(July 27, 2010)-The following is a transcript of my final address to the IMB Board of Trustees last week in Richmond, Virginia.
A time of transition is a time to look back and reflect on the rich legacy of our past, to celebrate the present and to renew our vision for the future. Enough has been said about the past in IMB reports and commendations on the occasion of my retirement. I give God the glory for the growth and global impact we have seen; it far exceeds what any of us would have imagined just a few years ago. However, being in a position to have a global overview has given me some insight regarding possible trends, trials and the triumph of the future.
I am not a prophet and do not have the ability to discern the future, but being in a position to have a global overview of what God is doing around the world, I have been able to recognize the trends of a dynamic world of accelerating change that will radically impact how missions is done in the future. In the 1980s we had a Global Strategy Group that was responsible long-range planning. These were the visionaries and strategists who attempted to anticipate the future. Yet as they outlined goals for the end of the century, no one envisioned the possibility of missionaries in what was then the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. No one even dreamed that one day we might have personnel back in China. Our tendency is to become entrenched in current realities; the result is to become marginalized as global paradigms change.
As we forecast and develop scenarios based on what the world could look like in the coming years, consider these possible future realities:
• North Korea will cease to exist in the near future as it either succumbs to peaceful reunification with South Korea or is assimilated into China.
• Cuba will become more open to the world, at which time outside Christian entities will flow into the country claiming a piece of the action and destroy, through patronizing subsidy, one of the most spiritual, authentic movements to Christ we have seen in this generation.
• The Muslim world will change from within as moderates will become more assertive, squelching radical elements and bringing Islamic societies into more compatible relationships internationally; there will still be resistance to the gospel, but the gospel will find an increased response.
• African and Latin American countries will continue to be responsive, but church growth will be inhibited by increased secularization and syncretism as these continents flounder under continuing political and economic crises. Likewise, Russia and the former Soviet Republics will become more and more dysfunctional politically, socially and economically and experience a declining influence and role in international affairs.
• China will become more liberalized politically and, along with Korea, India and Vietnam, use their massive workforce and heated economies to supplant the G7 western nations that have dominated global finance in the past. With the changing demographics of Europe, I believe it will become the harvest field of the future as a spiritual hungry immigrant population replaces the post-Christian humanism seen today.
• What is the future with regard to missions? America’s political influence will rapidly decline along with the mortgaging of its financial future. Continuing polarization of society and a fragile economy will diminish our country in its potential for sending missionaries to be replaced by Koreans, Chinese, South Asians and Latin Americans who will emerge at the forefront of fulfilling the Great Commission.
• The nature of missions will radically change. There will be increasing and widespread hostility toward a Christian witness. More sophisticated governments are recognizing Americans who venture overseas with presumed humanitarian motives have unwelcome evangelistic agendas. The future missionary must come out of a marketplace ministry; credible global platforms for medical work, education, technology and business consultation must become the channels for sharing the gospel and planting churches.
• The IMB will move from being a missionary-sending agency that screens and vets those worthy of sharing the gospel overseas to become a facilitator for mobilizing the vast resources and potential of Southern Baptists to reach a lost world. The adoption of recommendations for a Great Commission Resurgence is just the beginning of new incentive for a changing denominational structure and revised priorities in the future. Churches will have a heart and commitment for missions as never before; we must serve them and assist them as they send out missionaries and engage the world or be marginalized in our relevance.
The second category of envisioning the future is recognition of the trials that are inevitable in our resolve to claim the kingdoms of the world and the kingdoms of our Lord. We will encounter increasing hostility to our Christian witness overseas, ridicule from media and society and indifference on the part of self-centered and ingrown churches. We have had eight missionaries martyred and others abducted and victims of violence since we entered the 21st century. This is likely to become more common if we continue our commitment to push to the edge of lostness with life-changing message of the gospel. As our own country is subjected to policies and judicial judgments unfriendly to our faith convictions, we are moving to the point at which it will cost to be a Christian. However, that may be the very condition that will bring purification to the church and create the spiritual revival we long to see.
