tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4202712493332040652023-11-16T04:42:49.112-06:00Reasoning from the Scriptures"We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God..." (2 Corinthians 10:5).olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.comBlogger207125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-58246082507133741182012-12-11T06:00:00.000-06:002012-12-11T06:00:06.147-06:00Benefits of Symbiosis in the SBC (Part 5: Benefits of Cooperation)<br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The Benefits of
Cooperation between General and Particular Baptists</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> General and Particular Baptists
working together in a mutually beneficial relationship allows Baptists to
accomplish more together than they could apart. So then, Southern Baptists, dissimilar
in soteriology, can accomplish more united than they can divided. The reason
for this is at least twofold. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">First, Baptists united have more
resources and more focus than they would if they were divided. The Southern
Baptist Convention (SBC) is the largest evangelical denomination in the United
States.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><sup><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><sup><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[1]</span></sup><!--[endif]--></sup></a>
The SBC is comprised of over 16 million members who worship in more than 42,000
churches in the United States.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" title=""><sup><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><sup><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[2]</span></sup><!--[endif]--></sup></a>
On the national level, Southern Baptists operate the largest publishing house
in the world, LifeWay Christian Resources, in Nashville.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" title=""><sup><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><sup><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[3]</span></sup><!--[endif]--></sup></a>
LifeWay Christian Resources owns and operates the largest chain of religious
bookstores in the nation.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" title=""><sup><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><sup><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[4]</span></sup><!--[endif]--></sup></a>
Southern Baptists also operate two mission boards, the International Mission
Board (IMB) for missions abroad and the North American Mission Board (NAMB) for
missions in North America.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5" title=""><sup><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><sup><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[5]</span></sup><!--[endif]--></sup></a>
If this was not enough, the SBC operates six seminaries that are located across
the country serving over 13,400 students.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn6" name="_ftnref6" title=""><sup><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><sup><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[6]</span></sup><!--[endif]--></sup></a> The
SBC funds these entities through its Cooperative Program (CP) that was
established in 1925. The Cooperative Program allows these more than 42,000
churches to partner together as a missions team for the purpose of fulfilling
the Great Commission.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn7" name="_ftnref7" title=""><sup><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><sup><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[7]</span></sup><!--[endif]--></sup></a> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Second, Baptists working together in a
mutually beneficial relationship also have the benefit of giving a united
witness to the world that Baptists belong to Christ. This fulfills the words of Christ. He said, “A
new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved
you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are my
disciples, if you have love for one another.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn8" name="_ftnref8" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Southern Baptists, dissimilar in
soteriology, also need each other to counteract unbiblical extremes into which
either group is capable of degenerating. The history of General and Particular
Baptists shows that they are both susceptible to doctrinal extremes that
compromise both their ability and enthusiasm for evangelism and missions. However,
with Baptists uniting in a mutual relationship for missions, the necessity for
theological dialogue has arisen. As Bush and Nettles stated, “Differences
between fellow Baptists call forth persuasive and logical arguments based on
careful exegesis, while at the same time the fact that one’s opponent is also a
Baptist serves to support if not demand Christian attitudes and Christian
brotherhood.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn9" name="_ftnref9" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[9]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
These discussions should help both sides maintain balance in their respective soteriological
frameworks as long as destructive competition and monopolism are eliminated for
the sake of symbiosis.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> While not all discussions between
General and Particular Baptists in the Southern Baptist Convention are for the
sake of symbiosis, some are. There are attempts to learn from each other and to
encourage the good aspects of the other’s commitment to missions and service to
the Lord. A few noteworthy examples should be mentioned. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">First, the discussion about Calvinism at
The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary between Frank Page, president of the
Executive Committee of the Southern Baptist Convention, and Albert Mohler,
president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary should be mentioned.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn10" name="_ftnref10" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[10]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Page and Mohler are on opposite ends of the
soteriological spectrum. Page formed an advisory team to craft a plan to bring
together parties on both sides of the Calvinism debate. He said, “My goal is to
develop a strategy whereby people of various theological persuasions can purposely
work together in missions and evangelism.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn11" name="_ftnref11" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[11]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
The discussion between the two was congenial and edifying.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Next, the Kentucky Baptist Convention’s
conference, “Calvinism: Concerned, Confused, or Curious” should be mentioned. On
August 4, 2012, a panel of four Southern Baptist leaders, Frank Page, president
of the Southern Baptist Convention's Executive Committee and Steve Lemke, director
of the Baptist Center for Theology and Ministry at New Orleans Baptist
Theological Seminary (General Baptists); David Dockery, president of Union
University and Hershael York, associate dean of the school of theology at
Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky (Particular
Baptists), “ talked honestly about the division within the convention over
the issue of Calvinism while offering suggestions and maintaining that Southern
Baptists should and can unite, despite differences.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn12" name="_ftnref12" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[12]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
These kinds of discussions are the kinds necessary in maintaining a symbiotic
relationship among Southern Baptists.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Conclusion</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> The history of Baptists in general,
and Southern Baptists in particular, shows that Baptists can accomplish more
united than they can divided and that they need each other to counteract
unbiblical extremes into which either group is capable of degenerating. The
harmful effects of either competition or monopolism should be avoided by
Southern Baptists. Instead, Southern Baptists should apply the principle of
symbiosis.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> There is great value to Southern Baptists
in knowing their heritage especially in the face of current controversies in
the SBC. As Dockery said, "There is not just one theological stream from
one theological tradition in Baptist life. There are several. . . . Baptists,
as a whole, in the 21st century, don't know their heritage."<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn13" name="_ftnref13" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[13]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Included
in that heritage are two mechanisms that allow the two theological streams of
Southern Baptists to work together: (1) the Cooperative Program and (2) The
Baptist Faith and Message 2000. York said, “There is nothing in the Baptist
Faith & Message 2000 that makes me or other Calvinists unable to believe
what we believe.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn14" name="_ftnref14" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[14]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"> Southern Baptists would do well to
remember that their history attests to the truth that they are a </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">peculiar
people made up of two groups dissimilar in soteriology but who united in a
mutually beneficial </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">relationship for the sake of missions. After all, this just may be a match made in
heaven.</span>
<br />
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Dockery, <i>Consensus and
Renewal</i>, 2.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn2">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Sbcnet, “About Us – Meet
Southern Baptists,” http://www.sbc.net/aboutus/default.asp (accessed April 13,
2011). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn3">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Sbcnet, “About Us – LifeWay
Christian Resources,” http://www.sbc.net/aboutus/lifeway.asp (accessed April
13, 2011).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn4">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Fisher Humphreys, <i>The Way We
Were: How Southern Baptist Theology has Changed and What it Means to Us All</i>,
(New York: McCracken Press, 1994), vii.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn5">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Sbcnet, “About Us –
International Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention,”
http://www.sbc.net/aboutus/IMB.asp (accessed April 13, 2011); Sbcnet, “About Us
– North American Mission Board,” http://www.sbc.net/aboutus/namb.asp (accessed
April 13, 2011).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn6">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref6" name="_ftn6" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Sbcnet, “About Us – Southern
Baptist Seminaries,” http://www.sbc.net/aboutus/sem.asp (accessed April 13,
2011).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn7">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref7" name="_ftn7" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Sbcnet, “About Us – CP Missions
– The Cooperative Program of the Southern Baptist Convention,”
http://www.sbc.net/aboutus/cpmissions.asp
(accessed April 13, 2011).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn8">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref8" name="_ftn8" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> John 13:34-35, NASB.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn9">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref9" name="_ftn9" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[9]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Bush and Nettles, <i>Baptists and the Bible</i>, 18.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn10">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref10" name="_ftn10" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[10]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Joshua Breland, “Video: Albert
Mohler and Frank Page Discuss Current SBC Issues at SBTS Chapel,” in “Blog: The
Daily Bleat: A Southern Baptist Theological Perspective” (August 21, 2012)
http://thedailybleat.com/video-albert-mohler-and-frank-page-discuss-current-sbc-issues-at-sbts-chapel/#more-4223
(accessed August 21, 2012).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn11">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref11" name="_ftn11" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">[11]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Michael Foust, “Page Names
Advisory Team on Calvinism,” in <i>Baptist
Press</i>, (August 15, 2012), http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=38507
(Accessed September 9, 2012).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref12" name="_ftn12" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[12]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Foust,
http://www.bpnews.net/bpnews.asp?id=38429 (accessed September 18, 2012).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn13">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref13" name="_ftn13" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[13]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Foust,
http://www.bpnews.net/bpnews.asp?id=38429 (accessed September 18, 2012).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn14">
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<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref14" name="_ftn14" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[14]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Foust,
http://www.bpnews.net/bpnews.asp?id=38429 (accessed September 18, 2012).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
</div>
olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-10094155251021275002012-12-10T06:00:00.000-06:002012-12-10T06:00:12.351-06:00Benefits of Symbiosis in the SBC (Part 4: Catalyst for Cooperation)<br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The Catalyst for
Cooperation between General and Particular Baptists</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> What could possibly unite General
and Particular Baptists into either an association or convention of cooperating
Baptists? The answer to that question is in one word, “missions.” The
missionary enterprise did more to bring General and Particular Baptists
together than did any of the former trials and tribulations suffered by
Baptists. The missionary enterprise was a result of a more evangelical
Calvinism that broke down the anti-missionary spirit of hyper-Calvinists.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> Andrew Fuller, pastor of the Baptist
church at Kettering in Northamptonshire, modified the extreme Calvinism of John
Gill.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
The moderate Calvinism of Fuller highlighted “the individual’s responsibility
to witness to the gospel.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
According to W. Wiley Richards, “Fuller saw the atonement as sufficient for all
sinners but efficient in its application.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Viewing the atonement as unlimited in its sufficiency but limited in its
efficiency may seem as though it is not truly Calvinism. Although this view is
a moderate form of Calvinism, it is Calvinism. Erickson said:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The view that we
are adopting here should not be construed as Arminianism. It is rather the most
moderate form of Calvinism or, as some would term it, a modification of
Calvinism. It is the view that God logically decides first to provide
salvation, then elects some to receive it. This is essentially the sublapsarian
position of theologians like Augustus Strong. Those who would construe this
position as Arminianism should be reminded that what distinguishes Calvinism
from Arminianism is not the view of the relationship between the decree to
provide salvation and the decree to confer salvation on some and not on others.
Rather, the decisive point is whether the decree of election is based solely on
the free, sovereign choice of God himself (Calvinism) or based also in part
upon his foreknowledge of merit and faith in the person elected (Arminianism).<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> This moderate Calvinism of Fuller led to a
recovery of evangelism among Particular Baptists. McBeth wrote, “In the midst
of the Particular Baptist recovery, a Midlands pastor, William Carey, inspired
the formation of the Baptist Missionary Society in 1792.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn6" name="_ftnref6" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">William Carey was responsible for the
awakening of missionary interests among Baptists. Torbet wrote, “William Carey
(1761-1834) was the heart and soul of the initial missionary enterprise of the
Baptists.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn7" name="_ftnref7" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
McBeth wrote, “William Carey led the Particular Baptists to launch a world
missionary effort, and the ‘call to prayer’ of 1784 proved both cause and
effect of a surge of spiritual renewal among the churches.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn8" name="_ftnref8" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Baptists of both soteriological streams
both in England and America worked together to support the missionary
enterprise. “The far-reaching consequences of the obedience of William Carey
and the English Baptists as well as the providential conversion of Judson and
Rice [came] to be regarded as ‘as a special call of God on American Baptists to
labor for the spread of the gospel throughout the earth.’”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn9" name="_ftnref9" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[9]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Adoniram
Judson, an American Congregationalist, converted to Baptist views while in
route to Burma.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn10" name="_ftnref10" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[10]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Luther Rice, appointed as a missionary by the same Congregational foreign
missions board that appointed Judson, “arrived in India on a separate ship, and
also embraced Baptist views.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn11" name="_ftnref11" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[11]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Judson and Rice motivated American Baptists to enlarge their evangelistic
vision and to form an organization for the support of mission causes. “Baptists
responded by establishing the ‘General Missionary Convention of the Baptist
Denomination of the United States of America for Foreign Missions.’”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn12" name="_ftnref12" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[12]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
These historical truths prompted David Dockery to state, “In the 18th century,
there were particular [Calvinist] and general Baptists, but at the sending of
[missionary] William Carey, they joined hands together for the common cause of
missions. That's something we can do again.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn13" name="_ftnref13" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[13]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">The Southern Baptist Convention was
formed with the express purpose of emphasizing both evangelism and missions.
Nathan Finn said, “The dual emphases of evangelism and missions have been at
the heart of the SBC since its founding in 1845, when two of the convention’s
first acts were the formation of Foreign and Domestic Mission Boards.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn14" name="_ftnref14" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[14]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> From
its inception the Southern Baptist Convention has been composed of both General
and Particular Baptists working together in the spread of the Gospel both on
its home mission field and on foreign mission fields. Cooperation in missions,
especially among Southern Baptists, was the catalyst that united the two
streams of Baptists in a mutually beneficial relationship. What are the
benefits of a mutual relationship between General and Particular Baptists?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div>
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<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 152; Torbet, <i>History
of Baptists</i>, 80.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn2">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Torbet, <i>History of Baptists</i>, 80;
McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 171.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn3">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Torbet, <i>History of Baptists</i>, 80.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn4">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Winds</i>, 55.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn5">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Erickson, <i>Christian Theology</i>, 852.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn6">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref6" name="_ftn6" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 152.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn7">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref7" name="_ftn7" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Torbet, <i>History of Baptists</i>, 80.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn8">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref8" name="_ftn8" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 171.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn9">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref9" name="_ftn9" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[9]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Tom J. Nettles, “A Historical
View of the Doctrinal Importance of Calvinism among Baptists.”
http://www.edstetzer.com/Tom%20Nettles%20Building%20Bridges%20message.pdf
(accessed September 18, 2012).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn10">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref10" name="_ftn10" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[10]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Bush and Nettles, <i>Baptists and the Bible</i>, 121.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn11">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref11" name="_ftn11" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[11]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 345.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn12">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref12" name="_ftn12" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[12]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Bush and Nettles, <i>Baptists and the Bible</i>, 121.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn13">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref13" name="_ftn13" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[13]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Michael Foust, <i>Baptist Press</i>, “Southern Baptist
Leaders: Calvinism Should not Divide SBC,” Kentucky Baptist Convention
Conference: “Calvinism: Concerned, Confused, or Curious,” David Dockery,
“Overview of the History of Baptist Theology (Part 1).”
http://www.bpnews.net/bpnews.asp?id=38429 (accessed September 18, 2012).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn14">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref14" name="_ftn14" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[14]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Finn, “Southern Baptist
Calvinism,” 3.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
</div>
olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-75712120961779648942012-12-08T06:00:00.000-06:002012-12-08T06:00:08.503-06:00Benefits of Symbiosis in the SBC (Part 3: Doctrinal Extremes)<br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Doctrinal Extremes
of General and Particular Baptists</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> Neither the General nor the
Particular Baptists, in and of themselves and through their respective
confessions, were able to completely avoid unbiblical extremes peculiar to
their respective soteriological viewpoints. Usually the unbiblical extremes of
each group are polar opposites. On the General Baptist end of the scale there
were the doctrinal extremes of Arianism, Socinianism, and Liberalism. On the
Particular Baptist end of the scale there were the doctrinal extremes of
hyper-Calvinism, ultraconservatism, and Antinomianism.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Both General and Particular Baptists declined in the first half of the
eighteenth century.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
The disappointing reality is, as Torbet said, “A condition of apostasy laid
hold upon the General Baptists, whereas hyper-Calvinism plagued those of the
Particular group.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Both English and American Baptists on
both sides of the soteriological divide were plagued to some degree by the
doctrinal extremes into which their respective viewpoints were vulnerable.
These doctrinal extremes caused decline in both groups on both continents.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Doctrinal
Extremes of General Baptists in England</span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> In
England, General Baptists declined as a group due to their doctrinal extremes
“concerning the deity of Christ and the meaning of the atonement.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> In
particular, the General Baptists were susceptible to Arianism, Socinianism, and
Liberalism. Both Arianism and Socinianism are forms of anti-Trinitarianism. Arianism
denies both the deity of Christ and humanity of Christ by teaching that he was
an angel created by God. Arians therefore taught that Christ was more than man
but less than God.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Socinianism on the other hand denies the deity of Christ but not the humanity
of Christ. The Socinians taught that Christ was merely a good man.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn6" name="_ftnref6" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Therefore the death of Christ “was simply that of an ordinary human being in a
fallen and sinful world.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn7" name="_ftnref7" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Concerning Socinianism, McBeth said, “This doctrine robbed the cross of any
real atonement.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn8" name="_ftnref8" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Socinianism reduces the atonement, the
death of Christ, to an example of the type of dedication that Christians are to
follow. Erickson identified the erroneous concepts that feed the Socinian
understanding of the atonement. He said:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Several
conceptions feed into the Socinian understanding of the atonement. One is the
Pelagian view of the human condition as spiritually and morally capable of
fulfilling God’s expectations. Another is the conception that God is not a God
of retributive justice, and therefore he does not demand some form of
satisfaction from or on behalf of those who sin against him. Finally, there is
the conception of Jesus as merely human. His death was simply that of an
ordinary human being in a fallen and sinful world. It is important, not in some
supernatural way, but as the ultimate extension of his role as the great
teacher of righteousness.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn9" name="_ftnref9" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[9]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">This
erroneous understanding of the atonement came to be held by many General
Baptists “and many of their churches eventually became Unitarian.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn10" name="_ftnref10" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[10]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Doctrinal
Extremes of General Baptists in America<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> In America, General Baptists
declined as a group more as a result of the evangelistic zeal of Particular
Baptists than from doctrinal extremes. Richards said, “The General Baptists
seem never to have built a strong doctrinal base in the local church and
consequently were no theological match for the evangelistic zeal of the
Particular Baptists.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn11" name="_ftnref11" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[11]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
However, Richards also noted that “around the end of the eighteenth century and
at the beginning of the nineteenth, a few ministers lapsed into Unitarianism.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn12" name="_ftnref12" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[12]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> McBeth attributed the decline of the
General Baptists in America to “internal problems, such as doctrinal ambiguity,
lack of aggressive evangelism, and opposition to the First Great Awakening.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn13" name="_ftnref13" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[13]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
He said, “The thrust of the First Great Awakening was Calvinistic, and it swept
all opposition aside.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn14" name="_ftnref14" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[14]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
There arose a campaign to win the General churches to Calvinism that resulted
in the majority of General Baptist churches transitioning to Calvinism but with
the detrimental effect of 95 percent of their membership either dropping out of
church life or joining other Arminian groups.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn15" name="_ftnref15" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[15]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> The doctrinal ambiguity of the
General Baptists also made them susceptible to the teachings of Alexander
Campbell who taught that there was “no promise of salvation without baptism;
that baptism should be administered to all who say they believe Jesus Christ is
the Son of God without examination on any other point; that there is no direct
operation of the Holy Spirit on the mind prior to baptism;” and, “that baptism
brought the remission of sins and the gifts of the Holy Spirit.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn16" name="_ftnref16" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[16]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Many
Baptists west of the Alleghenies, holding to Arminian doctrine were won to
Campbell’s views “and brought their entire churches into his movement.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn17" name="_ftnref17" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[17]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Richards said, “Campbell’s followers split Baptist churches. No definite
figures are available, but there can be little doubt that hundreds of Baptist
churches left the denomination to follow Campbell.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn18" name="_ftnref18" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[18]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Doctrinal
Extremes of Particular Baptists in England</span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> The Particular Baptists declined as
a group due to their doctrinal extremes on the opposite end of the spectrum
from that of the General Baptists. McBeth said, “While General Baptists had
fallen into extreme liberalism, the Particular group fell victim to extreme
doctrinal conservatism. . . . [M]any Particular Baptists became theologically
narrow, rigid in sterile orthodoxy, and with a faith more rationalistic than
biblical.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn19" name="_ftnref19" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[19]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Both hyper-Calvinism and Antinomianism would plague the English Particular
Baptists. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> In England, hyper-Calvinism resulted
from an overemphasis on election and predestination to the exclusion of any
zeal for evangelism. McBeth said, “At their most extreme, Particular Baptists
would not preach or apply the gospel to the unsaved.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn20" name="_ftnref20" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[20]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> The
fatalism of hyper-Calvinism put a damper on evangelism. The notion was that God
would save his elect without the means of men preaching the Gospel. In fear of
offending God by offering his grace to the non-elect, hyper-Calvinists refused
to evangelize.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn21" name="_ftnref21" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[21]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
This created in the Particular Baptists a spirit of ultraconservatism that
caused them to have no room in their preaching for evangelism, invitation, or
application.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn22" name="_ftnref22" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[22]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> Another error of hyper-Calvinism is
antinomianism. McBeth noted that some Particular Baptists in England fell into
antinomianism. He said, “Some of them also fell into Antinomianism, an extreme
form of Calvinism which assumed that even personal behavior was foreordained,
thus excusing individuals for any lapses in moral conduct.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn23" name="_ftnref23" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[23]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
One needs only to contemplate the effects of Antinomianism on the witness of
the church.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Doctrinal
Extremes of Particular Baptists in America</span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> In America, Particular Baptists were plagued
by the same doctrinal extremes that plagued their counterparts in England.
These also struggled with hyper-Calvinism, ultraconservatism, and
Antinomianism. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> The hyper-Calvinism and
ultraconservatism of the Particular Baptists in America combined to create in
them a spirit that opposed “missionary societies, Bible societies, temperance
societies, Sunday schools—all of which they regarded as man-made efforts to
evangelize, and as unscriptural and contrary to their extreme emphasis upon
predestination.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn24" name="_ftnref24" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[24]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
This anti-mission doctrinal extreme caused “the first controversy which
actually split the ranks of [American] Baptists, particularly in the South and
West.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn25" name="_ftnref25" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[25]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> John Taylor (1752-1835) and Daniel
Parker (1781-1844) both wrote in opposition to missionary activity.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn26" name="_ftnref26" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[26]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Taylor’s
“principal polemic was a pamphlet entitled <i>Thoughts
on Missions</i> . . . . Taylor charged that missionaries were simply involved
in the movement because of their love for money, and that the missionary system
was hierarchical in its tendencies and contrary to Baptist church government.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn27" name="_ftnref27" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[27]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Parker’s polemic, <i>Views of the Two Seeds</i>,
was based on his theology of predestination.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn28" name="_ftnref28" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[28]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
In his pamphlet Parker “divided the human race into the predestined children of
God and the predestined children of the devil. God will save his own; the devil
will claim his own. There was no place for missions in his theology.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn29" name="_ftnref29" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[29]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> This anti-mission spirit had an
infectious effect on Southern Baptists. Dr. Roger Richards wrote, “The effect
of the antimission movements . . . on Southern Baptists was devastating. Many
churches and sometimes whole associations declared themselves antimissionary.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn30" name="_ftnref30" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[30]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
While other factors were part of the anti-mission spirit, there is no denying
that hyper-Calvinism was a main reason for it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> English Baptists “were devastated by
doctrinal extremes which sapped vitality and warped Baptist outlook. The
General Baptists fell into extreme liberalism, Arianism, and Socinianism.
