SBC Voices

Reflections on the Credit Card Receipt Heard Round the World

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I was surprised last night, when my wife and I dined at a local eatery, that our server had not heard the now infamous story of the lady in St. Louis, Alois Bell, pastor of a church of about 15 people, who lost her cool after an 18% gratuity was added to her bill. Applebees tacks that on automatically if a party is 8 or more people, even if you split the bill as Ms Bell did. Angered by the automatic amount, Ms. Bell crossed out the tip and added a message that said, "I give God 10%, why do you get 18?" She then took the extra step to sign her bill "Pastor Alois Bell." Well done. If you are … [Read more...] about Reflections on the Credit Card Receipt Heard Round the World

Elder Rule and the Baptist Faith and Message (by William Thornton)

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William Thornton is the SBC Plodder. The list of largest churches in the SBC include just nine with reported weekly attendance over 10,000. My curiosity over just how Southern Baptist these churches really are led me to their public information. Most interesting was Village Church, ninth on the list and a church that has their constitution and by-laws on their website. The SBC at the national level has on occasion kicked out (or taken action to "cease their relationship" if you are picky about the language) churches for being too homosexual friendly and the basis for that action has been … [Read more...] about Elder Rule and the Baptist Faith and Message (by William Thornton)

The Lost Art of Self-Reflection and Repentance

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Haggai leveled an accusation against the people of God, that their priorities were out of order. They were more concerned about their own comfort and ease than they were about building the House of God. Several times, he called them to, "Give careful thought to your ways." Stop what you are doing and think about it, he demanded. Where is your life life headed? Are you on the right path? I think we have lost, by and large, the concept of self-reflection and repentance in much of  the modern church. I had two conversations recently that brought this issue to my attention. First, I … [Read more...] about The Lost Art of Self-Reflection and Repentance

Al Mohler, the Boy Scouts, and the Great Unraveling (by Alan Cross)

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Alan blogs at Downshore Drift, where this article was originally published. We are witnesses to history. Before our eyes, the Civil Religion of America that consisted of "God and Country" is being dismantled piece by piece. One might blame liberal activists as they go after cultural institutions that Christians have depended upon to bolster morality and the idea that America is a Christian nation. But, is that the right place to look?  Al Mohler thinks so.  Yesterday, he addressed the Boy Scouts for changing their policy of forbidding Gay Scouts and Scoutmasters to participate in their … [Read more...] about Al Mohler, the Boy Scouts, and the Great Unraveling (by Alan Cross)

A Post of Personal Paranoia

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During the Eighteenth Century, in the opening years of the French Revolution, an action was taken that has since faded in history compared to the rest of the chaos that followed after it. Looking to eliminate the abuses in the system of religion at the time, the new governing forces confiscated the lands of the state church of France. Why? To give them to the people and to stop the government-empowerment of a religion that many of the new leaders felt was out-dated, backwards, and destructive for society. If you do not know how the French Revolution turned out, you might want to take … [Read more...] about A Post of Personal Paranoia

The Glory of Funerals (by Bill Gernenz)

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Bill blogs at "Broken and Undone." where this was originally published. I read a good article yesterday by David Jones over at The Gospel Coalition blog.  The article offered a biblical look at the issue of Cremation or Burial.  If interested, you can read it here. I do not intend to get into that discussion in this post, but would be interested in hearing your thoughts on that article in the comments section. What I would like to give attention to is Jones’ comment in his conclusion.  He said, “…within the Christian tradition funerals aren’t simply ways of disposing of dead bodies, … [Read more...] about The Glory of Funerals (by Bill Gernenz)

Paedo Baptists: Is the SBC Abandoning a Doctrinal Cornerstone? (by Andy Hynes)

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Andy Hynes is a PhD candidate at Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary. Follow him @ABHYNES on Twitter. This is a question I continue to have concerning the plethora of extremely young children being led by parents or church staff to “ask Jesus into their heart,” or “make a decision to follow Jesus.”  To be honest, what young child that is raised in a “Christian” home and church environment wouldn’t say yeah, “I want to do that?” The problem does not lie in the decision making of the child but the overeager, self-reliant parents and pastoral staff. Infants have historically been … [Read more...] about Paedo Baptists: Is the SBC Abandoning a Doctrinal Cornerstone? (by Andy Hynes)

7 Steps to Becoming a Heretic

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Heretics usually fall into the role. Seldom does a man wake up in the morning, grab a cup of coffee, read the morning newspaper, put on his clothes, and then stare himself in the mirror and say “Today, thou shall become a heretic”. Heretics usually start by staring in the mirror and saying, “Today, thou shall be a difference maker”. Consider Sabellius. Sabellius became what is now known as a modalist. They were very concerned with maintaining the truth that God is one. They also wanted to maintain that Christ was fully God. Sabellius emphasized these two truths to the neglect of another … [Read more...] about 7 Steps to Becoming a Heretic

Expecting Easy in the Land of the Curse

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This past Sunday Night, I preached from Genesis 3:1-7 and addressed the idea of our having an active enemy. (For those of you with insomnia, audio is here.) However, in prepping for that sermon, I happened to read the rest of the chapter. You know, in the interest of context. Getting to the end of the chapter, something became clearer to me than it has been before. Let me walk you to that point: Often, especially here on this blog, we lament the current state of affairs. We have fussed and fumed across the miles about: 1. The inability of Southern Baptists to get along with each … [Read more...] about Expecting Easy in the Land of the Curse