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BF&M 2000 TO UNDERGO SCRUTINY AT SBC

June 5, 2023

By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector

Southern Baptist Convention president Bart Barber, a pastor in Farmersville, Texas, recently announced on a Twitter video that he expects there will be a motion to amend the SBC’s Constitution and Bylaws along with the motion for the newly elected SBC president to appoint a committee to study both the Constitution and Bylaws and the Baptist Faith and Message 2000.

The proposed amendment from Virginia pastor Mike Law would clarify that the SBC only cooperates with churches that do not affirm, appoint or employ a woman as a pastor of any kind. For the amendment to be voted on by messengers at the convention in New Orleans next week, the SBC Executive Committee will need to advance the amendment at its Monday meeting prior to Tuesday’s annual meeting.

If the EC chooses not to advance it, it could also be considered if a new motion is introduced asking the messengers to vote at this year’s annual meeting. For that to happen, messengers would have to approve voting on it at this year’s annual meeting, then subsequently approve the amendment by a two-thirds vote at both this year’s and next year’s annual SBC meetings. [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Featured, Opinion Column

WHY DO WE HAVE SUCH LITTLE FAITH?

June 1, 2023

By Clay Hallmark
President, Tennessee Baptist Convention

One of the adventures I love is leading tours of the Holy Land. Seeing God’s Word come alive in people’s lives is something that I really enjoy. Each time I go to Israel, one of my favorite places to go is the boat ride on the Sea of Galilee. 

I seem to always think about that time Jesus came to His disciples walking on the water, and Peter called out to the Lord to walk on the water. Jesus told Peter, “Come!” 

At that point Peter had a decision to make about his faith in the Lord. He had to step out of the boat or sit down in the boat depending on his faith. 

You know it is easy for us to say we believe the Lord, and we put our faith in Him, but it is another thing to step out of the boat and walk on water when He tells us to “Come.”  [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Featured, Opinion Column

SATANISM IS NOT ALWAYS OVERT

May 31, 2023

By Larry Robertson
Senior pastor, Hilldale Baptist Church, Clarksville

Last month a sold-out crowd of satanists descended on Boston for SatanCon 2023 to celebrate The Satanic Temple’s 10-year anniversary. 

Many within my tribe were upset, and I get that. I really do.“They’re not even hiding their satanism anymore!”

Be that as it may, brothers and sisters, “Satan (also) disguises himself as an angel of light” (II Corinthians 11:14).

So, if we’re going to be offended by misguided souls parading their hostility against God, let us be equally offended by anything that opposes the holy heart of God. 

When Peter pushed back against Jesus’ talk of dying, do you remember what Jesus said? [Read more…]

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LA SALUD MENTAL Y EL EVANGELIO

May 30, 2023

By Escrito por: Joana Perez

Dedicado a todos aquellos que compartieron valientemente sus luchas personales contra la salud mental, con la esperanza de que su valentía inspire una mayor comprensión y compasión hacia aquellos que sufren en silencio.

Perez

El Evangelio y la salud mental están interconectados porque ambos abordan la condición humana y nuestra necesidad de sanación gracia, compasión y restauración. Más importante aún, demuestran cómo deben responder los cristianos a un mundo que está en sufrimiento y quebrantado.

Por desgracia, existe un estigma en torno a la salud mental en los círculos cristianos, y muchas personas sienten vergüenza de buscar ayuda o apoyo. Pero la verdad es que los problemas de salud mental son comunes y pueden afectar a cualquiera, independientemente de su fe, cultura, raza o situación socioeconómica.

Como cristianos no podemos ignorar la realidad de que toda la creación se vio afectada negativamente por la caída.  En consecuencia, nuestros cerebros también están expuestos a encontrarse con daños. El cerebro humano es un órgano como cualquier otro órgano de nuestro cuerpo. Es susceptible a enfermedades, degeneración y deficiencias en el funcionamiento. [Read more…]

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MENTAL HEALTH AND THE GOSPEL

May 30, 2023

By Joana Perez
Sexual assault clinical counselor, Knoxville

Editor’s Note: The following column is also available in Spanish here.

The gospel and mental health are closely related because they both address the human condition and our need for  grace, healing, compassion and restoration. More importantly, it also demonstrates how Christians are to respond to a suffering, broken world.

Unfortunately, there is often a stigma surrounding mental health in Christian circles, and many people feel ashamed or embarrassed to seek help or support. 

But the truth is, mental health struggles are common and can affect anyone, regardless of their faith, culture, race or socioeconomic background.