Particular Baptists fell into extreme conservatism, hyper-Calvinism, and
Antinomianism.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn31" name="_ftnref31" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[31]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
American Baptists were not immune to the doctrinal extremes that plagued their
English counterparts. They were also affected by doctrinal extremes as has been
mentioned.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> The historical contexts of the
General and Particular Baptists, both in England and America, makes one wonder
if there could possibly be any form of cooperation among the two groups. Could
there be any possibility of the two groups, with their differing soteriological
viewpoints and their opposing poles of doctrinal extremes, working together in
a mutually beneficial relationship? What could possibly bring these two groups
together?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 152, 154. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn2">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 154.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn3">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Torbet, <i>History of Baptists</i>, 62.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn4">
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<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 155.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn5">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 155.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn6">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="tab-stops: center 3.5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref6" name="_ftn6" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 155. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn7">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref7" name="_ftn7" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Millard J. Erickson, <i>Christian Theology</i>, 2<sup>nd</sup> Ed. (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2001),
801.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn8">
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<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref8" name="_ftn8" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 155.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn9">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref9" name="_ftn9" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[9]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Erickson, <i>Theology</i>, 801.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn10">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref10" name="_ftn10" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[10]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 155.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn11">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref11" name="_ftn11" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[11]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Winds</i>, 12.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn12">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref12" name="_ftn12" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[12]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Winds</i>, 22.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn13">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref13" name="_ftn13" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[13]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 704.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn14">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref14" name="_ftn14" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[14]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 704.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn15">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref15" name="_ftn15" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[15]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 704-705.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn16">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref16" name="_ftn16" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[16]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Southern Baptists</i>, 1919-1933 of 9258.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn17">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref17" name="_ftn17" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[17]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Southern Baptists</i>, 1933 of 9258.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn18">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref18" name="_ftn18" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[18]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Southern Baptists</i>, 1933 of 9258.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn19">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref19" name="_ftn19" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[19]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 171.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn20">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref20" name="_ftn20" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[20]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 172.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn21">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref21" name="_ftn21" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[21]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 174.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn22">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref22" name="_ftn22" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[22]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 176.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn23">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref23" name="_ftn23" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[23]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 172.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn24">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref24" name="_ftn24" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[24]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Torbet, <i>History of Baptists</i>, 261-262.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn25">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref25" name="_ftn25" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[25]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Torbet, <i>History of Baptists</i>, 268.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn26">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref26" name="_ftn26" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[26]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Winds</i>, 78.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn27">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref27" name="_ftn27" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[27]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>History of Southern Baptists</i>, 1965 of 9258.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn28">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref28" name="_ftn28" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[28]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Winds</i>, 78.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn29">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref29" name="_ftn29" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[29]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>History of Southern Baptists</i>, 1965 of 9258.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn30">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref30" name="_ftn30" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[30]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>History of Southern Baptists</i>, 2020 of 9258<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn31">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref31" name="_ftn31" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[31]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 199.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
</div>
olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-3775234709167321102012-12-07T06:00:00.000-06:002012-12-07T06:00:13.074-06:00Benefits of Symbiosis in the SBC (Part 2: Formulation of Confessions)<br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The Formulation
of Baptist Confessions of Faith</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> While both General and Particular
Baptists have their roots in the Protestant Reformation, certain distinctive
emphases peculiar to Baptists distinguished them from other Protestants. These Baptist
emphases include the principle of a regenerate church membership, believer’s
baptism upon an individual’s profession of faith, congregational church
government and discipline, a wider fellowship through membership in
associations, protection of the autonomy of the local congregation, and freedom
to obey God.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
This, according to Torbet, “represented a distinctly minority viewpoint
concerning the nature of the visible church. It was this witness that
distinguished Baptists from most Protestants.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> On certain occasions Baptists were compelled
to write confessions of faith that both identified similarities and differences
between them and some of the other Protestants. Concerning Baptist confessions,
McBeth wrote, “These have usually been hammered out on the anvil of some
doctrinal dispute. They express consensus and, thus, rarely satisfy extreme
partisans on either side.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> A
sketch of the formulation of Baptist confessions of faith should aid in understanding
that while there are differences of opinion among Baptists concerning
soteriology, they nevertheless can and do work together. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Helwys wrote “A Declaration of Faith of
English People Remaining at Amsterdam in Holland” to distinguish his
congregation from that of John Smyth which had sought admission among the Mennonites
(Anabaptists) at the Amsterdam Waterlander Church.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> The
confession written by Helwys was not for the purpose of being unfriendly with
the Mennonites but for the purpose of asserting the validity of the baptism of
his congregation and for preserving its independent organization and identity.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> By
distinguishing themselves from Smyth’s group in this confession, Hewys’ group
also distinguished themselves from the Mennonites. They were anti-Arminian in
their view of sin and the will and rejected other Mennonite emphases such as
“prohibitions against oaths, the bearing of arms, participation in government,
and having dealings with excommunicants.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn6" name="_ftnref6" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Although the confession written by
Helwys was anti-Arminian in its view of sin, the will, and anti-anarchy, it was
also anti-Calvinistic on the doctrine of the atonement.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn7" name="_ftnref7" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> However
this did not stop Baptists from being accused of Pelagianism and anarchy, both
of which were associated with Continental Anabaptists.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn8" name="_ftnref8" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> These
circumstances led the Particular Baptists to produce a confession of faith. The
first Particular Baptist confession, the First London Confession, was drawn up
to distinguish the Particular Baptists from both the Anabaptists and the
General Baptists and to identify their similar theological beliefs with the
prevalent Calvinism of the nation.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn9" name="_ftnref9" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[9]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">The First London Confession, written in
1644, was superseded by the Second London Confession of 1677. The Second London
Confession was revised in 1688 and published in 1689. The Second London
Confession was in agreement with the soteriology of the Westminster Confession
of the Presbyterians but it differed by emphasizing religious liberty and
baptism by immersion.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn10" name="_ftnref10" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[10]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">The historical context that provided the
impetus for the Second London Confession was the renewal of persecution of
dissenting groups by the Church of England. The Presbyterians had been the
dominant group under the Commonwealth and had success in defying the
Conventicle Act. As a result, Baptists and Congregationalists formed a united
front with the Presbyterians through a show of doctrinal agreement among themselves.
So the Particular Baptists of London made the Westminster Confession the basis
of their new confession to show solidarity between them, the
Congregationalists, and Presbyterians, although it was modified to meet Baptist
emphases.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn11" name="_ftnref11" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[11]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
This new Particular Baptist Confession of faith, the Second London Confession,
became very influential and was adopted by Baptists in Philadelphia and
Charleston.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn12" name="_ftnref12" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[12]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Shortly after the Particular Baptists
published their new confession, the General Baptists followed suit and drew up
their Orthodox Creed “to unite and confirm all true protestants in the
fundamental articles of the Christian religion.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn13" name="_ftnref13" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[13]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
One of its purposes was to refute Hoffmanite Christology, a teaching that Jesus
did not have a human body but was a divine being with angelic flesh.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn14" name="_ftnref14" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[14]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Lumpkin noted that the Orthodox Creed came closer to Calvinism than any other
General Baptist confession. He said, “Perhaps, indeed, the Creed is principally
noteworthy as an early attempt at compromise between the two great systems of
theology, thus anticipating the work of Andrew Fuller and others of the latter
eighteenth century.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn15" name="_ftnref15" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[15]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">In America the Second London Confession
of the Particular Baptists was destined to give theological direction to
American Baptists.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn16" name="_ftnref16" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[16]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> As
already mentioned, the Philadelphia Confession was an adoption of the Second
London Confession by the Philadelphia Association. However, the Calvinism of
the Second London Confession would begin to be modified in subsequent
confessions among American Baptists especially after Andrew Fuller of England
“significantly altered the doctrine of the atonement and helped break the hold
Calvinism exerted over the Baptists.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn17" name="_ftnref17" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[17]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">There is some disagreement as to whether
Fuller in his modification of Calvinism is to be viewed as teaching a general
or particular atonement. Richards saw Fuller’s modified Calvinism as a
rejection of one of its fundamental assumptions, namely, particular or limited
atonement. Richards also noted that Thomas J. Nettles placed Fuller in the
Calvinistic camp and that Nettles showed Fuller’s orthodox Calvinism.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn18" name="_ftnref18" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[18]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
The fact remains though, that after Fuller modified the Calvinistic doctrine of
the atonement, subsequent Baptist confessions of faith in America began to take
on a more moderate Calvinism. In particular, two confessions that gained wide
acceptance among Baptists in America, the Principles of Faith and Practice of
the Sandy Creek Association and the New Hampshire Confession of Faith, both of
which reflected a moderate Calvinism.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn19" name="_ftnref19" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[19]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
McBeth stated, “The first covenant of the Sandy Creek church reflected a
moderate Calvinism, including particular election of grace by the
predestination of God.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn20" name="_ftnref20" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[20]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
It was some twenty-nine years later, from 1816 when the Sandy Creek Association
adopted its first covenant to 1845 when it adopted its second covenant, that
the early Calvinism of the Sandy Creek Association gave way to more emphasis on
human freedom and responsibility.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn21" name="_ftnref21" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[21]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
The New Hampshire Confession was a restatement of Calvinism in moderate tones
by the New Hampshire Convention.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn22" name="_ftnref22" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[22]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> According
to Torbet the New Hampshire Confession was drawn up to offset Arminian teaching
in New England.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn23" name="_ftnref23" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[23]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Lumpkin agreed and saw it as a restatement of Calvinism in moderate tones to
offset the message of the Free Will Baptists that was being received with
enthusiasm.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn24" name="_ftnref24" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[24]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">The New Hampshire Confession of Faith
was the most widely dispersed confession of American Baptists.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn25" name="_ftnref25" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[25]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Before
the rise of the New Hampshire Confession, Baptist churches in the south usually
adhered to the Philadelphia Confession of Faith as their major doctrinal
statement.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn26" name="_ftnref26" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[26]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
As a new mood of missionary expansion developed in the nineteenth century, the
Philadelphia Confession receded in its adherence and the New Hampshire
Confession began to gain wide acceptance among Baptists in America reflecting
the missionary spirit of the age.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn27" name="_ftnref27" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[27]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">In 1925 the Southern Baptist Convention
revised the New Hampshire Confession by adding ten new sections and published
it as the Baptist Faith and Message.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn28" name="_ftnref28" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[28]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> The
historical context that gave impetus for the 1925 BFM was twofold having both
external and internal reasons that led to this confession. Externally, after
World War I, Southern Baptists sought to restore communications with the Baptists
of Europe. Internally, there was a controversy over evolutionary theory instigated
by J. Frank Norris, the primary leader of the Fundamentalist movement in the
South, who accused Southern Baptists of “teaching biological evolution in their
colleges, tolerating ‘modernistic’ views of Scripture in their seminaries, and
making an idol of the denomination in their churches.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn29" name="_ftnref29" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[29]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
These circumstances revealed the need for a more complete doctrinal statement
among Southern Baptists. The 1925 BFM was the result.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">In 1963 the 1925 BFM would be revisited
and ultimately revised into what would become the 1963 BFM. Two internal
controversies gave rise to the 1963 BFM. The first internal controversy giving
rise to the revision of the 1925 BFM was the “apostasy controversy at Southern
Seminary.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn30" name="_ftnref30" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[30]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Dale Moody, Theology Professor at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary,
“taught the possibility that one truly saved could fall from the state of grace
and lose his or her salvation.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn31" name="_ftnref31" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[31]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> This
teaching was deemed inconsistent with traditional Southern Baptist views on the
subject.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn32" name="_ftnref32" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[32]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
The second internal controversy giving rise to the 1963 BFM was the Elliot
controversy. This controversy “all but eclipsed the Moody controversy.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn33" name="_ftnref33" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[33]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Ralph Elliot, a graduate of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, wrote <i>The Message of Genesis</i> at the invitation
of the Sunday School Board’s Broadman Press. Many of Elliot’s liberal views
that questioned the Mosaic authorship of the Penteteuch and much of the
historical accuracy of Genesis brought into light the liberal viewpoints that
were being taught in the seminaries.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn34" name="_ftnref34" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[34]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">In response to these controversies the
Southern Baptist Convention at the 1962 assembly in San Francisco adopted a
motion to form a Committee to study the 1925 Baptist Faith and Message.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn35" name="_ftnref35" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[35]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
The Committee was chaired by Herschel Hobbs, the president of the Convention.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn36" name="_ftnref36" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[36]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Hobbs had the enormous task of preserving the organic unity of the Convention
and of satisfying the conservative base that sound doctrine would be taught in
the schools and published by the Sunday School Board.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn37" name="_ftnref37" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[37]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Smith correctly observed, “These competing demands led to the formulation of
the 1962 Committee on Baptist Faith and Message. These competing demands . . .
also resulted in a doctrinal statement which allowed for wider latitude of
interpretation among Southern Baptists.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn38" name="_ftnref38" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[38]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Therefore, the 1963 BFM with its wider latitude of interpretation among Southern
Baptists led to another internal controversy in the subsequent years and
ultimately to the Conservative Resurgence and the adoption of the 2000 BFM.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Since the 1963 BFM included language
that allowed wider latitude of interpretation for the purpose of preserving the
organic unity of the Convention, an ensuing controversy over biblical
interpretation erupted. Richards succinctly summarized the central issue that
led to the adoption of the 2000 BFM. He said:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0.5in 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">When the 1963
version was adopted, it included language that was not to clarify what was
believed, but which was made more broad and general so as not to exclude
anyone. The difficulty with this was the ability to attach different meanings
to words, so that two groups could use the same terminology, but have different
meanings. This was central to the issue during the Conservative Resurgence.
Finally, in 1999, T. C. Pinkney of Virginia made a motion to the Southern
Baptist Convention to ask the president to appoint a committee to consider a
revision of the 1963 document.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn39" name="_ftnref39" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[39]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">These
two opposing groups are generally labeled as either moderates or conservatives.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn40" name="_ftnref40" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[40]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Their
major differences were over inerrancy, the doctrine “that the original
manuscripts, generally referred to as ‘autographs,’ were without error and that
the Bible is true in all respects.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn41" name="_ftnref41" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[41]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Ultimately
this led to the Conservative Resurgence, a battle between Moderates who held to
a nonliteral interpretation of the Bible and Conservatives who held to a
literal interpretation of the Bible.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn42" name="_ftnref42" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[42]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">The moderates holding to a nonliteral
interpretation of the Bible were also in control of Convention affairs. Both
sides were agreed on this assessment. Nancy Ammerman wrote:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0.5in 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Both moderates
and fundamentalists agreed that moderates had been the people most active in
Convention affairs for the previous generation. Fundamentalists said that
moderates had staked out their territory—in part based on seminary
connections—and had excluded fundamentalists from participation. Moderates
thought that fundamentalists were merely showing their lack of interest by
staying away.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn43" name="_ftnref43" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[43]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0.5in 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">In
the hands of the moderates the SBC schools were drifting into liberalism.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn44" name="_ftnref44" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[44]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">The SBC took a major turn with the election
of Adrian Rogers as Convention president in 1979.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn45" name="_ftnref45" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[45]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
If the SBC were going to change it had to start with its president. The
president was the key to the entire appointment and nomination process by which
trustees were given oversight of the denomination’s agencies.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn46" name="_ftnref46" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[46]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">With the election of Adrian Rogers as
the SBC president, 1979 marked the beginning of the Conservative Resurgence in
the SBC. Dan Martin for <i>Baptist Press</i> wrote, “His election was regarded
as the opening gun in a campaign to turn the 14.4-million-member denomination
to a ‘more conservative’ direction.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn47" name="_ftnref47" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[47]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
The conservatives succeeded in sustaining electoral victories, controlling
convention meetings and controlling the appointment and election of trustees
that were charged with governing the agencies and institutions of the
denomination.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn48" name="_ftnref48" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[48]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
By 1986, the conservatives were able to begin setting the policies that would
change the SBC entities. Without the Conservative Resurgence, Jerry Sutton says
that “the Southern Baptist Convention would have found itself drifting to the
left and eventually would have been in the same anemic theological condition as
the mainline Protestant denominations, powerless to effect change in our
spiritually starving world.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn49" name="_ftnref49" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[49]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">The conservatives won control of the SBC
by setting their sights on the Convention’s infrastructure.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn50" name="_ftnref50" title=""><sup><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><sup><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[50]</span></sup><!--[endif]--></sup></a> The
Conservative Resurgence that began in 1979 culminated with the revision of the
1963 BFM in the year 2000. The BFM 2000 consisted of eleven primary revisions
that displayed theological solidarity with both the 1963 and 1925 versions and
closed the unintended theological loopholes that resulted from the imprecise
language of the previous versions.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn51" name="_ftnref51" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[51]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Although charges were made, that the 2000 BFM was a move away from the
theological heritage of Southern Baptists, its theological solidarity with its
predecessors proved otherwise.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn52" name="_ftnref52" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[52]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">The history of the formulation of
Baptist confessions of faith reveals not only diversity in soteriological
viewpoints among General and Particular Baptists but also several modifications
that allow for both liberty of conscience and unity of labor by both groups.
This in no way implies that Baptists are doctrinally loose. Instead, there is a
mutually beneficial symbiotic benefit that arises from both General and
Particular Baptists working together. L. Russ Bush and Tom J. Nettles noted
that “the diversity of theological ideas within the Baptist framework has kept
Baptists from becoming theologically stagnant.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn53" name="_ftnref53" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[53]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> However,
before they began to cooperate, both General and Particular Baptists did become
theologically stagnant.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div>
<!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<br />
<div id="ftn1">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> R. Albert Mohler Jr., </span><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 11.0pt;"> </span></i><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Southern
Baptist Identity: An Evangelical Denomination Faces the Future</span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">, “Is There a Future?,” edited by
David S. Dockery (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2009), 26-27; Torbet, <i>History of Baptists</i>, 31. Mohler only
identified the emphases of a regenerate church membership, believer’s baptism,
and congregational church government. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn2">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Torbet, <i>History of Baptists</i>, 31. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn3">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 677.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn4">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Torbet, <i>History of Baptists</i>, 36.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn5">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> William L. Lumpkin, <i>Baptist Confessions of Faith</i> (Valley
Forge: Judson Press, 1959), 114.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn6">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Lumpkin, <i>Confessions</i>, 115.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn7">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref7" name="_ftn7" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Lumpkin, <i>Confessions</i>, 115. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn8">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref8" name="_ftn8" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Lumpkin, <i>Confessions</i>, 144.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn9">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref9" name="_ftn9" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[9]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Lumpkin, Confessions, 144-145;
Torbet, <i>History of Baptists</i>, 45.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn10">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref10" name="_ftn10" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[10]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Winds</i>, 18.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn11">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref11" name="_ftn11" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[11]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Lumpkin, <i>Confessions</i>, 235-236; Richards, <i>Winds</i>,
37.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn12">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref12" name="_ftn12" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[12]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Winds</i>, 11.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn13">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref13" name="_ftn13" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[13]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Lumpkin, <i>Confessions</i>, 295.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn14">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref14" name="_ftn14" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[14]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Lumpkin, <i>Confessions</i>, 41, 295. Lumpkin identified Melchior Hoffman with
Docetic Christology (41). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn15">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref15" name="_ftn15" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[15]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Lumpkin, <i>Confessions</i>, 296.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn16">
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<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref16" name="_ftn16" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[16]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Torbet, <i>History of Baptists</i>, 213.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref17" name="_ftn17" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[17]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Winds</i>, 45.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn18">
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<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref18" name="_ftn18" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[18]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Winds</i>, 55-58. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref19" name="_ftn19" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[19]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Winds</i>, 46.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref20" name="_ftn20" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[20]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 229.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref21" name="_ftn21" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[21]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Lumpkin, <i>Confessions</i>, 357; McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>,
229.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref22" name="_ftn22" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[22]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Lumkin, <i>Confessions</i>, 360.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref23" name="_ftn23" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[23]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Torbet, <i>History of Baptists</i>, 514.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref24" name="_ftn24" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[24]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Lumpkin, <i>Confessions</i>, 360.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref25" name="_ftn25" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[25]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Lumpkin, <i>Confessions</i>, 361; Richards, <i>Winds</i>,
46.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref26" name="_ftn26" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[26]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 242, 677.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref27" name="_ftn27" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[27]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 677; Richards, <i>Winds</i>,
45-46.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref28" name="_ftn28" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[28]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Lumpkin, <i>Confessions</i>, 361; McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>,
677; Smith, <i>1963 Baptist Faith and
Message</i>, 102.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref29" name="_ftn29" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[29]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 677.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref30" name="_ftn30" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[30]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Smith, <i>1963 Baptist Faith and Message</i>, 19.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref31" name="_ftn31" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[31]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Smith, <i>1963 Baptist Faith and Message</i>, 19-20.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref32" name="_ftn32" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[32]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Smith, <i>1963 Baptist Faith and Message</i>, 19.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref33" name="_ftn33" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[33]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Smith, <i>1963 Baptist Faith and Message</i>, 22.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref34" name="_ftn34" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[34]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Southern Baptists</i>, 6878 of 9258.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref35" name="_ftn35" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[35]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Smith, <i>1963 Baptist Faith and Message</i>, 37.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref36" name="_ftn36" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[36]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Smith, <i>1963 Baptist Faith and Message</i>, 154,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref37" name="_ftn37" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[37]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Smith, <i>1963 Baptist Faith and Message</i>, 39.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn38">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref38" name="_ftn38" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[38]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Smith, <i>1963 Baptist Faith and Message</i>, 39.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn39">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref39" name="_ftn39" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[39]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Southern Baptists</i>, 7494 of 9258.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn40">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref40" name="_ftn40" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[40]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Nancy Tatom Ammerman, <i>Baptist Battles: Social Change and Religious
Conflict in the Southern Baptist Convention</i> (New Brunswick, New Jersey:
Rutgers University Press, 1995), ix. Ammerman preferred the terms
fundamentalists and moderates rather than conservatives and moderates.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn41">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref41" name="_ftn41" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[41]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Southern Baptists</i>, 6999 of 9258.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn42">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref42" name="_ftn42" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[42]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Southern Baptists</i>, 7013 of 9258.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn43">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref43" name="_ftn43" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[43]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Ammerman, <i>Battles</i>, 156.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn44">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref44" name="_ftn44" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[44]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Timothy C. Seal, “A Comparative
Analysis of the Theological Heritage of the 2000 Revisions to the ‘Baptist
Faith and Message’ in Relation to the 1963 and 1925 Confessions,” (PhD.
Dissertation, Mid-America Theological Seminary, 2003), ProQuest Dissertations
and Theses, http://search.proquest.com/pqdthss/docview/305248265/13A2745AE96D42ECB7/4?accountid=133490
accessed August 14, 2012, 18. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn45">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref45" name="_ftn45" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[45]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> David S. Dockery, <i>Southern Baptist Consensus and Renewal:</i></span><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></i><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">A Biblical, Historical, and
Theological Proposal</span></i><i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> </span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">(Nashville: B & H Academic,
2008), 10.<i><o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn46">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref46" name="_ftn46" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[46]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Ammerman, <i>Battles</i>, 168.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[47]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Dan Martin for <i>Baptist Press</i>,
“Rogers Willing to be Nominated” in <i>The Christian Index: The Georgia Baptist
Convention News Magazine</i> (April 17, 1986), 3. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn48">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref48" name="_ftn48" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[48]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Ammerman,<i> Battles</i>, 212.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn49">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref49" name="_ftn49" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[49]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Jerry Sutton, <i>The Baptist
Reformation: The Conservative Resurgence in the Southern Baptist Convention</i>,
(Nashville, Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2000), 3.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn50">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref50" name="_ftn50" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[50]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Ammerman, <i>Battles</i>, 215.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn51">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref51" name="_ftn51" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[51]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Seal, “2000 Revisions,” 1-3.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn52">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref52" name="_ftn52" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[52]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Timothy Seal made a scholarly
case in his dissertation, “A Comparative Analysis of the Theological Heritage
of the 2000 Revisions to the ‘Baptist Faith and Message’ in Relation to the
1963 and 1925 Confessions,” that no theological deviation occurred in the 2000
BFM.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn53">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref53" name="_ftn53" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[53]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> L. Russ Bush and Tom J. Nettles,
<i>Baptists and the Bible: The Baptist
Doctrines of Biblical Inspiration and Religious Authority in Historical
Perspective</i> (Chicago: Moody Press, 1980), 18.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
</div>
olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-15353132565537397202012-12-06T09:14:00.000-06:002012-12-06T09:14:33.306-06:00Benefits of Symbiosis in the SBC (Part 1)Well, I haven't blogged in quite a while. One reason for this is because not only do I have a full plate with my pastoral duties but I am also working on my M.A. in Christian Studies at the Baptist College of Florida. I just finished a class on Southern Baptist History. In that class I researched the history of both general and particular baptists and how their differences can actually create a mutually beneficial relationship to keep the SBC balanced and focused. So I have decided to publish my research in five parts here for the sake of what I hope to be helpful conservation concerning the current controversy in the SBC in regard to general and particular baptists.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Introduction</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> Baptists are a peculiar people. They
are diverse in their understanding of the gospel, their soteriology, but are
agreed in their understanding of the church, their ecclesiology. In theological
and more technical terms, Baptists, especially Southern Baptists as a
denomination, are a mixture of people with either Arminian or Calvinist
soteriology, and that in varying degrees. Therefore there is no one soteriology
that defines what Baptists believe about the gospel. The defining factor for
Baptists comes in their practice rather than their soteriology. This does not
mean, however, that there is no agreement among both Arminian and Calvinist
Baptists concerning the gospel. Nathan Finn has rightly observed:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0.5in 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"> As a general rule, Southern Baptist Calvinists
and non-Calvinists agree on the basics of the gospel. All parties agree that
Jesus Christ is the divine Son of God who was incarnate in the Virgin Mary,
lived a life of perfect obedience to God’s law, provided a penal substitutionary
atonement for sinners on the cross, and was resurrected after three days in the
tomb, securing the justification of every person who repents of their sins and
trusts Christ as Lord and Savior.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0.5in 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">One would think that because of the
presence of two major and differing soteriological viewpoints among Baptists
that cooperation between the two groups would be if not impossible, at least
not desirable. Such a match may not be considered one made in heaven. After
all, will there not be internal struggles for ascendency of one group above the
other? Will there not be accusations of unbiblical hermeneutics, unbiblical
philosophizing, unbiblical evangelism, unbiblical non-evangelism, and even
heresy? Will there not be severe clashes that result from being diverse in
soteriology that will threaten to dismantle the cooperation of the two? If yes,
are there any reasons that Arminian and Calvinist Southern Baptists should
remain in cooperation as a denomination?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">The history of Baptists in general and
Southern Baptists in particular shows that Baptists can accomplish more united
than they can divided and that they need each other to counteract unbiblical
extremes into which either group is capable of degenerating. The harmful
effects of either competition or monopolism should be avoided by Southern
Baptists. Instead, Southern Baptists should apply the principle of symbiosis.
