Praisegod Barebones

Rename Redux?

2012-02-23T11:20:00.004-06:00

This week the Executive Committee of the Southern Baptist Convention approved a recommendation from President Bryant Wright and an illustrious task force of his appointment that the Southern Baptist Convention begin to employ the informal tagline "Great Commission Baptists." The recommendation is for neither a legal change of the convention's name nor a legal dba, but simply for Southern Baptists

Why I Am Not A Libertarian

2012-02-06T12:36:00.009-06:00

The line between Libertarianism and non-Libertarian Conservatism has grown indefinite during my lifetime. What was originally a watchword of the Democrat Party—the slogan of John L. O'Sullivan's The United States Magazine and Democratic Review magazine, "The best government is that which governs least"—has now become the prevailing slogan of the Republican Party. This slogan can be found as the

Resume Cover Letter

2012-02-05T15:30:00.003-06:00

Here's why they'll never enlist me to teach anybody how to write cover letters for resumes. I've been praying for God to send you the right person as a pastor. I do sincerely pray that he will send you as your next pastor someone who is better qualified and more capable than I am. The Lord knows that your church needs just the right man at this sensitive time in your church's life. Keith

Quick Thoughts about T.D. Jakes and Trinitarianism

2012-01-26T12:01:00.005-06:00

No time to blog well here. I'm just going with a laundry-list Jakes's statement satisfies me that he is a Trinitarian. I read him differentiating his present view from his previous view of the Godhead. He affirmed not only "three persons" but also the concept that the three persons are to be distinguished from one another. The Father is not The Son is not The Holy Spirit, although all three are

Is an Insistence upon Heart-Languages Biblical?

2012-01-25T13:36:00.002-06:00

The New Testament was written in Greek. You've probably read some speculation that one or two New Testament books may have been written first in Aramaic, but it is clear that the preponderance of New Testament books were written originally in Greek and that all of them existed almost exclusively in the Greek language relatively quickly in the history of Christianity. Although it was, at that time

Why Condemnations of Last Saturday's Political Conclave of Evangelical Leaders Are Dangerous

2012-01-18T16:10:00.007-06:00

In the "Magazine of Evangelical…" um…something (Christianity Today), David Neff has taken Paul & Nancy Pressler and around 150 other evangelical leaders to task for holding a meeting last Saturday at the Pressler ranch in an effort to unite behind a single conservative GOP candidate in this year's primary elections. The title of Neff's essay was "Why Last Saturday's Political Conclave of

Grace, the Gospel, and Role Expectations in Titus 2

2012-01-05T08:56:00.012-06:00

One of the erroneous assertions made about biblical prescriptions for gender roles, workplace roles, and age-related roles is the appeal to grace and the gospel as the rationale for abandoning these distinctions. The line of argumentation begins with the presumption, without scriptural foundation, that role differences are inherently enslaving and negative (rather than merely that sinful people

Aaron Weaver's "James M. Dunn and Soul Freedom" and Baptist Identity

2011-12-30T09:00:00.003-06:00

Aaron Weaver. James M. Dunn and Soul Freedom. Macon, GA: Smythe & Helwys, 2011. List price is $18.00, but you can get a better deal than that at Amazon.com…just over $14.00 at the time of this post. Weaver's seminal work has received strong reviews already from a diverse group. Here is a brief bibliography of online reviews: Marv Knox: Book Reviews: James M. Dunn and Soul Freedom (2nd item)

The True Church and the True Bible

2011-12-18T10:55:00.000-06:00

I had an interesting conversation recently with a brother who had been reading my blog and had gone out of his way to make telephone contact with me. Knowing that I am an inerrantist, as he is, he wanted to discuss our common convictions and to lead me to consider his opinion that the Textus Receptus is the One True Bible. One implication of this point of view would be to suggest that the King

Why I Would Support a Name Change for the SBC

2011-12-02T14:13:00.004-06:00

I've yet to hear any good reason articulated in support of changing the name of the Southern Baptist Convention. The data do not support the idea that changing our name will make us any more effective, and the present process is transpiring in direct and willful defiance of a prior, yet-unrescinded vote of the messengers of the SBC. Nevertheless, I can think of a circumstance in which I would

The Gift of Church Membership

2011-11-19T10:45:00.005-06:00

The discipline that I chose for my studies is known by several names, each with a slightly different emphasis. Perhaps the most famous practitioner is Martin Marty, whose University of Chicago Divinity School teaches "History of Christianity." That's a nice, detached, secular sort of title for an academic discipline, indicating that Christianity is a thing of which this program studies its

The Beauty of the Personhood Amendment

2011-11-01T14:07:00.008-05:00

Finally, somebody did it. Instead of diddling around the margins of the abortion question, playing elaborate political chess with parental notifications and ultrasound requirements and waiting periods, the Sovereign State of Mississippi has placed on the ballot for November 8 an amendment to the state constitution that would simply clarify: The term “person” or “persons” shall include every

Robert Jeffress Endorses Rick Perry

2011-10-07T15:44:00.002-05:00

By now perhaps you already know that Robert Jeffress has endorsed Rick Perry. Rick Perry is the Governor of Texas and is a candidate for the Republican nomination for President of the United States. Robert Jeffress is the pastor of the First Baptist Church of Dallas. I believe that Dr. Jeffress's endorsement was a mistake. I like Robert Jeffress and have admired his unflinching courage. He and I

Why Have We Remained the Southern Baptist Convention?

