# LCMS Convention Workbook_St. Louis Missouri_2001_S129 # Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration) 128 MISSIONS To Encourage Expansion of ‘‘Apple of His Eye” Ministry WHEREAS. Scripture calls Jewish people “the apple of [God’s] eye” (Deut. 32:10) and urges mission work be done continually among them (Rom. 10: 1 ) so they may see Jesus as the Jewish Messiah; and WHEREAS, Several District conventions in the Synod have taken the unprecedented step of creating a position of “Apple of His Eyc Missionary at Large for Jewish Outreach,” which is ably being car- ried out in various ministries throughout the continental United States; and WHEREAS, Various synodical conventions have called for ex- panded ministry among the Jewish people (New Orleans, 1973, Res. 1-23; Dallas, 1977, Res. 2-27; St. Louis, 1979, Res. 1-30; St. Louis, 1981, Res. 1-13A; St. Louis, 1983, Res. 1-20 and 3-09; and others); and WHEREAS, “Apple of His Eye” is seen as an ongoing and grow- ing movement in support of work among Jewish people in the whole of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod for the develop- ment, support, and networking of our church body’s ministry to our Jewish neighbors; therefore be it Resolved, That The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod, gath- ered in convention, extend its gratitude to those individuals and congregations who have been instruments in God's hands to bring the message of salvation by grace through faith in Yeshua Hamashiach (Jesus the Messiah) to the Jewish people; and be it fur- ther Resolved, That the congregations of the Synod be encouraged to pray for and, where possible, financially support efforts to bring the Good News of Yeshua to increasing numbers of Jewish neigh- bors through the work of the various “Apple of His Eye” ministries; and be it finally Resolved, That the Synod in convention urge commitment of funding and other support through its World Missions funding for the national “Apple of His Eye Mission Society” for the sake of bringing the Gospel to our Jewish neighbors not only throughout the United States, but also throughout the world. Family of Faith Houston, TX To Encourage CUS to Give High Priority to Evangelism among Jewish People WHEREAS, Most mainline denominations in our country have forsaken any mission to Jewish people; and WHEREAS, The so-called dual-covenant theory of salvation es- poused by many denominations prohibits witnessing to Jewish peo- ple with the intent of winning them for Christ; and WHEREAS, The LCMS stands virtually alone in any responsible witness to God’s first chosen people among churches in the west- ern hemisphere; and WHEREAS, Our system of colleges and seminaries train men and women in ministry to all people; therefore be it Resolved, That the Synod in convention in 2001 give every as- sistance in directing our Concordia University System to place the Joyous yet often lonely task of evangelism among Jewish people as a high priority in their instructional process of equipping their students for ministry; and be it further Resolved, That a Chair of Jewish Evangelism be established at those universities in our Concordia System that have significant Jewish populations contained within their geographical area in order that attention be given to this important area of witnessing. Mount Calvary Beverly Hills, CA 2001 Convention Workbook 1-14 To Encourage Missions Experiences for High School Graduates Wuereas, In Luke 10:]-9 our Lord Jesus appointed 70 disci- ples to go ahead of Him to every city and place that He intended to go; and WuerEAS, Our Lord Jesus tells us that the harvest is large but the workers are few: and WHEREAS, In many congregations, evangelism and missions outreach need to be strengthened; and WHEREAS, Christian young people are generally unencumbered by other responsibilities and are full of enthusiasm, idealism, and zeal for the Good News; and WHEREAS, A great expansion of the kingdom of God would be seen by releasing these spiritual energies into our communities and our world; therefore be it Resolved, That we encourage all LCMS high school graduates to dedicate to the Lord a mintmum of three months for evangelism and outreach at home or abroad, with longer terms of one to two years possible; and be it further Resolved, That these young people would raise their own sup- port, work in teams of two, and meet frequently with local pastors for accountability and support; and be it finally Resolved, That these young people would give regular testi- monies of their experiences in local congregations to encourage others to follow their example, join in every opportunity for public worship, maintain daily habits of prayer, and faithfully record their activities. Concordia Kingsport, TN To Designate Pentecost Sunday for International Student Ministry WHEREAS, God has brought more than 600,000 international students and scholars with approximately one million dependents to the United States; and WHEREAS, These students speak English, and they and their families are eager to learn about American culture and religion: and WHEREAS, Approximately 90 percent of these international friends live without a personal knowledge of our Lord and Savior, and many have never had the opportunity to hear the Gospel even once; and WHEREAS, Most international students who come to faith in Christ will eventually return to their native countries as “mission- aries” in their own right; and WHEREAS, God is blessing the sharing of the Gospel with inter- national students in over 60 LCMS intentional ministry sites in the United States alone; and WHEREAS, Supportive and involved congregations have grown in their sense of God’s Gospel mission at our very doorstep; and WHEREAS, We recognize the shortness of time until our Lord comes again; therefore be it Resolved, That the congregations of our Synod be encouraged to recognize and to observe international student ministry annually on Pentecost Sunday; and be it further Resolved, That the congregations of our Synod include in their regular prayer ministries (in worship, prayer chains, etc.) the inten- tional Gospel outreach among international students and their fam- ilies; and be it further Resolved, That the congregations of our Synod utilize resources from both the LCMS Campus Ministry office and from our part- ner mission society, ISM, [nc.; and be it finally