Heritage and Hope

A number of new churches have formed in the last 16 years that have chosen to affiliate with the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. Some have developed into strong, growing congregations while others have remained rather small and underdeveloped. I have friends in both types of churches and have worked with both as a state judicatory leader.

I am sure that the comments that follow will alienate some people in the moderate Baptist camp. I believe that there is a place for a church that affirms its Baptist theology and heritage while reaching out to its community in evangelism and service. On the other hand, there is little hope for those congregations who have chosen to define themselves as “not like the Southern Baptist Convention.” The former may come to understand what it means to be a missional church. The latter chooses to be a ghetto for hurt, disaffected Baptists who are looking for people like themselves. The former are strengthened by their past; the latter are captive to their past.

The greatest lesson we can learn from our experience in the SBC is to embrace the good experiences and to try to avoid duplicating the bad experiences. The old saying that “those who fail to study history are doomed to repeat it” is appropriate, but once one has studied history, he or she must take action in the contemporary world.

This has nothing to do with worship styles. There are new Baptist churches that practice a traditional, even liturgical, approach to worship that are reaching unchurched people. At that same time, there are churches that practice contemporary worship that fail to connect with their community. It is not about worship but about orientation.

If I were looking for a new church to join, I would much rather cast my lot with a group who look to the future with hope and enthusiasm than with a group that is still holding on to its anger. As I have begun “reinventing” myself as a church consultant, I have consciously positioned myself to work with smaller churches that might not usually have access to an outside consultant, but it would be poor use of my time to work with churches that want to define themselves in negative terms and look inward. I would rather spend time with folks who honor their heritage but are not afraid to try new approaches to ministry. I am pleased that there are churches like that who want my services.

When I was a summer missionary in Ohio over 40 years ago, I was surprised by the Southern Baptist church planters whose idea of “outreach” was to look for license tags from the South and try to enlist those people for their churches. They were not reaching out to the unchurched in the area but were actually forming “Southern societies.” When I was in the same area about ten years ago, I noted that none of those church plants had survived.

Where does God call us to direct our attention? Should we look inward or outward, backward or forward? You know the answers.

Comments

Check these out

Confessions of a Recovering Southern Baptist

I am grateful for my heritage as a Southern Baptist. I was exposed to the Bible and worship from a very young age. I grew up in a church in south Alabama that supported the Cooperative Program of missions giving. This meant that our church had the benefit of being part of a supportive group of local churches and the educational opportunities that afforded. Our state convention provided varied and effective ministries with groups like orphans, ethnic groups, and college students. We supported missionaries at home and abroad. We had good Bible study and training literature (which we paid for, of course). I went to an accredited seminary and paid a remarkably low tuition. Wherever you went on a Sunday morning (in the Southeast and Southwest, at least), you could find a church that sang the familiar hymns and studied the same Bible lesson. In hindsight, I realize that this Southern Baptist utopia was imperfect. There were significant...

The Bible Tells Me So

As I read the story of the Good Samaritan during my devotional today, I was reminded of the times that I have heard the story in the Christian education setting of the local church--as a youngster in primary and intermediate classes (old terminology), as a young adult in college classes, and then as an adult, often teaching the passage myself. The characters and story line are very familiar due to these experiences of Christian education. These are challenging times for Christian education in the church. Like so much of what is happening in the church today, the old forms do not seem to support present needs. What once worked no longer seems to be effective. Christian education or the formation of believers is in a state of flux. In an article on ethicsdaily.com , retired professor Colin Harris addresses this issue. He points out that the period of the 60’s and 70’s “saw the beginnings of a loss of vitality within the educa...

Metaphors of the Kingdom of God

In a recent blog , consultant Seth Godin addresses the power of metaphor. He points out, “The best way to learn a complex idea is to find it living inside something else you already understand.” In other words, “this” is like “that.” “When you see a story, an example, a wonderment,” says Godin, “take a moment to look for the metaphor inside.” Jesus turned this around. In the use of parables, he told a story or provided a metaphor and challenged his hearers to see the truth within. For example, in his teaching on the Kingdom (or Reign) of God in Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus compares the Kingdom to such things as a mustard seed, yeast, a hidden treasure, a net, a king, and a landowner. His hearers are encouraged to use their imaginations to understand something that they had never experienced. He also attempted to shift their perspective so that they might see signs of the Kingdom breaking into their present reality. These are metapho...

The Tragedy of Willow Creek Community Church

File photo of Steve Carter, Heather Larson, and Bill Hybels As Christian brothers and sisters, we need to pray for Willow Creek Community Church. On the eve of the Global Leadership Summit, a worldwide conference sponsored by the church in cooperation with the Willow Creek Association, church leadership imploded as a result of further allegations against former pastor Bill Hybels. Last year, Hybels introduced the team who would assume church leadership upon his retirement--lead pastor Heather Larson and teaching pastor Steve Carter. Although the founding pastor planned to stay on to assist in a time of transition, reports of sexual impropriety involving Hybels surfaced early this year. He accelerated his departure from the church and left the board of the Willow Creek Association. When other charges emerged last week, teaching pastor Carter resigned. On Wednesday evening, Larson and the entire elder board--lay leaders who provide accountability ...

A Future for the Global Leadership Summit?

Craig Groeschel, the founder and senior pastor of Life.Church. The Global Leadership Summit which began as a project of Willow Creek Community Church in South Barrington, Illinois, and its founding pastor, Bill Hybels, over 25 years ago was held this week without Hybels. For several years, the GLS has been now produced by the Willow Creek Association, a spin-off organization and a loose network of churches but Hybels has been its driving force. Attended by thousands at the church facility in South Barrington and broadcast to thousands more at satellite locations, the annual meeting brings together not only evangelical leaders but outstanding speakers from business, charitable organizations, politics, and business. For the first time, Hybels did not appear due to allegations of sexual impropriety brought against him over the past year by former employees, staff members, and business associates. He has already left the church and resigned from the board of t...

Barnabas File

Search This Blog