2011-09-29T19:10:00.001-05:00

Faced with the question of the abolition of slavery—which was everywhere and in every way a religious movement—many Christian denominations in the United States of America experienced bitter factionalism over the question of slavery. Before long, the splintering of denominations into branches North and South was a widespread and common phenomenon. In 1860, over 80% of Southern Christians

The Uphill Climb for a Name Change

2011-09-21T11:20:00.002-05:00

The name-change effort in the Southern Baptist Convention faces a long, uphill climb. Allow me to sketch out some of the obstacles it will have to overcome in order to succeed: Voting Requirement Any change to the name of the Southern Baptist Convention will necessitate a change to the convention's constitution. To accomplish this, a supermajority of two-thirds of the convention messengers

SBC Name Change Proposal

2011-09-19T22:36:00.005-05:00

Tonight at a meeting of the Executive Committee of the Southern Baptist Convention, President Bryant Wright led the Executive Committee to appoint by fiat a task force to study a name change for the denomination (BP). In a matter of hours, Twitter is already alive with discussion over the proposal. People are likely to take sides on this matter based upon their opinions of the idea of changing

The Key to Success in Ministry?

2011-08-29T12:53:00.003-05:00

Proposition: Everything you need to know to succeed in ministry—everything you need to be excellent at preaching the gospel, planting churches, pastoring churches, or whatever—is contained fully in the Bible. If you were to read no other book, you would be at no disadvantage in any ministry enterprise. Discussion?

What Defines Drunkenness?

2011-08-26T18:19:00.005-05:00

A person who grew up in this church recently attended another church in our metropolitan area. While he was there, one of the new friends that he made invited him to come to an event after church with several of the young singles there and serve as the designated driver. I was just wondering why you need a designated driver to enjoy alcoholic beverages in moderation? It would seem to me

The Difference between Efficiency and Effectiveness

2011-08-21T09:48:00.002-05:00

In his book, The Baptist Way, Stan Norman countered several objections to congregationalism. One of those objections—the idea that congregational decision-making is not efficient—Norman countered by asking his readers to consider whether the slower, more complicated process of congregational decision-making might be more effective in making disciples, albeit less efficient in making decisions. By

The Beginning of the End of Multi-Site?

2011-08-08T09:06:00.007-05:00

Praise the Lord for Mark Driscoll and the folks at Mars Hill. Pause while you check to see whether you're at the right blog. Praise the Lord for Mark Driscoll and the folks at Mars Hill! In a blog post today, the folks up at Seattle have announced that there will be "No More Mars Hill 'Campuses'." Instead, citing the Bible and what it teaches about ecclesiology, Mars Hill has announced

The Blossoming Flower of Conservative Scholarship

2011-08-03T08:37:00.006-05:00

God called me to be a pastor when I was eleven years old. In the thirty subsequent years, only one thought has given me pause about that calling. I have passed through seasons of my life when, although I knew that my calling was to pastoral ministry, I have felt some obligation to serve as a professor in a seminary or in the religion department of a Baptist university. As the Conservative

Hoarders and Homosexuals: Thoughts about Choice

2011-08-01T11:45:00.003-05:00

Paul Hamman of Semmes, Alabama, has a yard full of junk. I don't mean that Hamman has a lone rusty automobile sitting on cinder blocks in his back yard; Hamman has amassed hundreds of tons of junk in his two-acre yard in Semmes. His collection has earned for him the concern of his family, the consternation of his neighbors, trouble with the law, and a spot in the first season of the A&E reality

"Tertiary" Does Not Mean "Unimportant"

2011-07-30T10:36:00.007-05:00

The much-ballyhooed and over-discussed topic of theological triage has received as much attention in Southern Baptist blogging as any other topic in the past five years. In the preponderance of treatments that I have read (and I've read a lot of them) the most popular "for example" listed in the category of tertiary doctrines has had to do with the particulars of eschatology. I agree that a

