November 11, 2002
TEXAS BAPTIST FORUM:
Technology offers solution
___Bart Barber hit on the Baptist family secret: Little effort is being made to connect the decisions voted on in our various annual meetings with the normal people in our churches (Oct. 7).
___What I find puzzling is that at several Baptist General Convention of Texas annual meetings, the idea of even discussing the use of available satellite and Internet technology for convention voting was dismissed.
E-mail the editor at marvknox@baptiststandard.com
___To summarize one Executive Board member's public statement, "It would be nice if we could have our conventions down at the Dairy Queen, but it just isn't possible." I well remember that statement and the laughter it generated.
___This issue isn't going to die. One day, probably sooner than later, it will be possible for every church to send messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention or any state convention annual meeting by driving as far as a regional site.
___If the BGCT will take the risk to initiate this change, it will be a quality long-term investment. As it is, these important convention votes are being made by microscopically small groups of people when compared to the huge numbers of unrepresented churches. Thus the disconnect.
___Quality decision making involves consensus building, not simple majority voting.
___For years, I have heard a broad range of voices say they are ready to move on, away from conflict and controversy, but no one seems to know how.
___Maybe this is how.
___ Tracy Watson
___ Corpus Christi
Gospel draws crowd
___Why did a record crowd attend the last night of Billy Graham's Metroplex Mission?
___I was in the "overflow" parking lot with 15,500 others that Sunday night, awestruck by the spectacle of what I was witnessing. Then finally Graham spoke. The message was about sin, judgment and hell--eternal separation from a holy God and also the suffering that people are enduring in this life. As always in Graham's preaching, he then centered on the cross of Calvary--the sacrificial blood of Christ that cleanses and redeems our sin. That Jesus died on that cross in my place so that I could stand forgiven before God.
___They came searching for answers to the emptiness and futility of a life lived without Christ. That night, they heard a gospel message that sadly many churches today have been wary to give, instead choosing to change the gospel of Christ to be less offensive, negative or even better palatable for today's seeker-sensitive church.
___The crowd that came that night heard the gospel of Jesus Christ uncompromised--even though still laughed at and considered to be foolishness by the world's wisdom. What drew the people by the thousands? The gospel of Jesus Christ, just the way Graham and his team always have done it.
___ Rod Beechey
___ Midlothian
Preschoolers see big picture
___Thank you for the article about "VeggieTales" (Sept. 23). My 3- and 4-year-olds love these videos.
___The writer of the "Spoiled 'Veggies'" letter (Oct. 28) claims the videos are "inappropriate for preschoolers." I think they are very appropriate for small children. Just because the children are too young to catch every nuance of the videos, or in her words the "hidden messages," doesn't mean they can't grasp the big picture.
___I doubt seriously if many youth would enjoy the videos as much as preschoolers. You might get the youth to watch a video once, but the videos will certainly not be played the number of times they will for a preschooler who watches things over and over again.
___The writer also states, "There is no easy way of teaching children about God's love." I think loving parents showing positive examples of their Christian faith is an excellent way to show God's love.
___I do agree that Sunday School is a great place to be on Sunday morning to learn about God, but during the week if my kids want to watch Madame Blueberry buy lots of stuff only to find out the stuff is not what brings true happiness, that's OK by me.
___ Gaylyn Chapman
___ Lubbock
Jesus gets angry
___Our denominational leaders are afraid to take an unpopular stand. I am referring to the outcry against Jerry Falwell.
___He has been accused of making political statements, but I see his accusers being more politically correct. Mohammed was a false prophet, and because of his teachings, millions are going to spend eternity in hell. My statement is not politically correct, but neither is Jesus. Jesus gets angry with anyone who leads others away from him (Luke 11:39-52, Revelation 2:6).
___I pray God will give us men who are willing to take a stand, no matter what the cost. I pray God will send a revival to our nation, but I pray that it will start in our churches, with our leaders.
___ Vida L. Jones
___
Washed away
___I have known Rick and Nancy Dill (Oct. 21) for 20 years. They were appointed missionaries with my mom and dad. They served alongside my parents in Germany. This is a couple who absolutely, I would trust my life and my children with. He speaks the truth!
___The Southern Baptist Convention as we know it is still on a downward spiral of political mumbo-jumbo that affects what God could do. I hate to see good, honest, Christ-centered people be washed away just because they think Jesus and not the present leadership of the SBC is their authority.
___Avery Willis and Jerry Rankin admit that they (SBC) have changed and expect others to change too. Hmmm, I thought society changes and God never changes. Are we now a convention that adapts to the movements of thought by man, or do we stand steadfast by God?
___ Steve Pinkston
___ Lawrenceville, Ga.
Missionary integrity
___I really don't understand all the fuss about missionaries and the current Baptist Faith & Message.
___If SBC missionaries who are funded through the International Mission Board are unwilling to "affirm that their personal beliefs are consistent with the current Baptist Faith & Message or, in the case of minor disagreements, that they will work in accordance with and not contrary to the document," then their SBC funding should be cut off.
