Missouri Baptists thanked for supporting Midwestern
By Cory Miller
MBTS Communications Director
September 6, 2005
KANSAS CITY – Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary President R. Philip Roberts, in expressing his appreciation to the Missouri Baptist Convention (MBC) and its leadership for continued support of the seminary, said they “help keep us focused on the task.”
Roberts’s comments came during a special chapel service on the second annual Missouri Baptist Day Aug. 30. The event is held to recognize the ministries and support of Missouri Southern Baptists.
“We thank the Lord for the leadership of David Clippard, Mitch Jackson and others in the Missouri Baptist Convention,” Roberts said. “We greatly appreciate the support and encouragement from Missouri Southern Baptists in training ministers of the Gospel to serve in their churches.”
MBC President Mitch Jackson, pastor of Miner Baptist Church in Sikeston, was the guest speaker for the special service.
Preaching from John 21, Jackson asked the audience, “Do you really love Jesus?” in recounting Jesus’ questioning of Peter’s commitment to Him.
He said that when Jesus had asked Peter this question, Peter probably had fresh remembrances of his dealings with the Messiah, such as his calling by Jesus and later denial of Him.
According to Jackson, he said there are three commissions that can be gleaned from the account of Peter’s questioning that the church and especially pastors need to heed today.
First, Jackson said, pastors need to “feed His lambs.” He said lambs are the babies and need special attention.
“When new converts come to Christ, we need to disciple them,” Jackson said. “We need to bottle feed them the Word of God.”
Jackson’s church, he said, accomplishes this in a number of ways like new members’ classes, AWANA and by partnering new believers with mature ones as well as biblical preaching from the pulpit.
Second, Jackson said, pastors need to “take care of His sheep,” speaking about the church as a whole.
“As pastors, we need to be leaders of that flock,” Jackson said. “[But] you’re not a leader until you’re willing to push them where they don’t want to go.”
He added that although being a leader can be uncomfortable, God’s truth must not be compromised.
“It’s impossible to teach the Word of God and be politically correct,” Jackson said. “If we don’t preach about sin, how will they avoid it?”
Third, he said, pastors must “feed His sheep,” commenting that the sheep’s food should include a good portion of meat.
“We need to be careful not to bottle feed all the time,” Jackson said. “All teaching can’t be in elementary things.”
He said ministers should preach the Word “out of the abundance of our prayer life and study.”
Jackson said the two keys to success in these commands were the Word of God and love.
“All three [commands] have their root in the Word of God,” Jackson said. “All our teaching and ministry should be wrapped up in the Bible. But not only should our teaching be biblically correct, but also filled with love.”
At the end of the service, Roberts asked all members of the Missouri Baptist Convention staff and MBC Executive Committee members present to come to the front of the chapel to be prayed for by students, faculty and staff.