I feel Brad Whitt’s angst. I, too, am frustrated and concerned about the future of our denomination. I, too, am a product of the Cooperative Program, and I love being Southern Baptist. I have always been a member of churches that were strong supporters of the CP, and I graduated from college and seminary heavily supported by CP funds. The three churches I pastored were strong supporters of the CP, and the church I am a member of today is one of the strongest supporters of the CP and SBC mission work I have ever known.
Today I serve as the director of missions for the best association of Southern Baptist churches in the country. Some of those churches are pastored by young men who might be considered “young leaders.” I can say without equivocation that, to a man, these guys are solid biblicists and are extremely committed to the Lord Jesus Christ and are intentionally focused on leading their churches to fulfill the Great Commission. They are so focused on the Great Commission that they are willing to ask, “How can we be more effective?” From their perspective, they are more committed to getting Great Commission results than supporting good traditions – no matter how good they are.
As one of the somewhat older Southern Baptist leaders, here is my concern: It is far too easy for those of us who are more traditional to ignore or even to “slam” these young pastors when they raise serious questions that make the rest of us uncomfortable. Conversely, it is far too easy for many of the young pastors to dismiss the denomination that gave birth to them and, in most cases, provided them education, training and support. It is time all of us stopped talking over each other and started having a respectful conversation with each other about the future that God has in mind for us.
All of us know that “the time is short.” The world we live in is experiencing a cultural upheaval at every point on the globe like we have not seen before. The gospel is being proclaimed to more individuals and more people groups than ever before in history. The opportunity we have now is greater than Southern Baptists have ever known in our denominational history, and yet we are spending our energy slamming each other rather than focusing on the Great Commission. Shame on us!
Here is my conclusion and caution: If we don’t stop disrespecting each other, God will not bless us. If we don’t get serious about changing our methods so that the gospel will more effectively penetrate our pagan culture and streamline our cooperative missions so that more CP dollars get directly to the mission field, we will lose more than our “young leaders” – we will lose our opportunity.
Young, somewhat old, or older than dirt, we are all Southern Baptists saved by the sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ, called to his service and commanded to “Go and make disciples.” If we will let this command unite us, we will continue to be “relevant” to his kingdom.
What do you think? Click here to send a letter to the editor addressing this or another subject.