more on missions

"GO" is an acronym for "Global Outreach." First Baptist Church has embraced the Great Commission, "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations..." our mandate from King Jesus compels us to work to see all peoples reached with the Good News of Jesus Christ.

  • For all people to know Christ. To truly know Christ, one must…
      • Have access to the Gospel to be able to respond to the Gospel.
      • Be restored to God through Christ, which leads to transformation by the Spirit.
      • Be involved in making disciples, which is to obey Christ’s commission to all believers.
      • Be engaged in the life of a healthy local church.
  • To serve the city and share with the world because we are compelled and empowered by the Spirit to do so.
  • Every member is serving, every believer is going, every church is sending, every person is hearing, which results in transformed lives and Kingdom Advancement.  

We are motivated by both biblical truth and cultural realities. 

Biblical Motivations - The Church is often viewed as the body of Christ. As such, the following essential parts of the body and corresponding Scriptures help inform and found our pursuit of all people coming to know Christ.

Head - Christ is the head of the church. As the head of the church, Christ desires for the church to be the primary vehicle through which the Gospel is communicated, Christ’s love is demonstrated, and God is worshiped. It is Christ’s desire for all people to have access to the Gospel and have the opportunity to respond through faith and repentance to his free gift of grace and life eternal. 

Heart - Scripture says God has a heart for the city and the nations. Such a statement is accurate but can be simplified even further: Christ has a heart for all people. He is broken over the sin of mankind all men, women, and children, which has separated them from God’s original design of unity and fellowship with the Father. Christ desires for each man and woman to be broken over their individual sin and the sin of fellow man, resulting in repentance and faith in him alone. Such brokenness over sin and Christ’s limitless love compels us to share the hope of Jesus Christ with all we come in contact with…family, friend, foe, and foreigner. 

Hands - The church is not a building, but a people who have placed their faith in the risen Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and have received the Holy Spirit. It is through the gifting of the Holy Spirit that the church--believers--are given the responsibility and ability to be the hands of Christ serving both the church and the ministry of the church to our city and world through our gifts, talents, passions, and interests. 

Feet - Believers empowered by the Holy Spirit are to be the feet of Christ who take the truth of the Gospel to the affluent, middle class, and poorest of poor; the weary, diseased, and least of these; the single mom, absent dad, and rebellious teen; to suburban cul-de-sacs, jungle paths, and crowded city streets; both to, fro, and everywhere in between.

Cultural Realities - The Church is also viewed as a light in the darkness. As such, the following are cultural realities that validate and expedite the need for the church to be active in bringing the light of Jesus to the darkness of our world.

Lostness - The Lost are to be Found
  • Less than 5% of the worldwide population identify as evangelical believers. 
  • Each day, 155,473 people enter eternity without the hope of Jesus.
  • Almost 12,000 ethnolinguistic groups with a common self-identify–a “people group”-- make up the entire world’s population of 7.7 billion people. Over 7,000 of these people groups (4.5 billion people) are considered unreached (less than 2% evangelical Christian).
  • Over 3,100 people groups (265 million people) are considered unengaged: no evangelical Christian missionary presence, have never heard the Gospel, or was once exposed to the Gospel but has since been forgotten.
  • Over 156 million Americans have not attended a Christian church, other than for special events, in the last six months. 
  • Over the past decade, more people in the U.S. have become churchless than live in Australia or Canada. This is an increase of 30% (38 million people). 
  • In 2018-19, 26% of Americans surveyed identified themselves as ‘religiously unaffiliated’ (atheists, agnostics, etc.). This is up from 17% in 2009.
  • 73% of Saline County residents (123,000+) are ‘unclaimed’ by any of the 217 religious groups. 
  • The Southern Baptist Church to Population Ratio for North America is 1:6,910.
Brokenness - The Broken are to be Restored
  • 16% of the 4th Congressional District of Arkansas (Saline County) receive income below the poverty line ($25,000 for a family of four). 22% of children under 18 in this district are in related families who had income below the poverty line in 2019.
  • 18% of the Working-Age Women (18-64) who had incomes below the poverty line in 2018.
  • 17% of Arkansas residents age 18-24 without high school degrees who were not in school or working in 2018.
  • 15% of Arkansas residents experienced hunger and food insecurities from 2016-2018, meaning that at some point during the year, they experienced difficulty providing food due to a lack of money or resources.
  • 9,120 children in Arkansas were found to be victims of abuse or neglect in 2019.
  • 151,000 African-American and Hispanic children in Arkansas live below 200% poverty.
  • 4,880 children are in the Arkansas foster care system.
  • 38% of Arkansas children live in single-parent families.
  • Only 55% of school-age children in the Little Rock School District read at grade level.
  • 19.7 million children, more than 1 in 4, live without a biological, step, or adoptive father in the home.
  • Men who grew up with absent fathers were more likely to become absent fathers.
  • The lowest achievement and highest risk of school failure were experienced by adolescents who did not have a resident father figure and didn’t know the identity of their fathers.
  • Children raised in a father-absent home are 4 times more likely to be in poverty, 7 times more like to become pregnant as a teen, 2 times more likely to drop out of high school, more likely to have behavioral problems, and more likely to go to prison or commit a crime. 
  • In 2023, Saline County had 990 violent crimes reported.

Click here to view the full document with corresponding scripture and research references.

These four strategic objectives drive and help us evaluate everything we do missionally, from scheduling short-term GO trips, to establishing new partnerships, to funding missions projects.

MOBILIZATION

God's people owning the lostness of a defined people in a defined place.

TRANSFORMATION

God’s people restored to him and transforming lives, communities, and cultures.  

MULTIPLICATION

God’s people reproducing disciples, leaders, and healthy churches.  

COOPERATION

God’s people locking arms with others to develop relationships for Kingdom Advance.