Christian Schwarz wrote:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0.5in 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Symbiosis,
according to Webster, is “the intimate living together of two dissimilar
organisms in a mutually beneficial relationship.” Two negative models stand in
contrast to this principle: <i>competition</i>
and <i>monoculture</i>. Competition assumes
“dissimilar organisms,” just like symbiosis does, but these organisms harm
rather than help one another. Monoculture, on the other hand (called monopolism
in economics and society), has lost the variety of species, and one type of
organism dominates. This obviously eliminates destructive competition, but it
also takes away the symbiotic interdependence of different species.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0.5in 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Both
Arminian and Calvinist Southern Baptists have everything to lose and nothing to
gain from dissolution of their symbiotic relationship. Both competition and
monopolism in soteriology can be detrimental to the mutually beneficial
relationship among Southern Baptists.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Southern Baptists, dissimilar in
soteriology, can accomplish more united than they can divided. They need each
other to counteract unbiblical extremes into which either group is capable of
degenerating. To prove this thesis, first, a sketch of the rise of the two
differing groups will be traced. After that, a sketch of the formulation of
Baptist confessions of faith and their historical contexts that gave them rise
will be outlined. Then, the unbiblical extremes that plagued both groups will
be sketched. Next, the catalyst for entering a mutually beneficial relationship
of cooperation between the two differing groups will be highlighted. Finally,
the benefits of cooperation between General and Particular Baptists in the
Southern Baptist Convention will be discussed.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">The
Rise of Arminian (General) and Calvinist (Particular) Baptists</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> Modern Baptists, including Southern
Baptists, have as their common source of ancestry, two streams of Baptists that
originated in England, General and Particular Baptists. This view, however, is
not held by all Baptists. Four basic theories concerning the origins of
Baptists have been developed by Baptist historians. These have been identified
as (1) the successionist theory that claims Baptist origins to John the
Baptist, (2) the continuation of Biblical teachings theory that claims that
Baptist-like faith and practice never completely died out from New Testament
times to the present, (3) the Anabaptist spiritual kinship theory that claims a
spiritual relationship of Baptists to Anabaptist sects, and (4) the English
Separatist descent theory that claims Baptists originated from English
Separatists and Puritan reform groups of the sixteenth century.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> The best scholarship of Baptist
history concludes that the English Separatist descent theory matches the
historical evidence that Baptists are thoroughgoing Reformers and Protestants.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> James
Leo Garret, concerning the Baptist church succession theory and its claim of
identity with pre-Reformation movements and non-identity with the Magisterial
Protestant Reformation, said, “Often the claims of identity between such groups
and Baptists of the last four centuries have not matched the historical
evidence.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Paige Patterson, although allowing for similarities between Baptists and
Anabaptists, concluded:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0.5in 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Those who argue
for a foundation in English separatism are demonstrably correct. Those who see
a connection to continental Anabaptism have not yet established indisputable
evidence of such, but they can still suggest that similarities between the
Swiss and South German Biblicists and Baptists are adequate to attract the interest
of Baptists and sufficiently compelling to engender not only admiration but
also in many cases imitation of their commitments and convictions.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn6" name="_ftnref6" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0.5in 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Roger
C. Richards, in <i>History of Southern
Baptists</i>, stated, “The first Baptists in America originated principally
with the emigration of General and Particular Baptists from Great Britain in
the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn7" name="_ftnref7" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> W.
Wiley Richards wrote, “Baptists originated in England about 1600 as a part of a
group of separatists who saw no hope of purifying Anglicanism and had begun
private meetings of their own.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn8" name="_ftnref8" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Robert Torbet concluded that the English Separatist descent theory was the most
plausible. He said:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0in 0.5in 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Such
a conclusion is apparently the most plausible one for several reasons: (1) It
does not violate principles of historical accuracy, as do those views which
assume a definite continuity between earlier sects and modern Baptists. (2) Baptists
have not shared with Anabaptists the latter’s aversion to oath-taking and
holding public office. Neither have they adopted the Anabaptists’ doctrine of
pacifism, or their theological views concerning the incarnation, soul sleeping,
and the necessity of observing an apostolic succession in the administration of
baptism.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn9" name="_ftnref9" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[9]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0.5in 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Historical
accuracy concerning the origins of the people called Baptists, demands then, a
conclusion of descent from the English Separatist movement. However, the
question remains, how did the two streams of Baptists, General and Particular,
originate in England?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">The Rise of General Baptists in
England<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> The
General Baptists, so called because of their belief that the atonement made by
Christ was a general or unlimited atonement which was sufficient for the whole
world and not just the elect, were the first to emerge on English soil in
Baptist history<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn10" name="_ftnref10" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[10]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>.
The historical context of their emergence is that of dissent from Roman
Catholic domination and from the Church of England “which was halfway between
Roman Catholicism and Protestantism.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn11" name="_ftnref11" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[11]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> General
Baptists separated from the Church of England and began to hold private
meetings of their own because they saw no hope of purifying Anglicanism.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn12" name="_ftnref12" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[12]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> These
Separatists, as they came to be called, had come to the conviction that the
church ought to be free of government connection.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn13" name="_ftnref13" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[13]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> They
organized covenanted congregations and usually signed written covenants that
defined the commitment of their individual members.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn14" name="_ftnref14" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[14]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> Three
men, John Smyth, Thomas Helwys and John Murton, are credited by historians as
the first to begin a fellowship of General Baptists.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn15" name="_ftnref15" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[15]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Their
group sought refuge in Holland where Smyth came under Mennonite influence,
became an Anabaptist, and eventually came to the conclusion that the Amsterdam
Mennonites constituted a true church and therefore had a true baptism.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn16" name="_ftnref16" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[16]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Smyth
and the majority of the group presented a petition to the Mennonites for membership
in the Mennonite church. The remaining eight to ten people that did not apply
for membership among the Mennonites parted company with Smyth and followed
Helwys. Helwys’ group drew up a confession of faith to present to the
Mennonites to distinguish themselves from Smyth’s congregation.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn17" name="_ftnref17" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[17]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Shortly afterwards, Helwys and his group returned to London and formed the
first Baptist church on English soil in 1611 or 1612 at Spitalfield for which
there is historical proof.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn18" name="_ftnref18" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[18]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Concerning
this church, Torbet wrote, “It was Arminian or General Baptist in doctrine and
affusionist in mode of baptism.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn19" name="_ftnref19" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[19]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> The
number of General Baptist churches grew and they eventually formed an
association of General Baptists. Roger Richards wrote:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0.5in 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">By
1626 there were five General Baptist churches in England with about 150
members. They numbered about forty churches by 1644. In 1654 they formed the
General Assembly of General Baptists and in 1678 adopted a strong confession of
faith . . . . Many of these General Baptists . . . emigrated to Carolina and
Virginia in the colonial period.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn20" name="_ftnref20" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[20]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0.5in 0.0001pt 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">Thus
the General Baptists arose as one of the two streams of Baptists that
originated in England. The question remains, how did the second stream of
Baptists, the Particular Baptists, originate in England?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;">The
Rise of Particular Baptists in England</span></i><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> The Particular Baptists, so called
because of their belief that the death of Christ was a particular atonement
limited to the elect, emerged about a generation later than the General
Baptists.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn21" name="_ftnref21" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[21]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Particular Baptists shared the same historical context of emerging out of
reforming Separatism as the General Baptists. However, the Particular Baptists were
not as rigid as the General Baptists at first in their stance of separation
from the Church of England. The Particular Baptists were semi-Separatists, not
in rigid or hostile separation from the Church of England, who only later
“assumed a more sectarian stance.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn22" name="_ftnref22" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[22]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%;"> Particular Baptists originated in
England about 1638.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn23" name="_ftnref23" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[23]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Their
roots are traced back to Henry Jacob, an Anglican clergyman who was a moderate
Separatist, but never became a Baptist.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn24" name="_ftnref24" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[24]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Jacob was imprisoned for circulating a treatise calling for reform in the
Church of England. He was released on his promise not to circulate his treatise
and went into exile in Holland.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn25" name="_ftnref25" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[25]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Jacob returned to England in 1616 and gathered a church in the Southwark
section of London. “This is often called the JLJ church for its first three
pastors, Henry Jacob, John Lathrop, and Henry Jesse.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn26" name="_ftnref26" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[26]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
This church would later give rise to the first Particular Baptist church,
probably about 1638.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn27" name="_ftnref27" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[27]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Under the leadership of men like John Spilsbury, Henry Jessey, and William
Kiffen, the movement of the Particular Baptists grew and by 1644, the number of
Particular Baptist churches increased to seven.<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftn28" name="_ftnref28" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">[28]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div>
<!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Nathan A. Finn, “Southern
Baptist Calvinism: Setting the Record Straight,”
http://www.edstetzer.com/Building%20Bridges%20Chapter.pdf (accessed September
29, 2012).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn2">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Christian A. Schwarz, <i>Natural Church Development: A Guide to Eight
Essential Qualities of Healthy Churches</i> (St. Charles, IL: ChurchSmart
Resources, 2000), 74. Italics in the original.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn3">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Robert G. Torbet, <i>A History of the Baptists</i>, 3<sup>rd</sup>
ed. (Valley Forge: Judson Press, 1975), 18-22; H. Leon McBeth, <i>The Baptist Heritage: Four Centuries of
Baptist Witness</i> (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1987), 49-60.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn4">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 61; James Leo Garrett in <i>Southern Baptist Identity: An Evangelical Denomination Faces the Future</i>,
“The Roots of Baptist Beliefs,” edited by David S. Dockery (Wheaton, IL: Crossway
Books, 2009), 143. McBeth stated that the most reliable historical evidence
confirms that Baptists originated in the early seventeenth century. Garrett
cited John Quincy Adams as writing that the Baptists are the truly
thoroughgoing Reformers.<i><o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn5">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Garrett,<i> Identity</i>, 142.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn6">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref6" name="_ftn6" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Paige Patterson, <i>Southern Baptist Identity: An Evangelical
Denomination Faces the Future</i>, “Learning from the Anabaptists,” edited by
David S. Dockery (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2009), 124.<i><o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn7">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref7" name="_ftn7" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Dr. Roger C. Richards, <i>History of Southern Baptists</i>, Kindle
Edition, 2012. location 200 of 9258.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn8">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref8" name="_ftn8" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> W. Wiley Richards, <i>Winds of Doctrine: The Origin and
Development of Southern Baptist Theology</i> (Lanham, Maryland: University
Press of America, Inc., 1991), 6. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn9">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref9" name="_ftn9" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[9]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Torbet, <i>History of Baptists</i>, 21.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn10">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref10" name="_ftn10" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[10]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Winds</i>, 6; Torbet, <i>History of
Baptists</i>, 37,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn11">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref11" name="_ftn11" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[11]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Southern Baptists</i>, 200-226 of 9258.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn12">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref12" name="_ftn12" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[12]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Winds</i>, 6.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn13">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref13" name="_ftn13" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[13]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 25.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn14">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref14" name="_ftn14" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[14]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> A. J. Smith, <i>The Making of the 1963 Baptist Faith and
Message</i> (Eugene, Oregon: Wipf and Stock Publishers, 2008), 66.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn15">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref15" name="_ftn15" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[15]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Southern Baptists</i>, 263 of 9258; Richards, <i>Winds</i>, 6; Torbet, <i>History of
Baptists</i>, 37.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn16">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref16" name="_ftn16" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[16]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Torbet, <i>History of Baptists</i>, 35.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn17">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref17" name="_ftn17" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[17]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Torbet, <i>History of Baptists</i>, 36.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn18">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref18" name="_ftn18" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[18]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Southern Baptists</i>, 263 of 9258; Torbet, <i>History of Baptists</i>, 37.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn19">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref19" name="_ftn19" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[19]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Torbet, <i>History of Baptists</i>, 37.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn20">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref20" name="_ftn20" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[20]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Southern Baptists</i>, 275 of 9258.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn21">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref21" name="_ftn21" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[21]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 39.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn22">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref22" name="_ftn22" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[22]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 39, 42.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn23">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref23" name="_ftn23" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[23]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Torbet, <i>History of Baptists</i>, 40.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn24">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref24" name="_ftn24" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[24]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 40.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn25">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref25" name="_ftn25" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[25]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 41.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn26">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref26" name="_ftn26" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[26]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 42.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn27">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref27" name="_ftn27" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[27]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> McBeth, <i>Heritage</i>, 43; Richards, <i>Southern
Baptists</i>, 300 of 9258.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn28">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Users/Olan/Documents/CM%20507%20Southern%20Baptist%20History/Historical%20Analysis%20of%20the%20Benefits%20of%20Symbiosis.docx#_ftnref28" name="_ftn28" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[28]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";"> Richards, <i>Southern Baptists</i>, 300 of 9258; Torbet, <i>History of Baptists</i>, 43.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
</div>
olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-85780740995296052892012-07-27T10:19:00.002-05:002012-07-27T10:19:30.898-05:00Jesus: The Lamb of God and Son of God (John 1:29-34)<br />
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The Old Testament sacrificial system served as an
illustration of substitutionary atonement. An innocent, spotless, unblemished
lamb would be sacrificed as a substitute in the place of sinning Israelites.
This served only as an illustration because it was impossible that the
execution of an innocent animal could legally and actually be a substitute for
guilty capital offenders. The Bible
says, “For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins”
(Hebrews 10:4). We all understand this. We know that it would be wrong to set
free a death-row-convict by executing an animal in his place. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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No one was ever saved simply because he participated in the
Old Testament sacrificial system. Only those that understood and <i>believed</i> that the lamb being sacrificed
was an illustration of an innocent, sinless, perfect man who would come and die
for their sins were saved. These were saved by grace through faith in the
coming Christ. By <i>faith</i> Abel offered
a better sacrifice (Hebrews 11:4). What was Abel’s offering? Abel, on his part
also brought of the firstlings of his flock . . . . (Genesis 4:4). Abel
understood and believed that the lamb he offered was an illustration of an
innocent, sinless, perfect man who would come and crush the devil’s head and
whom God had promised to send (Genesis 3:15). <o:p></o:p></div>
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“By <i>faith</i> Abraham,
when he was tested, offered up Isaac . . . He considered that God is able to
raise people even from the dead, from which he also received him back as a
type” (Hebrews 11:17-19). Abraham understood and <i>believed</i> that the Lamb of God would be an innocent, sinless,
perfect man. As Abraham and Isaac were walking to Mount Moriah where Abraham
was going to offer Isaac as a burnt offering by God’s command, Isaac asked his
father, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but <b><i>where is the lamb</i></b> for the
burnt offering” (Genesis 22:7)? “Abraham said, ‘<b><i>God will provide for Himself the
lamb</i></b> for the burnt offering, my son’” (Genesis 22:8). Abraham was not
speaking of the ram caught in the thicket that day (Genesis 22:13) but of the
Lamb who some 2000 years later would be an innocent, sinless, perfect man
walking up the same spot carrying the wood for the offering on His back
(Genesis 22:6; John 19:17). And instead of a ram caught in a thicket by his
horns that would be offered up in His place, this Man’s head was caught in a
thicket with a cruel crown of thorns pressed around his brows because He was
the offering (Genesis 22:13; John 19:2-5). <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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It was this Man, the innocent, sinless, perfect man, with a
crown of thorns on His head and carrying His own cross that Abraham <i>believed</i> in. Jesus said, “Your father
Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad” (John 8:56). Isaac
asked, “Where it the lamb?” Abraham said, “God will provide for Himself the
Lamb.” Then some 2000 years later, John the Baptist was confronted by a
committee from the religious leaders wanting to know if he was the Christ,
Elijah, or the Prophet (John 1:19-28). He confessed that he was not but that
the Christ indeed was among them (John 1:26). And, “The next day he saw Jesus
coming to him and said, ‘<b><i>Behold, the Lamb of God</i></b> who takes
away the sin of the world’” (John 1:29). This Man, Jesus, the innocent,
sinless, perfect man – the Son of God (John 1:34), would be the sacrificial
Lamb not for <i>believing</i> Israelites
alone but also for any non-Israelite who would <i>believe</i> (John 3:16). <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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How did John the Baptist know that Jesus was the Lamb of God
and Son of God? Remember, Jesus and John the Baptist were physical cousins.
There was nothing so extraordinary about Jesus at first-glance that would cause
anyone to know and understand that He was the Christ. Twice, John the Baptist
said that he did not recognize Him (John 1:31, 33). He did not mean that he did
not know that Jesus was his cousin and that he did not know him in that manner.
What John the Baptist meant was that he did not recognize Jesus as the Christ,
the Lamb of God and Son of God, until God revealed it to him (John 1:31-33). <o:p></o:p></div>
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The Man who would be the Lamb of God would have to be
innocent, sinless, and perfect. In order for this to be true of Him, He would
have to have a sinless nature and be born into the human race without the
agency of a human father. The Son of God would have to take on flesh in order
to be the Lamb of God (John 1:1-14). Jesus is the Lamb of God and the Son of
God (John 1:29, 34).<o:p></o:p></div>
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Isaac asked, “<b><i>Where is the Lamb</i></b>?” Abraham
answered, “<b><i>God will provide for Himself the Lamb</i></b>.” John the Baptist said,
“<b><i>Behold
the Lamb</i></b>.” Then in Revelation 5:1-14, the apostle John said, “<b><i>Worthy
is the Lamb</i>.</b>” We could summarize the progressive revelation concerning
the Lamb of God like this: Where is the Lamb? Wait for the Lamb! Watch the
Lamb! Worship the Lamb!<o:p></o:p></div>olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-24505829464315246322012-05-24T05:30:00.000-05:002012-05-24T05:30:03.159-05:00John the Baptist: A Man Sent From God (John 1:19-28)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkpzxb_oSyAYyinBLuvs6NEbC1KYUHzU5KiKm7dSxivvUMO2Bv73Sggt9ocsJRk1Mpmi3Tu1KRqYSe24JcVku14w_VPsJu5vWVahSfxxj1T8uxah1xHxYXbyrfY1JVvsv2s7VGlML7WTU/s1600/John+the+Baptist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkpzxb_oSyAYyinBLuvs6NEbC1KYUHzU5KiKm7dSxivvUMO2Bv73Sggt9ocsJRk1Mpmi3Tu1KRqYSe24JcVku14w_VPsJu5vWVahSfxxj1T8uxah1xHxYXbyrfY1JVvsv2s7VGlML7WTU/s1600/John+the+Baptist.jpg" /></a></div>
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The prologue to the Gospel of John (John 1:1-18) serves as
an introduction and outline to the main truths that the apostle John wanted to
communicate to his readers. First, the apostle John mentions the deity of
Christ (John 1:1-5). He is co-eternal and co-equal with God and He was coming
into the dark world of sinful men to be the light of men. Second, the apostle
John mentions the witness of John the Baptist (John 1:6-8). John the Baptist was
sent from God to testify about Christ so that all might believe through him.
Third, the apostle John mentions the incarnation of Christ, different responses
to Him, the new birth, and Christ as the fulfillment of the Old Testament
Tabernacle (John 1:9-14). Fourth, the apostle John mentioned the testimony of
John the Baptist for a second time (John 1:15). Fifth, the apostle John
mentioned the ministry of Christ in explaining God as Father (John 1:16-18).<o:p></o:p></div>
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How does this outline work itself out in the rest of the
Gospel of John? First, all through the Gospel of John the deity of Christ is
established. I mean He turned water into wine and not over months or years but
in an instant (John 2:6-10). He told a Samaritan woman everything she had ever
done on His first encounter with her (John 4:29). He healed a royal official’s
son from many miles away just by speaking three words, “Your son lives” (John
4:53). He healed an invalid of thirty eight years simply by saying, “Get up,
pick up your pallet and walk” (John 5:8). He fed five thousand people with five
barley loaves and two fish (John 6:9-13). He walked on water during a storm to
rescue His disciples (John 6:15-21). He healed a man born blind (John 9:1-11).
He raised a man from the dead that had been dead and buried for four days (John
11:39-44), just to name a few. Second, John the Baptist witnesses about Christ (John
1:19-34) as a parallel to John 1:6-8. Third, the different responses to Christ
begin to be revealed. Christ’s first converts are mentioned (John 1:35-51).
Christ as the fulfillment of the Old Testament Tabernacle is mentioned (John
1:29, 36), along with many other references to His fulfilling all the other
elements of the Tabernacle. Jesus discussed with Nicodemus the necessity of the
new birth and how it happens (John 3:1-15). Fourth, John the Baptist testified
about Jesus again (John 3:22-36). Fifth, Christ revealed God as Father, willing
to forgive, over and over through John’s Gospel.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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Here (John 1:19-28) we have come to the portion of the Gospel
of John that begins the first testimony of John the Baptist. This is very
important for several reasons. First, the Bible makes it plain that every fact
was to be confirmed by the testimony of at least two witnesses (Deuteronomy
17:6; John 8:17). John the Baptist was a witness to testify about the Light, so
that all might believe through him. He was not the Light, but he came to
testify about the Light (John 1:7-8). God saw to it that Jesus was not alone in
testifying about Himself (John 5:31). So, to confirm the truth that Jesus is
the Christ, the Son of God, John the Baptist testified to the truth that Jesus
is the Christ; the works of Jesus testified to the truth that He is the Christ;
the Father testified to the truth that Jesus is the Christ; and the Scriptures
testified to the truth that Jesus is the Christ (John 5:33-47). <o:p></o:p></div>
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A second reason the testimony of John the Baptist is very
important is because it reveals the characteristics of true witnesses about
Christ.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin-left: .75in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->I.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->True witnesses do not seek their own glory (John
1:19-23).<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l4 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->A.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->He is not the Light –
(John 1:19-21)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo4; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->1.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->The Jews expected the coming of Christ (1:19-20;
Malachi 3:1)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo4; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->2.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->The Jews expected Elijah to precede the Christ (1:21;
Malachi 4:5-6)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo4; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->3.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->The Jews thought John the Baptist was surely the Christ
(1:21). Asking the Baptist if he was the Prophet meant that this delegation
sent from the Pharisees (1:24) thought for sure he was the Christ because that
is what the Pharisees at the time speculated. If he was the Christ, the
Pharisees were sure that he would need them to put their stamp of approval on
his ministry and through that get his stamp of approval on theirs.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l4 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->B.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->He is only a lamp – (John 1:22-23) see also John 5:35<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l5 level1 lfo5; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->1.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->The committee had been sent by the Pharisees, who
speculated that the Baptist might be the Christ, to verify their speculation
and get his stamp of approval on their importance (1:22). Having thoroughly
deflected the accolades the religious establishment was willing to lay at his
feet, the committee insisted upon an answer from the Baptist– “What do you say
about yourself?”<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l5 level1 lfo5; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->2.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->His answer was that he was not the Light but a lamp. He
was not the Word but a voice. He was not the Prophet but a preacher. John would
not receive their glory nor would he give them any glory. The Jews were willing
to rejoice for a while in his light thinking that he would give them glory
(John 5:33-35). The temptation to receive glory from the religious
establishment and stay in good standing with it by giving it glory is more than
many supposed witnesses can resist. True witnesses do not seek their own glory.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin-left: .75in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l3 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.5in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->II.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->True witnesses do not reverence men they reverence God
(John 1:24-28).<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l6 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->A.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->They do not bow before the authority of the religious
establishment (John 1:24-25)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo6; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->1.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->This welcoming committee was backed with the authority
of the most dedicated and most powerful in the religious establishment – the
Pharisees (1:24). This was a powerful committee. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo6; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->2.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->The welcoming committee quickly became the cold-water
committee questioning the Baptist’s authority (1:25)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l6 level1 lfo3; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->B.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->They bow before the authority of God (John 1:26-28).<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo7; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->1.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->The Baptist told them that they do not KNOW the Christ
and therefore they would be unable to accept the origin of his authority (1:26).
He did not need their approval to be a minister of God (see Luke 20:1-8).<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo7; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->2.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->The Christ is the one to whom the Baptist bows (1:27)<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l2 level1 lfo7; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->3.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->This was happening on the doorsteps of the religious
establishment. Bethany was located on the eastern slope of the Mt. of Olives
about two miles southeast of Jerusalem – about a 55 minute walk.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<br />olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-38928779914309798252012-05-23T05:30:00.000-05:002012-05-23T05:30:01.656-05:00Explaining God - as Father<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
If the human race is going to gain any knowledge about who
God is and what He wants us to do, it must come from God Himself. Left to
themselves, people produce concepts of God based on themselves. Their gods are
images of themselves. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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John 1:14 – Trinity and Incarnation belong together. The
doctrine of the Trinity declares that the man Jesus is truly divine; that of
the Incarnation declares that the divine Jesus is truly human. Together they
proclaim the full reality of the Savior whom the New Testament sets forth, the
Son who came from the Father’s side at the Father’s will to become the sinner’s
substitute on the cross. God sent His Son to save us and the fact that His Son
is co-eternal and co-equal (see John 1:1-2), not a created being, shows the
great length God will run to throw His forgiving arms around you.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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John 1:15 – John the Baptist used a riddle, as it were, to
get people to think. John's riddle is, "He who came after me actually came
before me." People wondered what he meant by that. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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I believe the apostle includes this quotation because that
is how he first discovered who Jesus was. Here John the Apostle is telling us
that he saw for the first time who Jesus was when he heard John the Baptist
(whose disciple he was for awhile), say, "This one who came after me is
the one who was before me." Putting that all together, John caught on to
the fact that this Jesus of Nazareth, this Stranger of Galilee, was a human
tent in which was hidden a remarkable glory, a glory full of grace and truth.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
John 1:16 – Jesus is full of glory, full of grace, full of
truth, full of deity. That means we have available an unending daily supply of
grace. Grace is the generosity of love reaching out toward us, giving itself to
us. To those who come to Christ, God's promise is that every day we can take a
new supply of his love. We can know that we are loved. We know we are
cherished, protected, and blessed. We are strengthened, kept, and supported by
his love; grace upon grace, day after day. The experience of grace should be
continuous and progressive in the life of God’s people.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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John 1:17 - Notice the reappearance in Verse 17 of the
words "grace and truth," and the contrast which John draws between
them and the Law and Moses. The Law makes demands. It is hard, cold,
unyielding, without mercy.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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John says that the Law was given by Moses. Moses did not
originate it, but he gave it. Moses may disappear, but the Law remains -- cold,
unyielding, demanding, without mercy.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But, John says, "Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ."
