Doctrine and Mission

Tag: SBC annual meeting

  • The Great Commission Includes Building Christ’s Church

    I cannot think of anything more important for a Christian to do than share the gospel with unbelievers who are headed for hell. Christ has commanded us to make disciples of all nations, and the eternal destiny of men and women hangs in the balance. Every Christian should be burdened for the lost and eager to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ.

    I do not know many believers who would disagree with that.

    Yet there are some who hear this emphasis and respond, “Amen! Let’s focus on the main thing and not get distracted by secondary issues such as church polity, leadership, and ecclesiology.”

    At first glance, that may sound reasonable. But is the structure and leadership of Christ’s church really a secondary issue?

    The same Jesus who shed His blood for the church declared, “I will build My church” (Matthew 16:18). The church is not a human invention or a man-made organization. It belongs to Christ. He purchased it with His own blood and is actively building it today.

    Furthermore, the same Holy Spirit who descended upon Jesus at His baptism inspired Paul to write 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, and Titus. These pastoral epistles are not optional appendices to the Christian faith. They contain God’s instructions concerning how Christ’s church is to be organized, led, protected, and strengthened.

    Therefore, I do not see church leadership and polity as merely secondary matters. I do not believe Jesus, who died for the church and continues to build the church, sees them that way either.

    Consider what happens when the gospel is faithfully preached. By God’s grace, sinners are converted. What then? Christ did not intend for those converts to remain isolated Christians disconnected from the body of Christ. They are to be baptized, taught, and incorporated into local churches.

    And who is to lead those churches?

    The Scriptures answer clearly: qualified men who meet the standards laid down by the Holy Spirit in passages such as 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1. Christ has not left the leadership of His church to human preference or cultural trends. He has spoken.

    This matters greatly for Southern Baptists as well. Local churches sacrificially give money through cooperative missions efforts because we want the gospel to spread throughout North America and around the world. We want churches planted among the nations.

    But what kind of churches are we planting?

    Surely we want churches that are organized according to the pattern Christ has given in His Word. Surely we want churches led by biblically qualified elders and served by biblically qualified deacons. Surely we want healthy churches because healthy churches are God’s ordinary means of making disciples and advancing the gospel.

    Jesus knows what is best for His church. He knows what is healthy. He knows what produces long-term faithfulness and spiritual maturity.

    In reality, this is not separate from the Great Commission—it is part of the Great Commission.

    Jesus commanded His disciples to make disciples, baptize them, and teach them to observe all that He commanded. “Teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” includes the entirety of inspired Scripture. It includes Romans and Galatians. It includes Ephesians and Colossians. And it certainly includes 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, and Titus.

    The Great Commission is not merely about getting decisions. It is about making disciples. And disciples are ordinarily made, taught, shepherded, and matured within healthy local churches.

    Gospel proclamation and biblical church order are not competing priorities. They belong together. We preach the gospel so that sinners will be saved. We gather those believers into churches. We teach them the whole counsel of God. We appoint qualified leaders. We plant more churches. And then we send those churches to preach the gospel to the nations.

    That is not a distraction from the mission.

    That is the mission.

  • When Prominence Fades: A Call to Faithful Shepherding in Obscurity

    As we embark on another annual meeting in Dallas, we’re once again surrounded by crowds, big names, and high-profile debates. We see familiar faces on platforms, hear strong voices in microphones, and feel the buzz of influence and prominence. But in the midst of it all, we must be reminded: the health and future of the Southern Baptist Convention does not rest on the most visible leaders—it rests in the quiet, unseen faithfulness of ordinary pastors serving ordinary churches with extraordinary commitment.

    The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) has seen its fair share of prominent leaders—voices that rose quickly, led boldly, and fell, whether by controversy, conflict, or quiet exit. Some left positions of influence amid media storms. Others quietly stepped down under the weight of internal division or external scrutiny. Consider just a few recent examples:

    • Russell Moore – Once the head of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC), Moore became a polarizing figure over his criticisms of Donald Trump and his handling of abuse-related issues in the SBC. He eventually left the SBC altogether.
    • Adam Greenway – Former president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (SWBTS), Greenway resigned amid financial and leadership challenges, leaving questions and controversy in his wake.
    • David Platt – A widely celebrated preacher and former president of the International Mission Board (IMB), Platt later faced tensions within his own church over political and theological differences, leading to members departing and public disputes.
    • Paige Patterson – Once a titan in the Conservative Resurgence and former SWBTS president, Patterson was terminated for mishandling sexual abuse allegations and other leadership failures.
    • Ed Litton – Elected SBC president in 2021, Litton came under fire after revelations that he had used extended portions of sermons from J.D. Greear without clear attribution. The controversy raised questions about pastoral integrity and sermon preparation.
    • J.D. Greear – Also a former SBC president, Greear faced criticism for his language on sexual ethics and perceived doctrinal ambiguity, including how he spoke about homosexuality—sparking concern among many Southern Baptists about clarity and conviction.

    These names remind us that prominence does not equal permanence. Influence in the SBC, or any Christian institution, can be as fleeting as the cultural winds that blow around it. Platforms rise and fall. Conferences fade. Spotlights shift. But the chief calling of a pastor remains unchanged:

    “Shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight… not domineering… but being examples to the flock” (1 Peter 5:2–3).