Illegal Definitions of Legalism

2011-07-22T22:26:00.004-05:00

There ought to be a law against defining legalism improperly and abusively. ;-) In 1719 Scottish Presbyterianism erupted into open conflict over "The Marrow Controversy." At the center of the dispute was a 1645 treatise by Edward Fisher (1627-1655, authorship disputed) entitled The Marrow of Modern Divinity. The most influential members of the Church of Scotland decried Fisher's work as

Unenumerated Categories of SBC Messengers

2011-07-07T18:31:00.003-05:00

Baptist Press reports today the official messenger counts for SBC 2011 in Phoenix. They are, pretty much, what was reported back during the actual event, but demographic breakdowns now appear with the numbers, giving age categorizations and state-by-state analysis of the attendance. The state bringing the most messengers to Phoenix was Tennessee. Perhaps that puzzles you. Why would a state so

Separation of Ministry and State

2011-07-06T08:47:00.005-05:00

Baptists have embraced the biblical office of pastor/elder/overseer and the biblical office of deacon. The nature and function of those offices have varied widely down through the centuries among the Baptist multitude, along with some variance as to the qualifications and membership of those groups. Generally speaking, however, Baptists have avoided clericalism. The officers of our churches are

Homosexuality: I Agree with Tom Elliff

2011-07-01T11:59:00.003-05:00

Since the SBC Annual Meeting in Phoenix, AZ, a lengthy conversation has ensued regarding homosexuality. The conversation has been complex, muddled, and surprising. The contentious question of the cause and origin of homosexuality in human beings has been at the forefront of the conversation. Thankful for all Southern Baptists and for our leaders who have consistently demonstrated both

Learning Some Lessons from the Acts 29 Network

2011-06-29T15:13:00.004-05:00

A confession: I generally really like the Acts 29 Network. They're a pretty good denomination. I prefer them over the United Methodists. I prefer them over the United Church of Christ churches. I prefer them over the PCUSA. Yes, I prefer nearly any Baptist denomination over the Acts 29 Network, but as non-Baptist denominations go, Acts 29 is definitely in the upper few percentiles of quality. In

The Nadir of the SBC?

2011-06-17T08:45:00.003-05:00

The headline is inherently ominous: " Phoenix SBC attendance lowest since '44." Like most people, I was prepared to see a slight dip in SBC attendance, just because we were going all the way to Phoenix. But as the headline makes clear, the paucity of messengers in Phoenix cannot be explained by the vagaries of geography and political cycle that normally cause messenger count to oscillate: This

Unity and Cooperation in the Southern Baptist Convention

2011-06-13T22:55:00.003-05:00

Tomorrow will be the first time in their lives that my two children have failed to attend the Annual Meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention. In my own twenty-four years of service as a Southern Baptist pastor, I have missed the meeting many times, having often lacked the funding to attend. Since 2001 in New Orleans, however, I have attended every year. Not this year. My reasons are manifold

Chairs and Benches Alike Seat Errant Souls

2011-06-08T14:34:00.007-05:00

We teach and define that it is a dogma Divinely revealed that the Roman pontiff when he speaks ex cathedra, that is when in discharge of the office of pastor and doctor of all Christians, by virtue of his supreme Apostolic authority, he defines a doctrine regarding faith or morals to be held by the universal Church, by the Divine assistance promised to him in Blessed Peter, is possessed of that

While We're Avoiding Idolatry in Worship

2011-05-26T12:53:00.004-05:00

Blogging at The Gospel Coalition, Kevin DeYoung has written Thinking Theologically about Memorial Day. The piece is the latest installment in the ongoing uneasiness with which evangelicals manage their relationships with the secular order. DeYoung's piece is a fair corrective of some of the extreme positions advocated on various sides of the broader question. With a number of other voices,

There's the Birth Certificate

2011-04-27T17:23:00.001-05:00

For a while now, a large billboard just south of I-635 on US-75 in Dallas has asked the question, "Where's The Birth Certificate?" I'm curious whether the billboard is already down, now that President Obama has released his long-form birth certificate today (see article in the New York Times) and the question has been answered once-and-for-all. I agree with Richard Land (see video) that, for a

Pastoral Paternity

2011-04-13T15:55:00.002-05:00

"Was your dad a pastor?" I have fielded that question more times than I care to count, and it surprises and slightly perplexes me to say so. It is not that the question is as troublesome as have been some of the more traumatic experiences—combatting rampant sexual misconduct and abuse, coming face-to-face with the pettiness and meanspiritedness that has infected some congregations, shepherding a

Stars, Bars, and Wars

2011-04-08T10:45:00.001-05:00

Tuesday, April 12, 2011, will be the sesquicentennial of the Battle of Fort Sumter, the beginning of the War Between the States. The lingering effect of that war in the South is remarkable. Most people whom I've asked can name more battles from that war than from any other American conflict except World War II, which has the double benefit of being a much larger and more significant conflict and

Resolution on Religious Liberty

2011-04-02T07:38:00.002-05:00

Here is a draft of a resolution I plan to submit to this year's Committee on Resolutions for the Southern Baptist Convention: ON RELIGIOUS LIBERTY WHEREAS, Jesus declared “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world then my servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, my kingdom is not of this realm” (John 18:36), indicating that

North American Missions: Laredo, TX

2011-04-01T10:02:00.003-05:00

This is the season in which we emphasize North American missions as a part of our annual Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions. As your church contemplates how to be involved in reaching North America for Christ, consider among your other options the needs of Laredo, TX.

