There are all kinds of good reasons to oppose the lottery. It is a terrible form of gambling that tends to appeal most to people who can’t afford it. I’ve heard it described as a tax on stupidity – you’ve better odds of being struck by lightning than winning the thing. Then suddenly the Mega […]
Should Entity Head’s Salaries Be Made Public?
I noticed a comment in William’s philippic (see, William, I learned a new word) yesterday that called for something that has been called for many times before – that the leaders of SBC entities should make their salary packages public to all Southern Baptists. It was recommended as an accountability measure. This has never been […]
A Forum for the Opposition on Race
We are burdened about race relations in America and in the church. We advocate actively seeking justice and reconciliation through greater inclusion, through minority hiring, through social justice initiatives from a biblical foundation. Some of you oppose everything we suggest. You quibble with our terminology and accuse us of racism, of reverse discrimination, or you […]
Five Vacancies. Why the SBC Should Hire Its First Minority Entity President
We are in a unique time in SBC life. Have there ever been five entities in transition? We have been talking about minority leadership at an entity over the last few years. With nearly half of our entity leadership positions open, it is inevitable that this is a key moment in SBC history. Our trustees […]
Who Should Be the Next IMB President?
As I write this, I am in the Casamance region of Southern Senegal on my seventh mission trip attempting to bring the gospel to the Ehing people, a UUPG, and seeking to establish churches in the region. I came first with Bart Barber in 2015, came back in early 2016 and have done two trips […]
Headed to Senegal
I will be leaving in the middle of the night to head to Senegal for a week. I go there twice a year to do evangelistic work with a UUPG in the Casamance region. I’d planned to go back in November for a full trip but my health problems made that impossible. I am piggy-backing […]
Dr. Al Mohler Addresses Social Justice
In a Q&A at a chapel service at Southern Seminary, Dr. Mohler took questions from students. One, not surprisingly, was about social justice. The question comes at about the 24 minute mark and his answer runs nearly 40 minutes. However, it is biblically, theologically, and historically sound. It is collegial but direct. He details two […]
David Platt to Step Down September 27; Meador Named Interim President
I have heard quite a bit of scuttlebutt over the past few months – this candidate or that was about to be named the new president of the IMB. But in recent weeks we have been hearing that the trustees are nowhere near finding their new leader. David Platt has decided his interim time has […]
Echo Chambers, Conferences, Social Justice and a Dumb (?) Idea
Southern Baptists in particular, evangelicals in a broader sense, and all Americans in the whole have become lovers of echo chambers in which every voice joins in perfect unison with our own to reinforce, without question, the ideas we share. A lady came by the office to express how much she appreciated my ministry and […]
Creating Fear: The 9/11 Theological Strategy
September 11, 2001, was one of those days that you never forget. I was waiting for an associational pastors group to arrive at my house and I flipped on the TV just as the second plane hit the second tower. We watched the news for hours and life changed that day. America experienced a brief […]
Reflections on Dr. Kelley’s Message
Dr. Kelley preached a chapel message recently that has raised the hackles of many in the SBC. Before I raise objections to the message let me give a few words of affirmation about the ministry of Dr. Kelley at NOBTS. I had not had much involvement with NOBTS until recently when I was elected president […]
A Complaint, A Confession, A Commitment
I have always envied some of my friends who seem to have a knack for maintaining their cool when they deal with comments on blogs. I watch men like Bart Barber and David Rogers continue to gracefully engage even the most belligerent responses. I do not have that knack. Comments get under my skin. I […]