NASHVILLE, Tenn.  Financial crisis looms large for the Southern Baptist Convention and its entities unless giving increases, according to a report adopted unanimously by the SBC Executive Committee Sept. 23.
According to Baptist Press, the report finds that giving by church members has declined gradually over the past 30 years and is far below the biblical standard of the tithe. On top of that, churches are forwarding less of their offerings to the Cooperative Program than they did two decades ago and giving less to missions.
Coupled with a sluggish economy, those factors have already impacted the number of missionaries in the field and the tuition rates at SBC-funded seminaries. Barring an increase in giving, the situation will continue deteriorating, the report noted.
CP money pays the bills for missionaries and funds the six SBC seminaries that train future missionaries, pastors and those going into fulltime Christian service. It also supports other ministries, such as the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission.
"The Southern Baptist Convention and its entities are facing serious financial challenges as they engage the ministry and mission opportunities in this 21st century," the report states.
"It is the opinion of the Committee none of the entities are in a financial crisis at present," the report continued. "However, all of them are experiencing trends in their fiscal health that could degenerate into a crisis in very few years."