    There is an ever-present temptation in our culture, even among pastors, to long for visibility over faithfulness, platform over pastoring, and acclaim over quiet obedience. Yet the Kingdom advances not through celebrity but through faithful, long-haul shepherds—men who love their church more than their image, who open the Word week after week, visit the sick, pray for the weary, and raise up disciples in their own community, far from the limelight.

    We thank God for leaders who serve well on a denominational level. But we must not confuse the conference stage with the judgment seat of Christ. The applause of men is fleeting; the approval of the Chief Shepherd is eternal.

    So to the Southern Baptist pastor laboring in obscurity: do not grow weary. You may never trend on social media, but your name is written in heaven. You may never lead an entity, but you lead God’s sheep. You may never be invited to speak at the Convention, but you’ve been called to speak God’s Word every week. That is enough.

    Let us pray not for fame, but for faithfulness. Not for platforms, but for perseverance. Not for recognition, but for resurrection reward.

  • Sound Doctrine Still Matters: Why the Renewed Law-Sanchez Amendment Deserves Our Support

    Southern Baptists have long stood on the twin pillars of sound doctrine and the Great Commission. For nearly two centuries, our cooperative mission has been built not on centralized authority but on shared, biblical convictions—most clearly expressed in our confessional statement, the Baptist Faith and Message 2000 (BFM2000).

    But in recent years, that doctrinal unity has been tested. Growing confusion over the biblical qualifications for pastors, along with inconsistent responses to churches that depart from our confession, have made it clear: we need clarity.

    That is why we support the renewed effort to adopt the Law-Sanchez Amendment in 2025.

    Why the Law Amendment Was Proposed

    In 2023, Pastor Mike Law of Arlington, Virginia, submitted a motion to amend the SBC Constitution. The proposed language was clear and biblical:

    “A church in friendly cooperation with the Convention… affirms, appoints, or employs only men as any kind of pastor or elder as qualified by Scripture.”

    This amendment did not introduce new theology—it sought to ensure that our constitutional documents reflect the biblical doctrine already affirmed in the BFM2000, which states:

    “While both men and women are gifted for service in the church, the office of pastor is limited to men as qualified by Scripture.”

    At the 2023 SBC Annual Meeting in New Orleans, the amendment received overwhelming support, passing with over 80% of the vote—the first of two votes required for constitutional amendments.

    The 2024 Setback and the NewSpring Church Controversy

    In 2024, at the SBC Annual Meeting in Indianapolis, the Law Amendment fell short of the two-thirds vote needed for final adoption. Though a majority still supported it, the defeat sent mixed signals about where the Convention stands on confessional clarity.

    That confusion was quickly magnified when the SBC Credentials Committee ruled that NewSpring Church in Anderson, South Carolina, remained in friendly cooperation with the Convention—despite having a woman, Meredith Knox, serve publicly as a “teaching pastor” who regularly preaches.

    NewSpring maintains that only men can serve as “lead pastors” or elders, but the title and role of “teaching pastor” clearly places Knox in a pastoral office—contrary to the BFM2000. Despite this, the Credentials Committee declined to recommend disfellowship, stating that there was not enough clarity in the SBC Constitution to make that determination.

    This moment exposed the urgent need for the very clarity the Law Amendment was designed to provide.

    A Renewed Effort in 2025: The Law-Sanchez Amendment

    Now, in 2025, a renewed effort is underway—spearheaded by faithful leaders including Juan Sanchez—to bring the amendment forward again for a vote. The language remains consistent:

    “A church in friendly cooperation with the Convention… affirms, appoints, or employs only men as any kind of pastor or elder as qualified by Scripture.”

    This is not about controlling local churches. It is about defining what cooperation means. Churches are autonomous—they can structure leadership as they choose. But the SBC is likewise autonomous in determining the terms of friendly cooperation. We are not obligated to cooperate with churches that depart from Scripture on the nature of the pastoral office.

    This amendment would bring our Constitution into alignment with our confession and allow our committees to act with integrity and consistency.

    Why It Matters

    This is not a side issue. It is about our shared identity, our theological integrity, and our missional effectiveness. If we cannot clearly define what a pastor is—and if we do not hold ourselves accountable to the doctrines we affirm—we risk losing both our unity and our witness.

    Supporting the Law-Sanchez Amendment:

    • Reaffirms our commitment to the sufficiency of Scripture
    • Clarifies expectations for churches in friendly cooperation
    • Equips SBC leaders and committees to act consistently
    • Protects the mission by upholding biblical church order

    Confessional cooperation is the bedrock of our work together. If that foundation is compromised, our future mission will falter.

    A Call to Faithful Clarity

    The SBC does not need more division or more politics. It needs more clarity, more biblical conviction, and more faithfulness.

    In a culture where truth is negotiable and roles are reinvented, we must not lose our grip on Scripture. The Law-Sanchez Amendment is an opportunity to plant our feet firmly on the Word of God—for the good of our churches and the glory of Christ.

    Let’s speak clearly, act faithfully, and cooperate courageously.

    Let us adopt the Law-Sanchez Amendment in 2025.

    Because sound doctrine still matters. And it always will.