SBC 2007
By Aaron Menikoff June 14, 2007
For those of you who do not know, Third is a Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) church. We are “in friendly cooperation with and contributing toward the causes of” the Southern Baptist Convention. Decisions made at the SBC are not binding on any local church because Baptist churches are congregational. However, because the convention represents over 16 million Southern Baptists throughout the world, because over 8,000 gathered together this year in San Antonio, and because we believe cooperation is biblical, what happens at the SBC is important.
I found it rather difficult to keep up on the events this year. My computer does not do video streaming well, and it didn’t seem like there was one place to get all the news I wanted. Furthermore, we will have to wait for Greg Gilbert (who attended) to get a complete report–if he chooses to post online. Nonetheless, here are some highlights as I see them.
1. On May 30, Baptist Press posted an article by Douglas Baker, a DC writer, about in-fighting in the SBC. A few hours later, Baptist Press pulled the op-ed article. The article was later edited and published by Christianity Today. Baker’s point: why can’t we all just get along. This isn’t a highlight but it does show that there is tension in the SBC. Nothing wrong with that, tension is to be expected, we might as well be honest about it, pray against it, and work our way out of it.
2. Tom Ascol, faithful Florida pastor and leader of Founders Ministries submitted a resolution calling on Southern Baptists to give more serious attention to that cardinal Baptist doctrine of regenerate church membership. The Resolutions Committee did not bring Tom’s resolution before the Convention for a vote because they thought it infringed upon the autonomy of the local church. However, Tom, as a messenger, had the right to bring it up himself on the floor of the convention. He did and, apparently, a healthy discussion ensued. Although, in the end, the Convention decided not to take a vote on the substance of Tom’s resolution.
3. Perhaps the biggest news, as far as I can tell, coming out of San Antonio had to do with a motion, that passed, to make the Baptist Faith and Message the sufficient standard for baptist identity. The messengers voted 58 to 42 percent to approve this motion. Some proponents of the motion argue, for example, that when the International Missions Board disqualifies missionary candidates with a private prayer language the IMB is going beyond the Baptist Faith and Message, effectively adding to the BF&M when deciding what makes a Southern Baptist in good standing. Others argue that the BF&M can only set a minimum requirement for faith and practice; there are plenty of other matters of conviction we would want the heads of Southern Baptist agencies to expect their employees and missionaries to affirm that the BF&M may not cover, such as a repudiation of homosexuality as an acceptable lifestyle choice–something clearly taught in Scripture but not clear in the BF&M. Thus, some are walking away from this motion unsure of its value.
4. Resolutions Committee. The Resolutions Committee made several recommendations that passed. The two that generated the most press included the committee’s fairly conservative stance toward global warming and, second, its call for churches to respond quickly to the suspicion of child abuse. Other resolutions included:
– urging pastors to preach on moral issues and to lead congregations to influence the culture.
– calling for individual and corporate repentance by Southern Baptists.
– opposing hate crimes legislation that includes homosexuals and transgendered persons as protected classes.
– reaffirming the SBC’s repudiation of racism on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Dred Scott decision.
– expressing gratitude for the faithful support of the Cooperative Program, the SBC’s unified giving plan.
– thanking God and those in the San Antonio area and others who helped with the annual meeting.
5. Chuck Colson of Prison Fellowship gave a very interesting talk on cultural engagement in which he focused on the threat of Islam in the 21st century as well as atheism and the erosion of truth. I actually heard most of this talk and it was very good.
That’s all I have. I look forward to a complete report from someone who was actually there!