do what we are currently doing?"  While serving as a missionary in Venezuela, I was trained by the International Mission Board to begin with the end in mind or to end-vision (not en-vision) all of our mission efforts.  As we wrote a multi-year and multi-faceted master plan for our mission efforts in Venezuela, we used a list of questions as a guide.  Such a tool was very effective in keeping me on course to accomplish what I knew God wanted.  Through equipping national leaders, we started 15 new churches in 18 months using reproducible methods.

Several years later I served as a professor at the Seminario Teológico Bautista de México located in Lomas Verdes area of Satélite in Mexico City.  During my time there I was part of the small committee that evaluated the curriculum and student outcomes for each of the four years of study.  The main question the committee sought to answer was, "At the end of the first (second, etc.) year of study, what do we want the student to know and to be able to do?"  In other words, "What do we want them to reproduce?"  We evaluated all four years of theological study based on how we answered that question.  The end result was a four-year curriculum that was more focused on equipping ministers who were better able to meet the challenges of their urban context.

Too many times in our mission and ministry efforts, we model the wrong example. We should base our missions and ministry efforts on what we know to be the correct end result. As we invest our lives into the lives of others, we need to be cognizant of the next generation and the type of disciple that is produced. The old proverb, "don't do as I do but do as I say" does not apply here.  We should follow Paul's advice when he said, "Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ." (1 Cor. 11:1)

Let's become N. I. R. (near) sighted in our missions and ministry efforts and apply the principles of non-dependency, indigeneity, and reproducibility to every thing we do.

Many religions around the world include fasting as a part of their experience.  Fasting from a Christian perspective is multi-faceted.
 
Three types of fasting
 
Typical – abstaining from food and drink but not water
- Jesus fasted for 40 days
- Matthew 4:1-2  “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He then became hungry.”
 
Complete – abstain from all food and drink including water
- Moses in the presence of the Lord
- Exodus 34:28  So Moses was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights; he did not eat bread or drink water. And he wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant, the Ten Commandments.
 
Partial – abstain from specific items such as:  certain types of foods;
-  Nebuchadnezzar King of Babylon conquered Jehoiakim king of Judah and took into captivity slaves.  One of those slaves was named Daniel.  Nebuchadnezzar “appointed for them a daily ration from the king’s choice food and from the wine which he drank.”
- Daniel 1:8-16 But Daniel made up his mind that he would not defile himself with the king’s choice food or with the wine which he drank; so he sought permission from the commander of the officials that he might not defile himself. Now God granted Daniel favor and compassion in the sight of the commander of the officials, and the commander of the officials said to Daniel, “I am afraid of my lord the king, who has appointed your food and your drink; for why should he see your faces looking more haggard than the youths who are your own age? Then you would make me forfeit my head to the king.” But Daniel said to the overseer, “Please test your servants for ten days, and let us be given some vegetables to eat and water to drink. Then let our appearance be observed in your presence and the appearance of the youths who are eating the king’s choice food; and deal with your servants according to what you see.” So he listened to them in this matter and tested them for ten days. At the end of ten days their appearance seemed better and they were fatter than all the youths who had been eating the king’s choice food. So the overseer continued to withhold their choice food and the wine they were to drink, and kept giving them vegetables.
 
Motives for fasting

Incorrect – Luke 18:9-14  And He also told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt: “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’ I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Correct – Matthew 6:16-17  “Whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they neglect their appearance so that they will be noticed by men when they are fasting. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.  But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face so that your fasting will not be noticed by men, but by your God who is in secret; and your God who sees what is done in secret will reward you.
 
Purposes of fasting

Repentance of sin – Jonah 3:1-10  Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time, saying,  “Arise, go to Nineveh the great city and proclaim to it the proclamation which I am going to tell you.” 3 So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, a three days’ walk.  Then Jonah began to go through the city one day’s walk; and he cried out and said, “Yet forty days and Nineveh will be overthrown.”  Then the people of Nineveh believed in God; and they called a fast and put on sackcloth from the greatest to the least of them. When the word reached the king of Nineveh, he arose from his throne, laid aside his robe from him, covered himself with sackcloth and sat on the ashes. He issued a proclamation and it said, “In Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles: Do not let man, beast, herd, or flock taste a thing. Do not let them eat or drink water.  But both man and beast must be covered with sackcloth; and let men call on God earnestly that each may turn from his wicked way and from the violence which is in his hands.  Who knows, God may turn and relent and withdraw His burning anger so that we will not perish.”  When God saw their deeds, that they turned from their wicked way, then God relented concerning the calamity, which He had declared He would bring upon them. And He did not do it.
Joel 2:12-13 “Yet even now,” declares the Lord, “Return to Me with all your heart, And with fasting, weeping and mourning;  And rend your heart and not your garments.”  Now return to the Lord your God, For He is gracious and compassionate, Slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness

Draw close to God – Isaiah 58:6-9 “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?  Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard. Then you will call, and the Lord will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.”
 
