Anything Good?

by Joe Thorn on August 29, 2005

Dr. Draper has written another article, “Can Anything Good Come From The SBC?” In it he addresses part of the problem in our Convention, affirms the need to change, argues the big issue is refocusing, and explains what is good about the SBC (read it here). I like what he has written, and ultimately agree with him even though I still have some questions. He writes,

It does us no good – and actually does us harm – to dwell on our size, numerical goals and our heritage. We can’t live in the past. Our heritage is only as meaningful as its most recent application, meaning that all we have been in reaching the nations for Christ does not guarantee us relevance in the future. Being “Great Commission people” and “people of the book,” means daily seeking opportunities to engage the world with the power of the Gospel but in humility and with a heart of service.

This is a great paragraph, and I wont add a thing. Good words for us all, and hard words for many. Think that one through. As he argues what is good about the Convention he says,

We have developed the most effective theological training anywhere in the world through our seminaries, with more than 15,000 students enrolled this year. Men and women are formally being developed to impact the world with the Gospel and that impact will be felt for generations to come.

I have somewhat mixed feelings about this part. I love our seminaries, especially my alma mater, but I believe theoogical education should offer more than what we have. That is a whole new topic, and I don’t want to get into it here. I agree with Dr. Draper here when comparing what we have to most other institutions. Certainly in the case of Southern Seminary you can get an amazing biblical/theological education for little money, and meet some great people.

Southern Baptists have expressed leadership in addressing the relevant cultural issues of our day to the point where our perspective is now being sought both in our nation and around the world. We are providing a much-needed biblical worldview in an increasingly relative world.

I have two thoughts about this. On the one hand we have guys like Al Mohler and Richard Land and Ben Mitchell (do we still have him now that he’s at Trinity?) who can speak to the issues with great insight and undertanding. But on the other hand I think the media likes to book us on shows because we are the entertainment factor; the hardcase nuts who actually believe in God, the Bible, hell, etc. I think they seek us out more from a desire for ratings than because they respect our thoughts. And sometimes when we do speak to the issues as a Convention or as representativs we often speak with very few redemptive words and wind up scolding the culture instead of holding out hope; talking at it instead of with it.

In the end, the outgoing President of Lifeway is right. Good can and does come out of the SBC. After all, it totally funded our church plant and we have been labeled “hard-core Calvinists” by some, “progressive” by others, “emerging” by a few, and one even called us “fundamentalists.” I am sure some have called us “liberal,” though not to my face. I dig labels, but none of those are on our letterhead. The truth is our Convention allowed us to become an indigenous church, one that is confessional, missional and relational, and we have experienced no resistance from local or state institutions.

As far as usefulness, change and refocusing is needed, check out the man’s last paragraph. It would be a great article to discuss with friends.

About Joe Thorn

I am the Lead Pastor of Redeemer Fellowship in Saint Charles, IL, and author of Note to Self: The Discipline of Preaching to Yourself. Jen is my wife, and Katherine, Elias, Madeline and Kilian are my kids.

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  • Scott M

    The article is pretty good. However, I did find it somewhat disconcerting to see the departing president of lifeway using a central Islamic phrase to refer to our denomination. Do you think it was intentional? Mostly just curious.

  • http://www.joethorn.net Joe Thorn

    Scott,

    You know I never made that connection! Southern Baptists have been known (or have liked to call themselves) the “people of the bible/book” for a long time though. I don’t think most even know of the Islamic use. Great observation.

  • Scott M

    Thanks for the clarification. I don’t have a particularly strong Baptist background, but do have a good deal of exposure to other, non-Christian religions. It still seems strange coming from a Christian about Christians. As far as the last paragraph goes, I wouldn’t consider any group of Christians a lost cause. Or we would all be in trouble.

  • http://www.joethorn.net Joe Thorn

    I agree man. Those are my thoughts as well.

  • http://blog.nelmezzo.net David Wright

    Dr. Draper’s article is exciting stuff, because he is, in a statesmanlike way, attempting to be honest about the SBCs strengths and weaknesses. When a prominent leader leads the way in such attempts, good things can follow.

    Here’s a personal SBC perspective of some of the strengths and weaknesses: The SBC has done and is doing many wonderful things. I spent 7 or 8 years altogether in a SBC missionary church plant in inner-city Chicago. This church has received more than two decades of extraordinary assistance from the SBC. With the help of the SBC, it is a remarkable church and has done much good in its neighborhood. Over the years, it has been the convention’s generosity in assisting this church that helped it survive what would otherwise some very difficult financial situations. (Many other people and organizations have also been very generous). The people who planted this church were staunch SBCers with a wonderful vision and heart for reaching the neighborhood and the city. That the SBC produces people with such a desire to serve the gospel reflects well on what is good about the SBC. I also know some SBC missionaries and they, too, have a great heart for the gospel. These are just a few people I know personally, but surely they represent a great number of similar citizens of God’s kingdom who happen to be within the SBC.

