SBC Voices

I am in Nashville today and tomorrow for a meeting of the Executive Committee of the SBC. There were committee meetings all afternoon, but as I am only a lowly 2nd VP, I am not a part of those. I plan to hit the Plenary Session tonight and tomorrow. I am invited to these things as a guest (no responsibilities or anything) and I thought I would check it out. Never been to an EC meeting! I do not think I will be doing much in the way of blogging - don't want to scare the good folks of the Executive Committee, though I may have a comment or two if something comes up - that is in the public … [Read more...] about In Nashville, Checking out the Executive Committee Meeting

Dear Members: With the recent change in pastoral leadership here in our congregation, some necessary changes have been instituted. Church Attire - It is requested that you come to church dressed as you can afford to dress, based on your salary, so church leaders can get a better feel for the amount of tithing we can expect. If we see you wearing Manolo Blahnik shoes, we shall assume you are doing well financially and therefore should be giving more; say, enough to pay for the 16-person, 9-day mission trip to China in January.  If you dress poorly, you need to learn to manage your money … [Read more...] about Church Policy Changes from Your New Pastor

Bill Gernenz is a pastor in East Texas and blogs at "Broken and Undone." The American church in general, and Southern Baptists in particular, have issues.  And while all issues at their core are theological, the substance of these issues fall into many different categories. There are the “culture war” issues that most evangelicals come together around.  Issues such as the sanctity of human life, and the definition of marriage motivate us to action – and rightly so.  It is easy to preach to these issues because many of the people in our pews are ready to agree. Then there are doctrinal … [Read more...] about Our Issues Are Not Largely Doctrinal (by Bill Gernenz)

“…set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ” 1 Peter 1:13b What does that look like, to set your hope fully on future grace?  It looks like a desperate gambler that has placed every bit of livelihood that the Roulette wheel lands on black.  It looks like the poker player sitting with pocket Aces convinced that he will have the “nut hand”. If it doesn’t land on black you are homeless.  If some other guy gets lucky on the flop and you find yourself up the river with only a pair of Aces and the other guy is sitting there with a Full House … [Read more...] about Going “All-In”

As is the case in most blogging debates, by the time we have discussed something for a few rounds, there is an assumption that the two sides are wildly far apart. That is the nature of blogging. We do not discuss our agreements, but our disagreements.  We also tend to forget that in most debates, there are not simply two positions that stand in opposition to one another, but a continuum of positions between those extremes. Both of these tendencies have been in evidence in our recent discussions of the present day ministry of the Holy Spirit in the church. In this debate, there are two … [Read more...] about The Cessationism/Continuationism Debate: Where We Agree (and Disagree)

In 1 Chronicles, we can read the account of King David’s organization of the temple, one that he helped design.  He instituted singers, handed out specific duties to various Levitical branches and clans, established an order of worship, and more.  In so doing, the king introduced a radical shift in Levitical function. No longer would the Levites pack, unpack, set up, take down, and carry the tabernacle.  Gone were the days of routine maintenance of a cloth-and-leather structure.  Instead, they would care for a permanent structure, one with porticoes and multiple floors, with massive … [Read more...] about Levitical Implications for Today?

Dr. David W. Manner is the Director of Worship and Administration at the Kansas-Nebraska Convention of Southern Baptists. He blogs at http://kncsb.org/blogs/dmanner. You can follow him on Twitter:  @dwmanner.  Charles Dickens told the story of an orphaned nine-year-old boy Oliver Twist.  Oliver and scores of other orphans toiled in the miserable existence of a workhouse.  The boys worked long hours subsisting on three paltry meals of gruel, a watery food substance of unknown character offering little nutritional value.  On one occasion, the boys drew lots to determine who would represent them … [Read more...] about Please Sir, I Want Some More: Is Symbolism in the Ordinances Enough? (by David Manner)

There is no doubt that the slippery slope argument is abused and has earned its position as a logical fallacy. Politicians use the argument to create fear and loathing against the policies they oppose. "If we allow this, the whole world will fall apart." Because the argument is often abused, it tends to be discounted whenever it is used. "That is just a slippery slope argument." It must be invalid. But, folks, sometimes the slope really is slippery. Sometimes, a relatively small step can lead us over the edge and send us sliding down a dangerus slope. I have lived in Iowa for 31 of my 55 … [Read more...] about The Marriage Debates: Sometimes, the Slope Really Is Slippery!

Editor: Rob Freshour is the Senior Pastor of the First Baptist Church of South Lyon, Michigan. I am going to risk some stuff today with this article.  I am going to risk my reputation.  I am going to risk your opinion of pastors and of me as a pastor.  In fact, I am going to risk the safe ground for a higher ground, a more adventurous and more fulfilling ground, to be sure, but also a less-charted and more dangerous ground. Who are your heroes, and why?  My dad liked John Wayne.  I favor the same archetype in James Bond or Clint Eastwood.  My sons look up to Jack Bauer or Chuck Norris.  We … [Read more...] about The Great Risk (by Rob Freshour)

...You know, those days you can remember where you were and what you were doing. ...Those days that are forever burned in your mind and heart. I was having a pastor's fellowship meeting in my home that was to start around 9 AM (CDT). I was ready and so I thought I'd turn on the TV and watch something until my friends arrived. It must have been 8:03, because just as the TV came on, and as the announcers were talking about the plane that flew into the North Tower, a plane flew into the South Tower and a fireball erupted. There could be no doubt at that moment that America was under attack. … [Read more...] about It Was One of Those Days…