Diversity

2011-03-27T20:27:00.001-05:00

A Study in Contrasts from Bart Barber on Vimeo.

The Great Commission: Teach!

2011-03-25T10:03:00.002-05:00

So, after such a hiatus, what prompted me to get the next installment of my Great Commission series recorded and posted? Well, as of my last little article, I had 666 posts on this blog, and I wanted to move on past that number! So, here is my latest episode of my reflections on the Great Commission.

Great Anecdote on the Blessings of Mutual Congregational Accountability

2011-03-23T14:06:00.007-05:00

Yesterday through our local NPR station (listening to NPR is a regular form of espionage that I practice) I became acquainted with the story of Delsie Bailey. Ms. Bailey is a sophomore at the University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill who became pregnant in high school. She is a devout Christian and the daughter of an elder in her church. Although the blog of the organization with which she

Great Resource on the Trinity

2011-03-18T12:16:00.002-05:00

I highly recommend the slides from Dr. Malcolm Yarnell's recent series on the Trinity. Several years ago Dr. James Leo Garrett startled me somewhat when he observed that Christians are writing very little and thinking very little about the Trinity—one of the central questions about the nature of God, with implications upon the gospel and every aspect of Christian living. The first and most

Not-Yet-Aging (Much) Speakers

2011-03-09T07:37:00.007-06:00

I write today in the context of an article by Brad Whitt and a response by Ed Stetzer (UPDATE: Peter Lumpkins has entered the conversation as well with this article, which actually was up before mine was). The general subject matter, although much is involved here, is the content of the Southern Baptist Convention Pastors Conference vis-à-vis the various demographics within (and semi-within) the

Aging Heroes

2011-02-28T10:04:00.005-06:00

Look for December 2012 to be an season of great fanfare within the Southern Baptist Convention. I'm already making special plans for our annual Christmas Eve Candlelight Service at FBC Farmersville. December 24, 2012, you see, will be the 100th anniversary of the death of Lottie Moon, the matron saint of Southern Baptist international missions. Lottie Moon was not the last heroic Southern

Worse than Cybersquatting

2011-01-09T10:33:00.003-06:00

Earlier this week I commented upon the fact that Founders Ministries is unethically cybersquatting the domain southernbaptistconvention.org. The post generated a lively discussion in the comment thread and apparently generated a good bit of interest. It was one of the few posts on this blog that have drawn upon my background in computer work. That's by design, since this is not primarily a blog

SBC Cybersquatting

2011-01-04T21:48:00.003-06:00

Peter Lumpkins is a clever guy with a provocative sense of humor. When I saw his latest post, coy as it was, I was intrigued. When I clicked on the link and saw that the domain name southernbaptistconvention.org took me to the Founders web site, I grinned a big grin and wondered to myself who pulled this prank on Tom Ascol and the guys over at Founders. I am not a Calvinist, but I am not an

A Bloated Baptist Bureaucracy We Could Do Without

2010-11-29T13:00:00.001-06:00

I prefer the SBC structure to any other that I know, but I do believe that we run the risk of creating bloated bureaucracies at all tiers of our cooperative efforts. "Bloated bureaucracy" has become a phrase of fighting words in the SBC, and that's not difficult to understand. Denominational employees understandably hear them as an attack upon their personal character, as though our denomination

The Great Commission: Baptize!

2010-11-08T21:33:00.003-06:00

I know…I know…you thought I had forgotten about my Great Commission videos. But really, I was just wanting to do a little better job on the production side of these videos. I was recording some other items for the church today, and I just took a minute to record the next installment of the Great Commission series while all of the equipment was set up. I think it turned out to be much higher

Selfishness Masquerading as Church Discipline

2010-10-30T18:26:00.006-05:00

There is a line across which discipline becomes abuse. This is true when it comes to the raising of children. Tragic stories of child abuse are all too common, ranging from horrific beatings to incestuous atrocities. On the other hand, I was spanked as a child, and I certainly didn't need any less of it. Never was it abusive. Discipline is not just for children. In giving us the blueprints for

