You may be aware that Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary President Paige Patterson has come under fire over the past few days for comments he made in 2000 during a Q&A time at a meeting sponsored by the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood. Here are the comments that are drawing criticism. The church will never be a refuge for abused women so long as prominent leaders like Southern Baptist Paige Patterson are making dangerous statements like this... https://t.co/mOrukbKvjD pic.twitter.com/xeH2lfXe9z — Jonathan Merritt (@JonathanMerritt) April 28, 2018 More vile … [Read more...] about Some Quick Comments on the Paige Patterson Ordeal
SBC Annual Meeting
TGC Profiles Summit Church’s Incredible Sending Capacity
If you want to get fired up about how a local church can develop a culture of sending its members on mission, go read the Gospel Coalition's profile of Summit Church. Titled How One Baptist Church Has Seven Times More Missionaries Than Anyone Else, Sarah Zylstra details the history of Summit: From a church plant, to quickly growing, to plateaued & declining, and then to revitalization and exponential growth, the focus isn't on the numbers attending the church but the pipeline of leaders and workers going out to take the gospel to the ends of the earth. In the 17 years since the church … [Read more...] about TGC Profiles Summit Church’s Incredible Sending Capacity
Who are the heirs of the Conservative Resurgence? (Luke Holmes)
I eagerly attended my first SBC Meeting in Houston in 2013. It was the closest it had ever been to me and the church had the money to help me. I signed up for every breakout and meeting I could find, and I sat through much of the business sessions and reports. I wanted to soak it all in. I finally got to see and listen to in person many of the names and faces I had only seen from a distance over the years. At one breakout, I don’t remember which one, Danny Akin, president of SEBTS referred to himself as a “child” of the Conservative Resurgence. By this, I took him to mean that he … [Read more...] about Who are the heirs of the Conservative Resurgence? (Luke Holmes)
Reprint from BRNow.org: Setting the record straight: An exercise in brotherly love by Danny Akin
The following is reprinted in its entirety from BRNow.org, the website for the Biblical Recorder. (Any errors in formatting are entirely Doug's fault.) Setting the record straight: An exercise in brotherly love April 2, 2018, by Danny Akin When the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) convenes in June, at least two men will be nominated for president: J.D. Greear and Ken Hemphill. Both men are my brothers in Christ and my friends. I love them, and I am extremely grateful for their ministries. I have nothing negative or unkind to say about either one of … [Read more...] about Reprint from BRNow.org: Setting the record straight: An exercise in brotherly love by Danny Akin
Steve Gaines Committee On Resolutions Most Diverse in History
It was reported by Baptist Press yesterday that SBC President, Dr. Steve Gaines, named the 2018 Resolutions Committee. From BP: Jason Duesing of Missouri was named as the committee's chairman by Gaines. Duesing is provost and associate professor of historical theology at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Kansas City and a member of Antioch Bible Baptist Church in Gladstone, Mo. The members are: -- Ken Alford, pastor, Crossroads Baptist Church, Valdosta, Ga. -- Byron Day, pastor, Emmanuel Baptist Church, Laurel, Md. -- Candi Finch, assistant professor of theology in … [Read more...] about Steve Gaines Committee On Resolutions Most Diverse in History
A Latino Voice for J.D. Greear (Pastors Martin & Omar Vargas)
My story, maybe is not as relevant for many of the readers of this article. However, everything began for me in the summer of 1979. While I was on the pristine beaches of Dominican Republic, God spoke thru His Word and I understood that He has a plan for my life. I was in need to be rescued! Since that hot and humid day, unforgettable for me, almost 40 years has passed. God’s sovereign hand moved me in 1989 to another beach filled city in South Florida. In that time, I was not able to understand why I needed to leave behind my culture, my people, my friends, my dreams, my language. … [Read more...] about A Latino Voice for J.D. Greear (Pastors Martin & Omar Vargas)
Who “fully supports” the Cooperative Program?
Since no Southern Baptist church is forced to give to our wonderful, common, funding mechanism the Cooperative Program, how helpful is it to classify any church's percentage CP giving as fully cooperative or less than fully cooperative and more of an indicator of societal giving? My view is that in isolation, using a church's CP percentage as a measure of their cooperativeness or of their Southernbaptistness is ultimately harmful. Randy Adams, the Executive Director of the SBC state convention known as the Northwest Baptist Convention, an area covering Oregon, Washington, and northern … [Read more...] about Who “fully supports” the Cooperative Program?
Felix Cabrera to Be Nominated for SBC Second Vice President
Felix Cabrera, Pastor of Iglesia Bautista Central in Oklahoma City, will be nominated for SBC Second Vice President. The initial announcement came Friday afternoon through Baptist Press. Pastor Ed Litton (Redemption Church, Mobile, Alabama) will nominate Cabrera at the Annual Meeting in Dallas, June 12-13. Cabrera's list of accomplishments and service are impressive. You can see all the details in the BP article, but I wanted to pull a few highlights here. Iglesia Bautista Central was planted in 2015 and has grown to over 200 in weekly attendance. They've been recognized twice for their high … [Read more...] about Felix Cabrera to Be Nominated for SBC Second Vice President
Guidelines for SBC Presidential Campaigning – Starting the Discussion
Is it okay for a candidate for president of the SBC to campaign for office? If so, what is allowed and what is not? Let's agree to something from the outset. We are Baptists, so autonomy is going to make it impossible to set universal rules. Each candidate, each entity, each entity head is going to have to set boundaries according to the dictates of conscience. But autonomy does not preclude us from attempting to establish some parameters and coming to some kind of agreement as to what is acceptable and what is not. There was a time, during the CR, when entity leaders of the SBC got … [Read more...] about Guidelines for SBC Presidential Campaigning – Starting the Discussion
More Inappropriate LBC Campaigning – Calling Up Disaster Relief Workers for Hemphill “Rallies”
Friends, Today, I was forwarded, by a number of people, an email that apparently went to all SBC ‘Blue Hats’ in Louisiana. I’ve actually served as a Blue Hat as well as a White Hat during Katrina (this is all Disaster Relief speak for those of you who wouldn’t know) but I didn’t personally receive this email from the LBC building. I’m not sure how to even process what I’m seeing. I think that someone at the Baptist Building in Alexandria either actually thinks we are all stupid or truly doesn't care what we think at all. Coming off the heels of the story about the inappropriateness of … [Read more...] about More Inappropriate LBC Campaigning – Calling Up Disaster Relief Workers for Hemphill “Rallies”