SBC turns back three tries to amend 2000 Baptist Faith & Message

June 18, 2001

SBC turns back three tries to
amend 2000 Baptist Faith & Message
___By Charlie Warren
___Arkansas Baptist Newsmagazine
___NEW ORLEANS--Attempts to revise the recently revised Baptist Faith & Message statement and to take a stand against homosexuality dominated the 28 motions made by messengers during the Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting June 12-13.
___Of the 28 motions, three were attempts to amend the faith statement that was adopted last summer and has become a major dividing point between SBC leadership and more moderate-minded Baptists and state conventions. All three attempts failed overwhelmingly.
___Tony Woodell of Pulaski Heights Baptist Church in Little Rock, Ark., moved to reinsert the words "the criterion by which Scripture is to be interpreted is Jesus Christ" into the Baptist Faith & Message.
___That phrase was removed by last year's revision committee, despite the protests of moderate Baptists. Removing the statement about Jesus being the criterion by which Scripture is interpreted was one of the major factors that drove the Baptist General Convention of Texas to alter its funding of SBC seminaries last fall.
___"If we do not recognize that Jesus is Lord over Scripture, we fail to realize he is Lord over all," Woodell told messengers. "Jesus Christ must be the criteria by which we evaluate Scripture."
___But Richard Land, president of the SBC's Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission and a member of last year's Baptist Faith & Message committee, spoke against the amendment "because this phrase is virtually the same that was soundly defeated by messengers last year."
___The phrase in question "has been used to set up a false dichotomy between Christ and Scripture," Land said. "There is no dichotomy between Jesus and Scripture."
___Charles Wade, executive director of the Baptist General Convention of Texas and a messenger from First Baptist Church of Arlington, spoke in favor of the amendment. Wade agreed there is no dichotomy between Jesus and Scripture, but asserted that "those of us who wish it (the criteria statement) to be left in do believe in the full authority of Scripture."
___Wade added that Jesus, who "inspired the thoughts of those who wrote Scripture down for us, is the One who should interpret Scripture for us."
___Chuck Kelley, president of New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, then spoke against reinserting the Jesus language. As evidence of why this phrase is dangerous, he cited an editorial published last year in the Baptist Standard, the weekly newspaper affiliated with the BGCT.
___Kelley said the editorial claimed the Apostle Paul contradicted himself in two verses, therefore, Jesus must be the criterion to help Christians interpret Paul's writings. "Southern Baptists have always believed the whole Bible is the word of God," Kelley said, declaring there is no contradiction in Scripture and the Holy Spirit helps believers understand Scripture.
___Editor Marv Knox, who was not involved in the debate on the convention floor, said later Kelley misrepresented his editorial.
___"I wrote that 'some of Paul's writings seem to be at odds with each other, and Jesus' words and actions clarify and separate the timeless and universal from the culturally specific,'" Knox explained.
___"My editorial did compare what Paul wrote in Ephesians 5:21 and 5:22-23. However, it specifically pointed out that Paul's admonition for wives to submit to their husbands in Ephesians 5:22 is contrasted by some Christians with what Paul wrote in Galatians 3:28, 'there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.'
___"The editorial then points to Jesus, whose teaching and behavior illumines this and other challenging Scripture passages. The editorial stated: 'Jesus, who countered cultural trends that demeaned women and himself treated women with respect and dignity equal to men, presents a model for behavior clarifying Paul's admonition to submission. Jesus illuminates seeming paradoxes between Paul's own words. And being divine, Jesus settles the issue."
___In another motion related to the Baptist Faith & Message, Fred Malone of First Baptist Church in Clinton, La., urged amending Article 14 by adding the words, "informed by Holy Scripture" to the statement's comments on the Lord's Day.
___Malone said the 2000 Baptist Faith & Message contains a significant change in the wording from both the 1925 and 1963 statements. "My concern is that this emphasizes personal conscience" rather than scriptural directive, he said. "We are losing the sanctity of the Lord's Day. It belongs to the Lord and not to us."
___Al Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and a member of last year's revision committee, spoke against Malone's motion.
___"Every part (of the 2000 statement) is informed by Holy Scripture," Mohler argued. "We should not be in the business of continually debating the Baptist Faith & Message on the floor of the convention. ... On these truths we take our stand and we will not give an inch."
___Adrian Rogers, pastor of Bellevue Baptist Church of suburban Memphis, Tenn., and a revision committee member, also spoke against the amendment, saying: "God does not lay down specific rules for the Lord's Day. Any revision is superfluous."
___One messenger raised a point of order, noting that when all those speaking against amendments (all members of last year's revision committee) speak from the platform, it leaves the impression that the chair itself opposes the amendment. James Merritt, SBC president, assured messengers that the chair takes no position, strives for fairness and that the only reason the men were speaking from the platform was that last year's committee was present to assist the discussion.
___The third attempt to amend the Baptist Faith & Message was made by Steve Barrett of First Baptist Church in Waseca, Minn. He asked that the word "religious" be stricken from Article 1 because "God's word provides sufficient instruction for both life and godliness" and "all opinions and not merely religious opinions" are ruled by Scripture.
___The word "religious," he said, implies that the Bible speaks only to religious opinion. "We are saying God lied to us when we limit the Bible to religious opinion."
___Mohler, speaking against the amendment, said: "We agree with the sentiment and conviction of Mr. Barrett. However, if we felt the word 'religious' limited Scripture, we would have deleted it last year."

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