Wade Burleson Quits Blogging, Promises Not to Return

2010-10-24T17:07:00.003-05:00

Wade Burleson has announced that he will "[lay] aside blogging for good." I thought it might be appropriate for me to mark the occasion with a backwards glance and a comment or two. Wade Burleson's blog has been THE blog in Baptist life. Whatever people say about "Baptist bloggers," they say with Wade Burleson at least partially in mind. There is no doubt that the years 2006-2008 in SBC

An Historic Mending of a Denominational Split

2010-10-12T12:20:00.004-05:00

If you are a fan of Christian unity, then you ought to be a big fan of this. The Southern Baptists of Texas Convention (SBTC) and the Baptist Missionary Association of Texas (BMAT) are announcing an historic agreement (HT: Southern Baptist Texan, Baptist Progress) that will bring closer two groups of Texas Baptists who have been separated denominationally for a century. This is progress toward

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

2010-09-23T12:43:00.004-05:00

I write a monthly newsletter column for the church. Here is what I wrote last month. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies Jane Austen (1775-1817) achieved through her novels an enduring fame, having altered the direction of English Literature by laying a foundation for nineteenth-century realism. Technical measures aside, she created characters like Elizabeth Bennet with whom readers have bonded

Why I Almost Never Blog Any More

2010-09-17T08:38:00.005-05:00

Click the picture to see a larger version. Each year from left to right represents an ACP reporting year, from September 1 of the prior year through August 31 of the indicated year. The left vertical axis indicates the number of blog posts composed in the ACP reporting year, as indicated by the red line. The right vertical axis indicates the number of baptisms reported at FBC Farmersville for the

Preserving the First Freedom for Others As Well As Ourselves

2010-07-29T20:52:00.004-05:00

I hope to resume my Great Commission series soon—the culmination of my hectic summer is at hand. Furor has arisen over plans to build a thirteen-story mosque named Park51 (initially named Cordoba House) in Lower Manhattan in the vicinity of Ground Zero. Because the 9-11 attacks were inspired by Islam and were carried out entirely by devout Muslims, many people have objected to the idea that a

The Johnny Hunt Campaign

2010-07-11T10:18:00.003-05:00

Johnny Hunt never did campaign much for the presidency of the Southern Baptist Convention back in 2008. He entered the race late. I had already supported one candidate (Al Mohler), seen health problems cause him to leave the race, and then embraced another candidate (Frank Cox, a really great guy who ought to be in more prominent leadership in the SBC) before Johnny Hunt had ever even thrown his

The Great Commission: All Nations!

2010-06-08T15:05:00.000-05:00

The Great Commission: Make Disciples!

2010-06-03T12:09:00.001-05:00

Disciples of Jesus Christ are the objective of the Great Commission.

Ronnie Floyd: The Messengers Will Decide

2010-06-02T09:35:00.005-05:00

In a press release dated June 1, Ronnie Floyd clarified that the GCR Task Force will bring its report and offer its recommendations as a unified whole. Floyd clarified, however, that the question of whether to consider the seven recommendations as a whole or separately "will ultimately be determined by the messengers of the convention" and that the Task Force "will wholeheartedly support their

The Great Commission: Go!

2010-06-01T16:28:00.002-05:00

Phone calls and visits broke into this recording several times, so I hope you'll forgive my obvious distraction at points. The first verb in the Great Commission commands us—all of us—to go.

The Great Commission: All or Nothing

2010-05-31T00:01:00.002-05:00

The syntax of the Great Commission transforms four verbs into a single all-or-nothing command.

The Great Commission: Jesus Is Lord!

2010-05-30T07:27:00.001-05:00

I'm no Cecil B. DeMille, but I decided to present this study of the Great Commission by video rather than by text.

GCR: My Final Thoughts on the Final Report

2010-05-26T21:54:00.001-05:00

I want to offer a heartfelt statement of gratitude to the GCR Task Force and to state my endorsement of the GCR Task Force Recommendations. It was not always so. On Monday, April 27, 2009, I penned this post explaining why I would not add my name to an affirmation of the original GCR Axioms statement. Later, on May 29, when the website began to allow people to affirm the document with caveats, I

A Step in the Right Direction for the BGCT

2010-05-25T15:07:00.007-05:00

The Dallas Morning News is reporting that The Baptist General Convention of Texas has disfellowshipped Royal Lane Baptist Church over the church's stance regarding homosexuality. Royal Lane has apparently acquiesced to the BGCT's further request that the church cease to identify itself on its website and in publications as a BGCT-affiliated congregation. This is a very positive step that ought

Vance Pitman To Be Nominated for SBC Pastors Conference President

2010-05-04T16:57:00.001-05:00

See the story from the Florida Baptist Witness. Of the two candidates so far, this one will have my vote.

