John Wylie, a frequent commenter here, is from Springer, OK. There is a dual definition to the term church. One is the corporate body of Christ and the other is the local assembly. Those local assemblies were organized. There is a move away from what some call the "organized church" in our day, they say that the local church in the scriptures was only a loose fellowship of believers meeting in houses with no leadership and no organization. Is that what N.T. churches looked like in the Bible? 1)They had officers that had to meet specific qualifications. (Eph. 4:11;Phil. 1:1; 1 Tim. … [Read more...] about The Organized Church (by John Wylie)
Zero (Thomas Law)
This was a presentation I made to the Capital (Oklahoma City, OK) Baptist Association pastors conference on July 13, 2015. I was asked to work it up as a blog for the Church Planting website of the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma. It was posted on their website in two sections on August 10th and 18th, 2015. Zero About 20 years ago I was introduced to the concepts taught by futurist Joel Barker. One story he told was about the watch industry and the shift from "mainsprings and gears" to "quartz". "In 1968, Switzerland had 65% of the world market share and according to expert … [Read more...] about Zero (Thomas Law)
Southern Baptist Fanboys (Melissa Edgington)
It's always good to hear from the distaff side (if that hasn't become a hopelessly sexist term how - if it has a) I'm sorry and b) I'm old!). I received this a few days ago from Melissa Edgington, a pastor's wife and blogger. Thought you might enjoy it. Melissa blogs at "Your Mom Has a Blog." Obviously, this post is a few days old, originally posted at her site on Friday. I just got back from the Send North America Conference in Nashville. Hosted by the Mission Boards of the Southern Baptist Convention, it was sold out at somewhere around 13,500 tickets. Just two years ago, the same … [Read more...] about Southern Baptist Fanboys (Melissa Edgington)
Church Authority and Church Discipline (Anonymous)
This author is a friend, who has good reasons that he needs this post to remain anonymous. I have watched with interest as Southern Baptist Churches are finding a renewed interest in the topics of Church Authority and Church Discipline. Our own church is looking at these topics currently. I agree that in SBC life it appears in the post war years and for several decades thereafter there was a lack of emphasis on authority and discipline in the Church. The emphasis on evangelism in those years saw an effort to bring everyone into the tent, and perhaps not much effort to preserve the … [Read more...] about Church Authority and Church Discipline (Anonymous)
Haiti, Jesus, and the Church
**This is the report Andy Williams shared with his church after his first mission trip to Haiti. This small SBC church (about 215 average attendance) has sent teams to Haiti since 2009. There is much to discuss here, especially the question of mercy ministry versus evangelization in the context of short-term mission trips. HAITI: A few weeks ago, I was able to go on my first missions trip to Haiti, and in fact my first trip to any really impoverished country. And it was very eye-opening, and there are many things I could describe, but almost as soon as I had a chance to take in what life … [Read more...] about Haiti, Jesus, and the Church
The Church Planter’s Library by Thomas L. Law, III
Tom served as missionary church planter for 21+ years with the Foreign/International Mission Board before becoming the Executive Director of Tarrant Baptist Association – Fort Worth, Texas. After retiring, he served as the Interim Executive Director of the Baptist Convention of Iowa. Each of the churches he helped start in Paraguay was an attempt to reach out to a new segment of Paraguayan society. This article originally appeared on Answer the Call, a church-planting blog for the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma. Every church planter deals with a multitude of issues besides the … [Read more...] about The Church Planter’s Library by Thomas L. Law, III
The Great Divorce: The Church and the GOP (Todd Littleton/Phillip Larsen)
This may be a first for SBC Voices - a guest post of a guest post. Todd Littleton blogs at "Edge of the Inside: toddlittleton.net" and has a podcast that features some of the best-looking authors in the SBC! You will not always agree with Todd, but your thinking will be challenged by what he writes. This post is a guest post at his site by Phillip Larsen (bio at bottom of page). After a long, frustrating courtship with the GOP, Richard Land, then President of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention declared, ”The go-along, get-along strategy is dead. ‘No … [Read more...] about The Great Divorce: The Church and the GOP (Todd Littleton/Phillip Larsen)
Can We Talk? Mississippi Baptists and Racial Reconciliation (Bob Browning)
Bob Browning is a Research Structural Engineer for the US Army Corps of Engineers. He holds a BS from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and a MS from Auburn University, both in civil engineering. He is currently pursuing his MDiv online through Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. He and his family live in Clinton, MS and are members of Morrison Heights Baptist Church. Unless you’re the proverbial ostrich with your head buried in some extremely soundproof sand then you’ll have noticed that our culture is talking about a lot of things. From sex to religious liberty and from state … [Read more...] about Can We Talk? Mississippi Baptists and Racial Reconciliation (Bob Browning)
God, Caesar, and Pastoral Rights: When did we become governmental agents? (Marc Bewley)
Marc blogs at Marc Bewley. From 2008 to 2014 Bro. Marc has served in the metro Detroit area through the BSCM and NAMB as a Church Planter Catalyst. He currently serves in Chattanooga, TN as a Missions Pastor at Dallas Bay Baptist Church. In 1986, I was a twenty-five year old church planter in northern Michigan. A couple from down the street, who had been attending our new church, approached me and asked me to perform their wedding. Fortunately a generous friend had given me a copy of Criswell’s Guidebook for Pastors as an ordination gift. I quickly turned to the wedding chapter and learned … [Read more...] about God, Caesar, and Pastoral Rights: When did we become governmental agents? (Marc Bewley)
The Problem Is Greater than Same-Sex Marriage (Paul Thompson)
Paul Thompson blogs at "The Bridge." There is not shortage of places or people weighing in on the legalization of same-sex marriages. Crimes against nature are no small matter, and now it is legal and celebrated. But this is not the only matter weighing the nation in the balance of danger. I get that unbelievers don’t want laws like believers do. They want laws, just laws that ease their conscience. But, that’s not really the problem either. The Lord’s church has grown cold, complicit even with many other fleshly vices that are rarely addressed from the pulpit any more, and even … [Read more...] about The Problem Is Greater than Same-Sex Marriage (Paul Thompson)