# LCMS Convention Workbook_St. Louis Missouri_1981_S1 # Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration) 1. MISSIONS 1-01 Report of the Board for Missions “FORWARD IN REMEMBRANCE” Forward! Forward into the ’80s, into great new mission opportunities in a world filled with exciting challenges for reaching the unreached. Forward into mission is the compel- ling response of God’s people on the move through God’s open doors. This rededication to outreach in mission on the part of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod has been sparked by the power of the Holy Spirit through the Word of God. Itis through His Word that we grow in our understanding of what God’s purpose for our life is all about. The Forward in Rememberance “Statement of Mission and Ministry” (excerpted in part) says it well: God saved us so that we might serve Him. Serving Him includes willingness to use all that we have and are to pursue the Great Commission: “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost” (Matt. 28:19). In the explanation of the Second Article of our confession of faith we declare that Jesus “redeemed me, a lost and condemned creature, purchased and won me from all sins, from death, and from the power of the devil.” Because we believe and confess this, we are led by the Holy Spirit to “live under Him in His kingdom, and serve Him in everlasting righteousness.” That service is not only in heaven, but here in this world so that we may be instruments of the Holy Spirit as through the Word He calls the whole human race to repent and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved. This is the Gospel mandate we accept as members of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. We accept it as individuals and we join with our brothers and sisters in Christ to accept it as a Church body. We also join with the apostles and disciples of the early church whose Gospel mandate St. Paul clearly defined to the church in Corinth: “He died for all so that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but only for Him who died and was raised to life for their sake” (II Cor. 5:15). Living for Him is to expend ourselves and all we have and are in pursuit of His commands. If we do not, then we are drawing near to Him with our mouths and honoring Him with our lips while our hearts are far from Him. ‘“‘Whoever does not have the spirit of Christ, does not belong to Him” (Rom. 8:9). Jesus expressed it during the Last Supper and at the time of His great passion: “A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another” (John 13:34). If we love our neighbor we are compelled to witness to him of Jesus’ love and salvation. If we love mankind as Jesus did and asks us to do, we cannot be satisfied until all know of His saving grace. The 1979 convention of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod did much to excite the whole Synod with a new awareness of open doors everywhere at home and abroad. Each open door is an act of God, a miracle to which God’s people are invited to respond. What better way to respond than to follow God’s direction. That direction is Forward. Mission momentum is Forward. For the Synod this means moving ahead in faith and remembrance to meet the mission challenges for the ’80s as these were formulated and adopted by the 1979 convention of the Synod. These have become the goals and objectives of the Board for Missions. At first glance they appear too idealistic, unreal, impossible to attain. Comparatively speaking, they are as overwhelming for us as were the challenges which confronted that small band of disciples in Christ’s day. But our Lord, who said, “All things are possible to him who believes” (Mark 9:23), faced the world of His day and was moved with compassion for the multitudes. “Then He said to His disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest’” (Matt. 9:37-38). One such prayer appropriate for every Christian who is committed to moving Forward in mission is found in the words of Psalm 67: May God be gracious to us and bless us and make His face to shine upon us, that Thy way may be known upon earth, Thy saving power among all nations. Let the peoples praise Thee, O God; let all the peoples praise Thee! Let the nations be glad and sing for joy, for Thou dost judge the peoples with equity and guide the nations upon earth. Let the peoples praise Thee. O God; let all the peoples praise Thee! The earth has yielded its increase; God, our God has blessed us. God has blessed us; let all the ends of the earth fear Him! The board feels the weight of responsibility which has been given to it by the church. It humbly recognizes that much remains to be done to accomplish the unfinished task. In the midst of shortcomings and difficulties God’s blessing on the worldwide work of the board continues to abound with a good stretch of the decade still before us—as much as God in His mercy deigns to grant in these latter days before our Lord’s return. With a mixture of earnestness, zeal, grave concern, thankful hearts, and joyful confidence in the Lord, the Board for Missions presents to the Synod, the church assembled in convention, an update on the activities and plans that shape the mission program of our Synod in North America and throughout the world. In every direction the arrows of the Great Commission point Forward. I. Forward in North America God is indeed blessing our efforts to move forward in North American missions. Recall the following changes. Then note the progress that is being made as reflected in the paragraphs which follow the challenges and which describe the various programs of mission and ministry in North America. 1. a. 30% growth in the number of new churches planted (180 per year); this includes Black, 10 per year; Hispanic, 5 per year; Native American, 2 per year; Asian-American, 2 per year; . 20 new LCMS campus ministries begun (2 per year); . 20 new deaf ministries planted (2 per year); . 10 new Asian-American ministries planted (one per year); 2. a. 50% growth. in the baptized membership of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (5% per year), includ- ing ethnic and cultural groups; b. 300% increase in the number of blind people served by the LCMS (30% per year); 3. a. 100 Hispanics recruited and placed in full-time His- panic ministries of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (10 per year); b. 50 Native Americans (Indians) recruited, trained and placed in full-time Native American ministries of the LCMS (5 per year); (Cf. 1979 Convention Proceedings, p. 92 ff., Res. 1-12A; 1-13; 1-14A; p. 96, Res. 1-23A.) Our achievements in North American missions and min- istries are blessings of God. His Word is effective. Preaching the Gospel and faithfully administering the sacraments are notin vain. With God’s Word of power (Rom. 1:16) we can move Forward—and move we must! Fact 1: There were 23,202,794 more people living in the U.S. in 1980 than in 1970. This is based on the U.S. population for 1970 (203,302,031) and for 1980 (226,504,825). This represents a total population increase of 11.4%. Fact 2: There are more than 150,000 fewer baptized people in the LCMS in 1980 than in 1970. Fact 3: The1979 convention of the Synod has said that this is the decade to move forward in making disciples. ane Look at some of the significant indications in the “North American Decadal Growth Table”: 1. Our baptized membership has increased in 26 out of 50 states. 2. Our baptized membership has increased in three of the provinces of Canada. 3. Our baptized membership has increased more rapidly than the population growth rate in six states: Arkansas, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. In this context, we move forward boldly with renewed commitment, knowing that in Christ we can do all things. It is