ROB WARNER .sx British Baptists .sx a new wave of growth .sx British Baptists are reversing the trend towards church decline with ambitious plans for growth .sx How did a dying denomination spring back to life ?sx Take any major evangelical gathering and ask the Baptists to stand up and you will find that at least a third of those present will rise to their feet .sx Unlike their Anglican counterparts they appear to be the majority in their denomination .sx Whilst voices over the decades have called them to come out of the denomination , they have persevered and now seem set to pioneer a new era of growth and orthodoxy in the British Baptist Church .sx The evangelical Baptists are growing .sx A small denomination in Britain , Baptists are one of the largest Protestant denominations in the world , and in many countries Baptists are seeing significant growth .sx The latest figures for Britain reveal that only three groups of churches have enjoyed significant overall growth in Sunday congregations , over the last four years .sx They are Pentecostals , New Churches and Baptists .sx So who are the Baptists ?sx The most well known from previous generations include William Carey , " the father of modern world mission " , and the preaching giants Charles Spurgeon and F.B. Meyer .sx The most well known 20th-century Baptists must surely be Billy Graham and Martin Luther King .sx Speakers and writers Tony Campolo and Ron Sider both lecture at Baptist colleges in the States .sx Baptists have usually been thought of as a mainly evangelical denomination .sx This is reflected in the large Baptist attendance at Spring Harvest , and in the high level of participation in Mission 89 and the Person to Person evangelism training programme .sx Both historically and today Baptists are essentially an evangelical movement .sx In Britain , Baptists make a significant contribution to wider evangelical life - e.g. Ian Coffey at the Evangelical Alliance ( to name but one ) ; Ernest Lucas at Christian Impact ; Roy Pointer , known to many for his church growth insights .sx Many evangelical missionary societies and Bible colleges have Baptists among their senior staff .sx The new organisation which has made the greatest impact in recent years is probably Steve Chalke's Oasis , with its imaginative programmes of evangelism and care as well as the culturally innovative Christmas Cracker/Unwrapped events .sx This new phase of Baptist growth is not centred on a few mega churches .sx Exciting reports are coming in from all over England .sx To take three local examples :sx in Kingsbridge , Devon the church has quadrupled in size in ten years , 60% by conversion and baptism ; in Skipton , Yorkshire 40 have grown to 150 in three years ; in Brickhill , Bedford there have been 250 baptisms in the last 8 years .sx In the Northern Baptist Association most churches are now enjoying growth .sx Derek Tidball has been preaching at churches nationwide as President of the Baptist Union .sx His assessment is clear " After nearly a year of travelling it is certainly my impression that the vitality and growth is taking place among the evangelicals .sx I have been in church after church which has grown in recent years .sx " .sx Growth hasn't always happened .sx For many years the denomination was drifting from its roots , and only recently can we speak of an evangelical resurgence .sx Baptists faced the same sorry decline as other churches through most of this century .sx The late Sixties and early Seventies were for many a 'spiritual dark age' .sx Alongside continued numerical shrinkage there was a decline into radically unbiblical theology and in some quarters an intolerance towards evangelical convictions .sx Looking back , the Seventies proved the decisive turning point .sx In 1972 a debate over the divinity of Christ was sparked by a senior liberal Baptist , not in a theological seminar but in a main meeting of the Baptist Union Assembly .sx For some this was the last straw .sx Over forty churches and ministers abandoned ship .sx Others were convinced that they should seek reform and renewal within the denomination .sx Pat Goodland , one of the key figures in this group , recalls that their meetings and prayers were " born out of a deep sense of concern at our churches' lack of life and growth " .sx In 1977 the annual report of the BU spoke of continued decline .sx At the annual Assembly Douglas McBain could contain himself no longer .sx Many recall his impassioned plea for urgent analysis and prayer , which was speedily affirmed by Paul Beasley Murray when he scented prevarication from the Assembly chairman .sx Times have changed for these young turks of evangelism who assailed the establishment :sx Douglas is now Area Superintendent for London ; Paul is Principal of Spurgeon's College , the leading evangelical Baptist college .sx By the end of the decade a major new grouping of evangelical Baptists had been formed .sx Mainstream , as it became known , has never had a formal membership , but provides a quarterly newsletter , an annual conference since 1980 , and an occasional preaching workshop or theological consultation , the latest in 1990 on gospel and culture with Leslie Newbiggin and Andrew Walker .sx Mainstream is committed to evangelical inclusiveness - what Derek Tidball calls " a wide embrace of charismatics and traditional evangelicals " .sx There have never been Mainstream campaign issues or Mainstream candidates for senior posts , but it quickly became a rallying point for Baptist evangelicals .sx What's more , the movement's slogan emphatically embraced mission as central to living orthodoxy - " Baptists for Life and Growth " .sx At first Mainstream was dismissed .sx Some disregarded it as tiny and irrelevant .sx Others slammed it as divisive and fundamentalist or accused the leaders of being " charismatic confectioners " .sx But the name had been chosen well .sx Through the Eighties a groundswell of local church leaders endorsed the Mainstream vision .sx In January 1991 Mainstream enjoyed their largest conference yet , with John White speaking on " Leadership in the Power of the Spirit " .sx The worship , more vibrant than ever , was led by Nigel Wright .sx Nigel , a lecturer at Spurgeon's is likely to prove a leading Baptist theologian of the Nineties .sx The delegates were clearly in good heart for the decade of evangelism .sx Harry Weatherley , for many years a full-time association missioner ( associations are increasingly appointing a regional senior evangelist ) , summed up the mood in two words - " increasingly expectant " .sx Evangelical