November 18, 2002
TEXAS BAPTIST FORUM:
Keep the 'main thing' main
___Christianity always has faced two great enemies--fundamentalism and liberalism.
___Fundamentalism creates systems, makes rules and enforces dogma. It leads people to believe that so long as they follow its precepts they are right with God. It becomes a substitute for Christ.
___Liberalism denies the possibility of ultimate truth and encourages people to manufacture their own truth and create God in their own image. It causes people to deny Christ and embrace a god of their own making.
E-mail the editor at marvknox@baptiststandard.com
___Those who truly know the heart of God resist these errors by honoring God's word, loving God and each other, and joining together to work for the cause of Christ despite their differences. They have "kept the main thing the main thing."
___The Baptist General Convention of Texas annual session in Waco, dominated by 90-10 votes, revealed the uneasy marriage between the BGCT and the Southern Baptist Convention is over.
___The decisions of BGCT, SBC and Southern Baptists of Texas Convention leaders will now all be rubber-stamped by their respective constituents. Leaders now are free to do as they please without hindrance.
___The direction of the SBC and the SBTC have been clear for some time. They have chosen the path of fundamentalism. The path of the BGCT is less clear, but many of us pray that it will "keep the main thing the main thing" and not follow the path of liberalism.
___The fetters are now off. We implore our leaders to please be wise.
___ Gary Morgan
___ Waxahachie
Stand on principle
___This is such a sad day for our missionaries and Southern Baptist missions endeavors.
___My wife and I returned to the States from Latvia in August because we, in our own convictions, could not sign an affirmation of the 2000 Baptist Faith & Message.
___Our reasons were clear: This mandate is unprecedented, and we would not be willing parties to the unraveling of age-old convictions that we as Southern Baptists are not a creedal people.
___I take issue with Avery Willis' comments (Oct. 28) that all missionaries must sign within the next three months. He states, "Missionaries are being asked to demonstrate integrity in continuing to serve Southern Baptists."
___It is interesting that the integrity of missionaries was never called into question until we were told we must sign this statement of affirmation.
___We, however, believe that in not signing we have demonstrated before Southern Baptists that our conviction to stand upon our principle of the priesthood of every believer far exceeds the winds of controversy and politics that are present within our convention at this time.
___ Monte Erwin
___ Stillwater, Okla.
Write Bible versions
___If the priesthood of the believer means we are individually accountable to God and we can independently be led of God, why do we need the Bible?
___Why can't each individual just pray and do whatever God tells them? After all, many denominations have long ago departed from biblical authority. They depend on extra-biblical revelation, feelings and experience to determine doctrine.
___If the Bible is not correct when it says that the man is head of the woman (1 Corinthians 11:3); that women should not teach or have authority over the man in church (1 Corinthians 14:34 & 35; 1 Timothy 2:11, 12); and that wives should submit to their own husbands (Ephesians 5:22; Colossians 3:18; 1 Peter 3:1), we need a new Bible that is more in step with our cultural and social needs.
___All the rhetoric, spin and semantics in the world cannot disguise the real issue that divides us--the authority and relativity of the Bible.
___The lost world identified the problem a long time ago. They have been telling us for years that our present Bible is outdated. Why do we persist in playing these games? Get all the scholars together and write three versions of the Bible--one for the liberals, one for the moderates and one for the conservatives.
___No, we only need two. The conservatives already have one.
___ Gerald Dickerson
___ Austin
Don't underestimate Muslims
___If Israel were to underestimate the number of their Muslim enemies as badly as some of Jerry Falwell's critics underestimate the number of their Muslim enemies, Israel would be in a hopeless situation.
___I don't know what percentage of Muslims Falwell quotes as being enemies of America, but I think 100 percent would be a very conservative estimate. Falwell's critics can take a liberal interpretation of the Bible and show that Goliath was the only Philistine who hated Israel.
___ Ed Holmes
___ Sanger
Love those Veggies
___I am disappointed in the stand Diane Lane has decided to take against VeggieTales (Oct. 28).
___While I agree that preschoolers and children cannot understand all the hidden meanings found in the VeggieTales movie and videos, we need to keep in mind that these videos aren't meant to be purely educational. They are entertainment, and I am thrilled that there was a movie I could take my children to that taught biblical principles.
___I would much rather my children be exposed to and attracted to characters such as VeggieTales than for them to be interested in many of the popular violent and offensive characters found on television.
___In addition, the article that was cited as "disturbing" (Sept. 23) made no mention that Sunday School teachers should be replaced by VeggieTales movies.