Take away Jesus and you take away grace and truth; he is the channel of them.
What John is saying in this section is that law is demand, but grace and truth
are supply. Grace and truth are given to meet that demand.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Many people think that law and grace are contradictory, that
they are opposing principles. But in the sense in which they were originally
intended they are not. Law and grace supplement one another. Law makes its
demands, rightfully and justly, and no one can meet them, but grace and truth
is given in order to meet that demand. In Exodus 20 there is the
remarkable account of the giving of the Law on Mt. Sinai; the Law, which came
with smoke, thunder, earthquake, fire, fear and trembling. But in the very next
section we read the detailed plans for the building of the tabernacle -- God's
provision to meet the demands of the Law. That tabernacle is a picture of
Jesus, the meeting place where God's demands are fully met in terms of the
sacrifice of blood, of a life poured out. Thus John saw in the coming of Jesus
the fulfillment of that tabernacle.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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John 1:18 – Jesus has revealed, explained (exegeted) God.
The only begotten God who dwells at the heart of reality (who lives in the
bosom of the Father), has made God known. (The verb is "exegeted" him.)
Jesus has explained him and made known that the heart of God is a Father's
heart. God is a Father. In John 14:9, Jesus told Philip, “He who has seen Me
has seen the Father; how can you say, ‘Show us the Father?’”<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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When we come to God through Jesus Christ we discover a
loving Father; around us are a Father's forgiving arms; a Father's wisdom
guides our way; a Father's power protects us and guards us.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Are you living in the fullness of God’s grace and truth
today? What is the basis of your knowledge about God? What is the basis of your
relationship with God? <o:p></o:p></div>olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-19106850698780790402012-05-22T05:30:00.000-05:002012-05-22T05:30:00.477-05:00Jesus as the Tabernacle (John 1:14)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpgeK8_JnWr2LBFOAJcuZ251YZTeFjJ5_uK6Wj0xVkkie67qod6ms0Kax7I4jIPshCvuddQVQpOH2GV3uOwqoTkHL6wYQeFJ-IXW9uBO7QjqKB9T580cQv2CfQ0CDj3R7O4dQyEWehBk4/s1600/Tabernacle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpgeK8_JnWr2LBFOAJcuZ251YZTeFjJ5_uK6Wj0xVkkie67qod6ms0Kax7I4jIPshCvuddQVQpOH2GV3uOwqoTkHL6wYQeFJ-IXW9uBO7QjqKB9T580cQv2CfQ0CDj3R7O4dQyEWehBk4/s320/Tabernacle.jpg" width="278" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">When
it comes to knowing God, having a relationship with Him, we must have a proper
explanation of who God is, what He is like, and how He must be approached. God
is transcendent and so it follows logically that if man is going to know the
truth about Him with any certainty, God must condescend and reveal Himself to
man. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">There
has been no greater revelation of God than when His Son, the eternal second
person of the Godhead, became flesh and dwelt among men. Jesus Christ revealed
the Father. He explained Him (John 1:18). Through Jesus we have the proper
explanation of who God is, what he is like, and how He must be approached. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">John
1:14 presents Jesus as the tabernacle, the place where holy God and sinful man
could meet in intimate relationship based solely on the initiative and grace of
God. The Old Testament tabernacle was the foreshadowing of the coming of the
Son of God as a man in order to reveal the Father, redeem sinners, and rule in
righteousness. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
tabernacle housed the glory of God because it housed the presence of God. We
read that after Moses erected the tabernacle that the glory of God filled it
and Moses couldn’t enter it because of the heaviness of the presence of God –
“Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting and the glory of the Lord filled
the tabernacle. Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the
cloud settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle” (Exodus
40:34-35). The same thing happened again when the ark of the covenant was
brought into the Temple built by Solomon – “It happened that when the priests
came from the holy place [they had set the ark of the covenant in the holy of
holies in the Temple (verses 4-8)], the cloud filled the house of the Lord, so
that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the
glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord” (1 Kings 8:10-11). This glory
of God was referred to as the shekinah glory.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">So
what can we learn from the tabernacle that would be fulfilled in Jesus?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">First,
the eternal God would become a man – “<i>And
the Word became flesh</i>.” Here we see the biblical teaching of <a href="http://www.destroyingspeculations.blogspot.com/2012/03/incarnation-crucial-doctrine-john-114.html">the incarnation – a doctrine that is absolutely crucial to our redemption</a> – God
became a man in order to live a sinless life and then die a substitutionary
death to fulfill His own holy demands so that He could justly save us from His
wrath and enable our relationship with Him. God’s wrath against us is removed
through our faith in the work of Christ for us and our love for God is
generated through our faith in the work of Christ for us. In order to
accomplish the work of redemption for us, Christ had to become a man. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">Second,
we learn from the tabernacle that God would dwell among men – “And the Word
became flesh, <i>and dwelt among us</i>.” The
word “dwelt” means “tabernacled or tented.” God became a man and tabernacled
among us. He pitched His tent among humanity. The Old Testament tabernacle was
where God’s presence was among His people. The tabernacle offered access to God
on God’s terms. The tabernacle was the place of sacrifice, the place of
cleansing, the place of light, the place of life, the place of intercession,
and the place of mercy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">Third,
we learn from the tabernacle that the glory of God was revealed there – “And
the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, <i>and
<a href="http://www.destroyingspeculations.blogspot.com/2012/05/we-saw-his-glory-john-114.html">we saw His glory</a>, glory as of the only begotten from the Father</i>.” The “we”
John referred to was those who received Christ in John 1:12. John was saying,
“We, the ones who received Him, saw His glory.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">Glory
is from the word “doxan” from which we get the word “doxology.” To see
someone’s glory is to see his worth, his honor, his majesty, etc. Those who
receive Jesus do so because they see His worth, they see His glory! For
instance, after water got sunburned by the glory of Jesus and turned into wine
at the wedding in Cana, we read, “This beginning of His signs Jesus did in Cana
of Galilee, and <i>manifested His glory</i>,
and His disciples <i>believed in Him</i>”
(John 2:11).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
glory of Jesus was not a reflected glory but a radiating glory (Hebrews 1:3).
We are created to reflect God’s glory, but Jesus radiates God’s glory – “glory
as of the only begotten from the Father.” “Only begotten” means unique, only
one of His kind. It does not mean that Christ was created (see Hebrews 1:5). He
is God’s only Son. “From the Father” shows that God sent His Son, His only Son
whom He loves, to redeem sinners. There is no greater demonstration of love
than God sending His only Son whom He loves to live a sinless life and die a
sacrificial death to redeem us and restore us.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">Fourth,
we learn from the tabernacle that <a href="http://www.destroyingspeculations.blogspot.com/2012/05/grace-and-truth-john-114.html">God is full of grace and truth</a> – “And the
word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the
only begotten from the Father, <i>full of
grace and truth</i>.” Grace is undeserved kindness. While the tabernacle
proclaimed that God was full of underserved kindness, Jesus Christ demonstrated
it. Truth is absolute rightness. We can say that truth is strict righteousness.
Truth is unyielding faithfulness. The tabernacle proclaimed that God was full
of truth by proclaiming that access to God had to be on a basis that upheld the
righteousness of God and His Law. Jesus Christ demonstrated it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;">The
kindness of God never nullifies the righteousness of God. Grace and truth are
to never be pitted against one another as though one is more important than the
other. When God forgives it is only on the basis of the Law upholding work of
Christ. Do you see in Jesus that God is full of grace and truth? Do you see the
worth of God in the face of Christ? <o:p></o:p></span></div>olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-72625138566744178092012-05-21T05:30:00.000-05:002012-05-21T05:30:02.685-05:00We Saw His Glory (John 1:14)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo32STpFLE7HCVRFafcrUEUnHmBcTLtQ5tmeFIOjkRfNgCFi3JYf0a5Zpime_kkz58C4HDb_j2J5yyCA4IXSEVtUVP33YWzRcOC2fKLcFeWy3IKFd4bWCNFFByoWnt7rbNqt1LX4MSi0o/s1600/transfiguration.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo32STpFLE7HCVRFafcrUEUnHmBcTLtQ5tmeFIOjkRfNgCFi3JYf0a5Zpime_kkz58C4HDb_j2J5yyCA4IXSEVtUVP33YWzRcOC2fKLcFeWy3IKFd4bWCNFFByoWnt7rbNqt1LX4MSi0o/s320/transfiguration.jpg" width="241" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">“God
is great, God is good,” is not just the beginning of a prayer for God to bless
our meals that we teach our children – it is the absolute truth about God that
not everyone has seen. Until people have seen the greatness of God they think
either they are His equals or that they can manipulate His power. Until people
have seen the goodness of God they think either they are as good as He is or
that they are better than He is. At the root of mankind’s sin is self-esteem –
we value ourselves more than anything else and each one is his own god. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">This
truth that at the root of mankind’s sin is self-esteem – valuing ourselves more
than anything else – may appear that it is not absolute, but it is. Let me try
to explain how this works so that we can see that self-esteem is our root sin
problem. We readily admit that those with an unmistakable high self-esteem are
“full of themselves.” What is not so easily seen though is that those with low
self-esteem are also “full of themselves.” The problem for those with low self-esteem
is that along the way their self-esteem has been overshadowed, dominated, and
depressed by either others that would not acknowledge their worth or their own
actions that diminished their self-worth. People with low self-esteem are
miserable. They cannot achieve their desired goal – glory from others –
ascriptions of worthiness from others.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">So,
whether one has high self-esteem or low self-esteem (or somewhere in between),
he or she desires praise from others – he or she wants to be valued by others.
This desire exists in every person because it was the sin that Adam and Eve
committed when they disobeyed God and listened to the lie of the devil that
they would “be like God” if they ate from the forbidden tree. The desire to be
like God (self-ruling, self-sufficient, great, good, worthy of praise, etc.) is
so deeply ingrained in fallen mankind that its only remedy is its uprooting by
seeing the greatness and goodness of God. We must see His glory!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">John
wanted his readers to know that the glory of God is seen in the Person of the
Lord Jesus Christ. “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, <i>and we saw His glory</i>, glory as of the
only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). John
selected specific events out of the ministry of Jesus so that we too could see
His glory and value Him as our Lord and Savior. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">First,
the glory of the Lord was seen at the wedding in Cana (John 2:1-11). There both
the greatness and the goodness of the Lord were seen. The Lord’s greatness was
seen in His ability to turn water into wine. The Lord’s goodness was seen in
His concern for a poor family unable to meet the needs of their wedding guests.
The worth of the Lord was revealed – “and [He] manifested His glory, and His
disciples believed in Him” (John 2:11). The Lord is great, the Lord is good.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Next,
the glory of the Lord was seen at Jacob’s well in Samaria (John 4:1-42). There
Jesus encountered a Samaritan woman who was not known for her marital fidelity.
She had already had five husbands and the man she was with was not her husband
– she was shacking up (John 4:18). What did Jesus do? He told her all about
herself and who He was (John 4:18-26). Jesus revealed His greatness through His
accurate description of her sin and He revealed His goodness by revealing that
He was the Messiah (Christ) who did not come to condemn her but to set her
free. What happened? She went and told those in the city and many believed –
“From that city many of the Samaritans believed in Him because of the word of
the woman who testified, ‘He told me all things that I have done’” (John 4:39).
His glory is full of grace and truth! The Lord is great, the Lord is good.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Then,
the glory of the Lord was seen at Cana through the healing of a royal
official’s son (John 4:46-54). This man’s son was at the point of death and
when Jesus came back into Cana he implored the Lord to come down and heal his
son. Jesus simply said the words, “Go; your son lives” and the man believed the
word that Jesus spoke to him (John 4:50). The next day while the man was on his
way home his servants met him and told him that his son was alive. The boy got
well at the exact same time that Jesus spoke the words, “Your son lives,” and
this caused his whole household to believe with him (John 4:51-53). The Lord is
great, the Lord is good.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">After
these things the glory of the Lord was seen in Jerusalem at the pool of
Bethesda through the healing of a man who had been sick for thirty-eight years
and had no one to put him into the pool when the waters were stirred up (John
5:1-14). Jesus saw the man lying there and asked him if he wished to get well.
The man answered that <i>he had no one</i>
to put him into the pool. Jesus said, “Get up, pick up your pallet and walk”
(John 5:6-8). “Immediately the man became well, and picked up his pallet and
began to walk” (John 5:9). The Lord is great, the Lord is good. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Then,
the glory of the Lord was seen in Jerusalem again when Jesus was teaching at
the feast of booths (tabernacles) and a woman caught in adultery was brought to
the Lord by the scribes and Pharisees demanding that He uphold the Law of Moses
and stone her to death (John 8:1-11). Instead Jesus gave her grace, convicted
her accusers of sin, and set her free (John 8:7-11). The Lord is great, the
Lord is good.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Later
that day the glory of the Lord was seen outside the temple when Jesus healed a
man born blind (John 9:1-41). This man had a problem that no one else could
heal. Jesus had both the power to heal him and the grace to heal him. The Lord
is great, the Lord is good.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The
religious leaders wanted to kill the Lord because He was messing with <i>their glory</i> by <i>revealing His glory</i>. The Lord withdrew to the Jordan and ministered
there until His friend Lazarus died and He returned to Judea to do the <i>impossible</i> - He raised Lazarus from the dead after four
days in the tomb (John 11:1-45). The Lord is great, the Lord is good.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">The
greatest revelation of the Lord’s glory was seen when He died as a sacrifice
for sin, was buried, and on the third day arose from the dead (John 19:17-18,
28-30; 20:11-16). The Lord is great, the Lord is good!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Have
you seen His glory?<o:p></o:p></span></div>olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-17035026099819449032012-05-17T06:00:00.000-05:002012-05-17T06:00:03.863-05:00A Biblical Philosophy of Pastoral Ministry (Eschatology)<br />
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<b>Eschatology</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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An inadequate soteriology will misguide ecclesiology and distort eschatology. Ultimately, a misguided ecclesiology culminates in a distorted eschatology that believes the end-times will be characterized by unhindered success in ministry, ecumenical unity based on deeds not doctrine, and a sweeping world-wide revival. This is a distortion of biblical eschatology. <br /><br /> First, a distorted eschatology believes that the end-times will be characterized by unhindered success in ministry. This belief manifests itself in the idea that now is the best time to be a minister. Rick Warren promotes this idea in The Purpose Driven Church. He said:</div>
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In my opinion, we live in the most exciting time in history for the
church. Unparalleled opportunities and powerful technologies are available to
our congregations. More importantly, we are experiencing an unprecedented
movement of God’s Spirit in many parts of the world today. More people are
coming to Christ now than at any other time in history . . . . The largest
churches in the history of Christianity are in existence at this very moment.
Most of them are not in the United States. While the stories of these churches
are exciting to hear, I believe that the greatest churches are yet to be built.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a></blockquote>
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The idea that the last days are going to be characterized by difficulty for those in the ministry, particularly because people will not endure sound doctrine, is not included among those operating out of the church growth philosophy of ministry.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn2">[2]</a> Warren said, “I’ve often heard pastors complain that unbelievers are more resistant to the Gospel today than in the past. I don’t think that is true at all. More often than not, resistance is just poor communication.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn3">[3]</a> A distorted eschatology believes that the end-times will be characterized by unhindered success in ministry. </div>
<br /> Second, a distorted eschatology believes that the end-times will be characterized by ecumenical unity based on deeds and not doctrine. This is the logical conclusion of church growth philosophy that engages in doctrinal minimalism and methodological pragmatism. Ecumenical unity is unattainable under a biblical philosophy for pastoral ministry that maintains sound doctrine. Therefore, church growth philosophy seeks to minimize sound doctrine and replace it with methodological pragmatism. Doctrinal differences are set aside for partnerships in common deeds “believed” to be the activities the church is supposed to be doing in the world. The end result will be an ecumenical unity that is deemed a “second reformation.” Rick Warren said, “The first Reformation with Luther and then Calvin was about beliefs. I think a new reformation is going to be about behavior. The first Reformation was about creeds; I think this one will be about deeds. I think the first one was about what the church believes; I think this one will be about what the church does.” <a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn4">[4]</a> Warren’s strategy for a second reformation is to promote deeds as essential and doctrine as non-essential. He said:
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The first Reformation actually split Christianity into dozens and then
hundreds of different segments. I think this one is actually going to bring
them together. Now, you're never going to get Christians, of all their stripes
and varieties, to agree on all of the different doctrinal disputes and things
like that, but what I am seeing them agree on are the purposes of the church.
And I find great uniformity in the fact that I see this happening all the time.
Last week I spoke to 4,000 pastors at my church who came from over 100
denominations in over 50 countries. Now, that's wide spread. We had Catholic
priests, we had Pentecostal ministers, we had Lutheran bishops, we had Anglican
bishops, we had Baptist preachers. They're all there together and you know
what? I'd never get them to agree on communion or baptism or a bunch of stuff
like that, but I could get them to agree on what the church should be doing in
the world.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn5" name="_ftnref5" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a></blockquote>
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In this manner the principle, in the essentials unity and in the nonessentials liberty, can serve as a diversion from the doctrinal minimalism of church growth philosophy. Journalist Elsa Walsh asked Warren about her perception of his doctrinal minimalism. She asked, “So are you saying doctrine won't be important or is not important if you bring together all these?” Warren answered, “No, no. I think, though, it's what Augustine said: ‘In the essentials, unity; in the non-essentials, liberty; and in all things, charity.’ And I think that's how evangelicals and Catholics can get together.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn6">[6]</a> The only way evangelicals and Catholics can get together is through unity in deeds (methodological pragmatism) and liberty in doctrine (doctrinal minimalism). There should be no denying that a distorted eschatology believes the end-times will be characterized by ecumenical unity based on deeds and not doctrine. </div>
<br /> Third, a distorted eschatology believes that the end-times will be characterized by a sweeping world-wide revival. Unhindered success and ecumenical unity must logically culminate in a sweeping world-wide revival. Warren believes that the largest churches in Christianity are yet to be built.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn7">[7]</a> He also believes that the second reformation of ecumenical unity based on deeds and not doctrine may create a great revival. Warren said, “I am working toward a second Reformation of the church which could create a Third Great Awakening in our nation or world.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn8">[8]</a> For those with an inadequate soteriology, misguided ecclesiology and distorted eschatology, this is “the most exciting time in history for the church.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn9">[9]</a> The foundation of a building determines its structure and the structure determines its apex. For church growth philosophy the apex is a distorted eschatology that believes the end-times will be characterized by a sweeping world-wide revival. <br /><br /> In contrast, an adequate soteriology will properly guide ecclesiology and correctly shape eschatology. Properly guided ecclesiology will culminate in a correctly shaped eschatology that believes the end-times will be characterized by difficulty in ministry, an ecumenical unity that compromises sound doctrine and violates biblical separation, and a sweeping world-wide counterfeit revival. <br /><br /> First, a correctly shaped eschatology believes that the end-times will be characterized by difficulty in ministry. This truth is explicitly taught in the Word of God.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn10">[10]</a> The reason the last days will be difficult for true ministers is because of large numbers of unregenerate church members that have the form of Christians without its content and who will not endure sound doctrine but instead heap to themselves doctrinal minimalizing teachers.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn11">[11]</a> Resistance to the Gospel will not be the result of poor communication but the overabundance of false teachers offering inoffensive, man-centered entry into the kingdom of God.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn12">[12]</a> The difficulty is multiplied when the leaders of church growth philosophy accuse faithful ministers of poor communication skills, unloving attitudes, and prideful arrogance. <a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn13">[13]</a> Faithful ministry in this context can lead to the appearance of failure that in and of itself will make ministry difficult. Jim Elliff succinctly articulated this dilemma. He said:
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The disturbing thing about the American church in general
is that our mentality about evangelism does not reflect Christ’s. We often
correctly lead the unbelievers up to the door of salvation but then reconstruct
the door wide enough for them and their rebellion. We cannot stand for the
truth to create resistance. We have a hard enough time with our image anyway.