There is every evidence that our economy will continue to flounder; we will continue to struggle with limited budget resources. Rather than implementing contingency cutbacks year after year, we need to relinquish the idealism of return to the glory days of unlimited growth and create a new paradigm for doing missions through mobilization of churches, partnership with national churches overseas and other evangelicals committed to the Great Commission.
Finally, having presented some challenging trends and formidable trials, I want to end my vision of the future by expressing confidence in an assured triumph. Just as we are already seeing today, God is using the political upheaval, chaos and confusion, economic uncertainty and natural disasters to turn the hearts of a lost world to a search for something that will give them hope and security; and we have the answer. What we see happening today is what was expressed by the prophet Haggai—“God will shake the heavens and the earth, destroy the powers of nations and overthrow the thrones of kingdoms” (Hag. 2:21-22).
Throughout my tenure I have been driven by the prophetic words of Jesus who said, “The gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to every nation, and then the end will come” (Matt. 24:14). That has not been a presumptuous arrogance that we will hasten the return of Christ, but it has given us assurance that our vision to reach all peoples with the life-transforming message of Jesus will be fulfilled. We have had the privilege to live and serve at a time when God has chosen to move in unprecedented ways to fulfill His mission. We can only be humbled and grateful for that privilege, and it should stimulate us to even greater commitment to be found faithful in our devotion to the task in the future, whatever the cost.
Dr. Rankin,
Very good points. Exciting to see the trends and challenges ahead. I think it could have been added that this war we are presently in will serve to open the middle east up to the Gospel of Jesus Christ just as the Roman Empire was used by God to make a road for the Gospel to be spread by Paul and the Apostles throughout the Roman world. Being a veteran of Iraq, I saw Iraqis coming to chapel services and I found Bibles laying everywhere. I found a new NIV Bible with reference notes while I was there laying in the sand and that wasn’t uncommon.
Your statement, ” Cuba will become more open to the world, at which time outside Christian entities will flow into the country claiming a piece of the action and destroy, through patronizing subsidy, one of the most spiritual, authentic movements to Christ we have seen in this generation,” causes me a bit of uneasiness. I would look at other Christian entities as assets to the spreading of the Gospel. We are all working in this together. The statement presumes that somehow Southern Baptist are the only ones doing it right. We do not have to look far to realize that our missionaries at the IMB have made some big blunders over the years and it wasn’t too long ago when we were subsidizing ministries such as Bible Schools and building churches. All of which was funded by Lottie Moon dollars.
Mark, there was no implication that the IMB is having anything to do with what God is doing in Cuba. When things change, we will probably be as much a part of the problem as everyone else going in and trying to help.
Dr. Rankin,
It is interesting to hear your thoughts on future trends from your unique perspective. It has been a while since we talked in our sala in M’Lang, Philippines about my and Gay’s future in missions. We certainly appreciate the ministry that you and Bobbye have had in our lives as well as countless others.
I found one statement a little troubling. You state, “The IMB will move from being a missionary-sending agency that screens and vets those worthy of sharing the gospel overseas to become a facilitator for mobilizing the vast resources and potential of Southern Baptists to reach a lost world.” Are you saying there will not be a need (or perhaps is not a need today) for screening and examining (I take this to be the meaning of “vet”) of missionaries?
Thanks Jerry for your forward looking presentation to the Board of Trustees.
I have sent this to our various leadership teams for some prayerful thinking and consideration.
Thanks for your leadership and your friendship over the years. Thanks for your commitment to engage with others in the Body of Christ to fulfill the Great Commission and the Great Commandment in this generation. Our prayer is that the IMB will continue to play its role in seeing God’s Kingdom touching every sphere of society.
Thanks to you and Bobbye for your leadership and may this next phase of your investment be greater than your past contribution.
Steve Goode
Bangkok, Thailand
Great to hear from you Brian; appreciate you and Gay! Focus of that statement was the changing role. IMB will continue to send missionaries and appropriately screen those being sent and supported, but at some point in the future that role will radically diminish as churches assume more of the task. Relevancy of the IMB will be to the degree it serves and facilitates church involvement overseas. Potential impact is far greater than “x” number of missionaries being sent under the current paradigm.
