Organization
The local church is the human agency designated by God to send servants into the work of church planting as the Holy Spirit identifies (separates) them. Baptist Pioneer Mission (BPM) is careful not to infringe on the responsibilities of the local church. The Mission strives not to invade the local church nor to do the job that God expects her to accomplish. Baptist Pioneer Mission will only serve those individuals who are recognized and commissioned by their respective local churches to engage in missionary endeavor (church planting).

We the directors of BPM desire to create an atmosphere within the mission in which the missionaries can best minister. The mission should not stifle the missionary service but complement it. We realize that the missionaries whom we serve are accountable first to God through their sending church, to their supporters and the Mission. We believe in the individual priesthood of the believer. We respect the liberty possessed by each Christian as he or she serves Christ and glorifies God as the Scriptures indicate.

Purposes
BPM seeks to provide a channel to aid churches and missionaries burdened with reaching the isolated and neglected of this world. We want Christians willing to live and work in the uttermost part for God’s glory and the benefit of all are sought. They must be sure in their hearts and minds that God is calling and leading them into this type of church planting ministry. Every missionary applicant eligible for appointment under BPM must be a member of, and commissioned by, a local New Testament Church. Thus, there is established and maintained a vital relationship between the missionary on the field and his sending church. Every authorizing church as well as each missionary, becomes an integral part of Baptist Pioneer Mission.

Missionaries
We seek to serve individuals who believe that the Lord wants them in missionary service and are willing to prepare for this ministry. They must love God with all their hearts, souls, and minds, and be obedient unto death, if necessary, in order to accomplish the ministry in which the Lord has called them. Missionaries of Baptist Pioneer Mission must die to self and life-styles that would hinder the Gospel.

Financing
Baptist Pioneer Mission is a ministry based on Bible faith. We look to Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:1-2). We believe that the principle of depending upon the Lord our God by faith for the necessities of life is taught throughout the Scriptures. We do not depend upon a “denomination” or an “organization” as such but rather on the Lord, to supply all of our needs (Philippians 4:19).

One method to accomplish this is for a local church to financially support, entirely an evangelist or a missionary ordained and sent forth from the assembly. Deputation is another method whereby various local churches, as well as individuals channeling money through local churches give to help missionaries.

The missionary is to have sufficient support for his personal and ministry related expenses. Any and all designated funds will go where specified, and funds for individual missionaries will be placed in their account. If they desire a withdrawal from their account to pay a personal liability, their request must be put in writing and kept in their file. Funds will not be taken from any individual account for the administration of the office. Unspecified funds coming into the Mission Office for the missionaries will be given to missionaries as the Lord leads. There will be a receipt issued for all donations that come to the Mission Office.

Please designate to which missionary your offering is to go. Our address: Baptist Pioneer Mission, P.O. Box 5114 Kincheloe, Michigan 49788.

Ministries
Baptist Pioneer Missionaries are involved in evangelistic church planting ministries and other activities that lend to soul winning, discipleship, and the establishing of New Testament, indigenous, autonomous, local churches. The main thrust of the Mission is to the neglected populace of the world. Churches will be established in these areas by discipling new believers from the Word of God and training them to lead the works and see them function in an indigenous, autonomous fashion (II Timothy 2:2).

In conjunction with this type of ministry there will be specialized training, teaching the prospective missionaries to adjust and live in other cultures. Preparation is needed so the missionary can adapt to rustic foreign living conditions.

Problems, both personal and field related, are shared and resolved together with the local church of the missionary and the stated directors of the mission under the direction of the Holy Spirit of God. The Office is operated on a faith basis, as are all the ministries of the Mission. There will be letters sent out periodically to keep churches informed. Love offerings would be deeply appreciated to keep this ministry functional.

Policies
Applicants must meet the following requirements in order to be accepted:

1. Be a saved, born again believer with a personal call or leading from God to be a missionary.

2. Accept our Purposes, Precepts, Policies, and Practices.

3. Belong to a local, New Testament church, who agrees with our Purposes, Precepts, Policies, and Practices. He is to tithe to his (or her) home church.

4. Be authorized and commissioned by the home church (we furnish the commissioning papers) and retain membership there while on the field.

5. Complete the proper application procedure.

6. Not have more than one living companion. (This applies to both men and women).

7. Not be nationals who have come to the States to do deputation for the purpose of returning to their country as missionaries.

8. If you have either been with, or been denied affiliation with another Mission, you will not be allowed to do deputation as an applicant to our Mission until we have contacted the other Mission and are satisfied that you are an eligible applicant.

9. Until you are officially accepted, you must present yourself as an applicant to our Mission. You may begin deputation and have prayer cards and /or stationary printed after you received permission, in writing, from our Mission. Until your official acceptance, these must bear the word, “applicant”.

Applicants, if you are found guilty of the following, your application will be rejected and your home church (and any supporters) will be notified:

1. Embracing liberal theology, Neo-Orthodoxy, New-evangelicalism, the charismatic movement, Ecumenicalism, 5-point Calvinism, Arminianism, and/or the philosophy of Humanism.

2. The use of alcoholic beverages.

3. The use of drugs (except as directed by a physician for medicinal use).

4. Adultery, sex perversion, (homosexuality, lesbianism, incest, etc…).

Our mission adopts new policies as she is led by the Holy Spirit. Applicants are expected to abide by these policies. Should our Mission adopt a policy with which you are not in agreement, you would be permitted to withdraw your application. However, when you withdraw your application or we find it necessary to reject your application, your supporters will be notified and the reason given.

