(EDITOR’S NOTE — The following is transcribed from Jeff Iorg’s address to Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) Executive Committee (EC) members and guests at a ceremony marking his installation as SBC EC president and CEO Sept. 16. Click here to read Part 1 and here to read Part 3.)  

On a typical Sunday, more than 4 million people (4,050,668) gather in Southern Baptist churches for worship. Most of them also had a Sunday school with almost every class taught by a Southern Baptist volunteer. Southern Baptists operate the largest free program of religious instruction in the United States with almost 2 1/2 million people (2,429,175) attending each week. Lifeway Christian Resources serves more than 30,000 churches with more than 6 million people involved in some kind of Bible study each year. Southern Baptists churches are a force for good in religious education.

Last summer, more than 114,000 teenagers and children attended camps sponsored by Lifeway. Untold thousands of children and teenagers attended camps and conferences sponsored by state convention, associational and national partners. Believe it or not, no one compiles aggregate data from hundreds of these camps. Lifeway camps, however, reported 3,500 conversions and 1,500 students who believed God is calling them to ministry or missions. Clearly, in all our camps combined, thousands responded to the gospel and committed themselves to answer God’s call to ministry leadership. Southern Baptists are a force for good by shaping a future generation through camp experiences.

Last year, almost 2,500 children (2,466) received residential care from Baptist homes operated by state partners. Baptist children’s services organizations served more than 5,000 children (5,354) in foster care, helped nearly 200,000 mothers (199,157) and over 106,000 children (106,831) in crisis situations. These same ministries facilitated 639 adoptions and provided professional counseling services to about 33,000 individuals (32,967). Southern Baptists are a force for good in caring for children and families in crisis.

In a typical academic year, more than 50 Southern Baptist-affiliated colleges and universities enroll more than 207,000 students who are preparing to be nurses, teachers, architects, engineers, social workers, pilots and countless other professions serving the common good. In addition, six Southern Baptist seminaries, and their five colleges, will educate more than 22,000 students preparing for ministry leadership. One in six seminary students in the United States is enrolled at an SBC-owned seminary — meaning we operate the largest ministerial training program in the world. In training a future generation of community and church leaders, Southern Baptists are a force for good.

Baptist collegiate ministry operates on more than 600 campuses — including many of the largest secular universities in the country. These ministries evangelize college students, make disciples in hostile circumstances and deploy college students to field-test God’s call to ministry leadership and missional service. Last year, collegiate ministries involved more than 400,000 students, reported more than 5,000 conversions and sent more than 9,800 on mission projects — most of them funded by students who raised their own support for these projects. They do this because Southern Baptists college students are a force for good.

Hospitals across the South, founded by Southern Baptist state conventions, care for tens of thousands of patients every year. In this same vein, hundreds of senior adults live in Baptist care facilities and retirement centers operated by state partners. In addition, GuideStone distributes more than $11 million annually ($11,743,667) through Mission Dignity — primarily to widows of ministers and missionaries — because Southern Baptists are a force for good in caring for hurting people.

The Southern Baptist Foundation, along with 35 foundations affiliated with Baptist state conventions, will manage more than $7 billion ($7,685,805, 884) this year — with proven integrity and limited fees and overhead costs. Those foundations distributed more than $832 million last year ($832,733,258) to kingdom causes — most of it to and through Southern Baptist churches, schools and mission enterprises. In addition, Guidestone Financial Resources manages more than $20 billion in total assets and has the largest religious retirement program in the world. These billions under management are emblematic of our stewardship — not our selfishness — because Southern Baptists are a force for good in using money for kingdom purposes.

And speaking of giving, Southern Baptists in almost 47,000 churches (46,906) gave more than $10 billion ($10,027,338,119) in tithes and offerings last year. Those churches forwarded more than $457 million ($457,158,260) through denominational giving channels — primarily the Cooperative Program and two special mission offerings — to fund our combined efforts. The Executive Committee will distribute about $190 million to convention entities this year as the bedrock of their financial strength. Those gifts supported about 3,500 international missionaries and 600 domestic church plants — along with countless other projects by our mission boards.

Because of national Cooperative Program and other gifts, we have the largest mission sending agency, largest domestic church planting movement, largest seminary and largest seminary system in the United States — and likely the world. The depth and breadth of these organizations represent the cumulative impact of almost two centuries of cooperation. When it comes to generosity, Southern Baptists are a force for good.

We show up in the worst circumstances, when many other organizations retreat. Our disaster relief workers responded to 103 disaster situations last year with hands-on ministry, chaplaincy services and evangelistic outreach. Almost all our 32,000 (32,142) disaster relief workers are volunteers — recruited from churches and deployed through state convention partners. In addition, last year we gave more than $43 million ($43,670,911) through Send Relief to meet crisis needs around the world. When disaster strikes, Southern Baptists are a force for good.

While secular critics attack our stands on gender and gender roles, Southern Baptist women continue to serve in record numbers. Almost 2,000 women (1,954) currently serve as international missionaries. Thousands more women serve in ministerial and support staff roles in Southern Baptist churches. And for the future, almost 3,000 women (2,915) are enrolled in our six seminaries and will join their sisters in ministry soon. Women and girls participate in mission studies and projects through Woman’s Missionary Union in over 8,000 churches each year. Countless women provide the primary workforce for Vacation Bible Schools, Sunday schools, women’s ministries, prayer ministries, human-needs ministries and hospitality ministries in churches. And, almost every pastor has a wife who shares his calling and provides his primary ministry support. Southern Baptist women are a force for good.

One of the best developments in the past generation has been the growing diversity in our movement. We have an ever-increasing percentage of leaders and churches from African American, Asian, Hispanic, Native American and multiple other ethnic and multicultural churches. We have had trustee officers, convention officers, committee members, prominent speakers and entity executives from these groups. We have confronted our racist roots — with help from the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) and other groups — and resolved to keep growing in these areas while the biblical vision of a “vast multitude from every nation, tribe, people, and language … standing before the Lamb” (Revelation 7:9) resonates in our hearts. Southern Baptists, because of our growing diversity, are a force for good across many diverse communities.

(EDITOR’S NOTE — Jeff Iorg is president and CEO of the SBC Executive Committee.)