(Nobody wants to be a leader in the Church Loss Movement!)<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn14" name="_ftnref14" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[14]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a></blockquote>
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Ministry in these last days will be difficult for faithful ministers who are judged by their lack of success in the face of the unhindered success of the false preachers that compromise the truth to remove its resistance. Speaking of the false preachers, the Word of God says that they will speak as from the world and the world will listen to them.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn15">[15]</a> This is the advice Rick Warren gives to remove resistance from the Gospel. He said, “If you want to advertise your church to the unchurched you must learn to think and speak like they do . . . . Churches need to stop saying people are closed to the Gospel and start finding out how to communicate on the unbeliever’s wavelength.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn16">[16]</a> The implication is that if a pastor’s church is not growing it is because of his poor communication skills or some other deficiency. However, a correctly shaped eschatology believes that the end-times will be characterized by difficulty in ministry, not because of poor communication skills or some other deficiency, but because of faithfulness to the Word of God in soteriology and ecclesiology. </div>
<br /> Second, a correctly shaped eschatology believes that the end-times will be characterized by an ecumenical alliance between denominations and religions of opposing beliefs. This ecumenical alliance though will be understood by those with a correctly shaped eschatology as a God-forbidden partnership. This will be an explicit violation of the Word of God that commands separation from unbelieving denominations and religions.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn17">[17]</a> A correctly shaped eschatology understands that ecumenical alliances are the logical conclusion of church growth philosophy and that they are the necessary harbingers of the apostasy that must come before the coming of the Lord and the gathering together of His people.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn18">[18]</a> This ecumenical unity based on methodological pragmatism and doctrinal minimalism will serve as a deluding influence and judgment of God on those who will not believe the truth.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn19">[19]</a> The “second reformation” that is supposed to unite Christianity will be an ecumenical unity that is explicitly forbidden by God. <br /><br /> Third, a correctly shaped eschatology believes that the end-times will be characterized by a sweeping world-wide counterfeit revival. Once again this is the logical result of church growth philosophy that utilizes methodological pragmatism and practices doctrinal minimalism not only to gain “converts” but to also form ecumenical alliances. All of this will culminate in “the” apostasy.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn20">[20]</a> The apostasy will have the appearance or form of revival but not the reality of revival. This too is taught in the Word of God. Jesus’ parable of the tares, a parable on eschatology, teaches that the tares, weeds that have the form of wheat, are counterfeit Christians that will be bundled up first before the wheat, true Christians, are gathered to the Lord.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn21">[21]</a> The eschatology of the apostle Paul is in perfect harmony with Jesus’ eschatological parable of the tares. Jesus said that the tares would be bundled up first and then the wheat gathered into His barn.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn22">[22]</a> Paul said that before the Lord comes and His people are gathered together to Him, the apostasy (bundling of the tares) must come first.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn23">[23]</a> The bundling up of counterfeit Christians will have the appearance of revival but will only be a counterfeit revival. A correctly shaped eschatology believes that the end-times will be characterized by a sweeping world-wide counterfeit revival. <br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Conclusion </b></div>
<br /> Devising a biblical component model for pastoral ministry requires biblical fidelity in the three theological categories of soteriology, ecclesiology and eschatology. Soteriology is foundational, ecclesiology is structural and eschatology is apical to a pastoral philosophy of ministry. Each theological category gives guiding and guarding principles for a biblical component model of pastoral ministry. <br /><br /> First, an adequate soteriology dictates that a regenerate church membership can only be attained by the means of the unadulterated Gospel. Since the Gospel is the only means that sinners can obtain salvation, pastors are to have complete confidence in its power to bring salvation. Neither methodological pragmatism nor doctrinal minimalism will be effectual in regeneration. This means that seeker-sensitive services and all other Scripture violating church growth philosophies are to be avoided for use in evangelism. Evangelism will primarily be go and tell not come and see. <br /><br /> Second, a properly guided ecclesiology will cause the church to be structured to ensure that the disciple-making process is not oversimplified. Worship will be saint-sensitive rather than seeker-sensitive. This means that expository preaching during the worship service is irreplaceable. Fellowship will be grounded in a biblical understanding of church membership and guarded by biblical church discipline. Discipleship will equip the saints to be sound in doctrine, sure in discernment and strong in defending the faith. This means that teaching sound doctrine will need more avenues than just the worship services on Sundays. Discipleship classes structured toward doctrine, discernment, and defending the faith should be regularly offered. Also catechisms should be utilized with the church’s members. Ministry will be more than discovering spiritual gifts and meeting human needs. Ministry will also include equipped church members actually engaging in spiritual discernment, spiritual loyalty, and spiritual warfare. This means there will be alliances to establish and alliances to avoid. Also both apologetics and polemics will have to be employed. <br /><br /> Third, a correctly shaped eschatology will remind pastors of the reality that their ministry will be characterized by difficulty. Pastors therefore should stand strong in the Lord and become part of a small group or network of like-minded pastors. Also pastors should understand that the counterfeiters who compromise sound doctrine and violate biblical separation will create a strong pull towards an ecumenical unity. This means that they will have to redouble their efforts in equipping the saints to stand against the schemes of the devil and getting the church to be the pillar and support of the truth against the rising tides of apostasy.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn24">[24]</a> Finally, pastors should understand that the last days will be characterized by a sweeping world-wide counterfeit revival. This means that they will have to work extra hard in exposing counterfeiters,<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn25">[25]</a> reminding their people that this is what the Word of God reveals,<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn26">[26]</a> and contending for the faith so that some can be snatched out of deception.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn27">[27]</a> <br /><br /> These three theological categories, soteriology, ecclesiology and eschatology, are invaluable for constructing a philosophy of pastoral ministry. They give guiding and guarding principles to ensure that pastoral ministry is genuine and not a form of pastoral ministry without its biblical content. <div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">
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Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 15.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Timothy 3:1—4:4 explicitly teaches that the last days will be difficult for
true ministers of God and that sound doctrine will not be endured. Only
doctrinal minimizers will find the last days easy.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 189.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Warren,
“Myths” http://www.pewforum.org/Christian/Evangelical-Protestant-Churches/Myths-of-the-Modern-Megachurch.aspx
(accessed May 1, 2012).<o:p></o:p></div>
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Warren, “Myths” http://www.pewforum.org/Christian/Evangelical-Protestant-Churches/Myths-of-the-Modern-Megachurch.aspx
(accessed May 1, 2012).<i><o:p></o:p></i></div>
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Warren, “Myths” http://www.pewforum.org/Christian/Evangelical-Protestant-Churches/Myths-of-the-Modern-Megachurch.aspx
(accessed May 1, 2012).<o:p></o:p></div>
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Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 15.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Warren, “Myths” http://www.pewforum.org/Christian/Evangelical-Protestant-Churches/Myths-of-the-Modern-Megachurch.aspx
(accessed May 1, 2012).<o:p></o:p></div>
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Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 15.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Timothy 3:1.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Timothy 3:1—4:4.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Matthew 7:13 and 1 John 4:1, 5.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 189, 337-338.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Jim Elliff, “The New Gospel: Appealing But not Revealing” at Christian
Communicators Worldwide, http://www.ccwonline.org/appeal.html, accessed May 9,
2012.<o:p></o:p></div>
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John 4:5.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 189.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Corinthians 6:14-18.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Thessalonians 2:1-3.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Thessalonians 2:11-12.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Thessalonians 2:3.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Matthew 13:30.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Thessalonians 2:1-3.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Timothy 3:15<o:p></o:p></div>
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Corinthians 11:12-15.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Peter 2:1-3; 2; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Jude 3-23.<o:p></o:p></div>
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</div>olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-74541245032811214852012-05-16T06:00:00.000-05:002012-05-16T06:00:06.038-05:00A Biblical Philosophy of Pastoral Ministry (Ecclesiology)<br />
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<b>Ecclesiology<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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A pastor’s soteriology will guide his ecclesiology. His understanding of salvation will inform his understanding of the church. If a pastor’s view of salvation is truly evangelical then he will view the church as a gathering of the saints, those who have been regenerated by the Spirit through the Gospel, who need to be matured in the faith and equipped for service in a hostile environment.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn1">[1]</a> On the other hand, if a pastor’s view of salvation is not truly evangelical, especially if it is a form of Pelagianism, he will view the church as a gathering of sinners who need to be evangelized through man-centered means that either compete with or compromise the Gospel. A soteriology that is not truly evangelical will make it impossible to structure a church with sound ecclesiology. An inadequate soteriology will misguide ecclesiology in every instance. Several examples should be mentioned to support this theory. <br /><br />First, an inadequate soteriology will cause the church to be structured to become a gathering of the unchurched rather than its biblical purpose of being structured as a gathering of the saints for their equipping. For those with an inadequate soteriology, any means available that will successfully “impress the unchurched” can be utilized to attract and attach the unchurched to their organizations. This is what Robert Schuller called “the human needs approach.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn2">[2]</a> Most churches that utilize these types of means categorize them as “seeker-sensitive services.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn3">[3]</a> <br /><br />Seeker-sensitive services are designed to gather a crowd of attenders. After the unchurched have been attracted by the services designed for them, then they are to be attached to the organization. Rick Warren said, “Once you’ve gathered a crowd of attenders you must begin the important task of forming them into a congregation of members. The crowd must become a church . . . . Assimilation is the task of moving people from an awareness of your church to attendance at your church to active membership in your church.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn4">[4]</a> The manner that this is accomplished, according to Warren, is by communicating the value of membership.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn5">[5]</a> He said, “The way you motivate people to join today is to show them the value-for-value benefits they will receive in return for their commitment.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn6">[6]</a> <br /><br />According to Warren, church membership offers people what they are hungering for, “fellowship, community, and a sense of family.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn7">[7]</a> He said, “This ‘longing for belonging’ provides the church with a timely opportunity. Positioning the church as an extended family, as ‘a place where you are cared for,’ will strike a sensitive chord in many lonely hearts.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn8">[8]</a> So Warren’s philosophy is that people are to be attracted to the church through designing services that are “attractive, appealing, and relevant to the unchurched,” then communicating to them the “value-for-value benefits they will receive in return for their [membership],” and finally attaching them through a “required membership class.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn9">[9]</a> <br /><br />Conspicuously missing from Warren’s means of attracting and attaching people to the church is the Gospel. In its place are seeker-sensitive services and the promise of “fellowship, community, and a sense of family” through membership. The required membership class then is utilized to accomplish a fraudulent marketing technique known as bait-and-switch. The hidden cost of “trusting Christ” is not revealed as a requirement for membership until the required membership class. Warren said:</div>
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If you are a church
that targets the unchurched, you need to include a clear explanation of
salvation in your membership class because you will have many people who want
to join the church who are not believers! We always explain that trusting
Christ is the first requirement for membership, and we have people who commit
their lives to Christ in every membership class.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn10" name="_ftnref10" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[10]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a></blockquote>
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In this way, church membership can be viewed as producing genuine believers through what appears as the true evangelical means of the Gospel. Concerning church membership, Warren said, “It identifies a person as a genuine believer.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn11">[11]</a> However, attaching people to the church through bait-and-switch tactics hardly guarantees genuine believers. </div>
<br /> Obviously, Warren’s soteriology serves as the foundation upon which his ecclesiology is built. He views the church as a gathering of sinners who need to be evangelized through his means that either compete with or compromise the Gospel. This approach may make good counterfeit Christians but will not produce a regenerate church membership. In Transformational Church, Stetzer and Rainer said, “Making well-adjusted and well-behaved unbelievers is not the aim of Christian mission.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn12">[12]</a> This structure will retard rather than enhance regenerate church membership. <br /><br />Second, an inadequate soteriology will misguide ecclesiology by causing the church to be structured in a manner that disciple-making (equipping the saints) is reduced to movement of assimilated members through a few strategic programs. When the church is structured toward assimilating the unchurched through ineffective means then its disciple-making process must omit the elements of genuine Christian discipleship that safeguard the end product. This is done to retain the assimilated members. In particular, the elements that are omitted are growth in sound doctrine, growth in discernment, and growth in defense of the faith. Growth in sound doctrine is primary and foundational in discipleship.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn13">[13]</a> Sound doctrine enables both discernment and the ability to defend the faith. However, sound doctrine is not endured by unregenerate church members.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn14">[14]</a> <br /><br />In the place of growing in sound doctrine, discernment and defense of the faith, aspects of equipping the saints that safeguard the end product of biblical disciples, processes designed to help members become more effective in promoting and perpetuating church growth philosophy (inadequate soteriology and ecclesiology) are substituted. Equipping the saints is reduced to teaching others to reproduce themselves in the church growth enterprise. One is considered an equipped Christian in the church growth enterprise, not because he or she is sound in doctrine, has discernment concerning false teachers, or is able to take an immovable stand for the truth, but because he or she is fully committed to reproducing his or her self through the church growth processes. <br /><br />Those fully committed to church growth processes and are making progress in their movement through them are considered healthy disciples. Thom Rainer and Eric Geiger said, “Simple church leaders have designed their simple process with movement in mind. The ministry process moves people to greater levels of commitment—with ever-increasing levels of discipleship.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn15">[15]</a> As long as the simple process does not omit sound doctrine, discernment concerning false teachers and defense of the truth, essential aspects of biblical discipleship that will prove to be detrimental to the commitment of unregenerate members, then there should be no argument of its effectiveness in making healthy disciples. However, most authors of church health and church growth books omit these essential aspects altogether in their strategies for church health. For instance, Rainer and Geiger gave an example in Simple Church where the definition of a mature disciple by a church considered “growing and vibrant” was so simplistic that nothing about it would imply the essential aspects of discipleship. The pastor’s explanation of his definition of a mature disciple was, they said:
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
First, someone loves God. This first
step is the most basic and essential aspect of discipleship, but it does not
end there. After someone enters into a love relationship with God, he or she
begins to love others. The person commits to grow in community with others.
After loving God and others, the natural result is to serve people. And the
process continues. It is ongoing.<span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn16" name="_ftnref16" title=""><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[16]</span></span></a></span> </blockquote>
Also Stetzer and Rainer in Transformational Church, a book about measuring church health by measuring how well a church is making disciples, omitted the essential aspects of discipleship. Their measurement is accomplished by determining success in three categories: (1) discern, (2) embrace, and (3) engage. According to Ephesians the equipped saint embraces sound doctrine, can discern false teaching, and is able to engage in spiritual warfare against the enemies of truth.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn17">[17]</a> One would think that Stetzer and Rainer’s three categories would address these essential aspects of biblical discipleship, but that is not the case. By discern they do not mean the ability to discern false teaching and false teachers but the ability to discern the culture. <a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn18">[18]</a> By embrace they do not mean embracing sound doctrine but embracing vibrant leadership, relational intentionality and prayerful dependence.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn19">[19]</a> By engage Stetzer and Rainer do not mean engage in spiritual warfare against the enemies of truth but engage in worship, community, and mission.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn20">[20]</a><br /><br /><div class="MsoNormal">
Omitting the essentials of discipleship taught in Ephesians removes the safeguard for church health and empties the disciple-making structure of its power. All that is left is a form of disciple-making incapable of making biblical disciples.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn21">[21]</a> The criteria for determining success in making healthy disciples and having healthy churches are not based on fidelity to the essentials of discipleship taught in Ephesians but on the numbers of people attracted, attached and assimilated through an incomplete structure for disciple-making. Church health then is determined by church growth and not fidelity to God’s Word concerning ecclesiology. The ability to “reproduce” becomes the quintessential mark of church health. This philosophy overlooks the truth that dangerous, diseased, and useless organisms can be prolific in reproduction. <br /><br />Third, an inadequate soteriology will misguide ecclesiology by causing the church to be structured in a manner that guarding the church from both inside and outside corruption is neglected. Discernment between good growth and bad growth are not factors for consideration in churches that have an inadequate soteriology and misguided ecclesiology. Since these churches are structured in a manner that disciple-making is oversimplified and its essential elements omitted, the goal is not quality growth but quantity growth. In an interview where he was asked how his church stayed healthy when they brought a lot of unhealthy people in, Rick Warren said:</div>
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I've read books that
emphasize, "You've got to reinforce the purity of the church." But
Jesus said, "Let the tares and the wheat grow together, and one day I'll
sort them out." We're not in the sorting business. We're in the harvesting
business. We do get a lot of unhealthy people at church, because society is
getting sicker. But Jesus demonstrated that ministering to hurting people was
more important than maintaining purity. When you fish with a big net, you catch
all kinds of fish.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn22" name="_ftnref22" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[22]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a></blockquote>
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This philosophy obliterates church discipline, repudiates biblical separation, and invalidates sanctification. Also, since the goal is assimilation (harvesting) without any concern for either genuine regeneration or church purity (sorting), preaching sound doctrine with reproof, rebuke, and exhortation through expository preaching is necessarily replaced by preaching without sound doctrine in order to entertain and please assimilated, unregenerate church members.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn23">[23]</a></div>
<br />Sound doctrine that guards the church and maintains its purity, its health, is seen as too divisive and too negative for the “positive only” philosophy of those with an inadequate soteriology. In May, 2005 at the Pew Forum’s biannual Faith Angle conference on religion, politics, and public life, Rick Warren addressed what he called misconceptions Americans have about mega-churches, discussed his book The Purpose Driven Life, as well as current trends in the evangelical movement. Concerning current trends, Warren said:
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
You know, 500 years ago, the first
Reformation with Luther and then Calvin was about beliefs. I think a new
reformation is going to be about behavior. The first Reformation was about
creeds; I think this one will be about deeds. I think the first one was about
what the church believes; I think this one will be about what the church does.<br />The first Reformation actually split
Christianity into dozens and then hundreds of different segments. I think this
one is actually going to bring them together. Now, you're never going to get
Christians, of all their stripes and varieties, to agree on all of the
different doctrinal disputes and things like that, but what I am seeing them
agree on are the purposes of the church. And I find great uniformity in the
fact that I see this happening all the time. Last week I spoke to 4,000 pastors
at my church who came from over 100 denominations in over 50 countries. Now,
that's wide spread. We had Catholic priests, we had Pentecostal ministers, we
had Lutheran bishops, we had Anglican bishops, we had Baptist preachers.
They're all there together and you know what? I'd never get them to agree on
communion or baptism or a bunch of stuff like that, but I could get them to
agree on what the church should be doing in the world.<br />And the way I expressed it is that the
Bible calls the church the body of Christ, and what's happened in the last 100
years is that the hands and the feet have been amputated and the church has
just been a mouth, and primarily it's been known for what it's against. It's
been known for what it's against.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn24" name="_ftnref24" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[24]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a></blockquote>
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Instead of maintaining fidelity in doctrine that divides Rick Warren called for eschewing sound doctrine and defense of the faith in favor of unity under the umbrella of non-divisive deeds. However, in Ephesians 6:11-12 equipped Christians are told six times that their duty is to stand against the opponents of the truth.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn25">[25]</a></div>
<br />A “positive only” philosophy of ministry overlooks the dangers facing the church and fails to guard it. This is in opposition not only to the recorded method in the Bible but also to the practices of those in the first century. For instance, Clement of Rome wrote to the Corinthians to rebuke them concerning a few self-willed and headstrong people that had stirred up dissention, strife, and jealousy.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn26">[26]</a> Of the dangers these men posed, Clement wrote, “For we shall bring upon us no common harm, but rather great peril, if we surrender ourselves recklessly to the purposes of men who launch out into strife and seditions, so as to estrange us from that which is right.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn27">[27]</a> Also Ignatius of Antioch in Syria was concerned for doctrinal purity concerning the person and work of Jesus Christ. Ignatius was concerned with two heresies. One was the heresy of Docetism. Docetism affirms the deity of Jesus but denies the humanity of Jesus.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn28">[28]</a> Ignatius challenged that heresy in several of his letters.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn29">[29]</a> Two was the heresy of Judaism. Judaism not only denied salvation by grace but also denied the deity of Jesus. Ignatius challenged this heresy also.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn30">[30]</a> However, a misguided ecclesiology will cause the church to be structured in a manner that guarding the church from both inside and outside corruption is neglected. <br /><br /> Consequently, an adequate soteriology will properly guide ecclesiology causing the church to be structured in a biblically faithful manner. Properly guided ecclesiology will be in contrast to misguided ecclesiology. Properly guided ecclesiology will cause the church to be structured as a gathering of the saints for their equipping; will ensure that disciple-making is not oversimplified; and will guard the church’s health. <br /><br /> First, a sound soteriology will properly guide ecclesiology by causing the church to be structured as a gathering of saints for their equipping rather than a gathering of unbelievers for their assimilation. This is not to say that these churches will do nothing to reach people but that they refuse to make the church into something the Lord Jesus did not create it to be—namely a mission. Robert Schuller’s philosophy that “the church must die as a church and be born again as a mission”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn31">[31]</a> will be rejected outright in favor of the divinely inspired definition of a church.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn32">[32]</a> This means that the services will not include man-centered, seeker-sensitive sermons or activities but instead will include God-centered, saint-sensitive sermons and activities. The outreach of the church should be something other than an attempt to attract people to the church through dishonest bait and switch tactics. The outreach of the church should mostly be accomplished by saints sharing the Gospel, standing against the schemes of the devil and destroying faulty speculations about God.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn33">[33]</a> The focus of the services should be on grounding the saints in sound doctrine and not turning assembly time into an outreach event. Outreach events have their places but are not to interfere with the focus on grounding the saints in sound doctrine during assembly times. <br /><br /> Grounding the saints in sound doctrine is serious business for churches with sound soteriology. They understand that the Word of God is an indispensable means to salvation. They also understand that not everyone who professes to have been regenerated by faith in Christ is necessarily regenerated.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn34">[34]</a> Another serious aspect involved in grounding the saints is the understanding that there is an enemy seeking to infiltrate and destroy the church through counterfeiting activity.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn35">[35]</a> This is why those that understand these things structure the church so that the saints are not stunted in their growth nor seduced by doctrines of demons. As John Piper said, “The salvation of the elect is not automatic. It happens through God-appointed means . . . . It is the job of the pastor to labor so that none of his brothers and sisters is destroyed.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn36">[36]</a> Part of that pastoral labor is to see to it that the church is structured so that it is focused on grounding the saints through its services. Instead of engaging in “doctrinal minimalism and methodological pragmatism,”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn37">[37]</a> faithful pastors ground the saints in sound doctrine. Piper said, “[Eternal security] is a community project. And that is why the pastoral ministry is so utterly serious, and why our preaching must not be playful but earnest. We preach so that saints might persevere in faith to glory.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn38">[38]</a> The only kind of preaching that will accomplish that goal is not a “meatless diet of salvation messages” but “all the Scriptures.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn39">[39]</a> <br /><br /> Not only will the church be structured to ground the saints in sound doctrine, faithful pastors will take personal interest in watching over the souls of those allotted to their charge. They will “take heed to all the flock.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn40">[40]</a> Giving an exposition of this phrase to an association of pastors in the seventeenth century, Richard Baxter said:
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
It is, you see, <i>all</i> the flock, or every individual
member of our charge. To this end it is necessary, that we should know every
person that belongeth to our charge; for how can we take heed to them, if we do
not know them? We must labour to be acquainted, not only with the persons, but
with the state of all our people, with their inclinations and conversations;
what are the sins of which they are most in danger, and what duties they are
most apt to neglect, and what temptations they are most liable to; for if we
know not their temperament or disease, we are not likely to prove successful
physicians.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn41" name="_ftnref41" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[41]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a></blockquote>
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Baxter suggested accomplishing this task by personally catechizing every member from house to house. So faithful preaching from the pulpit and faithful teaching from house to house should be part of a pastor’s ecclesiology that has an adequate soteriology. “After the Bible, the church roll is the most important book in a pastor's study.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn42">[42]</a></div>
<br />Second, an adequate soteriology will properly guide ecclesiology by causing the church to be structured to ensure that the disciple-making process is not oversimplified. The disciple-making process will be much more complex than movement through church programs that omit the essentials of biblical disciple-making. The hard parts of discipleship that safeguard the disciple-making process will not be omitted in the church’s structure. Eugene Peterson offered a much needed warning about those who would simplify the disciple-making process. He said:
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The simplifiers, however
well-intentioned they are, are the bane of good pastoral work. The spate of
inspirational-testimonial religious writing that seems to find such a ready
market in the Christian community is an instance of such well-intentioned simplification
that results in later complications. The stories are not honest. They are
written under the direction of a market-oriented editor, not to tell the truth
of Christian conversion and growth, but to tell the one part of the truth that
will appeal to the element of spiritual sloth in every Christian that wants to
skip the hard parts of discipleship.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn43">[43]</a><a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn43" name="_ftnref43" title=""><sup><!--[endif]--></sup></a></blockquote>
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Instead, the church will be structured to ensure that the hard parts of discipleship, growth in sound doctrine, growth in discernment about false teaching, and growth in the ability to defend the truth against its opponents, will be incorporated. As Peterson said, “It is not the pastor's job to simplify the spiritual life, to devise common-denominator formulas, to smooth out the path of discipleship. Some difficulties are inherent in the way of spiritual growth - to deny them, to minimize them, or to offer shortcuts is to divert the person from true growth.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn44">[44]</a></div>
<br />A church structured to ensure that the hard parts of discipleship are incorporated into its ministries will have to include more than just a form of the functions of the church but actually fill the form with its biblically intended content. Rick Warren has identified five purposes (functions) of the church: (1) evangelism, (2) worship, (3) fellowship, (4) discipleship, and (5) ministry.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn45">[45]</a> There is no disagreement with Warren’s form (five purposes) but there is with the content he ascribes to those purposes. <br /><br />The first purpose of the church, evangelism, will primarily be go and tell not come and see.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn46">[46]</a> The gospel message is to be taken to the culture and not the culture brought to the church. Church members are to “go and tell” and not just invite people to “come and see.” The “come and see” model removes the need for the biblical equipping of the saints, turns assembly time into performance time, and replaces evangelism with marketing strategies. The “go and tell” model is the biblical model for church. In order for its members to engage in evangelism, the church must be the equipping place of the saints preparing them to battle for the truth in a culture that is anti-truth.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn47">[47]</a> Needed then is not an approach to evangelism that compromises with the culture in attempts to reach it through seeker-sensitive services of cultural relevance but an approach to evangelism that has contact with the culture on its turf in order to reach it through biblical fidelity. Proper tension between contact with the culture and separation from it should be the goal of evangelism for both the salvation of souls and the glory of God. After all, the trinitarian nature of ministry dictates that evangelism is about being sent to people who do not and will not seek after God.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn48">[48]</a> Concerning the trinitarian nature of evangelism (mission) Stephen Seamands said:
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
[Mission] is derived from God’s triune
nature, from the <i>sending</i> of God, and
should be grounded primarily in the doctrine of God, not the doctrine of
salvation or the church. According to Scripture, God the Father sends the Son .