I am a Southern Baptist – a member and staff pastor at a cooperating SBC church. I have a question. Is the IMB bloated? I hear the call for more CP money to send more missionaries. While I celebrate the generous hearts of God’s people I am left to wonder if a good starting place is in the paring down of the bloated beaurocracy and practices of the current IMB. I am one of those who is leaning toward targeted giving because of my aforementioned impression.
Am I wrong? If not, what are some ways the IMB can become more streamlined?
BTW – I am now at page 154 of your book: To the Ends of the Earth. I know, I know, I should have read it years ago. Oh well, better late than never. I am enjoying it.
Respectfully,
James
Dr. Rankin,
Thanks for clarifying that.
James, the perception of a “bloated bureacracy” is out there and unavoidable with such a large global organization. We have streamlined in every conceivable way and frozen staff expansion for years. We are open to suggestions of what can be streamlined further but screening, processing, supporting, provision of travel, housing, visas, distribution of a $300 million budget to 5,000 missionaries in hundreds of currencies overseas and providing adequate accountability as well as training and supervision, medical benefits and then keeping Southern Baptists informed is all a pretty massive task.
Dr. Rankin,
First of all, I finished your book. Enjoyed the insights I gleaned.
Regarding your answer. Thanks for what you wrote. I did not know that staff expansion had been non-existent for some time. I was under the impression that was not the case. I stand corrected on that issue.
You brought up the nuts and bolts practical things IMB does for missionaries. I know those things must be done. I am confident that these things are being done very well. I also know that all these mentioned items take money to do (personel, etc.).
I did not know that there had been such an effort to streamline in past years.
Perhaps one suggestion for at least some additional savings would be changing the current system of trustee meetings? I know you cut back from 6 to 5 meetings a year. Is there a way to have even fewer? Is there a way to get business done while having most meetings regionally or by modern technological means? Just wondering.
Anyway, I respect you. Thanks for your passion for God’s glory and labor of love for the nations.
Dr. Rankin,
Enjoyed reading your predictions. Among others I hope the following one you’ve offered will become reality:
“The IMB will move from being a missionary-sending agency that screens and vets those worthy of sharing the gospel overseas to become a facilitator for mobilizing the vast resources and potential of Southern Baptists to reach a lost world. The adoption of recommendations for a Great Commission Resurgence is just the beginning of new incentive for a changing denominational structure and revised priorities in the future.”
Good insights, Jerry! The world continues to change and though our message never changes, we will have to adapt to make sure we do all we can to fulfill our part of carrying out the Great Commission. Blessings, Mark Sauter
RE: James Hunt, Bloated IMB?
As a field-based M with the IMB, I can say there have been changes on the field as well, steps to eliminate costs as much as possible. Examples: benefits, insurance, MK education, vehicle use, and a proposed new formula for cost of living supplements that could possibly cut salaries about 10% (still being evaluated, I think). These cuts have saved the IMB a lot, but the costs are passed on to the Ms. Unavoidable, I know. Most folks seem to be weathering the storm, but a few units have left the field financially broke. Sad, but hard to avoid.
I think one of the next big steps will have to be evaluating some long-standing traditions and assumptions. For example, IMB has always paid for applicants to travel to candidate conferences. From what I hear, that will end or has ended. Another example that might come up for elimination is the traditional prayer meeting or missionary meeting on the field. These meetings served a greater purpose in years past, and might have already outlived their usefulness. Traditions die hard, though, and many Ms and senior leaders have fond memories of these gatherings as an annual high point.
One assumption that does not seem to have changed is travel by various leaders and their spouses. In this, the organization seems to be lagging, failing to take advantage of technology that would save time and money by allowing for a tele-commute. It can be heartbreaking to see how leaders in various clusters and affinities are unavailable because they are traveling; worse if a spouse is tagging along. The intentions of all involved are good and decent, yet there is an assumption of extensive travel by too many, though not by all.