Guest Blogger

The SBC Plodder is back with his insights into all things SBC.  We always welcome and appreciate his thoughts.  Thank you, William! Fred Luter (image from BP) is expected to be elected president of the Southern Baptist Convention in just a few weeks in New Orleans. If I am there (and it's not looking like I will be) I would be unhesitant in casting my vote in his favor. His election will be notable because he will be the first black president of the SBC. That's good. But there is something more notable about Fred Luter that is acutely relevant to the SBC. He is a megachurch pastor and … [Read more...] about One notable, relevant thing about Fred Luter (by William Thornton)

Editor: Ken Hamrick blogs at "Biblical Realist" and lives in Ohio.  I appreciate Ken' submission of this post.  I fully agree that we have to realize the dangers of splintering and polarization.   The quiet majority is being ignored whenever the more vocal proponents of either extreme frame the argument with the assumption that there is no valid, substantial and established middle path. As Southern Baptists, we have never been fully Calvinist or Arminian. If we had been fully Calvinist, we would have been "Reformed Baptist," with a heavy emphasis on covenants, Calvinism and creedal standards. … [Read more...] about Our Enemy is Neither Calvinism nor Arminianism, but Polarization (By Ken Hamrick)

1.  President Obama has betrayed the Bible and the Black Church with his endorsement of same-sex marriage. The Bible is crystal clear on this subject, and the Black Church strongly opposes same-sex marriage. His endorsement is an inadvertent attack on the Christian Faith. America is now a candidate for the same judgment received by Sodom and Gomorrah. This was a sad, sad day and a very bad decision, by our beloved President. The moral impact of this day and decision is equal to the military impact of AL-Queda when they attacked the Twin Towers on 911. Today’s announcement is a moral earthquake … [Read more...] about A RESPONSE TO PRESIDENT OBAMA’S DECISION TO ENDORSE SAME-SEX MARRIAGES (By Wm. Dwight McKissic, Sr.)

Editor: When I read about Richard Land's recent meeting and his apology, my first thought was to wonder what Pastor Dwight McKissic thought about it.  I was thrilled that he offered this post with his reflections for our consideration.  Thank you, Dwight! God said, “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” (II Chronicles 7:14) It was my contention that Dr. Richard Land needed to publicly apologize—own and disown his words –as it … [Read more...] about HEALING THE “LAND”: AN APOLOGY I CAN FULLY ACCEPT (By Wm. Dwight McKissic, Sr.)

Josh King is the lead pastor of Sachse's First Baptist Church in Sachse, TX, and has a blog called JoWiKi.  I am grateful for this post which he shared with us. Social media is a strange beast. The lines between what is socially acceptable have not yet been clearly defined as it relates to twitter and the like. While that is the case I am growing increasingly concerned with the way many young ministers seem to use it in the fine art of self promotion. I am not an expert and have probably crossed the line a time or two but I have put some thought into this. See if you agree with this list … [Read more...] about Social Media and the Fine Art of Self-Promotion (by Josh King)

(Chris Roberts has a brilliant suggestion for the current conflict in the SBC.  Let's turn it into a game - a competition.  Then, there can be a clear winner and loser! My blood is already pumping faster at the prospect. Chris blogs at "Seek the Holy.") History has seen fit to bless humanity with two significant individuals carrying the name Calvin. One, John Calvin, was a theologian of some repute. The other, simply known as Calvin, was an imaginative, well-behaved (by relative standards of behavior) six-year-old boy. Because the SBC is currently involved in a controversy over the first … [Read more...] about Instituting Calvinball in the SBC (by Chris Roberts)

Editor: This powerful follow-up article to Dwight McKissic's equally powerful article last week was originally posted on his blog, Wm Dwight McKissic, Sr. "New Blog for a Pneuma Time." There are three questions that have surfaced to the top in response to my Richard Land “Repudiation” Post that I want to address in this article:  (1) Do I believe Richard Land is a racist? (2) Should Richard Land’s entire career be judged by fifteen minutes of commentary? (3) How do we resolve the “Land-mine” and the racial divide surrounding this issue? How the SBC responds to the Land racial … [Read more...] about WALKING THROUGH LAND MINE(S), A WAY OUT: A FOLLOW-UP TO THE LAND “REPUDIATION” POST By William Dwight McKissic, Sr.

(Drew Wales has a new blog, called "SBC Heritage" which examines the current SBC in the light of its history.  It's a blog worth reading.  Drew offered this to us and I am grateful that he did!) There is a fault line forming in the Southern Baptist Convention that I am afraid is about to split wide open.  It seems that every day in the SBC blogosphere there is discussion over the theological divide in the SBC and some are less than pleasant.  Some articles I have read have not been much more than emotionally charged, misrepresentations of the “other side” and some of the comments I have seen … [Read more...] about A Historical Look at a Theological Divide (by Drew Wales)

Richard Land’s racial remarks against the backdrop of the Trayvon Martin tragedy are the most damaging, alienating, and offensive words about race that I’ve read or heard, rendered by a SBC personality, in the twenty-eight years that I’ve served as a SBC church planter/pastor. The pain that Richard Land inflicted upon Blacks in the SBC is a pain that would be only felt greater by the pain inflicted upon Trayvon Martin’s family by George Zimmerman. In his non apology—apology, he blames those of us who responded to his racial views, for the pain we felt. The opening line in his letter of … [Read more...] about WHY THE SOUTHERN BAPTIST CONVENTION NEEDS TO GO ON RECORD REPUDIATING THE LAND RACIAL REMARKS By William Dwight McKissic, Sr.