. . the Father and the Son send the Holy Spirit . . . and the Father, Son and
Holy Spirit send the church into the world.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn49" name="_ftnref49" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[49]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a></blockquote>
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<o:p> </o:p>The church’s evangelism should primarily be go and tell not come and see. </div>
<br />Worship, the second purpose of the church will be saint-sensitive and not seeker-sensitive.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn50">[50]</a> Only those who have been effectually called to salvation through the Gospel can worship God. Worship transforms, edifies, and equips the saints as they behold the glory of the Lord in the Word of God.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn51">[51]</a> This will mean that the preaching of the whole counsel of God will be central during the worship service. Expositional preaching will become an indicator of church health. Actually, expositional preaching is the crucial mark of a healthy church that does not avoid the hard aspects of discipleship. Mark Dever said, “The first mark of a healthy church is expositional preaching. It is not only the first mark; it is far and away the most important of them all, because if you get this one right, all the others should follow.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn52">[52]</a> Expositional preaching that communicates sound doctrine is offensive to the unregenerate.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn53">[53]</a> However, communicating sound doctrine is the primary means of God for equipping the saints.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn54">[54]</a> Worship is not to be emptied of its biblical content by focusing on seekers rather than saints. Since the Sunday morning service is the main service that church members are going to attend then it should be structured for their equipping.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn55">[55]</a> <br /><br />The third purpose of the church, fellowship, will be grounded in a biblical understanding of church membership, and guarded by biblical church discipline. Most church growth books emphasize building relationships especially through small groups. There is nothing wrong with the form emphasized. The problem is with how the form is filled. Instead of fellowship based on the unity of the faith, mutual encouragement and corporate accountability, church growth philosophy substitutes cultivating new friendships based on affinity in everything except the above mentioned characteristics of biblical fellowship.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn56">[56]</a> <br /><br />A properly guided ecclesiology dictates that the church is mostly constituted by a regenerate membership and as such the function of its fellowship must be structured toward their growth, maturity, protection and purity. The assimilation of members through affinity groups that are not based on the characteristics of biblical fellowship fills the form with an unbiblical function and fails to accomplish the intended function of biblical fellowship. Instead of unity of the faith there is affinity of aspirations. Instead of mutual encouragement based on faithfulness to the Lord and His ways there is mutual encouragement in perpetuating church growth principles. Instead of corporate accountability (church discipline) where sinning members are either brought to repentance or excommunicated from fellowship for not repenting there is acceptance of unrepentant members living in unacceptable sin.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn57">[57]</a> The mindset of the church growth philosophy is that the church is not in the sorting business but in the harvesting business.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn58">[58]</a> <br /><br /> Discipleship, the fourth purpose of the church, will be based on the biblical definition of an equipped saint. An equipped saint is a mature disciple that is sound in doctrine, sure in discernment and strong in defending the faith. Developing mature members involves much more than moving people through a “Life Development Process.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn59">[59]</a> Warren’s Life Development Process, since it omits the difficult elements of discipleship, will produce “well-adjusted and well-behaved unbelievers.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn60">[60]</a> Since church growth philosophy gives lip service to sound doctrine but omits it from its actual disciple-making process, maturity among members is evaluated on their well-adjusted behavior that results from their movement through the simplified track provided for developing mature members. Rick Warren validates this assessment of church growth philosophy. He said, “Maturity is demonstrated more by behavior than by beliefs.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn61">[61]</a> <br /><br />However, belief determines behavior. In the Bible doctrine always precedes duty. Mature disciples based off their sound doctrine are sure in discernment and strong in defending the truth. These are the things that those with an inadequate soteriology despise. As soon as mature disciples begin to “behave” in congruence with their beliefs and challenge the false teachings of the church growth enterprise they are labeled as immature, carnal, prideful Christians. Warren said, “Some of the most carnal Christians I’ve known were a veritable storehouse of biblical knowledge. They could explain any passage and defend any doctrine, yet were unloving, self-righteous, and judgmental. It is impossible to have spiritual maturity and pride at the same time.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn62">[62]</a> The characteristics that the Bible says should mark mature Christians are considered marks of pride and immaturity by the simplifiers of disciple-making. <br /><br />Ministry, the fifth purpose of the church will be more than discovering spiritual gifts and meeting human needs so that “Christianity will explode with growth at an unprecedented rate.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn63">[63]</a> Ministry does include discovering and using spiritual gifts in the body of Christ and meeting needs in the world. However, the work of service (ministry) that is described in Ephesians also involves spiritual discernment, spiritual loyalty, and spiritual warfare. The purpose statement for ministry in Ephesians is not so that “Christianity will explode with growth at an unprecedented rate,” but so that the saints will no longer be tossed by waves and carried by winds of doctrine from the trickery of men utilizing deceitful methods.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn64">[64]</a> This truth repudiates the teachings of Rick Warren. Warren said, “Our job as church leaders, like experienced surfers, is to recognize a wave of God’s Spirit and ride it . . . . The more skilled we become in riding waves of growth, the more God sends.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn65">[65]</a> Genuine spiritual discernment among the saints would guard the church from being driven by the wrong purpose of the church. Discernment regarding false teachers and their teachings also implies spiritual loyalty which is explicitly taught in Ephesians. Biblical ministry requires that the saints be separate from and not participate with the enemies of God.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn66">[66]</a> Biblical ministry requires spiritual loyalty. But biblical ministry also requires spiritual warfare. Since there are enemies of God disguised as His servants,<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn67">[67]</a> seeking to compromise and corrupt the truth by infiltrating and influencing the church with their secretly introduced destructive heresies,<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn68">[68]</a> biblical ministry also requires spiritual warfare.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn69">[69]</a> Eugene Peterson was correct when he said, “Pastoral work takes place in an environment of hostility. There are times in history when it is overt; other times when it is covert; always it is intense. The pastor who does not know that is unfit to be a guide in the life of the Spirit.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn70">[70]</a> <br /><br />An oversimplified process that omits the difficult aspects of disciple-making is deceptive and dangerous. The end result is a form of disciple-making emptied of its biblical content with unbiblical church growth philosophy substituted in its place. This means that the church will not be guarded from either inside or outside corruption and that the battle for truth will not be a priority in these congregations. <br /><br />This means that measuring the health of the church will have to include more than its ability to reproduce church members that have the form of disciples without the function of disciples. Without the safeguarding biblical content of disciples being sound in doctrine, sure in discernment and strong in defending the faith, church members cannot be classified as healthy disciples no matter how prolific they are at reproducing themselves. <br /><br /> Third, an adequate soteriology will properly guide ecclesiology by causing the church to be structured in such a way that it is guarded from deception, danger, and defilement from both inside and outside influences. The church will be structured in such a way that its evangelism is dependent upon and confident in the unadulterated Gospel, its disciple-making is not oversimplified so as to omit the hard aspects, and its influence is preserved through alertness and church discipline. This will guard the health of the church. Sinning members will be disciplined and either brought to repentance and restoration or excommunicated for being unrepentant.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn71">[71]</a> Factious men will be rejected after being warned.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn72">[72]</a> And false teachers and their teachings will be exposed for the sake of the saints.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn73">[73]</a> The church with a properly guided ecclesiology will guard from start to finish the disciple-making process. Focus will not be lost on producing genuine disciples that are sound in doctrine, sure in discernment, and strong in defending the truth. The purity of the church will be the priority of the church. A properly guided ecclesiology will cause the church to be structured in a manner that guarding the church from both inside and outside corruption is maintained. One’s soteriology then will either misguide his ecclesiology or properly guide his ecclesiology. Soteriology is the foundation upon which ecclesiology is structured. One’s ecclesiology will affect his eschatology that serves as the apex of the entire foundation and structure of his pastoral ministry philosophy. <div>
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Rick Warren, <i>The Purpose Driven Church:
Growth Without Compromising Your Message and Mission</i> (Grand Rapids:
Zondervan Publishing House, 1995), 251-329.
These pages are Rick Warren’s chapters in which he details how to design
a seeker-sensitive service culminating in how to turn attenders into members. <o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn4">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 309.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn5">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref5" name="_ftn5" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[5]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 312.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn6">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref6" name="_ftn6" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[6]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 313.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref7" name="_ftn7" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 315.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref8" name="_ftn8" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[8]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 315.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref9" name="_ftn9" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[9]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 253, 312-13, 315-16.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref10" name="_ftn10" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[10]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 317.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref11" name="_ftn11" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[11]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 313. Church
membership does not identify a person as a genuine believer especially when
churches are not guarding the disciple-making process.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref12" name="_ftn12" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[12]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Ed Stetzer and Thom S. Rainer, <i>Transformational
Church: Creating a New Scorecard for Congregations</i> (Nashville: B & H
Books, 2010), 16.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn13">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref13" name="_ftn13" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[13]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
John 8:31, continuance in sound doctrine by continuing in the Word of the Lord
is the primary mark of true disciples. <o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="margin-left: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref14" name="_ftn14" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[14]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> 2
Timothy 4:3; 1 John 2:19.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref15" name="_ftn15" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[15]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Thom S. Rainer and Eric Geiger, <i>Simple
Church: Returning to God’s Process for Making Disciples</i> (Nashville:
Broadman and Holman Publishers, 2006), 139.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref16" name="_ftn16" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[16]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Rainer and Geiger, <i>Simple</i>, 40. In
this pastor’s explanation of a disciple nothing is mentioned about the nature
of the spiritual battle for which the saints must be equipped.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn17">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref17" name="_ftn17" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[17]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Ephesians 4:12—6:17.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref18" name="_ftn18" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[18]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Stetzer and Rainer, <i>Transformational</i>,
34, 47.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref19" name="_ftn19" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[19]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Stetzer and Rainer, <i>Transformational</i>,
71-146.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn20">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref20" name="_ftn20" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[20]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Stetzer and Rainer, <i>Transformational</i>,
147-216.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn21">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref21" name="_ftn21" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[21]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> 2
Timothy 3:5.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn22">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref22" name="_ftn22" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[22]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Rick
Warren, “Comprehensive Health Plan” in Leadership Journal, 1997, http://www.buildingchurchleaders.com/articles/2005/062905.html?start=3,
accessed April 30, 2012.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn23">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref23" name="_ftn23" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[23]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> 2
Timothy 4:2-4. According to these verses, not only will these man-centered
preachers tickle the ears of their unregenerate members but there will also be
congregations that are almost if not entirely unregenerate that will rid
themselves of true preachers and teachers for storytelling, ear-tickling, false
preachers and teachers.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn24">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref24" name="_ftn24" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[24]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Rick Warren, “Myths of the Modern Megachurch” in Pew Forum On Religion &
Public Life, event transcript May 23, 2005, http://www.pewforum.org/Christian/Evangelical-Protestant-Churches/Myths-of-the-Modern-Megachurch.aspx
(accessed May 1, 2012).<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref25" name="_ftn25" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[25]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
The version used was the New American Standard Bible. <o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn26">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref26" name="_ftn26" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[26]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Clement
of Rome. “The First Epistle of Clement to the Corinthians” in <i>The Apostolic Fathers</i>. J. B. Lightfoot.
Edited by J.R. Harmer (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1956), 13.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref27" name="_ftn27" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[27]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Clement, <i>First Corinthians 14</i>, in <i>Fathers</i>, 19. <o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref28" name="_ftn28" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[28]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Erickson,
<i>Christian</i>, 402, 729. <o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn29">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref29" name="_ftn29" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[29]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Ignatius, “The Seven Epistles of Ignatius (to the Ephesians, Magnesians,
Trallians, Romans, Philadelphians, Smyrnaeans, Polycarp)” in <i>The Apostolic Fathers</i>, J. B. Lightfoot,
Edited by J.R. Harmer (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1956), 65, 74, 82-83. <o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref30" name="_ftn30" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[30]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Ignatius, <i>Magnesians 8, Philippians 6</i>,
in <i>Fathers</i>, 70, 80.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref31" name="_ftn31" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[31]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Schuller, <i>Self-Esteem</i>, 13.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn32">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref32" name="_ftn32" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[32]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Primarily this is found in the entire New Testament book of Ephesians.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref33" name="_ftn33" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[33]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Romans 10:14-15; Ephesians 6:11; 2 Corinthians 10:5.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
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<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref34" name="_ftn34" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[34]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Matthew 13:3-23 is Jesus’ parable of the sower. In this parable Jesus taught
four different responses to the Gospel with only one response resulting in
genuine salvation.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn35">
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<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref35" name="_ftn35" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[35]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> 2
Corinthians 11:3-4, 13-15; Acts 20:28-31.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn36">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref36" name="_ftn36" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[36]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
John Piper, <i>Brothers, We Are Not
Professionals: A Plea to Pastors for Radical Ministry</i> (Nashville: Broadman
& Holman Publishers, 2002), 107-108. <o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn37">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref37" name="_ftn37" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[37]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
R. Albert Mohler Jr., AlbertMohler.com, “Is the Megachurch the New Liberalism?”
May 1, 2012, http://www.albertmohler.com/2012/05/01/is-the-megachurch-the-new-liberalism/
(accessed May 1, 2012). <o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn38">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref38" name="_ftn38" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[38]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Piper, <i>Brothers</i>, 110-111.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn39">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref39" name="_ftn39" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[39]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Piper, <i>Brothers</i>, 110.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn40">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref40" name="_ftn40" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[40]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Acts 20:28.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn41">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref41" name="_ftn41" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[41]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Richard Baxter, <i>The Reformed Pastor</i>,
Edited by William Brown (Carlisle, Pennsylvania: Banner of Truth Trust, 1974),
90.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn42">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref42" name="_ftn42" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[42]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Eugene H. Peterson, <i>Five Smooth Stones
for Pastoral Work</i>, Kindle Edition (Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B.
Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1992), Kindle location 473.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn43">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref43" name="_ftn43" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[43]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Peterson,
<i>Five</i>, 500-503. Peterson’s quote was
in the context that pastoral work is a concentration on names because intimacy
is not an abstraction but a personalization.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn44">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref44" name="_ftn44" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[44]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Peterson, <i>Five</i>, 497-498.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn45">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref45" name="_ftn45" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[45]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 103-106. This is not
the order Warren listed the five purposes on these pages but it is the order in
which his following chapters that developed each purpose flowed.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn46">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref46" name="_ftn46" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[46]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 135, 234-235. Rick Warren teaches that churches are to use
the “come and see” approach to capture interest and create desire without any
heavy requirements of commitment. After a crowd has been gathered through this
approach then the level of commitment is to be slowly increased. <o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn47">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref47" name="_ftn47" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[47]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
See Ephesians 4 – 6 and 2 Corinthians 10:3-5.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn48">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref48" name="_ftn48" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[48]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
See Romans 3:11 and Romans 10:14.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn49">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref49" name="_ftn49" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[49]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Stephen Seamands, <i>Ministry in the Image
of God: The Trinitarian Shape of Christian Service</i> (Downers Grove:
InterVarsity Press, 2005), 160-161.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn50">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref50" name="_ftn50" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[50]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 245-246. Concerning
worship, Warren teaches that seeker-sensitive services that “evangelize” the
lost should take place on Sunday mornings and another service that edifies
believers should take place on a different day of the week.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn51">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref51" name="_ftn51" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[51]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> 2
Corinthians 3:18; Ephesians 4:12.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn52">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref52" name="_ftn52" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[52]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Mark
Dever, <i>Nine Marks of a Healthy Church</i>
(Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway Books, 2004), 39.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn53">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref53" name="_ftn53" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[53]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> 2
Timothy 4:3-4.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn54">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref54" name="_ftn54" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[54]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Ephesians 4:11-12; 1 Timothy 4:6-16; 2 Timothy 3:16-17.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn55">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref55" name="_ftn55" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[55]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 245-246. Warren said
that they use Sunday mornings for evangelism because people still think of it
as “the time you go to church.” <o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn56">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref56" name="_ftn56" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[56]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 324-327. Warren
teaches that building relationships by connecting people to small groups
through affinity “in purposes, interests, age groups, geography, or anything
else,” is the most effective way to assimilate new members and keep them from
leaving the church.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn57">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref57" name="_ftn57" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[57]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Mohler, “Megachurch,” May 1, 2012, http://www.albertmohler.com/2012/05/01/is-the-megachurch-the-new-liberalism/
(accessed May 1, 2012). Dr. Mohler’s blog was about megachurch pastor Andy
Stanley minimizing the Gospel in regard to homosexuality among some of his
members serving at one of his satellite churches. According to Mohler’s
article, two men involved in a homosexual relationship are still members in
good standing serving the church. <o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn58">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref58" name="_ftn58" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[58]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Warren, “Comprehensive Health Plan,” 3.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn59">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref59" name="_ftn59" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[59]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 336.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn60">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref60" name="_ftn60" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[60]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Stetzer and Rainer, <i>Transformational</i>,
16.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn61">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref61" name="_ftn61" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[61]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 337, italics
original.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn62">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref62" name="_ftn62" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[62]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 337-338.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn63">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref63" name="_ftn63" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[63]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 365.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn64">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref64" name="_ftn64" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[64]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Ephesians 4:14.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
<div id="ftn65">
<div class="MsoFootnoteText" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref65" name="_ftn65" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[65]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Warren, <i>Purpose</i>, 14-15, italics
original.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
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Ephesians 5:6-11. See also 2 Corinthians 6:14-18.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Corinthians 11:13-15.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Peter 2:1.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Ephesians 6:10-17.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Peterson, <i>Five</i>, 2112-2113.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Corinthians 5:1-13 serves as an example of a sinning church member that was
excommunicated. The purity of the church is to be maintained so that it is not
defiled and does not lose its witness in the world.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Titus 3:10 teaches that after a first and a second warning, factious men are to
be rejected.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Timothy 4:1-6; Ephesians 5:11.<o:p></o:p></div>
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</div>olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-61608096549694966202012-05-15T06:00:00.000-05:002012-05-15T06:00:04.143-05:00A Biblical Philosophy of Pastoral Ministry (Soteriology)Pastoral ministry is a serious and sobering undertaking or at least it should be. Over and over pastoral ministry is reproduced for either the better or the worse. Many go into pastoral ministry having had good models for biblical pastoral ministry from their mentors. Many others go into pastoral ministry having had poor models of unbiblical pastoral ministry. For most, what has been modeled is what they imitate. Since discipleship is reproduction and the law that governs reproduction is “each reproduces after its kind,” then most pastors become very much like those who modeled pastoral ministry to them. So the nature of what has been modeled, either good or bad pastoral ministry practice, plays a significant part in the development of future pastors.<span style="line-height: 32px;"><br /></span>
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May God bless and increase the tribe of those men that are modeling biblical pastoral ministry. But what about those men who are in or going into pastoral ministry that did not receive a good model but yet desire to be good biblical pastors? How can these either go into pastoral ministry understanding their proper tasks or make a midstream corrective in their ministries? Logic dictates that all pastors or soon to be pastors, especially the improperly trained, should devise a biblical component model for pastoral ministry.</div>
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Since the goal is to devise a biblical component model for pastoral ministry then the components should be based upon biblical theology. Specifically, a component model for pastoral ministry should include three main theological categories that will provide guiding principles to the pastor. First, the theological category of soteriology should be foundational to the pastor’s component model. Second, the theological category of ecclesiology should be structural to the pastor’s component model. Third, the theological category of eschatology should be apical to the pastor’s component model.</div>
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These three theological categories will prove invaluable in constructing a biblical component model of pastoral ministry. They will provide biblical principles that will both guide and guard the pastoral ministry. The purpose is to illustrate how a component model for pastoral ministry based on the three theological categories of soteriology, ecclesiology, and eschatology provides biblical principles that will guide and guard the pastoral ministry. Each category will be posted separately forming a three-part series.<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
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<b>Soteriology</b><o:p></o:p></div>
Soteriology, since it is the study of salvation, is foundational to proper pastoral ministry because ecclesiology, the study of the church, reveals that the church is the gathering of those who have been “called out” by the Gospel for salvation. Primarily then, the church is to be constituted by a regenerate membership. A regenerate church membership cannot be attained through any means that God has not ordained for the salvation of sinners. One’s view of the means by which salvation is obtained depends to a considerable extent on one’s understanding of the nature of salvation. <br /><br />For example, if one understands salvation as the result of a man’s decision for Christ apart from the enabling unadulterated Word of God, then he will use unbiblical pragmatic means in his evangelistic and missionary efforts.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn1">[1]</a> The power for salvation is not in the Gospel but in methodological ingenuity. This understanding describes those with either Pelagian or Semi-Pelagian tendencies. Pelagianism denies original sin and therefore the total depravity of humanity along with it.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn2">[2]</a> Pelagianism views total depravity that resulted with Adam’s original sin as “unduly negative of human nature” and as “having an unfortunate effect upon human behavior.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn3">[3]</a> This view is captured in the teachings of Robert Schuller. Schuller said:
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
The core of original sin, then is LOT—Lack
of Trust. Or it could be considered an innate inability to adequately value
ourselves. Label it a “negative self-image,” but do not say that the central
core of the human soul is wickedness. If this were so, then truly, the human
being is totally depraved. But positive Christianity does not hold to human
depravity, but to human inability.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[4]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a></blockquote>
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Pelagianism attempts to remove the negative teachings about the nature of humanity by emphasizing the idea of free will. By free will, Pelagius meant that “humans are free of any determining influence of the fall.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn5">[5]</a> Therefore there is no need for a special working of God’s grace within the heart of each individual. Instead, men by their free will can respond, “by their own efforts,” unaided, to the commands of God.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn6">[6]</a><div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; text-indent: .5in;">
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Such an understanding of salvation (soteriology) leads inevitably to man-centered, pragmatic means in evangelism and missions. This is why Schuller advocated a man-centered approach in his ecclesiology. Schuller taught that the church, instead of being an equipping place for the saints, should be an evangelizing place for sinners. He maintained that a church is interested in theology while a mission is interested in human needs. The preferred methodology for structuring the church then is the utilization of means that attracts unbelievers in a palatable positive manner. The result is an upside down ecclesiology in violation of the Word of God. Schuller said:</div>
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For the church to address the
unchurched with a theocentric attitude is to invite failure in mission . . . .
It was appropriate for Calvin and Luther to think theocentrically. After all,
“Everyone was in the church” and the issues were theological, not
philosophical. For them, the central issue was, “What is the truth in
theology?” The reformers didn’t have to impress the unchurched so there was no
need for them to take the “human needs” approach. They were a church after all,
not a mission . . . . Time and history have changed all that. Today the sincere
Christian believer is a minority. So the church must be willing to die as a
church and be born again as a mission. We cannot speak out with a “Thus saith
the Lord” strategy when we are talking to people who couldn’t care less about
the Lord! We cannot start with “What does the text say?” if we’re talking to
persons who aren’t about to affirm respect for our unquestioning obeisance to
“the text.”<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn7" name="_ftnref7" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[7]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a></blockquote>
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In contrast to both Pelagianism and Semi-Pelagianism, the evangelical understanding of the nature of salvation views the Word of God as an indispensable means to salvation.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn8">[8]</a> Evangelical soteriology maintains that the Spirit of God must take the Word of God spoken by the witness about Christ and apply it to the hearer for his or her spiritual transformation.<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftn9">[9]</a> The depraved nature of humanity calls for special grace by means of the unadulterated Word of God to enable a person’s salvation. This has several implications for pastoral ministry. </div>
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<br /> First, since the Gospel of Jesus Christ applied by the Holy Spirit is the only means by which salvation is obtained by depraved humanity, neither unbiblical pragmatic means nor watered down inoffensive messages will be effectual in regeneration. The Gospel is the only means through which sinners can obtain salvation. Therefore, pastors should not include any means in their pastoral ministry that will in any form water down, pervert, or replace the Gospel. <br /><br /> Second, since the Gospel is the only means that sinners can obtain salvation implies that pastors are to have complete confidence in its power to bring salvation. Confidence in the Gospel will both guard and guide the pastor. Confidence in the Gospel will guard the pastor from incorporating pragmatic, man-centered means as a component of his pastoral ministry. Confidence in the Gospel will guide the pastor in incorporating methods in his ministry that compliment rather than compete with or compromise the Gospel. <br /><br />Any means other than the Gospel will fail to produce genuine converts. A gathering of unregenerate people, no matter how large, will never constitute a church since a church is primarily constituted by a regenerate membership. Therefore, sound soteriology is essential as the foundation for a component model for pastoral ministry. The theological category of soteriology should be foundational to the pastor’s component model for his ministry.</div>
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Romans 10:17; 2 Corinthians 2:17.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Total depravity does not mean that a person is as bad as he or she can be but
rather that the heart, mind, soul, and will of man has been affected by and
enslaved by sin.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Olan/My%20Documents/Component%20Model%20for%20Pastoral%20Ministry.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Millard
J. Erickson, <i>Christian Theology: Second
Edition</i> (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1983), 649.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Robert Schuller, <i>Self-Esteem: The New
Reformation</i> (Waco, Texas: Word Books, 1982), 67.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Erickson, <i>Theology</i>, 649.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Erickson, <i>Theology</i>, 649-50.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Schuller, <i>Self-Esteem</i>, 12-13,
quotation marks in the original.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Erickson, <i>Theology</i>, 1021.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Erickson, <i>Theology</i>, 1022.<o:p></o:p></div>
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</div>olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-30025248395366104252012-05-14T09:05:00.001-05:002012-05-14T09:13:48.917-05:00Grace and Truth (John 1:14)Have you ever heard someone say, “If you are going to err, err on the side of grace?” What the person who says that to you is trying to communicate is that he or she believes that grace trumps truth. This is the primary characteristic of the spirit of the age in which we live. Many people are falling prey to the false notion that grace only has some sort of loose connection to truth if it has any connection to it at all. Any who dares to love truth in our day is quickly branded as an unloving Pharisee by the proponents of grace over truth.<br />
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Let me explain exactly how this is working itself out in our day. God’s Word tells us that in the last days there is going to be an apostate, harlot church that will be a deceptive counterfeit of the real thing. This harlot church will be the result of an ecumenical movement that gathers various false religions under the umbrella of what many regard as evangelical Christianity.<br />
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How can false teaching get confused with truth? How can the leaders of the harlot church get people to believe that an ungodly alliance with false religions and false teachers is OK? This will be accomplished by pushing and stretching the boundaries set by the truth of God’s Word to include and incorporate false teaching and false teachers under the banner of grace. Many mega-church pastors and church growth gurus are telling us that we must not erect boundaries with truth but stretch boundaries with grace. Instead of being divided over truth we ought to be united in grace they tell us.<br />
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The creed of these deceivers is away with truth and in with grace. They see the truth as standing in the way of enlarging the kingdom of God. So they appeal to widening the entry point under the banner of grace. Now, since these heroes of the ecumenical movement see truth as standing in the way of enlarging God’s kingdom and grace as the solution, what do you think they are going to label those who love the truth, won’t compromise the truth, and battle for the truth?<br />
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Lovers of truth will be labeled, “Pharisees,” by these modern day false teachers. These false teachers have wrongly interpreted the problem of the Pharisees as being too rigid with truth. They believe that the Pharisees were big on truth and small on grace. The truth is the Pharisees were small on both!<br />
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The problem of the Pharisees was not that they were too concerned with truth, but that they had invented their own truth. Jesus condemned them for replacing and modifying the clear truth of Scripture with their own traditions (Matthew 15:1-9). They were the chief theological <i>false teachers</i> of their day (Matthew 16:6-12).