Missionaries who do not meet the before mentioned and following requirements are subject to dismissal:

1. All debts must be paid or have arrangements made for payment before leaving for the field.

2. Every missionary on deputation and furlough must attend our Annual Mission Conference and Seminar.

3. Our missionaries are required to take a furlough every fifth year, unless the Mission determines that the missionary has a valid reason for the time being extended or shortened. For our missionaries who are in countries where the time outside the country is limited, the time and length of furlough will be worked out according to the particular circumstance.

4. A missionary’s appointment is subject to reconsideration by the Mission, if his departure to the field is unreasonably delayed.

5. All missionaries who intend to work with the people of another language must acquire a working knowledge of that language before beginning a work in that language. The place and program of study will have to be acceptable to the Mission.

6. Deputation must be completed before going to language school or the field.

7. All stationary, prayer letters, and prayer cards must have the name and address of the Mission on them.

8. A copy of every prayer letter must be sent to the Mission.

9. Every offering must be acknowledged to the contributor and the amount specified.

10. All missionaries must notify the Mission before making any change in their marital status.

11. Missionaries on any field who desire to affiliate with any other group (fellowships, service agencies, religious counsels, etc…), must first submit, in writing, the constitution of the agency for official approval of the Mission and be so certified before affiliating with that group.

12. Missionaries, who desire to sponsor a missionary not with our Mission, must first submit a request, in writing, for official approval of the Mission.

13. All of our missionaries must be loyal to the Mission.

14. You are not permitted to bring nationals to the United States or your Native Country to raise money for them individually or for their churches.

PRACTICES

(The Principles of Operation)

Baptist Pioneer Mission is a faith mission and the missionaries who affiliate with her are to live by faith. This faith is to be in our God who supplies all our needs according to His riches in Glory by Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19). Just how each member puts his faith into practice is a personal matter, under the direction of the Holy Spirit, never contrary to the Holy Scriptures. We do not approve of the financial schemes, antics, wholesale solicitations, and gimmicks, used by many today tat are nothing but fleshly methods and are not based upon Bible principles. Our weapons are not carnal but mighty through God, bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ (II Corinthians 10:4-5).

Our Mission allows freedom to the missionary as long as he or she does not do anything contrary to Holy Scripture. The mission assumes no financial responsibility for the projects on the field that the missionary may feel led to propagate. Our missionaries must accept and observe the Mission’s Precepts (Statement of Faith), Practices (Principles of Operation), and Policies. The Mission serves as a contact between local churches and their missionaries.

Each missionary is to be responsible unto God and is to seek the leadership of the Holy Spirit in everything realizing that He will not lead us to be inconsiderate of methods that may differ from ours (Luke 9:49-50).

All new missionaries going to the field where missionaries are already working will:

a. Benefit from advice given by these missionaries.

b. Be careful to pay expenses while staying with these missionaries

c. Be the director of their own work, if they establish it apart from the other work.

d. If some of the workers from the established church should decide to go with the new missionary, he should get permission and a recommendation from that church.

We want our missionaries to discern, after prayerful

consideration, matters that should be reported to the Mission for discipline (Matthew 18:15-17; Galatians 6:1-2). This should be done only for the glory of God, and the good of the ones involved. When it is done this way, such matters will not be reported to outsiders. When missionaries are dismissed, the Mission will report it to their supporters. Missionaries who are disciplined by the Mission, but not dismissed, may be required to serve on probation and any other disciplinary measure the Mission may deem appropriate. We believe most problems can and should be handled Biblically between those concerned.

We believe that the Gospel Seed (the Word) properly planted and watered will produce an indigenous church anywhere. An indigenous New Testament church is a local assembly of baptized believers, a theocracy operating on democratic principles; self-supporting, self-governing, and self-propagating in obedience to the Holy Scriptures and under the guidance and empowering of the Holy Spirit.

In applying the New Testament principle of establishing local, indigenous churches, our missionaries are allowed to assist on a personal basis, as the Spirit leads, as an example of sacrificial giving for the furnishing of church houses, schools, camps, and /or orphanages. However, they are not to rob the national believer of the privilege, blessing, or responsibility of giving and financing their local church’s endeavors. They are to encourage the established churches to engage in any and/or all of these activities as they are led of the Lord and are financially able.

Our missionaries are not to pay salaries to national workers, in

full or in part nor are they to solicit the same from churches in the States. Charity is acceptable. They are to give such emphasis to Bible study that nationals will be taught and trained to be leaders of their own churches and completely dependent upon the Lord to supply their needs.

Our missionaries may engage in printing, correspondence, and /or radio ministries, if they persistently pursue the contacts, which they make in order to establish New Testament churches. These ministries should also assist in building up in the faith the churches already established.

Our missionaries are not to be pastors. We realize that they may be serving in the capacity of a pastor while waiting for God to supply a national pastor, but always with the clear understanding that it is a temporary situation. In some countries all preachers, except those who belong to a cult are referred to as pastors. In these areas, such references would not violate this guideline.

Our missionaries must keep their membership in a home church in their native land who commissions them and tithe to that home church.

Our missionaries are not to accept salaries from churches on the field.

We believe that each of our missionaries should seek to be all things to all men that by all means they might win some (I Corinthians 9:22), have their spirits stirred within them as they see regions beyond wholly given to idolatry (Acts 17:16), and that they be given to continual prayer and the ministry of the Word (Acts 6:4).

We believe in the great commission to go to every creature, to win the lost to Christ, to Scripturally baptize them, to establish local New Testament churches, to help them grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus by a thorough teaching of God’s Holy Word, and to teach them to evangelize others and make sure they are disciples (Matthew 28:19-20).