Seeking direction from God – Acts 13:1-3  Now there were at Antioch, in the church that was there, prophets and teachers: Barnabas, and Simeon who was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.  While they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” Then, when they had fasted and prayed and laid their hands on them, they sent them away.
 
Asking for God’s help – our family fasting and praying each day of the week.

There are at least three basic principles of any good mission and/or ministry strategy plan. We will avoid many pitfalls of mission and ministry work when we are guided by these basic principles.

In short, the three principles are N. I. R.   In order to develop a highly affective mission and ministry strategy plan, we must be N. I. R. (near) sighted, so to speak.  In other words, we need to filter all goals, activities, and action plans through the N. I. R. Principles.

2)  The second letter of the N.I.R. principles is "I", which stands for indigenous.

The word indigenous, in a general sense, means "native" or "originating in and characteristic of a particular region or country."    When referring to ministry and missions, indigenous pertains to what is native to or is characteristic of a people group or population segment.  Every people group or population segment has peculiar and distinguishable characteristics that make it recognizable from other people groups or population segments.

The gospel will never reach its full expression unless it is allowed to be indigenous to a culture. When we expect others to become like us before they are able to believe in Christ, we have just violated the principle of indigeneity.  This is clearly seen in the The Yao Project, which was an evangelistic effort specifically designed to reach the Yao people group in Africa.  Several generations prior to the project, the Yao had rejected the gospel because they were told it was necessary to give up their Yao culture in order to become believers.  To be a believer meant they could not be Yao and Christian at the same time.  So they became Muslims in order to retain their cultural heritage.  In the 1980's, Steve Evans of the International Mission Board and other Great Commission Christians joined efforts to strategize and carry out a plan to present the gospel in a culturally sensitive manner.  Because of their efforts, negative Yao attitudes toward Christianity changed.  Many Yao individuals became believers in Christ and new churches were started.

Simply stated, the principle of looking at what is native or originating in and characteristic of a particular people group or population segment must not be overlooked.  Many Christian workers who have dismissed this principle have made tremendous mistakes.  Such mistakes hinder the gospel from spreading quickly. (2 Thessalonians 3:1)   When cultural insensitivity occurs on the part of the Christian worker, the gospel message might not be received on the merits of the gospel message itself but might be rejected simply based upon the cultural insensitivity and offensiveness of the Christian worker.  One only need remember the Julie Andrew's movie titled Hawaii, which is replete with examples.

All cultures and world-views are tainted with and deeply affected by sin.  There is no culture or world-view that is not crippled by it. Yet, having said that, not all aspects of culture and world-view are immoral or sinful.   A believer must discern which parts of culture and/or world-view violate biblical truth and which do not.  If an aspect of culture and/or world-view does not openly conflict with scripture, a believer should not see it as a threat to the gospel.  But if an aspect of culture and/or world-view does openly conflict with biblical teachings, a believer should and must wisely engage the cultural practice with biblical truth.

Hiebert recognized our tendency to overlook this principle when he said, "As evangelicals we emphasize knowledge of the Bible, but rarely stop to examine the people and cultures we serve." (Paul Hiebert.  Anthropological Insights for Missionaries. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House. 1985. Pg. 140)   When presenting the gospel a believer should take great care in making sure the message is clearly understood by the hearer in a manner that does not violate biblical truth but at the same time is appropriate to the listener's culture.  Kraft expresses this thought effectively, "If we are to take the scriptural approach, we are to adapt ourselves and our presentation of God's message to the culture of the receiving people.  If we demand that they become like us in order to be acceptable to God, we, like most of the early Jewish Christians (see Acts 15:1), have misrepresented God.  We, the witnesses, are to make the cultural adjustments, not they, the potential respondents." (Charles Kraft.  Anthropology For Christian Witness.  New York: Orbis Books. 2000. Pg. 2).   We desire to fulfill the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20;  Mark 16:15;  John 20:21;  Luke 24:46-48;  Acts 1:8) and must reach across existing barriers, whether cultural or other.  The Great Commission will never be carried out to its fullest extent if the gospel is not allowed to permeate a culture.

Paul communicated the principle of indigeneity in 1 Corinthians 9:19-22 (NASB) when he said,

"19For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I may win more.  20To the Jews I became as a Jew, so that I might win Jews; to those who are under the Law, as under the Law though not being myself under the Law, so that I might win those who are under the Law; 21to those who are without law, as without law, though not being without the law of God but under the law of Christ, so that I might win those who are without law. 22To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak; I have become all things to all men, so that I may by all means save some."

Kraft comments on this passage by stating, "From the beginning of Scripture, God has shown himself willing to work with people within their cultural frames of reference.  He has always worked in terms of Jewish culture to reach Jews.  Through Paul, He states what is illustrated in the book of Acts - that He wants to accept the Gentiles within their cultures also, without the necessity of their changing cultures in order to do things in a way that is acceptable to Him." (Kraft. Pgs. 1-2).

Jesus embodied this principle when he 'became flesh and dwelt among us." (John 1:14)  He expressed the Father's will from within the Jewish culture.  Let's follow His example and become N.I.R. sighted in our approach.