If Southern Baptists are willing to compromise on the name of the denomination, what else are they going to compromise on? When you compromise on anything you stand for, it puts into jeopardy everything you stand for. If we allow the world to impact us enough that we are willing to compromise on this little thing, then they know they can get us to compromise on something else.
All of the times I have ever witnessed to someone, not once have they walked away because I was a Southern Baptist. They walked away because they were lost and they knew it. Instead of asking, “What is it about our name that we can change so that we won’t be a hinderance to others wanting to know Christ?” what we really need to ask is, “What is it about my walk that personally keeps others from wanting to know Christ?” But in order to ask that, we have to make it personal, and that makes us uncomfortable because we all have a little bit of the world still in us, no matter how long we’ve been a Christian.
I am a Southern Baptist because, of all denominations, we are the closest to the New Testament church. If it offends anyone else, that’s okay – Jesus offended people as well, especially the religious rulers, who would make changes to their rituals and beliefs all the time if it concerned their comfort level. (Does any of this sound familiar?)
Maybe we need to change our perspective and see this thing from a biblical worldview and stop trying so hard to fit into the world’s view. I am a Christian and a Southern Baptist, which means I accepted Jesus Christ into my life and I live by a set of standards that he founded in the New Testament church. If that offends you, then apparently you are offended not by me, but by who I stand for. I won’t compromise my stand.
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