Executive Council Releases Items of Previous Notice
Cleveland, TN—The Church of God Executive Council, meeting for their April session at the International Offices, has released the items of Previous Notice for the upcoming General Assembly of the Church of God.
According to the MINUTES of the International General Assembly, items of Previous Notice must be released 90 days prior to the assembly, which this year goes into session on July 9, 2024, with the drop of the gavel by General Overseer Timothy M. Hill. The 79 th International General Assembly of the Church of God will be conducted at the Indianapolis (Indiana) Convention Center.
In accordance with the Minutes, the following amendments related to the Bylaws of the Church of God are being recommended by the International Executive Council, in session April 12, 2024, to the 2024 International General Council for consideration:
Bylaws Amendment #1 – Ministry of Evangelism
RATIONALE
On a mountainside in Galilee, the risen Christ gave to His disciples instructions called the Great Commission. As recorded in Matthew 28:19, Jesus said, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations.” In Mark 16:15, Jesus spoke the directive, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.” The driving force of the Great Commission is evangelism. It is an imperative of the church that calls for maximizing evangelism action, resources, and renewed commitment. The following previous notice of Bylaws provides the impetus of leadership for a motion inaugurating the Ministry of Evangelism in the Church of God. This coordinated ministry will concentrate on the comprehensive spectrum of evangelism initiatives including maximizing evangelism resources, church planting, church health, church revitalization, national and global connectivity, literally every facet of evangelism ministry. Evangelism is not just a program; it is a process, an obligation and divine directive to share the gospel. The command of Christ is clear; it is a mandate for the future. As a twenty-first century church with a first-century message, let us affirm the commission to “go” into all the world today and every tomorrow.
We recommend:
1) That we amend S2. Bylaws of the Church of God, page 60, Article VI. Governing Bodies, 1. International General Assembly, Elections, by inserting the words, “the director of Evangelism” following “the assistant director of Youth and Discipleship.”
2) That we amend S2. Bylaws of the Church of God, page 60,Article VI. Governing Bodies, 1. International General Assembly, Elections, by inserting the words, “the assistant director of Evangelism” preceding “the director of World Missions.”
3) That we amend S2. Bylaws of the Church of God, page 62, Article VI. Governing Bodies, 2. International General Council, Agenda, 5. by inserting the words, “the director of Evangelism” following “the assistant director of Youth and Discipleship.”
4) That we amend S2. Bylaws of the Church of God, page 62, Article VI. Governing Bodies, 2. International General Council, Agenda, 5. by inserting the words, “the assistant director of Evangelism” preceding “the director of World Missions.”
Bylaws Amendment #2 – Previous Notice
RATIONALE:
Currently, any amendments to our Bylaws require the proposed motions to be published in two issues of the Evangel prior to the opening of the International General Council. As of September 2023, the Evangel is published quarterly instead of monthly, making it difficult to fulfill this requirement. This motion seeks to limit publication to at least one issue.
We recommend:
That we amend S2. BYLAWS OF THE CHURCH OF GOD, page 64, Article X, Amendment of Bylaws, Previous Notice, item, 2, by striking the word “two” and inserting the word “one,”
So as to read:
(2) Include the notice and a copy of the proposed change(s) to the Bylaws of the Church of God to be considered by the International General Council in at least one issue of the Church of God Evangel preceding the opening of the International General Council.
NOTE: These are proposed Bylaw changes only and not the complete agenda of the 2024 International General Council. The agenda, which must be presented 30 days prior to the opening of the International General Council, will be sent at a later time.
