Sánchez travels to Ireland, Argentina to encourage pastors

In parts of the world as different as Ireland and Argentina there is a common need to encourage and “care for the souls of pastors,” Juan R. Sánchez, associate professor of theology at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, found in two trips taking him to those diverse nations last month.

During the Ireland Pastors’ Conference, March 6-8, Sánchez explained one of the stark differences between the two parts of Ireland, which is divided in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. In Northern Ireland, there are a lot of Baptist churches and “a greater Gospel presence,” but in the Republic of Ireland, there are not many Baptist churches and “there is a great need for church planting and the spread of Gospel work,” he said.

Sánchez, who also serves as pastor of High Pointe Baptist Church in Austin, Texas, was invited to speak at the conference by the Pillar Network, a network of Southern Baptist churches that plant churches, and it took place at the Four Seasons Hotel in Carlingford, Ireland, and was organized by the Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland. It was a gathering of 110 Baptist pastors from all over Ireland, coming together in the center to be refreshed.

“It was a sweet time of fellowship to serve the brothers” and “encourage their souls,” Sánchez reflected. “They have a sweet fellowship, very like-minded in theology and ecclesiology, and just warm-hearted brothers.” Sánchez said he and his wife, Jeanine, were warmly welcomed and experienced “a sweet time of fellowship.”

Sánchez said his “aim was not to talk about how to be a better pastor or how to do church, but it was really to serve the brothers and to encourage them, encourage their souls.” Sánchez preached three messages from Ephesians “just to feed them with the Word of God” as they experienced “a really encouraging time of fellowship.” He said he was “encouraged by their reception of the Word by their affirmation of the ministry of the Word and their encouragement.”

The day after the conference ended, Sánchez and his wife spoke at Irish Baptist College located in Moira, Craigavon, Northern Ireland. Sánchez said he spoke about different elements of preaching and magnified the importance of preaching Christ-centered sermons while his wife spoke to the pastors’ wives about the unique challenges of being a pastor’s wife.

After Sánchez’s trip to Ireland, he taught at the 9Marks Weekender, a conference for men who are pastors, in partnership with William Carey Seminary in Cordoba, Argentina, March 16-18 at Crecer Church. The conference included 80 attendees from all over Argentina. The goal of the 9Marks Weekender is to provide an environment in which leaders can see and talk about “the biblical and practical dynamics of nurturing love and holiness” in church.

Crecer Church is part of the seminary and has begun a church planting network. “They’re doing amazing work. They are really helping and encouraging and strengthening the spread of the Gospel throughout the entire country of Argentina,” Sánchez said.

Sánchez said the purpose of the 9Marks Weekender was to “encourage pastors” and “answer questions” about a myriad of church topics such as the purpose of the church, the place of the church and God’s plan, church membership, church discipline, and pastoral qualifications.

“I love being with pastors and I love encouraging pastors,” said Sánchez. He explained his purpose in going to Argentina was “to instruct, to help them think about the church and the health of the church.” He said he was “encouraged” by “their hunger and their desire to learn to know what the Bible says about the church for the glory of God” and how to do that “in their context.”

Sánchez wants Southern Baptists to see the need to “focus on the unreached, unengaged people groups of the world, which primarily is the 10/40 window. That’s vital.” But he also believes the work in places such as the Republic of Ireland is being overlooked, noting it “is the least reached English-speaking nation in the world.”

Since meeting with pastors in Dublin and spending time in the Republic of Ireland, he discovered that there are only a small number of Baptist churches covering the huge expanse of land in the Republic of Ireland.

“There’s such a vital need to plant healthy churches in these areas where a lot of people are unbelieving, unchurched, post-Christian culture. And so, there’s a real need for the Gospel in these places,” Sánchez said, adding, that “in the Republic of Ireland, many, many people do not have the Gospel.”