6.29.2007 | Well, guess we'll throw Jesus out

I'm a Baptist; not the best Baptist, perhaps not even a good Baptist. But I do read my Scripture, and take to heart what I read. And have little regard for those who try to enforce their notions of Christian rectitude on the rest of us.

A case in point is this attempt by the Missouri Baptist Convention to bring back Prohibition. Carrie Nation is tanned, rested, and ready... From Christianity Today, the basics:

Church planters who receive money from the Missouri Baptist Convention (MBC) must now teach alcohol abstinence.

Well, as the saying goes, in nonessential things we must have Christian liberty. I see no such liberty here, and since I've yet to find a place in Scripture that forbids the consumption of alcohol, it's hard to understand what would make my Baptist brethren in Missouri demand abstinence.

The first thing that came to my mind was that Jesus would almost certainly have run afoul of MBC. That wine-guzzling carpenter's son went about imbibing with all manner of low-class peasants and tax collectors. Why, that man even encouraged others to drink by facilitating their imbibing. I'm shocked, I say, shocked. From the Gospel of John, chapter 2:

1On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 2Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples. 3When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, "They have no wine." 4And Jesus said to her, "Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come." 5His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you."

6Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. 7Jesus said to the servants, "Fill the jars with water." And they filled them up to the brim. 8And he said to them, "Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast." So they took it. 9When the master of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom 10and said to him, "Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now." 11This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.

A little gospel goes a long way, and it appears that certain folks in the MBC may claim to believe in Jesus, but, somehow, don't trust the Gospel message that there is a season for all things. Including wine.

6.20.2007 | the righteous and the wicked

Looking for a good, old school confession of faith? Consider the New Hampshire
Baptist Confession of 1833. It's succinct; it's clear as a bell ringing out on a cold winter's morn.

Here's one of my favorite elements of that confession, and one which all too many well-meaning Christians, and most secular humanists, would gag on: the notion that we are, as Jesus told us, to be divided into sheep and goats, the righteous and the wicked.

From the New Hampshire Baptist Confession of 1833:

We believe that there is a radical and essential difference between the righteous and the wicked; that such only as through faith are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and sanctified by the Spirit of our God, are truly righteous in his esteem; while all such as continue in impenitence and unbelief are in his sight wicked, and under the curse; and this distinction holds among men both in and after death.

Note that well: "a radical and essential difference between the righteous and the wicked." And know well that neither the righteous or the wicked may get their justice here on this earth.

Rest assured, though: His will be done, and the righteous in Christ will be rewarded. Those who deny Christ and persecute His flock will see something a wee bit warmer...

3.04.2007 | Pie in the sky or ham where I am

This is the false choice often posed by those who favor "social justice" (usual translation: Marxism) over evangelism and mission. Christians have, throughout our history, favored one or the other, sometimes resulting in bloodshed. But it's a false choice; one who knows Jesus Christ as Lord will, by definition, come to do that which is right. Which most definitely includes taking care of the least of our brothers and sisters.

One group that might be accused of erring on the "social justice" side, if you didn't know any better, is the Baptist World Alliance. BWA biggies hobnob regularly with such as Fidel Castro and Jimmy Carter, and, in the name of pushing for religious freedom, with government officials in places such as Communist China whose mission it is to control the fast-growing Christian churches.

But, if you've ever been to a BWA event, you may find out, rather quickly, that the emphasis is not on "social justice." It is on Jesus Christ as Lord. Period. One need not ponder long what Jesus would do, were he with us in the flesh today. He would tend to his flock, which is to say, each and every one of us.

What brings this up at all is the retirement bash for Dr. Denton Lotz last night. Dr. Lotz, General Secretary of BWA, has devoted his life to the cause of religious freedom. Which is to say, to the Baptist cause. Not that other denominations do not also advocate religious freedom. Rather, that the Baptists, from their beginnings in the 17th century, have been persecuted by the state, and by established churches. This tends to sharpen one's perspective, when you're on the wrong side of religious persecution. It is also the primary reason that I call myself a Baptist.

Take the time to read this statement on religious freedom by Dr. Lotz. As the Friends (Quakers) might say, "he speaks my mind."