Mission Policy I Missions Committee Purpose Statement Based On

mission policy i. missions committee purpose statement based on the premise that the church of jesus christ exists to glorify god, and t

Mission Policy
I. Missions Committee Purpose Statement
Based on the premise that the Church of Jesus Christ exists to glorify
God, and to share the Gospel message of salvation with the
non-believing world, the purpose of the Missions Committee is to
assist Faith Baptist Church in promoting the preaching and teaching of
the whole Word of God at home and abroad, seeking every means possible
to extend our missionary outreach to every creature in keeping with
the Great Commission of Christ recorded in Matthew 28:18-20 and Acts
1:8.
II. Policy Objectives
The purpose of the policy statement is:
To define the specific responsibilities of the Missions Committee of
Faith Baptist Church and its missionaries.
To facilitate accountability and communication between church
leadership, the congregation, and its missionaries and mission
agencies.
III. Missions Committee Structure
The Missions Committee shall consist of members of Faith Baptist
Church, with at least one member of the committee being a deacon.
Members of the Missions Committee shall observe term limits as
follows. The first term is to be one year which may be extended for an
additional two years by mutual consent of the member and committee.
After that the normal terms of service are for 3 years. After 6 years
of service, the committee member must be off for a minimum of one
year.
Regular standing positions of the committee shall include the
Chairman, Vice-Chairman, and Secretary with each being a 2 year
position.
The Missions Chairman shall be nominated by the Missions Committee and
approved by the Board of Deacons.
The Missions Committee may agree to ask other church members to join
the committee. Alternatively, a church member may also request to
serve, and will join the committee when being approved by a majority
of the committee.
IV. Duties of the Missions Committee
The Missions Committee shall:
Oversee the missions policies and missions purpose statement of Faith
Baptist Church.
Promote prayer emphasis and concern for the missionaries.
Help promote missions education and missions awareness in the church
Promote membership involvement in corresponding with the missionaries.
Investigate and approve mission organizations, personnel, and
projects, and make recommendations to the Board of Deacons for final
approval.
Encourage and assist Faith Baptist Church members in missionary
service.
Plan the annual missions conference.
Meet at regularly scheduled times to carry out the functions and
duties of the Missions Committee.
Review and submit the annual missions budget to the Board of Deacons
for approval.
Maintain regular direct contact with missionaries.
Approve missionary projects, and make recommendation to the Board of
Deacons. These shall be one time projects to achieve specific goals.
Remunerate missionary speakers. The Chairman of the Missions Committee
is responsible to direct the church treasurer to pay the honorariums
to missionary speakers in accordance with the Financial Remuneration
guidelines of Article XII.
Arrange for a commissioning service for appointees prior to field
departure when Faith Baptist Church is the primary sending church.
V. Relationship of Missionaries to Faith Baptist Church
All missionaries receiving support from Faith Baptist Church:
Shall be affiliated with an evangelical missions organization that is
in agreement with our doctrinal position.
Shall be given a copy of the Missions Policy Statement of Faith
Baptist Church.
Shall be members in good standing of Faith Baptist Church or some
other church of like faith and practice of evangelical and baptistic
persuasion.
Shall communicate with Faith Baptist Church at least once per quarter.
If the missionary fails to contact Faith Baptist Church in 6 months, a
communication from the Missions Committee Chairman will be sent to the
missionary and/or the agency informing him of the jeopardy of
withholding support.
Are requested to meet personally with the Missions Committee during
home assignment or once every four years. The purpose of this meeting
is for the committee to receive a status report of past blessings and
difficulties, and to become aware of the goals and needs of the coming
term of service. Most interviews may be done informally in conjunction
with the annual missions conference, or during a visit to the church
for ministry.
Shall inform Faith Baptist Church as soon as a change of missionary
status or assignment is known.
May inform the Missions Committee of special needs. The committee
shall consider these needs and where appropriate recommend special
missions projects to the church for which designated offerings can be
directed.
VI. Missionary Support Guidelines
The primary focus of missions at Faith Baptist Church is on
international cross cultural missions work, with specific emphasis on
church planting and evangelism. In general, the goal is to have 70% of
the missions budget directed toward cross cultural work, and 30%
directed toward stateside ministries.
Missions giving will be carried on through the general church budget
except for special projects and appeals recommended by the Missions
Committee.
Missionaries who change assignments or status during their term of
service will be reviewed for continuation of support.
VII. Missionary Support Procedure
Support for the missionary will be sent through the mission agency.
Support for new missionaries will begin one month after approval by
the congregation.
Faith Baptist Church may support service ministries that assist
mission agencies, or actively promote missions, or provide missionary
training.
All missionaries being considered for support will be required to meet
for an interview with the Missions Committee.
Upon approval of the missionary’s support by the church body, the
chairman of the Missions Committee will notify the missionary of his
support status.
VIII. Termination of Support
A missionary’s support may be terminated under the following
conditions:
A moral or ethical situation.
A change in the doctrinal position of the missionary.
The affiliation of the missionary with his agency is terminated.
The missionary fails to adequately communicate with Faith Baptist
Church.
The missionary is considered ineffective in his missionary work.
B. When the Missions Committee approves to discontinue a missionary’s
financial support, a recommendation will be presented to the Board of
Deacons for their approval of the decision, and voted upon by the
congregation.
IX. Retirement
Regular support for the retiree will terminate at the end of his/her
regular home assignment before the missionary enters retirement,
unless other arrangements are agreed upon between Faith Baptist Church
and the retiree.
The primary source for retirement funds, as well as health and
insurance benefits should come primarily from the mission agency and
the missionary’s own financial resources.
The Missions Committee will review the retiree’s financial status and
make any necessary recommendations to the congregation with regard to
a reduced level of support. Faith Baptist Church does not guarantee
that a fixed amount will be designated to help the retiree, but will
take each missionary’s circumstances into consideration for additional
financial help.
X. Relationship of Faith Baptist Church to Mission Agencies
When Faith Baptist Church is the sending church of the appointee:
The mission agency should be in consultation with Faith Baptist Church
regarding the appointee’s timing of departure to the field. We request
that the appointee not be sent until Faith Baptist Church agrees that
the appointee is sufficiently prepared to serve the Lord in a
missionary context.
Prior to field departure, the church in consultation with the mission
agency will conduct a commissioning service for the appointee.
XI. Short Term Missionaries
The purpose of short term ministries at Faith Baptist Church is to
encourage members of the church family to experience multi-cultural
situations and ministries. The following guidelines should be followed
by the individual seeking support from Faith Baptist Church.
The person should be a member of Faith Baptist Church who gives
evidence of a godly walk, and a sincere desire to be involved with the
Great Commission.
The person should present his/her desire of serving as a short termer
to the Missions Committee, stating the goals, type of ministry,
country, and length of service in which the short termer will serve
the Lord.
A recommendation will be made to the Board of Deacons to approve the
raising of funds to send out the short term missionary from Faith
Baptist Church.
The short term missionary will give a report to the congregation upon
his/her return from the ministry.
XII. Financial Remuneration
In cases where a missionary has been requested by Faith Baptist Church
to speak at one of the church’s functions, the following guidelines
for financial remuneration shall be given:
Travel expenses plus the standard honorarium that would have been
given to any guest speaker at a particular service shall be forwarded
either directly to the mission agency, or to the missionary in the
name of the agency.
In certain situations, a love offering may be taken and given entirely
to the missionary in lieu of the standard honorarium.
Revised August 22. 2006