vigour is not only seen in national conferences and local growth .sx Senior denominational appointments have come to evangelicals in the last few years , many of them present or former members of the Mainstream executive .sx David Coffey , a well - known Spring Harvest speaker , was made National Secretary for Evangelism .sx Even before he took office many evangelicals found fresh inspiration from his appointment .sx This spring he will become the new General Secretary , which for Baptists is as significant as the appointment of evangelical Anglican George Carey as Archbishop of Canterbury !sx .sx Derek Tidball , currently BU President and previously a Director of Studies at LBC and Chairman of British Youth for Christ will be the new Secretary for Mission and Evangelism .sx John Capon , a respected evangelical journalist with TEAR Fund and a former editor of Crusade will be the new editor of the Baptist Times .sx Eric Westwood , who has brought back from missionary service in Brazil a passion for a new wave of evangelism and church planting , will be the BU President in 1992 .sx The tide is also turning in the training colleges .sx It will be no surprise to state that most of the students in training are evangelicals .sx A recent college survey showed that most are also positively influenced by renewal .sx With growth in applicants has come new approaches to training .sx Most colleges have now developed in-pastorate training as an alternative to college-based courses .sx Probably even more significant is the course pioneered by Oasis and Spurgeon's - specialised training for church-based evangelists .sx Local churches considering additional staff are increasingly appointing evangelists , and so such training is invaluable .sx No one is complacent .sx Present growth is nowhere near enough !sx Local churches and national leaders alike are calling for a decisive shift of priority from maintenance - keeping Christians comfortable , to mission - reaching a lost world .sx Already many churches are extending premises or holding more services because of growth .sx But there is a further key factor - at every level Baptists are seizing a church planting vision once again .sx ( The last Baptist church planter on a massive scale in Britain was Spurgeon last century) .sx Influential Baptist figures such as David Coffey and Geoffrey Reynolds are now working with Stuart Christaine to develop a national church planting initiative .sx Stuart is another former missionary to Brazil who has brought Brazilian zeal back to Britain .sx This zeal overflows into his role at Spurgeon's as the first Oasis Director for Church Planting and Evangelism .sx He confidently expects many new congregations this decade - " Despite the lack of experience in this form of evangelism , there is unquestionably a new confidence in the gospel growing among our people .sx .. we have met with overwhelming enthusiasm .sx " .sx Many local churches are embracing the vision .sx Some are planting new churches ; others are adapting the model of one church with multiplying congregations , ( like Roger Forster's Icthus) .sx In some areas strategies are in place and the momentum is growing , as Area Superintendent Geoffrey Reynolds explains :sx " On average in our Southern Area we have planted one church every year over the past 15 years .sx Our strategy for the next five years will particularly turn to the large residential growth areas along the south coast " .sx At the other end of the country several new churches have been planned .sx At every level - numerical growth , senior appointments , increasing numbers of trained leaders and ambitious evangelistic strategy - the evidence is clear .sx We are witnessing an evangelical resurgence among Baptists which is unprecedented this century .sx But evangelical Baptists have no desire to be isolated from other Christians .sx All of us need to learn from each other .sx What's more , the nation can only be reached if all evangelicals work together .sx Derek Tidball sums up the new climate of expectancy - " We're part of that new tide of the Spirit sweeping across the nation , and across the denomination .sx " .sx My hope is not merely for Baptists , but for all evangelicals .sx Because of the generations who were faithful through hard times to the essential task of guarding the gospel ( 2 Timothy 1 :sx 13-14 ) , we are indeed seeing a new dawn of influence and growth .sx More than that , my hope is for the nation and the world that all evangelicals , charismatic and non-charismatic and without regard to denomination , will together find a new zeal and urgency to take the good news of Jesus Christ to every home and community in Britain - and to the unreached peoples of the earth !sx .sx Between two Worlds .sx COLE MORETON .sx What does it mean to be an Asian Christian in Britain today ?sx ALPHA talked to leading Asian believers and discovered the cost of discipleship is high for those caught between two cultures .sx Asian Christians in Britain may not have a high profile but they are working behind the scenes in several major initiatives .sx Christmas Cracker , the youth compassion project that has captured the imagination of thousands of young Christians , has two Asian trustees , one of whom , Ram Gidoomal , is the chairman .sx A key figure in much of the planning and organisation of Pray For Birmingham , which has packed out the NEC on several occasions , is Solihull schools worker Pall Singh .sx How do they and their fellow Asian believers cope with the clash of cultures experienced by those who move away from traditional Asian religion ?sx A lively Oxford church provides some of the answers .sx Flying fingers wove intricate rhythms on table and Dhulak drums , as more than 100 Christians worshipped God in the Punjabi language .sx It is a familiar sight for churchgoers in India - but this particular service was taking place in England .sx The grey winter sky outside testified to that .sx So does the silent church organ , neglected in favour of Eastern scales played on melodeon and accordion .sx Pastor Sifte Massey leads his thriving congregation in an hour-long service .sx He slips easily between Southern Asian languages and English - but there is a translator during the sermon , for those whose Punjabi is a bit patchy .sx Everyone in this meeting has roots in the Punjab , although most of the younger people were born in Britain .sx They are all born-again believers , preserving their traditional cultural background , worshipping in their own languages with their own music , in a borrowed church building .sx