Building the Kingdom

From One Servant Leader to Another

Contending Together

Aloha Hawaii Pacific Baptists,

As we gather at Hawaii Baptist Academy for our 82nd Annual Meeting, our theme is "Contending Together," drawn from the words of the Apostle Paul in Philippians 1:27-28: “Just one thing: As citizens of heaven, live your life worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or am absent, I will hear about you that you are standing firm in one spirit, in one accord, contending together for the faith of the gospel.”

All three of your convention speakers this year will address this theme! This includes me as well as your HPBC president, Pastor Brian Frable, and our keynote speaker, Gateway Seminary president, Dr. Adam Groza.

The primary application of this passage is to the local church. A call to strive side-by-side (ESV), contending together (CSB), and labor alongside for the faith of the gospel as members of a local body of Christ. For 175 years, Southern Baptists and for 82 years, Hawaii Pacific Baptists have also chosen to cooperate and contend together to accomplish more than we could on our own. Our SBC Executive Committee president, Jeff Iorg, said it this way in a recent speech:

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 are on mission to share the gospel with every person and express God’s love in every context. We believe the Bible is Truth. While we often argue about how to interpret the Bible, we are uncompromising in our commitment to it as our absolute authority. Amazingly, we do all this collectively—without coercion or mandate—cooperating because we really believe we can do more together than we can on our own.

Hawaii Pacific Baptists, we are a force for good. The HPBC provides a vehicle for churches to contend together for the gospel. We provide the support, encouragement, challenge, resources, connections, and relationships to help churches “contend together.”

In this issue of Pacific Connector, you'll find stories of how our churches are living out this call to contend together. You'll read about innovative evangelism, evangelistic Vacation Bible Schools, new church plants, and the impact of our partnerships with our North American Mission Board.

Thank you for your dedication and faithfulness to live lives worthy of the gospel and stand firm, in one spirit and one accord, as we contend together for the faith of the gospel.

All glory to God,

Craig Webb, HPBC executive director-treasurer