    Also, as someone who is currently going to Trinity in Deerfield, I am very appreciative of the SBC educational efforts. Trinity is a wonderful school and it’s where I wanted to be, but it is way more expensive than an SBC school (particularly for SBC students). If Southern were in Chicago, I would have strongly considered it, both for excellence and for the important factor of it being much more affordable. The SBC seminaries are doing some wonderful work and just the fact that they make a theological and biblical education so attainable reflects well on the SBC.

    Here are some of the negatives of the SBC, as I have seen and in part experienced them: the SBC is one of the more enthusiastic participants in the envangelical idolatry of America. Large swaths of the convention have bought wholesale into the mythology of America as God’s new chosen land and people. The current culture war ethos, “Take America back for God” is being embraced with a reckless disregard for the truths of scripture and the gospel. In the SBC, the church as supposed savior of a once Christian nation is in full competition with the church that has only the foolishness of the gospel of Christ crucified and risen to offer to a fallen world. One thing a fallen world can be expected to notice is Christians who have worldly solutions to offer. Some of secular society’s understanding of the SBC is unfair, much of it isn’t. The culture wars are a metaphor all to well understood by a world that is familiar with all the effects of battles for power. The gospel on the other hand isn’t understood by this world and is the only “new” thing the church has to offer. It’s not clear whether the SBC or the rest of evangelicalism will let the gospel slip away in its pursuit of restoring “Christian” America.

    One of the reasons the true preaching and teaching and living of the gospel is so imperiled is that overall, SBC committments to biblical truth have proven surprisingly shallow. Sometimes it’s hard to discern a difference between the soteriology of the sinner’s prayer and soteriology of indulgences (perform this transaction and you will be saved). Sometimes in the SBC, a passion for the gospel is merely a passion for being passionate about the gospel, without being a corresponding passion for the truth of the gospel. Dr. Welch’s address to this years convention had much passion. This was clear. But what scriptural truth it was meant to convey is much less clear.

    What a mix the SBC is! Deep passion for mission and the gospel alongside frequent confusion about the gospel and some of the thinnest possible understandings of it. A desire to bring Christ to the world alongside a desire to regain the supposed status as God’s new chosen nation on earth. A denominations of millions with millions, that can’t get more than a third of its member to regularly fellowship in the body of Christ. So much that is of God. So much that isn’t. In short the SBC is just like any individual Christian: a contradiction of weakness, sin, grace and goodness. Two natures side by side. And just like any individual Christian the path forward is one of desperate flight: fleeing to Christ and his strength and grace where our constant weakness is all to evident.

    Dr. Drapers article, particularly the final paragraph, says some of these things in language that is much more diplomatic. But his heart for seeing the convention be transformed under God’s leadership comes through loud and clear. It’s very encouraging.

  • http://justtodd.snowhill.org Todd

    joe, i suspect i can be guilty of critiquing the sbc (that may be an understatement). i found the best part of draper’s article to be in the necessity to address our current situatedness and its complexities with more diligence than beating the drum of the past. while we should be infomred about our past, to resurrect the past in some gloriifed manner only serves to ignore the very different cultural milieu. the debacle that was/is welch and his use of lemke and grahm’s recent baseless comments in a sermon only serve to illustrate where we are out of touch with really doing theology. your recent posts about “experiemntal theology” expose how little time some take to think theologically about the implications of their tirades masked as evaluations in sermonic form.

    side note – i would prefer for us to be known as Jesus people as opposed to “people of the book.” in all honesty we don’t often practice either but i would prefer to be known by follwoing Jesus rather than a “book.” i hope you won’t consider that as a swipe at the Scriptures but rather an attempt to locate that to which we have relationship with that changes our lives, it is the Jesus of the Scriptures not the Scriptures themselves.

    point of contention – i am not all to confident in who we put up as our experts on culture.

    enjoy.

  • http://www.joethorn.net Joe Thorn

    On your side note – I agree with you. In College I was known as the “theologian,” by students and profs, but I was NOT known as a guy who loved and followed Jesus. I have been repenting of that ever since I graduated. Jesus should be what we hold forth, and who we are known to follow. Of course Jesus’ words are found in Scripture, and he his exaplined there. Yeah, I agree with you 100%.

    As to the point of contention, I see what you are saying. It depends on the issue, and the person speaking to it. I have on occassion expressed my frustration with how our leaders engage culture (one example). Some guys should just be quiet, and others need to learn how to speak redemptively.

  • Scott M

    It’s the difference between being a religion of sacred writings and one of a living Savior. The difference doesn’t look particularly subtle to me. I like the discussion. I do wonder why so many are waging war against those to whom we’re supposed to be bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. I had someone in a conversation today tell me I “must be pretty lonely [as a Christian]” . I’m really not and tried to explain that, but it’s hard when people tend to experience or witness more confrontational encounters as the norm.

  • http://middlekid.blogspot.com Paul

    We desperately need to bring our troops home from the culture “wars,” and retire all of the generals.

  • http://middlekid.blogspot.com Paul

    By the way….I am always encouraged by Draper’s articles. I am much less encouraged by most of what I hear coming from others in leadership.

  • http://www.stevekmccoy.com/ Steve McCoy

    I agree with that Paul guy, twice in a row.

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