Last year, Thom Rainer predicted that the pandemic would cause the deaths of many churches. I did not disbelieve him, but I hoped his prediction would not come true. Sadly, at least in our association, several churches have died or soon will. I serve on the Mission Team of the Kauf-Van Baptist Association, which includes […]
A brief history of the ERLC
When the SBC was formed in 1845, it started with two main entities, the “Board of Domestic Missions” and the Foreign Mission Board, later to become NAMB and the IMB. Over time the entity list has grown to include 6 seminaries, Guidestone, Lifeway, and the ERLC. Most of these institutions have easily understood purposes, such […]
What Kind of Report is This? The EC Task Force Report on the ERLC (Mike Miller)
I’m writing this the day after the ERLC Study Task Force released its unanimous report of its work and findings. The Task Force was charged with reviewing the “past and present activities of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission” to determine whether its actions are proving to be detrimental to Cooperative Program giving. Their conclusion […]
The full EC should reject the ERLC task force report outright
Yesterday, the Executive Committee’s ERLC task force released their report. You can find the Baptist Press story here. The task force was formed at the February 2020 meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Executive Committee. The rationale given at the time was anecdotal concerns related to churches withholding Cooperative Program dollars because of disagreement with […]
Randy Adams favors an SBC sex abuser database?
One man’s crusade to clean up the SBC is reporter Julie Roy’s podcast with SBC presidential candidate Randy Adams. The interview is a roundup of the usual SBC suspects. Adams is a heavy NAMB critic. Fine, we can disagree about church planting philosophy and spending policies. While NAMB has several recent incidents that have not […]
Randy Adams and reforming the SBC: Entities should disclose salaries and most everything else
Randy Adams is one of four announced candidates for SBC president. Baptist Press covers his announcement with links to the other three (Al Mohler, Ed Litton, and Mike Stone) in this article. Adams was to be nominated this past year but the virus gave the SBC JD Greear for another year. I doubt I would […]
The complicated feelings of being both pro-life & pro-Kamala as VP (Emily Snook)
I stared at the test, willing the pink lines not to appear. I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t be pregnant again. It was too hard. I couldn’t bear the thought of another miscarriage, and I was terrified of what another birth would do to my already broken body. As the results became clear, and relief […]
Pastor Ed Litton to be nominated for SBC President
Yesterday, Baptist Press reported that Fred Luter will nominate Alabama pastor Ed Litton for SBC President this summer in Nashville. Litton becomes the third announced nominee along with SBTS president R. Albert Mohler and Georgia pastor Mike Stone. In his announcement, Luter cites his relationship with Litton that grew from pursuing racial reconciliation together, but even […]
I’m getting the COVID vaccine today. Ouch!
More accurately, both my wife and I are getting the first of the two shots today and it has been a strange journey to get to this spot. The way it has worked here in Georgia, the health departments had the vaccines. You had to go sign up, which, seems to me was a waste […]
Inauguration this week; prayers for the new administration
The hallmark of our country’s governance has always been the peaceful transfer of power. The capitol insurrection was an utter disgrace and the most serious challenge to the transfer of power in our history. (Well, we did have that other insurrection 160 years ago.) Utter disgrace. The more that is know about it the uglier […]
What Made Antioch a Great Church?
Recently, our pastor stated, “Antioch was a great church. I wish our church could be like the church in Antioch.” Of course, he meant the church in Antioch of Syria. (The other one was in Antioch of Pisidia.) His statement caused me to ask myself: What made Antioch such a good church? Clearly, Luke considered […]
We Are Getting OFF the Bus (Dwight McKissic)
In 2006, Dr. Jim Richards, the recently retired (2020) executive director of the Southern Baptist of Texas Convention (SBTC), made a startling statement regarding pastors in the SBT—which included me—who believed in the continuation of all the gifts of the Spirit listed in Romans 12, I Corinthians 12, Ephesians 4, and I Peter 4, and […]