British Petroleum and Theodicy

2010-05-02T10:31:00.004-05:00

In the Gulf of Mexico is presently transpiring what could likely turn out to be a grave environmental disaster. An April 20 explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig caused oil from the rig's bore hole to begin to spew into the Gulf of Mexico at an alarming rate. The rig was located approximately 60 miles southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River and the pollution resulting from its demise

"Baptist Identity" Influences in My Life

2010-04-28T21:26:00.004-05:00

How did I come to be a "Baptist Identity" sort of Baptist? Did I happen upon golden plates in my back yard inscribed by J. R. Graves? Did I have some furtive meeting over beignets with Dr. Paige Patterson? I would like to say that the Holy Spirit and the New Testament have been the influences that have driven me to my position, and indeed this is what I believe. Nevertheless, I can identify a

The Age of Light

2010-04-26T23:14:00.005-05:00

Source: Hubblesite.org Let the glory of the LORD endure forever; Let the LORD be glad in His works One interesting facet of the debate between Old-Earth Creationists and Young-Earth Creationists has to do with the age of light (not like "the Internet age" or "the Gilded Age," but like "What do you think is the age of that tree over there?"). Old-Earth Creationists point out that we see galaxies

Jimmy Jackson for SBC President

2010-04-22T13:30:00.007-05:00

The Alabama Baptist reports that Jimmy Jackson will be nominated this Summer for President of the Southern Baptist Convention. (HT: SBC Today) I was going to mention that I serve with Dr. Jackson on the SWBTS Board of Trustees. Upon reconsidering, I realized that such a statement did not nearly embody all of my feelings on the matter. Dr. Jimmy Jackson is not merely a trustee colleague at

Throw-Away Babies

2010-04-18T09:51:00.003-05:00

I serve the congregation of First Baptist Church in Farmersville, TX. Farmersville sits at the northern shores of Lake Lavon. Earlier this week, a maintenance crew in the area found beside a dirty pond near the lake the body of a six-year-old special needs boy. He was significantly decomposed. His body showed evidence that he had been fed with a feeding tube for some period of time. Forensic

The One-Woman Man in the New Testament

2010-04-09T01:00:00.003-05:00

Slowly, after much careful deliberation, I have begun to lean toward a new understanding of the phrase "one-woman man" (often translated "husband of one wife") in the New Testament. I am under no illusions that this position will ever gain any widespread acceptance among my peers, but I will not be reviewing my life with my peers when it is over. I am coming to conclude that the phrase means to

The Steely Backbone of the School of Jerry Falwell

2010-04-01T10:48:00.004-05:00

I have a confession to make. In my late preteen years, when forced to tag along on my mother's grocery shopping trips, I (an avid reader) used to kill time at the magazine rack. Here's the confession part: On those occasions I used to read Mad Magazine. In 1982 I distinctly recall picking up an episode of Mad Magazine that contained a satirical "interview" with Jerry Falwell. The interview was

Personal Transportation Reform

2010-03-21T23:23:00.005-05:00

The federal government must immediately adopt legislation to provide a reliable, late-model automobile for every U.S. citizen and resident. To do so would create jobs. Imagine how many Americans could go to work to produce the new cars that the government would have to purchase! It would help to reduce the deficit. After all, we now own General Motors. Anything that increases car sales by the

Meditations Upon Proverbs 1:7

2010-03-09T12:10:00.002-06:00

Vividly I remember my parents, in the midst of some vacation journey, taking me as a child to see a large dam in the Ozarks (I think it was Beaver Lake Dam in Northwest Arkansas). The highway went across the top of the dam, along with a few places to park, get out, and take pictures. Of course, Dad did exactly that. I was too short to look over the side, and I was thankful to be too short. Dad

The Craziness of Modern Discourse About Human Rights

2010-03-08T10:29:00.003-06:00

Reuters reported yesterday that 78% of 27,000 people polled in 26 countries "believe access to the Internet is a fundamental right." I submit that this sentiment, popular as it may be, is utter balderdash. It demeans the important subject of fundamental human rights when we shovel trivia into this important category. The US Declaration of Independence famously asserted: "We hold these

How To Resurge

2010-03-05T23:33:00.001-06:00

This is the last of three posts in response to the GCR Task Force progress report. The other two posts are here and here. In the previous two posts I stated why I will be voting in favor of these proposals, obviously hoping that you will join me in doing so this summer in Orlando. The name of the task force and of the vision that it represents (The Great Commission Resurgence) obviously hearkens

Bravo to the GCR Task Force, Part 2

2010-02-24T12:40:00.004-06:00

Picking up from my previous post, I also want to make certain that you did not miss the updated report that I later linked in a new first paragraph to that blog. GCR Task Force Chairman Ronnie Floyd has engaged in a little Q&A with the press in the aftermath of Monday night's report. The full text of the GCR Task Force Progress Report is here. The six numbered initiatives in that report,

