NBCC GOLDEN JUBILEE
Nyishi Baptist Church Council celebrating its 50 years of existence as Golden Jubilee from 17th to 19th December 2021 under the theme "Celebrating the Past; Envisioning the Future”. The completion of 50 Years of mission work in God's Kingdom is always a milestone worth celebrating. Taking the biblical reference from Paul’s letter to Philippians 3: 13-14. The Theme of the Golden Jubilee has two aspects, ‘Celebrating the Past and the Envisioning the Future’. The Golden Jubilee Celebration was not simply a mark of commemorating fiftieth (50th) glorious year of NBCC Gospel Ministry, but to retrospect and celebrate the struggles, sacrifices and to cherish God’s ever abiding presence and continue to envision better, transformed and progressive Church.
Nyishi Baptist Church Council (NBCC) by its structural nature is Self-supporting, Self-governing and Self-propagation. NBCC as Church Organization must provide for ascertaining the mind of Christ. The responsible as a Church organization must relate person to persons and person to tasks in orderly ways that meet needs, help persons grow and facilitate the achievement of a Church’s mission. An organization must provide both long-term activities (to meet recurring, ongoing needs) and short-term activities (to meet temporary, newly emerging needs). Keeping in mind varied needs of the Church and NBCC as an organization to grow contextually, maturely following ministerial step has been developed as an NBCC Envisioning Ministry
The Golden Jubilee Celebration marked not only the past struggles and Glory but also embark the Post Golden Jubilee ENVISIONING Ministry. Therefore the REFRENDUM has been adopted during the NBCC 51st Annual Conference held at Chambang Town Baptist Church on 11th to 13th February 2022 as Post Golden Jubilee Envisioning Ministry.
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Social Gospel a Ministerial Focus of Golden Jubilee Envisioning:
One of the challenges and main focus of NBCC post Golden Jubilee Gospel Ministry is Social Gospel. Personal or person to person evangelism (PERSONAL EVENGELISM) through the rigorous effort of pioneers and enthusiastic evangelistic work of many, the Gospel has been well received and transformed individual but that transformation made little less impact on the social system due to tribal stereotype mindset towards traditional customs and practices. Social Gospel in its simplest and profound understanding is to bring all practices and social system in the community into Christ fold. The intent of Social Gospel is to apply Christian ethics to solve social problems such as economic inequality, alcoholism, crime, evil practices in the community.
2. Preaching to Teaching:
Preaching and Teaching have a certain amount of similarities, but we must be clear- preaching is not teaching and teaching is not preaching. Since inception of NBCC, predominantly adapted Preaching as mode of spreading the Gospel that has helped immensely people to embrace the love of God and many accepted Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Saviour. With the emerging trends with the advancement of science and technology the need for paradigm shift from ‘Preaching to Teaching’ in Spreading the Gospel is immense need, while the simple reason behind the shift is; to preached is to proclaim and to teach is to explain i.e. to make disciple(Matt. 28:18-20). To expound further; The main difference between preaching and teaching is that a preacher is mainly focus on the spiritual needs of listeners while teacher addresses the intellectual needs Volume-II NBCC News Letter NBCC Lvpw Puii-2022 22 of the learner. When we pay attention to the principal aim of these two activities, it becomes clear that preaching focuses more on influencing, motivating, and inspiring the listeners in such a way that a positive change will take place in their lives. However, teaching is more turned towards informing, educating, and equipping the listeners with knowledge and skills.
- Short and Effective:
We live in an age of technological advancement where the knowledge is at our fingertip, most of our congregation are well informed on the other hand with the help of artificial intelligent the world is at fast moving and people are always in haste. so seating inside the church for long 3 hours in worship is unexciting and to seat another 1 (one) hour for sermon, listening to even most charismatic preacher or best teacher may not have any effect on hearer or receiver, which is one of the reasons we are not able to attract the modern congregation. According to finding, sitting for long periods of times can cause blood pool in the legs. This may cause serious health hazards at some point. Therefore, our deliverances (Preaching, Teaching, and Worship) have to be Short but effective, leaving congregation craving for another.
2. Simple but Meaningful:
Over the time with the over exaggeration in our outlook, we have lost the simplicity and failed to find purpose of doing. For example; earli- NBCC Lvpw Puii-2022 Volume-II NBCC News Letter 23 er the presentation was presented to very few to recognized his/her presence in the event as one of the most special person (s), whereas this has extended to the local organizing committee themselves. In the recent past the concept and practice of ‘Mega Dance’ is being seen predominantly occupied its space in every event, in a process it has lost it significance due to over creativity. Many a time as a leader, preacher and teacher we are tend to exhibit or pour out all that we want, know and learn without understanding the needs of our congregation, as a leader, preacher or teacher we need to be very simple in all that we do so that stay connected to each and every single congregation, only then our effort will make meaning.
3. Minimum Expenditure Maximum Achievement:
NBCC as Church organization made drastic growth in every aspect, with this growth there has been growth in the budgetary, with close study the expenditure for the purpose is somewhat monotonous. As the expense is not specific. The annual events are mostly monotonous with the same attendee in a different event. The Local Churches and the members are made financially burdened due to exaggerate events with same attendees. Therefore, actual budget against expected budget will minimized the financial burden upon our local congregation. To confine our budget only to meet the needs will definitely ease the mass participation in the Gospel Ministryagainst expected budget will minimized the financial burden upon our local congregation. To confine our budget only to meet the needs will definitely ease the mass participation in the Gospel Ministr.
Conclusion:
Having all this in our minds we are carrying forward NBCC Envisioning Ministry for better and greater tomorrow, one of the greatest gifts to this generation of NBCC by our Pioneers and Founder is ‘Undivided NBCC’ despites all the human made shortfalls. The responsibility is vested on present generation to eradicate all the odds in every possible ways and means, and continue to carry forward the legacy of our former in creating enough space for inclusive ministry for progressive NBCC.
