J.D. Greear is the newly elected president of the Southern Baptist Convention, he’s also the youngest president to be elected in modern times and congregants have reason to believe he can transform the declining denomination into a missions-driven juggernaut.
At 45 years old, the North Carolina preacher took his second run at the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) leadership position. Back in 2016, he gracefully bowed out of a third voting round between him and Memphis pastor Steve Gaines. This year, he garnered overwhelming support to assume the mantle.
Although the presidency is largely considered symbolic, the SBC appears to be in need of a charismatic leader to revitalize its flock. SBC enthusiasm has steadily declined with total members reportedly falling off by more than 200,000 from 2016 to 2017, and 1.3 million since 2006. Baptisms were reportedly down by more than 26,000 from 2016-17 and missions dipped by 116.
Those numbers stand in stark contrast to the growth and engagement Greear has fostered in North Carolina’s The Summit Church. Since becoming pastor in 2002, Greear has energized a once 300-member church into a congregation that tops 10,000 on a weekly basis, enjoys 11 locations and is widely regarded as a mega-church.
“When Southern Baptists are facing a secularizing American culture, some people are tempted to panic about that. J. D.’s not panicked,” Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission president Russell Moore reportedly said. “He’s been reaching secularized people with the gospel for a long time, so he’ll be a very able spokesperson for leading the denomination.”
You Are Sent: Greear Favors Living on Mission
Whether in everyday life or carrying the word of God abroad, J.D. Greear has engrained an expectation that members of the Summit flock abide by the three words each service ends with: “You are sent.”
The newly-elected SBC president encourages Christians to keep that benediction in mind and fulfill their role in the service of God. He leads by example.
“God called me to the pastorate while calling me to the mission field,” Greear reportedly said. “I tell The Summit Church all the time, the way I’m fulfilling my call to the mission field is as a pastor of a sending church.”
To date, Summit has “sent” upwards of 1,000 mission workers out and has already planted approximately 250 of its 1,000-church goal by 2050.
At Summit, more than 350 small gatherings of volunteers meet in spaces such as schools to lower costs and direct funding toward missions endeavors. Greear has gone on record saying that he wants Summit to inspire the SBC by example.
Now ranking among the Top 20 largest in the SBC, the church’s commitment to investing in missions efforts is expected to profoundly influence others in the organization. Considering the spiraling direction of the overall SBC, the organization appears to have tapped the right pastor to turn things around.
Charismatic Pastor Draws Considerable Attention
In Christianity, pastors are like shepherds who inspire and guide their flock. Southern Baptists, like other denominations, continue to suffer from the pulls of secularization and popular culture messaging. Christians require authentic and inspirational preachers to provoke their imaginations. J.D. Greear brings a rare charisma to the forefront of the SBC.
The North Carolina pastor has become enigmatic for his brand of faith — and passion for Nicolas Cage movies. Likening the Gospel to the theme in Cage’s “National Treasure” has raised a few eyebrows and given members a fresh perspective. Greear is also an avid blogger and has a Twitter following that tops 17,000.
He is routinely parodied and poked by an adoring congregation. Younger members of the church post humorous memes and staffers playfully engage in a game called “J.D. Bingo,” as a way to embrace his eccentricities. This, and his smiling everyday interactions at local eateries and shops, make him a man of the people with a higher calling.
But Greear isn’t just all catch phrases and show. He balances his quirkiness with a strong reformist connection to Martin Luther. He’s a devoutly serious pastor.
“J. D. is the product and extension of who Southern Baptists are and who we hope to be,” founder of Baptist21 Nathan Akin reportedly said. “By that, I mean he is a product of the Conservative Resurgence, the return to the Bible in our convention, and what we wanted in a return to the Bible, a Great Commission Resurgence.”
In many ways, J.D. Greear is a leader that transcends generation boundaries. His missions-based drive, charisma and leading-from-the-front standards are likely to transform the Southern Baptists Convention and re-energize its base.
~ Christian Patriot Daily