Bravo to the GCR Task Force

2010-02-23T22:29:00.008-06:00

We have now seen a progress report from the GCR Task Force, with details promised to follow in the coming months. Unless the details include covert funding for an Alaskan bridge to Gravina Island, a renewed attempt to rename Discipleship Training as "Quest", or a proposed merger into the Alliance of Baptists, I firmly plan to do two things with regard to this Task Force Proposal: Cast an

My First, Brief, Active Response to the GCRTF Progress Report

2010-02-23T14:51:00.003-06:00

First Baptist Church of Farmersville, partnering with other Southern Baptists, is already committed to assisting in the planting of a new Southern Baptist church in North Adams, Massachusetts. We need a church planter. Were you inspired by the GCRTF presentation on the evangelistic needs in New England? Do you think that God might be calling you to serve in this way? Let me know, and I would be

Comfortable, but Not Very Helpful

2010-02-21T13:47:00.003-06:00

Ancient is the temptation to attempt to make God in our own image, rather than to content ourselves with our being made in His. In light of that fact, Elton John's declaration that "Jesus was a compassionate, super-intelligent gay man" is neither original nor surprising, heretical as it is (see here). It is the quintessence of self-worship and self-absorption to take sentences that one might well

BO Baker; Evangelist, Pastor, and Musician; Gone to Heaven

2010-02-18T13:25:00.009-06:00

Dick Baker (L) and his brother BO Baker(R) Among FBC Farmersville's favorite sons is BO Baker. Today, at the age of 87, BO Baker walks with the Lord in glory. BO and his brother Dick were the sons of "Bunk" Baker, a pillar of FBC Farmersville throughout most of the twentieth century, a bold witness for Jesus Christ to the residents of Farmersville, and a prominent local businessman. I still

"The End of Christianity"; The Beginning of the Discussion

2010-02-17T14:22:00.005-06:00

William A. Dembski's The End of Christianity: Finding a Good God in an Evil World is an interesting and provocative book. I have not yet finished it, and will supply my own thoughts about the book once I have done so. In the meantime, I would direct your attention to a review of the book written by Dr. David Allen. Allen's review notably includes a preamble by Dr. Paige Patterson and a

Baylor, Baptists, and Bill Clinton's Nemesis

2010-02-15T15:54:00.004-06:00

Ken Starr Should Be Free to Choose His Own Denomination and Church By now you've heard the news: Ken Starr is Baylor University's New President. The story states that Starr's wife is Jewish (although apparently a Christian as well), and that they plan to join "a Baptist church" upon their arrival in Waco. If they have ever held membership in a Baptist church before (Starr's father was a Church of

On the Preservation of Freedom in the SBC

2010-02-13T23:24:00.002-06:00

It is interesting how much of the blogging over the past few days has touched upon the question of freedom in the SBC. On the one hand, some analysts have taken Les Puryear's emails to constitute a threat to the "Academic Freedom" of professors within the SBC. On the other hand, people like me have suggested that the outcry over Les's actions constitute an unwarranted effort to curtail the

Adding to the Fact File on Les Puryear

2010-02-12T21:34:00.004-06:00

A minor dust-up has taken place in SBC blogging life regarding Les Puryear. Les has been blogging recently on the topic of Antinomianism (see here, here, here, and here), at which topic he arrived by way of a discussion of tithing. Now Les has come under the sort of mean-spirited personal attack that has far too often characterized Southern Baptist blogging since I began reading SBC blogs in

Great Advice on Wisdom in Electronic Communication

2010-02-10T14:06:00.003-06:00

Don't miss the latest thoughtful piece by Gary Ledbetter: "Think Twice, Send Once." Gary knows whereof he speaks, and the effectiveness of your ministry may someday hinge on precisely the subjects that Gary is addressing. Particularly useful is Gary's reminder about the unknown reach of communiques that you might regard as private. There are some people in Southern Baptist life who are entirely

Ed Young Responds to WFAA News Story

2010-02-08T15:17:00.002-06:00

Ed Young has responded to allegations that surfaced in a recent news story about Fellowship Church in Grapevine. Above is the video including statements by Young and by two members of the church's "board of trustees." I linked the WFAA story and am honor-bound to provide this response to you as well. Any questions?

