The Great Commission and Missions
As taught in the Baptist tradition
Compelling the church to make disciples of all nations through evangelism and church planting.
The central question that defines the Baptist identity is not merely "What do we believe?" but "What has God commanded us to do with what we believe?" Within the Baptist tradition, the doctrine of missions is not a secondary or optional activity for the "extra-spiritual" few; it is the fundamental heartbeat of the church’s existence. This subtopic answers the vital question of the church's purpose in the interim between the Resurrection and the Second Coming of Christ. To a Baptist, a church that is not missional is a church that has drifted from its biblical moorings. We do not merely "do" missions; we are a people "on mission."
By the end of this lesson
- **Articulate** the biblical and theological foundation of the Great Commission as the primary mandate for the local church.
- **Identify** the historical shifts in Baptist thought regarding the obligation of the church to engage in cross-cultural missions, specifically the influence of Andrew Fuller and William Carey.
- **Explain** the relationship between God’s sovereignty in salvation and the human responsibility to proclaim the Gospel within a Baptist framework.
- **Distinguish** between general evangelism and the specific task of "panta ta ethne" (all the nations/people groups) as defined in the New Testament.
- **Trace** the development of Article XI in the Baptist Faith and Message 2000 and its implications for modern denominational cooperation.
- **Defend** the necessity of verbal proclamation of the Gospel against "social gospel" or "deeds-only" approaches to missions.
- **Apply** the principles of the Great Commission to personal life, local church strategy, and global prayer priorities.
- **Compare** the Baptist view of the "sent-ness" of the church with other traditions, particularly regarding the role of baptism and church planting in the mission field.
Scripture
The full lesson, its study guide and questions, and an AI tutor that answers from Scripture with citations are free with an account.