Go and make disciples

"Faith without works is dead and works without faith are meaningless."

Faith in action is very important in terms of the biblical connection between believing and doing.

Our faith is not just a passive possession, but a firm confidence that should result in action. The quote that always comes to mind is that: "Faith without works is dead and works without faith are meaningless." Faith in action is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. If ever there was a time for faith in action it is surely now!

As you all read this the 2024 General Assembly will only be a couple of months away. This year's Assembly will be another very important one on the Church's journey of reform. When we look back to the 2019 GA and the radical plans that were laid down at that time we can see significant progress in all the areas that were mandated for action whether they be related to our mission planning, presbytery reform, finances, organisation or people. We have achieved change at a level and pace across the Church that was never thought possible and previously shied away from for decades. It has been a difficult but essential period which was complicated and no doubt made more difficult by the pandemic, the unrest across the world and the resultant impact on the economy. We are not immune to any of this as is evidenced by the example of the very sad situation in Israel and Palestine over the last few months that has had a direct impact on our presence there. It would also be fair to say that some of the changes have led to a time of lament but we have to believe that Joy is to come from this journey and what can be gained from our future response.

The changes in the landscape in which we have had to do our work over the last five years mean that a new set of goals will be required looking forward as we build on the work completed to date and our identified priorities. So, what might this look like? Here are a few examples:

* Continuously prioritise the implementation of local mission plans coupled with a real focus on recruitment and training for ministry at all levels.

* Move towards local control of various aspects of mission planning, ministry posts and finances, devolving more responsibility to the new presbyteries. We must be less centralised and more locally driven whilst not losing sight of the fact that certain services and support activities benefit from being provided from one place.

* In the National Office a prioritisation project has been running since November 2023 aligning with the Assembly Trustees' endorsed priorities from GA23 to assess and focus on work that will provide the greatest benefit to the Church; engage local input in decision making, governance and organisation.

* Expanding church mission through strategic initiatives to fortify our commitment to local church mission and evangelism. Strategically allocating resources from Seeds for Growth funding (in terms of planting new worshipping communities) as we look to both grow our Church and improve our future income streams.

As we look to these and the other challenges that face us going forward the words from the Great Commission of Matthew's Gospel should inspire us the most – Go and make disciples.

This article first appeared in Life and Work's March 2024 issue. Digital and print subscriptions to Life and Work are available.

Dave Kendall.