Speaking of Intellectual Property

2010-02-05T12:21:00.004-06:00

The full story is available at: WFAA Channel 8 News. The conspiracy minded among you, knowing what I blogged about yesterday, are going to think that I have sources at WFAA tipping me off about their stories. The rest of you will realize that I'm not nearly that important or well-connected. But it just so happens that on the day I opine about intellectual property, our local DFW news station

A Theology of Intellectual Property

2010-02-04T14:09:00.003-06:00

©2010 Christopher Bart Barber, all rights reserved. One of the more interesting cases of my lifetime (IMHO) is Association For Molecular Pathology et al v. United States Patent and Trademark Office et al. At issue in the case is whether the Myriad corporation can secure a patent covering the human genes BRCA1 and BRCA2. At first glance, I have no real sympathy for Myriad. How can one patent not

Very Wise Decision: GCRTF Will Not Recommend IMB-NAMB Merger

2010-02-02T16:35:00.003-06:00

The Florida Baptist Witness is reporting that the Task Force will not be recommending a merger of the Southern Baptist International Mission Board and the Southern Baptist North American Mission Board. I know that the task force was duty-bound to consider this possibility thoroughly, and I'm thankful that after having considered it exhaustively they have concluded against the merger. I opined

My Response to the Big Speech

2010-01-27T21:43:00.003-06:00

Oh…you thought I meant…No!…Not THAT speech. I'm talking about Steve Jobs's speech unveiling the new Apple iPad. I confess that, back when the iPod came out, I thought it was a silly little curiosity—who would pay that much just to carry around a few songs? Obviously, I was wrong about the iPod. On the other hand, when the iPhone came along, I knew that it would be a blockbuster hit. I do not

The Sparks that Set on Fire Every Heart

2010-01-25T20:49:00.005-06:00

The news today from Arkansas's First Congressional District, where I grew up, is that Representative Marion Berry (not to be confused with Marion Barry) will not seek a seventh term in office. It's a bad year for holders of that office—Berry's predecessor in the seat is present Arkansas Senator Blanche Lincoln, who is consistently numbered among the most vulnerable Democrat senators up for

Changing the Denominational Map

2010-01-25T13:21:00.003-06:00

How can we extend the gospel more effectively beyond the South? How can Southern Baptists best see the robust growth of evangelism and church planting in major non-Southern cities and pioneer areas? Does history offer us any clues about this question? I'll be uncharacteristically brief. It is very, very difficult to change denominational maps like the ones that I discussed in my previous post.

If Heaven Ain't A Lot Like Dixie?

2010-01-23T19:50:00.002-06:00

So, the "Southern" in "Southern Baptist Convention" has had the attention of the blogging world lately. Right out of the gate, we ought to acknowledge that the topic is an emotional one. The likelihood of this matter coming to an actual vote—and if it does come to a vote, the outcome of that vote—will be determined at least as much by non-rational factors as it will be determined by lists of

SWBTS: Showing How Faithfully the Bible Has Been Transmitted

2010-01-20T17:23:00.002-06:00

I'm delighted to direct your attention to this press release detailing the acquisition of several fragments of the Dead Sea Scrolls by Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

Great Moments in Fomenting "Necessary Change"

2010-01-19T10:24:00.005-06:00

Their numbers had been declining, they perceived difficulties in their attempts to engage the younger generations, and they worried that their brand was too regionally connected with the South and could not continue to fulfill their national and international ambitions without modification—all of these factors motivated the "experts" at Coca-Cola in 1985 to abandon the drink formula that they

A Southern Baptist's Pilgrimage from Racism

2010-01-18T16:16:00.002-06:00

…and the great MLK Day posts keep coming. I give you Malcolm Yarnell's A Southern Baptist's Pilgrimage from Racism.

What Killed Racism in Conservative Christianity

2010-01-18T13:47:00.003-06:00

I enthusiastically recommend to you Russell D. Moore's MLK Day post. I am thankful for his insight demonstrated in this post. Click the link now; don't miss it.

A Proposed Improvement to the Cooperative Program

2010-01-12T08:05:00.005-06:00

The Executive Committee of the Southern Baptist Convention should develop an online "bill-pay" application and provide it for free to Southern Baptist Churches. It should interface with the major church management software packages. It should enable churches to send CP dollars with a single click. The application should, in cooperation with the state conventions, know the respective CP budget in

The Gospel of Geography

2010-01-11T16:00:00.002-06:00

What percentage of money given to Southern Baptist churches should ideally find its way offshore to international missions projects? Everybody in ministry—everybody—has an opinion on this question. Furthermore, not one participant in the conversation is entirely free from self-interest in the matter. The topic is ripe for demagoguery, but I think it also can be discussed reasonably, resulting in

In Half-Hearted Defense of Harry Reid

2010-01-10T15:03:00.003-06:00

We're so childish in the way that we deal with racial issues in this country. Race ought not to be a factor in politics. Race is a factor in politics. I don't cast my vote because of a candidate's race. Many people do. Because so many people will be influenced by race in casting a ballot—because race indeed is a factor in politics—people who analyze politics are going to analyze the racial

One Reason Why I Love FBC Farmersville

2010-01-08T12:44:00.004-06:00

The cover for our new church directory.