ACMC was born out of the vision of several Christian leaders in Southern California, the group included Ed Dayton, Charles Kraft, Peter Wagner, and Ralph Winter. They met regularly to discuss what was missing in missions. They concluded that a vital but missing element in missions was the opportunity for local churches to relate to one another and share expertise and ideas regarding world evangelization.

This concern led to a June 1974 conference hosted by Fuller Theological Seminary called The National Institute of Missions Committee Chairmen. The conference delegates voiced the need for a new organization. Steve Tavilla suggested that an Association of Church Missions Committees be created. Several church leaders worked together to draft articles of incorporation, and ACMC was incorporated in January 1975. Don Hamilton and John Bennett agreed to serve as initial staff members. ACMC's motto: "Churches helping churches in missions."

ACMC's first national conference was held at Wheaton College in 1975. The organization's first printed resource was the Missions Policy Handbook, published in 1977. This was followed in short order by the Self-Evaluation Profile in 1980, the ACMC Networking Guide in 1981, the Missions Agency Information Inventory in 1982, the Missions Education Handbook and Disciple's Bifocals in 1983, the Missions Conference Planner in 1985, and Cultivating a Missions-Active Church in 1988.

In 1989 ACMC's current purpose statement was developed: "ACMC helps churches mobilize their resources for effective involvement in world evangelization." And ACMC changed its name to Advancing Churches in Missions Commitment to reflect the broader agenda the organization was then embracing.

In 1999 ACMC became an independent subsidiary of EFMA (now The Mission Exchange). In July 2006 ACMC was released from its ties to EFMA and merged with Caleb Project to form Initiative 360; eight months later Initiative 360 was dissolved by its board of directors. ACMC became a ministry of Pioneers in March 2007.

ACMC's national headquarters, originally in California, has moved several times over the years – to Chicago in 1982, to Atlanta in 1997, to Fort Wayne in 2004, to Denver in 2006, and to Orlando in 2007.