___After all, the current BF&M has been affirmed by the SBC. If certain missionaries are not in doctrinal agreement with the SBC, then they ought not be supported by the SBC. However, it really should not come to that. Such missionaries ought to have enough integrity to do as some 26 missionaries, with six more pending, reportedly have already done--resign.
___After all, once the renegade Baptist General Convention of Texas gets everything in place, those missionaries unwilling to affirm the current BF&M can plug in to the BGCT's version of the IMB--oops, I mean their "network to facilitate worldwide missions involvement."
___ Dan Rogers III
___ Corsicana
God's service
___"Give me liberty or give me death." So say our missionaries to the SBC leadership commanding they sign the 2000 Baptist Faith & Message, what some feel denies the priesthood of the believer and is not in line with their faith in Christ.
___Charles Wade said it another way, "In seeking to eliminate the perceived problem of liberalism, they (SBC) have willingly sacrificed liberty."
___These brave and courageous missionaries are not only being fired but are now being told not to talk about it. Things like transportation costs, crate space and the like are being used to threaten them to be quiet about it. By speaking up, these bold missionaries may lose thousands of dollars, but they choose freedom over bondage. They are choosing a path impassioned and empowered by the holiness and sufferings of Christ, but the horror is that they suffer not at the hands of pagans, but at the manipulations of our own SBC leadership.
___Can freedom be found in supporting a convention that considers it so trivial to remove committed leaders from the mission field? If a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without God's notice, what does God notice here? Oh, the price we pay when political agendas become our convention's motivation!
___ Suzy Fuller
___ Tyler
Ministers of God
___Our grandson, David Jackson, a student at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, recently was injured in a horrible wreck in the Metroplex. He still is in very serious condition.
___Our writing is prompted by pride to count ourselves Texas Baptists.
___We were in the Dallas area for two weeks, and we are awed as we think of the outpouring of compassion and practical help from fellow Baptists.
___Our every physical need was met. Two churches, Memorial Baptist in Grapevine and Highland Baptist in Highland Park, were there for us every step of the way. The people from Dallas Baptist University and Southwestern Seminary came forth to provide food, housing and big shoulders to cry on.
___To us, this speaks to who Baptists are--ministers of God meeting needs as they come, without regard for whose responsibility this is. May we never lose sight of this call to ministry.
___We covet your prayers for our grandson.
___ Bill & Nell Jackson
___ Corpus Christi
'Killing' words
___Doug Fincher says he has never heard of a Christian fundamentalist killing innocent people (Nov. 4).
___How about Jim Jones and David Koresh? More recently, fundamentalist Jerry Falwell spoke words that resulted in the deaths of five people overseas. How many people have lost their lives because of the words of Jerry Vines, Jerry Falwell and others who spout their hatred of Muslims and endanger Christians trying to serve in Muslim countries?
___Sometimes fundamentalists "kill" with their words.
___I suspect we would be shocked to learn of the number of Christian workers who have committed suicide or simply lost the will to live after their lives and testimonies were destroyed by the lies of fundamentalists. Look at the Christian missionaries who are being forced to choose between God's word and the word of the Southern Baptist Convention tyrants.
___ Carl L. Hess
___ Ozark, Ala.
God's blessing
___Let me share with you a blessing our church received. It wasn't money or anything material.
___We were blessed by God as he sent us a wonderful man to be our interim pastor. Our church had some problems that we needed to work out before we called a "permanent" pastor. These problems were not communicated to him, but it seemed that every time he preached, God used him to speak to our hearts.
___Bob Evans and his wife, Patsy, are special people to all of us at First Baptist Church in Princeton. He was with us for five months and did a wonderful job.
___I recommend him to any church that needs to be loved while also hearing the truth from God's word. He is retired from Oklahoma Baptist University, where he taught for 15 years. Before he began his teaching ministry, he pastored churches in Oklahoma, New Mexico and Texas.
___We praise God for men like this who love God and his people and who preach and teach God's word with power.
___ Joe R. Tubb
___ Princeton
Not pi
___Regarding Tim McKeown's letter about 1 Kings 7:23, the circumference of a circle and pi (October 7): The circumference-to-diameter ratio (pi) implication in this verse is technically correct without reference to any other verse. The numbers 10, 30 and three indicate a consistent level of precision. The value of pi, to single digit precision, is three.
___When a number is written as 10 or 30, the implied precision is 0.5. If one attempts to extract a value of pi from such numbers, he should expect to get values from 2.8to 3.2. This range includes both three and the true value of pi.
___Measurements in cubits strongly suggest poor accuracy. A cubit is defined as the distance from the elbow to the tip of the index finger.
___Anyone who used cubit measurements to derived a value of pi as 3.1415927 surely would be joking.
___Whatever the purpose of the Kings verse, it is not intended to define an accurate value of pi.
___Cooper McGregor
___Lewisville
___What do you think? Submit letters for Texas Baptist Forum via e-mail to marvknox@baptiststandard.com or regular mail at Box 660267, Dallas 75266-0267. Maximum is 250 words.San Antonio
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