___Surely there are more important issues worthy of our concern than trying to keep our children from watching VeggieTales. Making the leap to apply the "age appropriate" educational standard to this form of entertainment is not helpful and not logical.
___I am certain no child has been "harmed" by watching the videos. As a matter of fact, I believe that hundreds of thousands of people (including parents) have seen the new "Jonah" movie who never would step foot in a Sunday School class.
___Thanks to Big Idea Productions for quality family entertainment and for creative methods to expose lost people to the gospel.
___ Shelly Melia
___ Burleson
Slippery slope
___To equate even those who would be comfortable with the pejorative use of the term "Fundamentalist" as a label with the likes of Jim Jones and David Koresh is not only insulting and offensive to those of us who Carl Hess is targeting with his remarks--conservatives sympathetic to the Southern Baptist Convention (Nov. 4), it is also historically, theologically and sociologically inaccurate and naïve.
___His mention of Jerry Falwell as if Falwell even remotely shares the same theological moorings as Jones and Koresh is gross character assassination in the extreme.
___Jones and Koresh both represented extreme cultic and heretical beliefs not at all consistent with Christianity. Both men were sexual deviants who exploited their followers for their own perverted desires. Both men were also murderers who took the lives of innocent people.
___I really cannot even believe the Standard would publish such silly and even irresponsible remarks from someone who should know better. And to blame Falwell's remarks for the loss of life due to terrorism--you have got to be kidding!
___Hess has every right to disagree with the SBC and conservatives/fundamentalists. I may even disagree with his disagreement. But I would never stoop to such tactics as to equate those with whom I disagree with perverts, murderers and theological deviants simply to make a political point.
___That really is a slippery slope!
___ Jack Maddox
___ Dean
Nobel overdue
___It was long overdue, but finally, former President Jimmy Carter won the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize. Nobody in the world deserves it more. It is ironic the 2002 Nobel Prize winner was announced on the day after Congress voted to give President Bush authority to go to war against Iraq.
___Carter's peacemaking achievements are well-known. His peacemaking principles are faith-based. He loves his enemies and works for justice by feeding the hungry, housing the poor and promoting human rights for all people everywhere. Carter does best what God requires of all of us--to do justice, love kindness and walk humbly with our God. He possesses the trait that only truly great people have--humility.
___The power of positive peacemaking trumps going to war to ensure a lasting peace. War is what we get when we fail to practice God's peacemaking principles. Jesus, the Prince of Peace, once said, "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God."
___The state of Georgia has given us three of the world's all-time greatest peacemakers--Clarence Jordan, Martin Luther King Jr. and Jimmy Carter.
___ Paul L. Whiteley Sr.
___ Louisville, Ky.
Explain the rainbow
___Science is thought to debunk Christianity. However, things may be the reverse.
___I have long pondered whether the rainbow is a standing miracle. Scientists say, "This is how light works," but you learn those rules, look at the rainbow, and the rules just don't explain it. The biblical explanation suddenly becomes all the more plausible.
___Granted, light passing through a prism refracts. But here are the imponderables: Into what shape do the laws suggest the refraction will form? What size? Here is the clincher: How many different bows should actually come from the billions of water droplets scattered in myriads of locales strewn all across the sky? And isn't the bow upside down?
___What scientists say about the rainbow gives absolutely no explanation for its shape at all. One huge bow, feet on the ground, apex in the sky. So here is the true answer. God put his bow in the clouds, just like he said (Genesis 9:13).
___And don't take my word for it! Rush over to some scientific neighbor's house and get him to critique this. (The Bereans were considered more noble because they went home and checked out what the Apostle Paul said.) But consider the possibilities. The next time some atheistic pundit steps on the stage, ask him to explain the rainbow in purely natural terms. When he can't, say: "Well, isn't that interesting! Care to hear my account?"
___ Thomas F. Harkins Jr.
___ Fort Worth
Give up to gain
___Thanks for the good word on church-starting (Oct. 28). We at First Baptist Church in The Woodlands believe in starting churches. Lifepointe Church, our newest and fifth mission in The Woodlands, is doing great.
___None of our church starts would have been possible without the help of the Baptist General Convention of Texas. They have provided financial resources, training, workshops and consultants for each of these starts. Several of our missions, which have outgrown us, are now starting churches.
___A church that wants to be a successful "church-starting" church must commit people, financial resources, facilities and other ministry help. They must also be willing to "give up in order to gain" for the overall advancement of God's kingdom.
___After all, the kingdom of God is not all about me, nor is it all about the First Baptist Church of The Woodlands. It is all about reaching the lost for Jesus!
___Let's get on with starting more churches and forget about building up our own kingdom.
___ Pete Freeman
___ The Woodlands
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