As Christians we cannot ignore the reality that all creation was negatively  affected by the fall. Consequently, our brains are also exposed to encounter damages.  [Read more…]

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PUTTING THE BIG ROCKS IN THE BUCKET

May 25, 2023

By Randy C. Davis
President & executive director, Tennessee Baptist Mission Board

A best-selling author popularized an illustration to show the importance of knowing your priorities. He filled a bucket with sand and pebbles and then attempted to put the big rocks in the bucket. There was no room.

However, when he first filled the bucket with the big rocks, then added the sand and pebbles, it all fit, and what didn’t fit wasn’t essential. 

The point: If we want to live lives with impact and purpose, we must identify what’s truly important.

We have been rock sorting at the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board. 

Back in January, I shared with some of our leaders at TBMB what I considered to be six “big rocks” with which we as the TBMB need to fill our buckets over the next 18-to-36 months. [Read more…]

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CHRISTIANS NEED TO BE ‘SQUEAKY WHEELS’

May 23, 2023

By Lonnie Wilkey
Editor, Baptist and Reflector

I have heard all my life that the “squeaky wheel gets the grease.” According to Wikipedia (the free encyclopedia) the phrase is “an American proverb or metaphor used to convey the idea that the most notable (or loudest) problems are the ones most likely to get attention.”

According to a Pew Research report in June of 2022, only 1.6 percent of the United States population identifies as transgender or binary; that is that their gender is different from the sex they were born with — either male or female. That number increases to 3.1 percent of adults age 25 or younger, according to Pew Research.

I am not a math major, but that tells me that at least 95 percent of American adults identify as male or female. [Read more…]

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THE ‘MIRACLE WEDDING’

May 18, 2023

By Jerry Jeter
Pastor, Pleasant View Baptist Church, Clarksville

We waited. I was the first to arrive. The bride was the second. We waited for the groom. Others began arriving. Suddenly, we heard a siren. It was a Tennessee state trooper, going in a direction nobody we knew would be coming from. Then an ambulance, followed by a Sherriff’s deputy.

 All went in that direction where we thought we had nothing to worry about. I began taking pictures of the unique venue for a wedding, a unique wedding. 

This wedding was between two friends whom I’ve ridden with before. The three of us rode our motorcycles in a funeral procession a few months ago, along with dozens of others. [Read more…]

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MY MOM WAS A CHEAPSKATE (AND I’M GLAD)

May 12, 2023

By Matt Tullos
Stewardship specialist, Tennessee Baptist Mission Board

I’m so thankful for my mother. She made it to heaven this past year, but she left an indelible mark on my life. Growing up, I thought my mother was the strictest, most penny-pinching woman on the planet. As an adult, this theory has been confirmed. I used to think this was a flaw more than a virtue. I was wrong.

Mom was prepared for every crisis. The apocalypse, the tribulation, and the nuclear meltdown never happened, but if they did, the world would have turned to her and they would all receive stacks of canned hominy, frozen vegetables, and enough toilet paper to go around. But not the two-ply toilet paper. Much too expensive. … 

I remember our weekly runs to the bread surplus store to get expired cinnamon bread at half price. If it weren’t for the commercials, I wouldn’t have even known that McDonald’s served French fries until I was over the age of accountability.  [Read more…]

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FIRST-PERSON: PARTNERSHIP REQUIRES PERSEVERANCE

May 7, 2023

By Paul Chitwood


Chitwood

Like most Baptist churches of the day, First Baptist Church of Murray, Ky., regularly hosted missionaries and denominational workers raising financial support. Growing frustrated with so many requesting to speak on Sundays, Pastor Harvey Boyce Taylor tried something new. He placed a box at the back of the sanctuary and told the congregation they could put extra offerings in the box and that would be their missions fund, divided up for specific, stipulated causes. The members were soon giving more to mission work through Pastor Taylor’s Box Plan than they had been giving for the individual appeals during Sunday gatherings.

Seeing the success, Taylor began a campaign to get other churches across the state to adopt the model. The model became so popular that, on Nov. 16, 1915, messengers to the annual meeting of the Kentucky Baptist Convention approved it, calling it the “unified budget plan,” as their way to fund their cooperative mission work. Interestingly, that meeting took place at First Baptist Church of Jellico, Tenn., just across Kentucky’s state line. Of special interest to me is that First Jellico is my home church where I was baptized, ordained and married. [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Featured, Opinion Column, SBC

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