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One thing these modern day deceivers are not are Pharisees. They hate <strike>truth loving Christians</strike> Pharisees because they wrongly believe that Pharisees love truth. They view truth as the enemy of grace and cannot see that grace and truth are joined together by God and what God has joined together, let no man separate. These deceivers are described in God’s Word as those who turn God’s grace into licentiousness. “For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ” (Jude 4). They use God’s grace as an excuse to disobey God’s truth and commit spiritual adultery with the world and with false religions.<br />
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The truth-perverting Pharisees used their appearance of love for the truth as a means to exclude all but the most religious of Jews from the kingdom of God. Jesus told them that they shut off the kingdom from people and did not enter themselves (Matthew 23:13). The grace-perverting church growth gurus use their appearance of love for grace as a means to include people who have not received the love of the truth so as to be saved in the kingdom of God and lead both themselves and others through the wide gate that leads to destruction.<br />
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Jesus was full of grace and truth (John 1:14). Grace and truth can never be pitted against one another or else Jesus was a walking contradiction. There was no contradiction in Jesus just as there are no contradictions in God’s Word. Jesus full of grace never once compromised the truth. Have no doubt about it – if Jesus were here in the flesh today these grace-perverting church leaders would label Him as a Pharisee too concerned with truth. Their false notion of what grace is would cause them to mislabel the Lord Jesus Christ.<br />
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The Lord Jesus would no more put up with the licentiousness of these modern day grace-perverting church leaders than he did with the legalism of the truth-perverting Pharisees. Just as the legalistic Pharisees thought Jesus had no truth because of His grace, these licentious false teachers would think He has no grace because of His truth.<br />
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Heresies are a result of elevating one side of a paradox and downplaying the other. Those who pit grace against truth or truth against grace are in serious error concerning the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is full of grace and truth!olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-58343192030794148812012-03-11T08:22:00.003-05:002012-03-11T08:25:38.696-05:00The Incarnation: A Crucial Doctrine (John 1:14)<p class="MsoNormal">Biblically speaking, what was the purpose of the incarnation? This question is of utmost importance and is not to be trivialized. To misunderstand the purpose of the incarnation is to misunderstand the righteousness of God and the necessity of penal substitution through a pure and sinless sacrifice for the purpose of legal pardon of sinners. When it comes to giving pardons there are only two possibilities: the pardon will either be legal or illegal. In other words the pardon will either uphold the law (legal) or nullify the law (illegal). Of the two kinds of pardons which one do you believe is the kind God gives?</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 100%; ">God never gives illegal pardons. God only gives legal pardons. In simple terms, God is righteous and just and will never do anything wrong or unjust. Therefore God cannot and will not illegally pardon. So the question must be asked: “</span><b style="font-size: 100%; ">How can God pardon sinners and remain righteous and just in the process?</b><span style="font-size: 100%; ">” The right answer to this question will show that the incarnation is a crucial doctrine and that our pardon came at a great cost to God.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 100%; ">The Gospel of John answers how God can pardon sinners and remain righteous and just in the process. The Old Testament sacrificial system with its tabernacle illustrated that God would provide the only law upholding means of pardon. The innocent would have to die in the place of the guilty for pardon to be extended. The sinner’s death penalty for violating God’s Law had to be paid by an innocent substitute. This is called Penal Substitution, meaning penalty substitution.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 100%; ">Could the death penalty for a man really be paid by an animal? Never! That is why the Bible says, “For it is </span><i style="font-size: 100%; ">impossible</i><span style="font-size: 100%; "> for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins” (Hebrews 10:4). The sinner’s death penalty for violating God’s Law would have to be paid by an </span><i style="font-size: 100%; ">innocent</i><span style="font-size: 100%; "> man. Therefore the incarnation of Christ was a necessity for penal substitution and legal pardon. The Gospel of John shows Jesus as the fulfillment of the Tabernacle because He was God in flesh come to live a sinless life, die a sacrificial death, and experience a supernatural resurrection so that God could be both just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 100%; ">This was the primary purpose of the incarnation – to make propitiation (legal pardon) for the sins of the people. It would not and could not be an innocent animal that allowed God to give a legal pardon but only an innocent, sinless man. The uncreated Son of God had to become a man to achieve our legal pardon. John said, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John </span><st1:time hour="13" minute="14" style="font-size: 100%; ">1:14</st1:time><span style="font-size: 100%; ">). Amazing truth – the Son of God on earth as a man! Even more amazing is the reason He was on the earth as a man – “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world” (John </span><st1:time hour="13" minute="29" style="font-size: 100%; ">1:29</st1:time><span style="font-size: 100%; ">)! </span><span style="font-size: 100%; "> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 100%; ">According to God’s Word, God could not have pardoned any other way, “Therefore, </span><i style="font-size: 100%; ">since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise partook of the same</i><span style="font-size: 100%; ">, </span><b style="font-size: 100%; ">that through death</b><span style="font-size: 100%; "> He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives. For assuredly He does not give help to angels, but He gives help to the descendents of Abraham. Therefore</span><b style="font-size: 100%; ">, </b><i style="font-size: 100%; ">He had to be made like His brethren in all things</i><span style="font-size: 100%; ">, so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, </span><i style="font-size: 100%; ">to make propitiation for the sins of the people</i><span style="font-size: 100%; ">. For since He Himself was tempted in that which He suffered, He is able to come to the aid of those who are tempted” (Hebrews </span><st1:time minute="14" hour="14" style="font-size: 100%; ">2:14</st1:time><span style="font-size: 100%; ">-18).</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 100%; ">Penal substitution is the only way God can legally pardon. “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians </span><st1:time hour="17" minute="21" style="font-size: 100%; ">5:21</st1:time><span style="font-size: 100%; ">). Therefore the incarnation was necessary for the realization of penal substitution (legal pardon) and that is the primary biblical interpretation for the incarnation. If God could have legally pardoned any other way, surely He would have done it!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 100%; ">Our salvation cost God everything! There has never been and never will be a greater demonstration of love than the truth that God sent His only begotten Son into the world as a man to die as a substitute for sinners (John 3:16; Romans 5:8). The incarnation is a precious doctrine; it is a marvelous doctrine; it is a crucial doctrine. No one can be saved apart from pardon based on faith in Jesus. God does not save any other way – there is no other way.</span></p>olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-85176527077479124632012-02-19T07:34:00.004-06:002012-02-19T08:02:20.616-06:00Of Empty Calories and Empty Gospels (John 1:12-13)<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihQ4wU_C0YZQN1snuHmSyIZqAszufCkJO-M6YCXB04q1fzEmhI-_g5VrZwCLO50XIgicN3gNu7_8I1lVJ4_OGFtgpC7SKcyfUbXz1T0g6TPtd1wihWsIH9kbvI07Acutf2ihRxvKUtZM0/s1600/sugar.jpg" style="font-weight: normal; font-family: Georgia, serif; "><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 305px; height: 165px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihQ4wU_C0YZQN1snuHmSyIZqAszufCkJO-M6YCXB04q1fzEmhI-_g5VrZwCLO50XIgicN3gNu7_8I1lVJ4_OGFtgpC7SKcyfUbXz1T0g6TPtd1wihWsIH9kbvI07Acutf2ihRxvKUtZM0/s320/sugar.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5710843194643954498" /></a><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; "><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman"">January 3, 1960, three years and forty-two days before I was born, A. W. Tozer preached a sermon entitled, “<a href="http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=11603193641">What does it mean to accept Christ?</a>” You understand if your mind is capable of doing math that Tozer’s message was preached some fifty-two years ago and that I am only one year away from being fifty years old. I mention this not to show you my age but to show you that for more than half a century there have been men of God standing against the modern false gospel of easy-believism or passive “acceptance” of Christ. Tozer lamented that in his day the majority of evangelism in America was of the sort that perverted the gospel by minimizing what it means to receive Christ and believe in Christ. <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; "><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; ">In other words, even before 1960, a large portion of American evangelism had already degenerated into a wide-gate false gospel of easy-believism. This is the false notion that one can be saved by just “inviting Jesus” into his or her life without entering into Jesus’ death. The wide-gate is one of easy access and easy entry. The wide-gate has no denying of self, death to sin, or any difficult sayings. It’s easy; it’s acceptable; it’s appealing; but it’s deadly. Jesus said, “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are </span><b style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; "><i>many</i> </b><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; ">who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are </span><b style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; "><i>few</i></b><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; "> who find it” (Matthew 7:13-14).</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; "><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; ">So receiving Christ is not just “inviting Jesus into my life” or just “adding Jesus to my life”; receiving Jesus is far more than responding to a minimized, inoffensive, appealing gospel of “just accept Jesus.” Of utmost importance then is the right and biblical answer to the question, “What is it to receive Christ?”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; "><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; ">The Gospel of John answers the question, “What is it to receive Christ.” Remember that John 1:1-18 is the prologue to the book. Here John is telling us what the rest of the book is going to be about. In John 1:12 we are introduced to the wonderful truth that among blind and bad humanity there are those who see the beauty of the Lord Jesus Christ and receive Him. “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name.” John 1:13 shows us </span><i style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; ">why</i><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; "> these believed and received – “who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; "><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; ">Now we could stop right here in John 1:12-13 and say, “There you have it! All you have to do to be saved is receive Jesus and God will cause you to be born again.” And we would be dead wrong! Let me explain. This is the mistake of a minimized Gospel with no content. It’s like what is known in the health and nutrition world as “empty calories.” An empty calorie is a calorie without any content. An empty calorie is a calorie with absolutely no nutritional value. The sad part about empty calories is their deceptive nature. They cause the body to pack on dangerous and deadly fat while at the same time starving it of needed nutrition. This is why highly processed food (such as is common in the American diet) is so dangerous and deadly. It has been stripped of its nutritional value and substituted in the place of wholesome, healthy food.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; "><span style="font-weight: normal; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; ">To stop right here and ask people to receive Jesus would be to offer a highly processed Gospel empty of all its saving content with dangerous and deadly consequences. This deceitful mistake is made over and over in the evangelism of today. For instance, the peddlers of the wide-gate empty gospel will quote Acts 16:30-31 out of context to remove the Gospel’s content. “And after he brought them out, he said, ‘Sirs, what must I do to be saved?’ They said, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” Here is the problem. What Paul and Silas told the Philippian jailer about how to be saved was true – he was to believe in the Lord Jesus to be saved – but</span><span style="font-weight: normal; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; "> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; ">Acts 16:32 supplies some important information that preachers of easy-believism overlook – “<b>And they spoke the word of the Lord to him</b> together with all who were in his house.” Without understanding the content of the Gospel there is no saving belief in Christ.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; "><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; ">Notice our text. John is not asking for a response to Christ in John 1:12-13. John has not yet explained the ministry of Jesus proving Him to be the fulfillment of the sacrificial system as the Lamb of God (John 1:29) who would die as a substitute and sacrifice for sinners (John 19:16-30), whose blood would be on the mercy seat (John 20:11-12), and who would be raised from the dead (John 20:15-20) so that a holy God could pardon sinners and remain just in the process.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; "><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; ">It is only after John has fully explained the ministry of Jesus that he expects anyone can properly respond to Jesus and receive Him. Notice that it isn’t until John 20:31 that John calls for belief in Jesus – “But these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; <b>and that believing you may have life in His name</b>.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; "><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; ">People are not saved through a gospel emptied of its content. God uses His Word to teach us about the ministry of Christ and our need for Him and everyone who has heard and learned from the Father, comes to Jesus (John 6:45). No one can come to Jesus unless he is drawn to Jesus by the Father through the word about Christ (John 6:44). Those who receive and believe are born of God by the Word of God (John 1:12-13; 1 Peter 1:3, 23).</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; "><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; ">To receive Christ is to receive the testimony of His sinless life. To receive Christ is to receive His death as a substitute and sacrifice for your crimes against God – it is to receive His death as your death. To receive Christ is to receive Him in His resurrection as your life; as your Lord, because of the demonstration of His great love for you. You love Him because He first loved you.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-weight: normal; font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; "><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 12pt; ">Empty calories are having their harmful and deadly effects on the physical health and physical lives of millions of Americans. Empty gospels are having a more harmful and more deadly effect on billions of people in the world. What kind of Gospel have you consumed? What kind of Gospel will you share?</span></p>olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-32567892238796448602012-01-23T07:57:00.003-06:002012-01-23T08:11:26.294-06:00Will Others Believe Through You? (John 1:6-8)<p class="MsoNormal">Let me ask you a question. What do you think is required of a person for others to believe in Jesus through him? Does it mean that the person will have the most pleasant personality of anyone you have ever met? Does it require that the person compromise the truth in order to show compassion? Is it required of a person for others to believe in Jesus Christ through him that he never have conflict with others; never call for repentance; never challenge the false assurance of salvation of others; or never question a person’s commitment to Christ? </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Let me ask you another question. What does the Bible say is required of a person for others to believe in Jesus through him? We will answer that question through looking at the ministry of John the Baptist.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b>John the Baptist was sent from God</b> (John 1:6) – <b>he had a mission</b>. As we read the prologue to the Gospel of John, at first it seems strange that the flow of the prologue is interrupted with the introduction of John the Baptist. However, as we consider what might be the reason for this interruption we can learn a couple of truths from it. First, God had promised in His Word that there would be a forerunner to the coming of the Christ to prepare people for His arrival (see Isaiah 40:3; Malachi 3:1). Second, this is God’s way – He entrusts the Gospel to men. So actually there is nothing strange about the flow of the prologue – it is perfectly in line with the Word of God and the ways of God.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i>The mission of John the Baptist was to prepare the way of the Lord</i> (John <st1:time minute="23" hour="13">1:23</st1:time>). This means that the Baptist was to clear the way, make a straight highway, for the reception of the King. When clearing the way to make a straight highway there are obstacles that have to be removed. Trees will need to be cut down, stumps removed, holes filled in and hills lowered. The Baptist was to clear the way for the reception of the Lord.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">There are obstacles and stumbling blocks that keep people from receiving the Lord Jesus Christ. One obstacle that keeps people from receiving Christ is their love for their sin (John <st1:time hour="15" minute="19">3:19</st1:time>). That is why the first word of the Gospel is “Repent.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Another obstacle that keeps people from receiving Christ is religious phonies – children of the devil who disguise themselves as children of God (Matthew 3:7-8). One of the characteristics of religious phonies is that they claim to be sent from God but God says that He did not send them and that they are not proclaiming His truth but instead are deceiving others (Jeremiah 23:21-22). There are more religious phonies in the world proclaiming false gospels than there are true preachers (1 John 4:1). That is why we must protest against religious phonies.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">A major obstacle that keeps people from receiving Christ is their false profession of faith and false assurance of salvation (Matthew 3:9-10). This is why we must be sure that others are not depending upon anything other than grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone for salvation.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">The mission of John the Baptist was to prepare the way of the Lord and that entailed being sent by God to confront men in their sin and to confront those not sent by God but claiming to be His servants.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b>John the Baptist came so that all might believe through him</b> (John 1:7) – <b>he had a message</b>. The message of John the Baptist was not his own but came from God. The Baptist did not manufacture the message but repeated only what God said (see 1 John 4:5 concerning the message of false teachers and 1 John 4:6 concerning the message of true teachers).</p> <p class="MsoNormal">The message of John the Baptist was Jesus Christ as the innocent, spotless, blameless lamb who would be slaughtered as an offering for sin in the place of death deserving sinners which of necessity requires repentance from the sinner. The sinner is to be sorry for his sin and turn from his sin because of the high cost and wickedness of sin. Our sin required the incarnation of the Son of God to live a perfectly flawless life of obedience so that He would be qualified to die as a substitute to satisfy the wrath of the Father against sinners. So not only did our sin require the incarnation of the Son of God (God became a man), it also required His crucifixion (the living one died). God raised Him from the dead because He had done no wrong and so that He could justify us on the basis of faith in Jesus Christ.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">The message of John the Baptist then was, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John <st1:time hour="13" minute="29">1:29</st1:time>) and “Repent” (Matthew 3:2). The truth that Jesus is the Lamb of God implies not only His deity (John <st1:time hour="13" minute="34">1:34</st1:time>) and Lordship (John <st1:time hour="13" minute="23">1:23</st1:time>) but also the truth that eternal life is in Him alone (John <st1:time hour="15" minute="36">3:36</st1:time>). The Baptist testified of these things and more about Jesus Christ and we read, “Everything John said about this man was true” (John <st1:time hour="10" minute="41">10:41</st1:time>).</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Others don’t believe in Jesus Christ through us when we are not being true to the message about Him. The mission of John the Baptist was to prepare the way of the Lord and <i>the message of John the Baptist was to proclaim the Word of the Lord</i>.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b>John the Baptist was not the Light but testified about the Light</b> (John 1:8) – <b>he had a method</b>. <i>The method of John the Baptist was to point to the worth of the Lord</i>. This entailed that the Baptist be careful that he not become guilty of either having a Messiah complex or robbing the Lord Jesus of His glory. For the Baptist it was all about Jesus and not about himself.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">John the Baptist confessed that he was not the Christ (John 1:20), that he was not Elijah nor the Prophet (John 1:21), that he was only the herald of the Lord Jesus Christ (John 1:23), that he was not worthy to untie the Lord’s sandal (John 1:27), that the Lord was the preeminent one (John 1:30), and that the Lord’s ministry was the one that mattered (John 1:33; 3:30). John was constantly pointing people to the worth of the Lord – that was his method.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">What does the Bible say is required of a person for others to believe in Jesus through him? (1) We have learned that our mission must be <i>preparing the way of the Lord</i> by confronting men in their sin and by protesting against religious phonies. (2) We have learned that our message must be <i>proclaiming the Word of the Lord</i> by preaching only that which is true about Jesus as revealed in the Word of God. (3) We have learned that our method must be <i>pointing to the worth of the Lord</i> by confessing the superiority of His Person.</p>olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-67195528650733970662012-01-21T11:30:00.004-06:002012-01-21T11:42:52.676-06:00The Deity of Christ (John 1:1-5)<p class="MsoNormal">The first eighteen verses of John’s Gospel are the prologue to the book. A prologue is an opening to a story that establishes the setting or theme. We know from John 20:30-31 that the purpose of the book is to persuade people to the point of trusting that Jesus is the Christ, the son of God; and that believing (trusting) they may have life in His name. In his prologue John declares that Jesus is God, that He became a man, that He dwelt (tabernacled) among us, and that He explained the Father. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">It is my conviction that John was showing Jesus as the fulfillment of the Old Testament Tabernacle. John purposefully related events from the life and ministry of Jesus to show Him as the fulfillment of Old Testament concepts moving from Jesus as the lamb of God and culminating in Jesus as the fulfillment of the Mercy Seat (see John 20:12). For Jesus to fulfill these Old Testament concepts He would have to be nothing other than God in the flesh.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">The prologue (John 1:1-18) sets the stage so to speak for the unveiling or revelation of Jesus as the fulfillment of the Tabernacle. Since the Tabernacle stood as the heart of the Old Testament sacrificial system and the only way that sinners could approach a holy God, John reveals Jesus as the only way to the Father (John 14:6) because He is the only One who could and did make substitutionary atonement. Jesus is the only hope for man. What you do with Jesus Christ determines your eternal destiny.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">The parallel between John’s prologue and the book of Genesis is striking. Just as Genesis sets out in seed form all the major doctrines of the Bible that will be developed later in their mature form so it is with John’s prologue. John will develop the doctrines that he sets forth in the prologue to their full meanings.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">In this post, <i>The Deity of Christ</i> (John 1:1-5), we will only cover the first five verses of the prologue to John's Gospel which parallel the beginning of the Bible.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;"><b>Christ is the eternal Word</b> (John 1:1-2). Christ is the uncreated eternal Son of God. He is equal to God and is God. “In the beginning” means before the beginning began. He is timeless -He had no beginning because He has always been and always will be.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">John used the term “Word” for a particular reason - the Jews would have readily understood its background in the Old Testament that God sends His Word to accomplish His purposes (Isaiah 55:10-11). It is interesting that the Old Testament says that (1) God sends His Word in order to accomplish a particular divine purpose, (2) God’s Word unfailingly accomplishes God’s purpose, and (3) God’s Word returns to Him after accomplishing God’s mission. This seed truth will sprout and grow in John’s Gospel as Jesus refers to God as His Father who sent Him (John 3:17; 6:38); as coming to accomplish the Father’s will (John 4:34, 6:38); as having accomplished the Fathers will (John 17:4); and as returning to the Father (John 17:5, 13).</p> <p class="MsoNormal">In these first two verses we note three divine attributes that the Word shares with God: (1) He is equal to God in time – He was in the beginning with God. (2) He is equal to God in rank – He was literally face to face with God – that is the meaning of “and the Word was with God.” (3) He is equal to God in essence – “and the Word was God.” The doctrine of the Trinity lies at the heart of John’s exposition. God is one, but his unitary essence is complex, not simple. God is a complex unity, not a mathematical cipher.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b>Christ is the living Word</b> (John 1:3-4a). Christ is the giver of life – He created everything that has come into being. This verse points out the fallacy of evolution which believes that life arose from nothing – that life came from non-life. Evolutionists and naturalists believe in “spontaneous generation” but they say they do not believe in miracles! The Bible teaches that life came from life – “In Him was life.” Life does not arise from non-life no matter how many billions or trillions of years you allow.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Not only is Christ the giver of life in the physical realm, He is also the giver of life in the spiritual realm and this should be of utmost importance to spiritually dead sinners. Jesus said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood <i>you have no life in yourselves</i>” (John 6:53). Once again the seed truth in the prologue is developed into maturity in the remainder of the Gospel.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b>Christ is the revealing Word </b>(John 1:4b). Both life and light reveal. Life reveals deadness and light reveals darkness. The sinless life of the Lord becomes the light that illumines or reveals our deadness and our darkness. Light will reveal blindness, badness, and beauty. The blindness of men was revealed by the Lord when He came into the world and the world did not know him (John <st1:time minute="10" hour="13">1:10</st1:time>). The badness of men was revealed by the Lord when He came to His own and His own did not receive Him (John <st1:time minute="11" hour="13">1:11</st1:time>). The beauty of the Lord was revealed to those who did receive Him and were saved (John <st1:time minute="12" hour="13">1:12</st1:time>-13). Light reveals.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b>Christ is the accomplishing Word</b> (John 1:5). Light is powerful. Darkness cannot overpower it. The darkness desires to snuff out the light. John <st1:time minute="35" hour="12">12:35</st1:time> uses the same word that is used in John 1:5. There Jesus said, “Walk while you have the Light, so that darkness will not <i>overtake</i> you.” Jesus is the accomplishing Word. The darkness could not overpower Him. John 1:4-5 are the seed truth concerning the epic battle between Light and darkness. Before His crucifixion Jesus told the corrupt religious establishment, “This hour and the power of darkness are yours” (Luke <st1:time minute="53" hour="22">22:53</st1:time>). Satan and sinful men did everything in their power to snuff out the Light but the darkness did not overpower it. In Him was life and on the third day He got up and walked out victorious over darkness and deadness. Jesus is the accomplishing Word.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Let me show you the striking parallel between the John 1:1-5 and Genesis 1:1-3.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.75in;text-indent:-.5in;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops:list .75in"><!--[if !supportLists]-->I.<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""> </span><!--[endif]-->Christ is the eternal Word – In the beginning </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.75in;text-indent:-.5in;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops:list .75in"><!--[if !supportLists]-->II.<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""> </span><!--[endif]-->Christ is the living Word – God created</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.75in;text-indent:-.5in;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops:list .75in"><!--[if !supportLists]-->III.<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""> </span><!--[endif]-->Christ is the revealing Word – Then God said, “Let there be light”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.75in;text-indent:-.5in;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops:list .75in"><!--[if !supportLists]-->IV.<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""> </span><!--[endif]-->Christ is the accomplishing Word – and there was light</p>olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-86116121736597621092012-01-09T10:30:00.003-06:002012-01-09T10:51:19.742-06:00Context, Context, Context!Any time we endeavor to interpret the Word of God we must be careful that we understand the original author's intended meaning. To miss the intended meaning of any text is to <i>misinterpret</i> the text. Proper interpretation of any portion of Scripture always requires that we understand both its immediate context and overall context. The immediate context of any portion of Scripture is found in the verses that are immediate to it - the verses that immediately precede and immediately follow.<div><br /></div><div>The mantra for proper interpretation should be in the hearts and minds of all Christians but especially of those who have the responsibility of preaching and teaching and that mantra should be, "Context, context, context."</div><div><br /></div><div>Here is a video that gives and example of what I am speaking of using John 3:16 as the text.</div><div><br /></div><div><iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/bhm4Dj47HPo" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-36069095640873621192011-12-09T06:00:00.000-06:002011-12-09T06:00:11.627-06:00Please One Another: The Sovereign's Glory (Romans 15:5-7)<p class="MsoNormal">The highest motivation a man can have is to give God glory. The reason that this is the highest motivation a man can have is because the desire to give God glory flows from a heart of love. Christians, whether strong in the faith or weak in the faith, desire to give God glory because they love Him for first loving them. This section of Scripture gives us three ways to give God glory. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b>First, Christians give God glory by having unity of mind</b> (Romans 15:5). Christians are to be unified in the essentials and give liberty in the nonessentials. The nonessentials are to never be allowed to become issues over which Christians divide. Since all Christians, whether strong or weak in the faith, are <i>in the faith</i>, they are to be of the same mind toward one another (Romans <st1:time minute="16" hour="12">12:16</st1:time>) and their unity is to be based upon their agreement in the essentials of the Gospel. Unity of mind means that we believe the same thing about the Gospel. If we do not believe the same thing about the Gospel then we cannot have unity of mind. If we do not have unity of mind about the Gospel then we cannot strive together for the Gospel. This is why we are told to “<i>conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ...standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel</i>” (Philippians <st1:time minute="27" hour="13">1:27</st1:time>). Striving together for the faith of the Gospel means that we believe the same thing about the Gospel (unity of mind) and that we are standing together <i>defending</i> the Gospel (see Jude 3) as <i>the church</i> <i>of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth</i> (1 Timothy 3:15). Christians give glory to God by having unity of mind in the Gospel and by not allowing disagreements in the nonessentials divide the church.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b>Second, Christians give God glory by having unity of voice</b> (Romans 15:6). Unity of mind in the essentials of the Gospel leads to unity of voice in declaring and guarding the Gospel. When Christians have unity of mind they also have unity or harmony of voice (literally, mouth). This means that in a cliché, “<i>We are all singing off the same page in the Hymn book</i>.” Disagreement in the nonessentials is to never interrupt the unity of mind or unity of voice among Christians. The Gospel is God’s tuning fork for His children and it gives us unity of mind and unity of voice so that God gets the glory for His amazing orchestration and harmonization of sinners saved by His grace. Christians give God glory by having unity of mind and unity of voice in the Gospel and by not allowing disagreements in the nonessentials divide the church.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b>Third, Christians give God glory by having unity of purpose</b> (Romans 15:7). Unity of mind and unity of voice leads to unity of purpose. When we are unified in these three ways, we accept one another rather than fight one another. Christians cannot stand firm against those who corrupt the Gospel when they are fighting each other. Christians are <i>to be of the same mind, maintaining the same love</i> [accepting one another]<i>, united in spirit, intent on one purpose</i> [striving together for the faith of the Gospel] (Philippians 2:2). The real purpose of the church cannot be achieved if our unity is something other than the essentials of the Gospel or if we do not accept one another when we disagree in the nonessentials.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">When we disagree in the nonessentials, we please one another on the basis of the Sovereign’s glory. We get back to the basics and have unity of mind, voice, and purpose for the glory of God.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-69966061487578968332011-12-08T09:05:00.005-06:002011-12-08T09:45:13.579-06:00Please One Another: The Scripture's Instruction (Romans 15:4)When we disagree with one another as Christians, first of all we are to <a href="http://destroyingspeculations.blogspot.com/2011/11/please-one-another-saviors-example.html">please one another on the basis of the Savior's example</a>. Second when we disagree with one another as Christians we are to please one another on the basis of the Scripture's instruction (Romans 15:4). <div><br /></div><div>The principles found in Scripture are forever relevant. The Word of God is continually contemporary. Therefore it instructs us through how God has dealt with the men and women of faith in the past and how they suffered for their faith, laid aside their liberties, and were used by God for His glory.</div><div><br /></div><div>When we disagree with our brothers and sisters in Christ in the gray areas we are to look to the permanent principles revealed in God's continually contemporary Word so that we can be instructed from the Scripture on how to please one another. </div><div><br /></div><div><b>First, when we look to the Scriptures we find that God is faithful</b>. God is unchanging. He is immutable. He humbles those who exalt themselves and he exalts those who humble themselves. We have examples in the Scriptures of how God deals with the unrepentant in severity and the repentant in kindness. Those men and women of faith in the Bible found God to be absolutely, utterly, totally faithful. Knowing that God is faithful enables us to please one another even at the expense of our own liberties.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Second, when we look to the Scriptures we are given perseverance</b>. We can look at the men and women of faith in the Bible and see their suffering and their <i>perseverance</i> and be strengthened to <i>persevere</i> just as they did. This will enable us to endure all things for the sake of the elect (2 Timothy 2:10). Laying aside a few liberties for the sake of God's children isn't such a big thing when compared to the suffering endured by the faithful in Scripture. God is faithful and that gives us perseverance in difficult circumstances.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Third, when we look to the Scriptures we are given encouragement</b>. We are encouraged by the Scriptures when we find ourselves in difficult circumstances and are reminded by God's Word that these difficult circumstances are actually a sign of salvation (Philippians 1:27-29). This is to give us encouragement in Christ (Philippians 2:1-3). God is faithful and that gives us perseverance and encouragement in difficult circumstances.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Finally, when we look to the Scriptures we are given hope</b>. The Scriptures give us <i>certainty</i> (biblical hope) that we will be glorified after suffering for a while for our faith. Giving up a few liberties for the sake of the elect is nothing in light of suffering persecution for the faith and yet both are working for us a greater glory than the sufferings we are experiencing (2 Corinthians 4:16-18). God is faithful and that truth gives us perseverance and encouragement and hope so that we are able to lay aside our liberties for the sake of our weaker brothers and sisters in Christ. We learn this from the Scripture's instructions.</div>olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-73806253238294525742011-11-10T09:58:00.006-06:002011-11-14T10:58:14.729-06:00How to Test the Spirits (1 John 4:1-6)<p class="MsoNormal">Testing the spirits to see whether they are from God is clearly commanded in Scripture because of the grave danger of the reality of the multitude of false prophets that have gone out into the world (1 John 4:1). Testing the spirits to see whether they are from God is commended in Scripture when it is properly done so that false teachers are not allowed a platform in the church to spread their destructive heresies (Revelation 2:2). However, the question remains as to how we are to test the spirits to see whether they are from God.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Before I begin explaining how to test the spirits biblically I want to share the unbiblical way for testing the spirits that will have disastrous results if used:</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b>It is unbiblical to test the spirits through judging by appearance</b> (John <st1:time minute="24" hour="19">7:24</st1:time>). This is the deadly mistake of looking at results as the criteria for determining whether or not someone is from God. Many in our day believe that because a man is popular, inspiring, successful, and loved by almost everyone that he surely has to be from God. Such a <a href="http://destroyingspeculations.blogspot.com/2008/05/pragmatismone-of-devils-most-insidious_27.html">pragmatic approach</a> to discernment is rejected by the Bible (see Luke <st1:time minute="26" hour="18">6:26</st1:time>). Inference from observation of “positive results” that a man is from God is unbiblical. When a person tests the spirits in this manner, he has set himself up as the final arbiter of truth and is in essence claiming that he knows truth intuitively.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">The Bible, which is truth (John <st1:time minute="17" hour="17">17:17</st1:time>), gives us several ways to test the spirits to see whether they are from God (1 John 4:1) and in so doing to make a righteous judgment (John <st1:time minute="24" hour="19">7:24</st1:time>). What I am going to share is not exhaustive on the subject but is sufficient for guarding against error in testing the spirits.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b>First, the Bible gives us the quantity verses quality test</b> (Matthew <st1:time minute="13" hour="19">7:13</st1:time>-27).</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i>Quantity</i>! The false prophet interested in quantity (numbers are what matter) will use the wide gate that leads to destruction to achieve his pragmatic results (Matthew <st1:time minute="13" hour="19">7:13</st1:time>). <a href="http://destroyingspeculations.blogspot.com/2008/04/false-prophets-message.html">The false prophet’s message</a> is geared toward quantity. The false prophet, because he is interested in quantity and not quality, also is illustrated by Jesus as one who builds houses on the sand without taking the time to lay a solid foundation (Matthew <st1:time minute="26" hour="19">7:26</st1:time>-27).</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i>Quality</i>! The true prophet interested in quality (true conversions) will use the narrow gate that leads to life to achieve his Lord’s results. Logically speaking the narrow gate will not be as effective numerically as the wide gate but the effectiveness of its end result is worth it. The true prophet is the one who, interested in quality, builds his house on the rock (Matthew <st1:time minute="24" hour="19">7:24</st1:time>-25).</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b>Second, the Bible gives us the world verses the Word test</b> (1 John 4:1-6).</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i>The world</i>! The false prophet, claiming that he is speaking from God’s Word, actually speaks from the world (1 John 4:5). The false prophet may quote lots of Scripture but he will twist it (2 Peter <st1:time minute="16" hour="15">3:16</st1:time>) and violate clear biblical principles. For instance, since the Bible says that the false prophets speak as from the world and the world listens to them (1 John 4:5), then to list Scripture to show that Jesus knew what unbelievers were thinking in order to teach that we are to learn to think and speak like unbelievers to attract them is to twist Scripture and violate the principle of 1 John 4:5 – failing the test and being shown to be a false prophet.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Test this statement according to 1 John 4:5: “If you want to advertise your church to the unchurched you must learn to think and <i>speak</i> like they do.” Does this pass the test as one who is a true prophet from God speaking from God’s Word or does this fail the test as one who is a false prophet speaking as from the world? Also apply the quantity/quality test to this same statement and see how it fairs.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i>The Word</i>! The true prophet actually speaks from God’s Word (1 John 4:6) and does not twist the Scripture nor violate clear biblical principles. The true prophet ends up not being loved by everyone (Matthew <st1:time minute="10" hour="17">5:10</st1:time>), being falsely spoken evil of (Matthew <st1:time minute="11" hour="17">5:11</st1:time>), and being hated just like the prophets of old (Matthew <st1:time minute="12" hour="17">5:12</st1:time>).</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b>Third, the Bible gives us the orthopraxy verses orthodoxy test</b> (2 Corinthians <st1:time minute="14" hour="18">6:14</st1:time>-18)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Christian unity must be based on agreement in the orthodoxy (2 Corinthians <st1:time minute="14" hour="18">6:14</st1:time>-18). Any disagreement in orthodoxy is grounds for separation. True prophets maintain this biblical principle and false prophets violate this biblical principle. The false prophets are interested in an ecumenical movement. In order to achieve their ecumenical movement, the false prophets seek to do away with doctrines that divide (orthodoxy) and unite over secondary matters (orthopraxy). The false prophet does not require agreement in orthodoxy for unity but instead seeks to unify over agreement in orthopraxy.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">To see how this test works see <i><a href="http://destroyingspeculations.blogspot.com/2008/08/orthodoxy-determines-orthopraxy.html">Orthodoxy Determines Orthopraxy</a></i>. Using these three tests will give you the biblical way to test the spirits to see whether they are from God and to be guarded from the many false prophets who have gone out into the world.</p>olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-53236961196482252632011-11-02T08:44:00.003-05:002011-11-02T08:56:52.281-05:00Please One Another: The Savior's Example (Romans 15:1-3)Romans 14:1 – 15:7 is dealing with what we could call the gray areas of the Christian life. These are the nonessentials that have no bearing on whether or not someone is saved. These are matters that are strictly between the child of God and his Lord. Since this is true then Christians can and will disagree in the nonessentials.<br /><br />Since these are gray areas of the Christian life, we are not to judge one another nor hinder another’s obedience to the Lordship of Christ. The weak in the faith are not to be bossy, trying to impose their beliefs on the strong and the strong in the faith are not to be bullies, trying to force-feed their beliefs down the throats of the weak. This is what this section is about and it gives us three principles to maintain unity when Christians disagree:<br /><br />(1) <a href="http://destroyingspeculations.blogspot.com/2011/10/when-christians-disagree-accept-one.html"><em>Accept one another</em> </a>(Romans 14:1-12). When Christians disagree in the gray areas of the Christian life we accept one another because God has accepted us (Romans 14:1-3); we accept one another because Christ is Lord of each and every child of God and we are lord of none (Romans 14:4-9); and we accept one another because God is judge and we are not (Romans 14:10-12).<br />(2) <a href="http://destroyingspeculations.blogspot.com/2011/10/build-up-one-another-romans-1413-23.html"><em>Build up one another</em> </a>(Romans 14:13-23). When Christians disagree in the gray areas of the Christian life we build up one another because we are brothers and sisters in Christ. Because we are brothers and sisters in Christ we don’t cause a child of God to stumble (Romans 14:13); we don’t hurt a child of God (Romans 14:14-15); we don’t forfeit our witness to a watching world through family quarrels (Romans 14:16-18); we don’t tear down the work of God in a child of God by hindering his or her walk with the Lord (Romans 14:19-21); and the strong Christian does not flaunt his liberties (Romans 14:22-23).<br />(3) <em>Please one another</em> (Romans 15:1-7). When Christians disagree in the gray areas of the Christian life we please one another and not just ourselves. This third principle for maintaining unity when Christians disagree is our subject under investigation. There are three aspects to this principle that we will take one at a time in separate posts.<br /><br /><strong>First, we are to please one another on the basis of the Savior’s example</strong> (Romans 15:1-3).<br /><br /><em>The strong are to have regard for the weaknesses of others</em> (Romans 15:1). The strong are not to just think of their rights and their own pleasures but are to think of how they can use their strength to help others. Those without strength need help and the strong can either give them the help they need or selfishly only help themselves. The Bible says that “love does not seek its own” (1 Corinthians 13:15) and that “love bears all things” (1 Corinthians 15:7). The strong Christian who does not have regard for the weaknesses of others is unloving and not following the Savior’s example.<br /><br />Think of our Lord’s example in this area. For our sake, while we were helpless (without strength or ability to help ourselves), at the right time Christ died for the ungodly (Romans 5:6). To accomplish our salvation, the Lord “did not look out for His own personal interests but also the interest of others, and although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped [utilized], but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Philippians 2:4-8).<br /><br />Let’s make some application with this. The strong Christian knows that eating meat is not condemned in God’s Word. The weak Christian believes that eating meat is condemned in God’s Word. The strong Christian then is to lay aside his liberty for the sake of the weak Christian. The strong Christian is to have regard for the weaknesses of his brothers and sisters.<br /><br />The strong Christian knows that drinking wine is not condemned but that getting drunk is condemned in God’s Word. The weak Christian believes that drinking wine is condemned in God’s Word. The strong Christian is to bear the weaknesses of those without strength and he is to lay aside his liberty for the sake of the weak Christian.<br /><br />The strong are to have regard for the weaknesses of others.<br /><br /><em>The strong are to have regard for the good of others</em> (Romans 15:2). Isn’t this very logical? Not having regard for the weaknesses of other family members is to not have any regard for their good either. Having regard for the weakness of other family members is to have regard for their good also. If one believes that it is wrong to drink wine and a stronger Christian disregards that weakness, will he not cause the weaker Christian to either judge him as an unbeliever (which is sin) or to violate his own convictions (which is sin).<br /><br />Knowing that something is not condemned in Scripture does not mean that it is commanded in Scripture. This simply means that Christian liberties can be set aside for the good of others and to build them up rather than tear them down. Improper exercise of Christian liberties will indeed tear down others who believe that those liberties are wrong.<br /><br />The strong are to have regard for the good of others.<br /><br /><em>The strong are to have regard for pleasing others</em> (Romans 15:3). Pleasing others entails self-denial. However this is a characteristic of the strong that have a heart of love. The strong are never more like Jesus than when they are not seeking their own pleasure but instead are laying aside their privileges to have regard for the weaknesses of others and the good of others.<br /><br />The strong are to have regard for pleasing others.olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-69288250836482510982011-10-31T08:43:00.006-05:002011-10-31T09:11:42.680-05:00Atheism's Real Problem with the God of ChristianityIn the previous post where I reviewed <a href="http://destroyingspeculations.blogspot.com/2011/10/book-review-challenging-verdict.html"><em>Challenging the Verdict</em> </a>by Earl Doherty, I promised that I would address the deep rooted and real problem that atheists have with the God of Christianity. Allow me to catch you back up to speed. In his book, Doherty <em>unknowingly</em> revealed the inability of evidential apologetics to answer his deep rooted and real problem with Christianity, namely, that the God of Christianity is unjust and His method of atonement is both illogical and immoral. Doherty said, “Should we not expect a just Deity to fashion a punishment fitting the crime? . . . What, after all, was Adam and Eve’s purported ‘sin’? Eating fruit, even a forbidden one, hardly sinks to the depth of depravity” (124). A few pages later Doherty said, “But why did he require such an ultimate sacrifice in order to forgive humanity its sins? Is there not, indeed, some logical if not moral contradiction in ‘redeeming’ men of sins like murder through an act of murder on their part? Why did he not embody the act of redemption in something more exemplary, perhaps by having Jesus perform a few thousand hours of community service? What a moral example that would have set” (126). No amount of external evidence (empirical facts) can give an answer to these objections. God’s revelation of the meaning of these facts is needed to answer Doherty’s deep rooted and real problem with Christianity.<br /><br />Since God is being accused of injustice, immorality, and ignorance for both His stance toward sin and His method of atonement, we must allow Him to speak and justify His actions (Romans 3:4). So to understand and see the justice, morality, and wisdom of God in both His stance toward sin and His method of atonement, we will have to consider God’s revealed meaning of redemptive history as it specifically pertains to the resurrection of Jesus from the dead.<br /><br /><strong>First, the resurrection of Jesus means that God is Creator and transcendent Lord</strong>. This means that naturalistic evolution is false, because the resurrection of Jesus is only possible in an open system in which God intervenes and miracles are possible. The resurrection of Jesus, since it means that God is Creator and transcendent Lord, also means that there are no “brute facts.” The facts do not speak for themselves but must be interpreted only by God’s revealed meaning for them. As Dan Phillips says of God as Creator and transcendent Lord, “He created all things in heaven and on earth, including heaven and earth themselves. In doing so, God created all facts. And thus God assigned meaning, value, and significance to everything. That means, then, that there are no “brute facts,” only created facts, with their meaning designed and assigned by God” (Dan Phillips, <em>The World-Tilting Gospel: Embracing a Biblical Worldview and Hanging on Tight</em>, Kindle Edition, 91).<br /><br /><strong>Second, the resurrection of Jesus means that Adam was the first man created by God as both the progenitor of and representative for all people born through his seed</strong>. This means that theistic evolution is false because of the solidarity of all people with one man. To believe in the resurrection of Jesus as revealed by God as the means by which He saves sinners from among humanity is to believe in solidarity with an original, historical, first man. There could be no solidarity on the basis of theistic evolution because there would be no definite, definable place where the head of the human race, as its sole representative, plunged the race into sin. Therefore no one would be born with a sin nature traceable to an original ancestor.<br /><br />There would be no solidarity under the system of either naturalistic or theistic evolution. Without solidarity, Jesus could represent no more than one person. The ratio, without solidarity, becomes a one for one ratio. Each individual sinner would have to have a different individual Savior or else Jesus would have to continually come and offer Himself over and over again for each individual sinner.<br /><br /><strong>Third, the resurrection of Jesus means that God is covenant maker who promises life for obedience to and death for disobedience of His covenant</strong>. One of God’s assigned meanings of the resurrection of Jesus is that He keeps His promises. He is a covenant keeping God. He is truth and in Him there is no darkness at all. It is impossible for God to lie since to get anything out of something, it has to be in it. There is a reason one cannot get “blood out of a turnip.” Since God is truth there is no lie in Him. Therefore it is impossible for God to lie (Hebrews 6:18). God keeps His promises. He gives death for disobedience (Romans 6:23).<br /><br />Adam, as the progenitor and representative of all men earned death for breaking God’s covenant and in order for God to remain true, death reigned from Adam on (Romans 5:12). On the other hand, Jesus, the progenitor and representative of all who have faith in Him earned life for keeping God’s covenant and in order for God to remain true, He raised Jesus from the dead (Acts 2:24) and will raise all who are in Christ (1 Corinthians 15:21-23). God keeps His promises. He gives life for obedience (Leviticus 18:5).<br /><br /><strong>Fourth, the resurrection of Jesus means that Adam was a covenant breaker who earned death for himself and all his offspring through their solidarity with him</strong>. Adam transgressed and disobeyed God’s command and became a covenant breaker. Adam became a capital offender. One may question why disobedience to God’s covenant is a capital crime. The human mind, even among atheists, can determine that murder is a capital offense that deserves capital punishment. However, “lesser sins” that the laws of the land do not consider capital offenses are considered capital offenses in God’s kingdom. From this truth the unregenerate human mind recoils and objects.<br /><br />Why is murder a capital offense? Is it because there is something so unloving about the act of murder that it is hideous? Is it because the murderer is so unloving that he is dangerous to society? Is murder a capital offense because there is no greater display of hatred toward humanity? Murder is the <em>greatest crime</em> that can be committed against humanity because it violates the <em>greatest commandment</em> to “love your neighbor as yourself” in the grossest manner and is therefore a capital offense deserving capital punishment.<br /><br />What is the greatest crime one can commit? Logically, the greatest crime a man can commit is the violation of the <em>greatest commandment</em>. Is there a commandment greater than “love your neighbor as yourself”? Surely, and logically, the greatest crime that a man can commit is a violation of the greatest commandment against the <em>greatest Being</em>. What is the greatest commandment? Jesus said, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the great and foremost commandment (Matthew 22:37-38).<br /><br />Should the crime of murder, of not loving a fellow man, an <em>equal being</em>, be greater than any crime of not loving God, the <em>greatest Being</em>? Logic demands that there is no greater crime than not loving God and therefore any crime that violates love for God is a capital offense that deserves capital punishment. When Adam disobeyed God and ate of the forbidden fruit he committed a capital offense because of the nature of his crime. Adam failed to keep God’s commandment, violated God’s covenant, and earned death because not loving and obeying God is a capital offense that is greater than not loving and killing a fellow human being. All men who are born naturally into Adam’s race naturally have the same hatred for God and His commandments.<br /><br /><strong>Fifth, the resurrection means that Jesus is the second Adam, born without the agency of a human father in order to bypass imputation of Adam’s sin nature</strong>. In order to accomplish obedience to God’s covenant and thereby confirm the covenant promises of God, Jesus would have to live in perfect obedience to the Law of God. However, if Jesus were a natural born descendant of Adam, He would also inherit Adam’s sin nature. Here the purpose of the virginal conception of Jesus is made clear by the redemptive- historical context of the resurrection.<br /><br />The virginal conception of Jesus also implies the divinity of Jesus. Here the mystery of the hypostatic union or the two natures of Jesus is revealed as one of God’s meanings of the resurrection of Jesus. He is the Son of man and the Son of God in one person. He is fully God and fully man in the one person of Jesus Christ. In order to accomplish God’s covenant with man, the Son of God, with supreme love for God, would have to become the son of man, without a sin nature.<br /><br /><strong>Sixth, the resurrection of Jesus means Jesus is the covenant keeper and redeemer who earned life for Himself and all his offspring by their solidarity with Him through faith</strong>. “In the fullness of time, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, so that he might redeem those who were under the Law” (Galatians 4:4-5). Jesus lived perfectly under the Law of God, kept His covenant, and earned life. Jesus lived in perfect obedience to God because of His perfect love for God doing what Adam did not do and what no natural born descendent of Adam could ever do. As Phillips says, “So we must recognize in Jesus the quality that every other human being since Adam has lacked: utter, comprehensive, all-consuming love for God that flowed from a sinless heart and issued in a flawlessly, perfectly holy life” (<em>The World-Tilting Gospel</em>, 117).<br /><br />Adam failed to love God with all his heart and as a result he violated God’s command, became a capital offender, and earned death for himself and all his offspring. God’s covenant with Adam was that if he disobeyed he would die. The wages of sin is death. By implication, God’s covenant with Adam meant that if he obeyed he would live. The wages of obedience is life. This truth is expressed in God’s Law given to Israel before the time of Christ. “So you shall keep My statutes and My judgments, by which a man may live if he does them” (Leviticus 18:5).<br /><br />There is a one major problem though. Adam has already failed to love God and committed a capital offense. All of Adam’s offspring have inherited his sin nature to the point that none are able to obey God and therefore none can earn life (Romans 3:20, 28). All are doomed, unless God has a solution for the dilemma of how He can pardon capital offenders and give them life instead of death, while He remains true in the process.<br /><br />Here is where the Gospel really becomes offensive and is viewed by those who are perishing as foolishness. God’s solution for the dilemma of how He can pardon capital offenders, giving them life instead of death, is through Penal Substitution. Someone would have to live a perfect life of loving loyalty to God and then suffer the penalty of capital punishment as a sacrifice for and a substitute of capital offenders.<br /><br />Earl Doherty objects, “But why did he require such an ultimate sacrifice in order to forgive humanity its sins? Is there not, indeed, some logical if not moral contradiction in ‘redeeming’ men of sins like murder through an act of murder on their part? Why did he not embody the act of redemption in something more exemplary, perhaps by having Jesus perform a few thousand hours of community service? What a moral example that would have set” (126).<br /><br />Others object and say that it is illogical and immoral to execute and innocent man and to set free a capital offender. How can God do this without committing two injustices? After all, God’s Word says, “He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous, both of them alike are an abomination to the Lord” (Proverbs 17:15). <strong>The answer is the resurrection</strong>! The resurrection not only makes Penal Substitution logical and moral, it is an absolute necessity for God who is truth. God promised life for the one who obeyed His Law. Jesus did obey God’s Law perfectly. The death of Christ was at the hands of sinful men. Men in violation of God’s Law were responsible for the execution of Jesus so that it was not the Law that promised life executing Jesus but godless men (Acts 2:23). Since Jesus was innocent and was dying by God’s plan as a substitute for sinners, His resurrection from the dead was an absolute necessity and certainty (Acts 2:24). The Law of God based on the Word of God owed Jesus life and since it is impossible for God to lie, it was impossible for death to hold its prey.<br /><br />Penal Substitution is a logical and moral impossibility for any court system in this world. No human court can accomplish justice through Penal Substitution. In its attempt, any human court would become guilty of two injustices. Executing an innocent man is unjust even if the innocent man is willing. Setting free a guilty man on the basis that an innocent man has died in the place of the guilty man is unjust. Without the power to raise men from the dead, Penal Substitution cannot be a justice serving means of pardon. However, with the ability to raise men from the dead, Penal Substitution becomes the only means by which a righteous God can pardon sinners while He maintains justice in the process (Romans 3:23-26).<br /><br />Doherty’s solution for maintaining justice while pardoning a capital offender is “having Jesus perform a few thousand hours of community service” (126). However, even atheists know that justice has not been served when the punishment does not equal the crime. Doherty’s question, “Should we not expect a just Deity to fashion a punishment fitting the crime?” now needs to be asked to Doherty instead of being asked by Doherty. Under Doherty’s scheme of atonement, God would allow capital offenders to go free without the penalty matching the crime as Doherty claims God should do.<br /><br />Jesus lived a perfect life under God’s Law to fulfill its precepts, died a sacrificial death to pay the penalty of breaking God’s Law for sinners, and experienced a supernatural resurrection to fulfill the Law’s promise of life for the one who obeyed it. Jesus earned life for Himself and all who have solidarity with Him through faith.<br /><br /><strong>Seventh, the resurrection of Jesus means that He is both Lord and Judge</strong>. No explanation needed! God is just, moral, wise, and loving!olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-420271249333204065.post-20744893731980911992011-10-28T11:39:00.000-05:002013-03-30T10:46:08.289-05:00Book Review: Challenging the Verdict<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Doherty, Earl. <em>Challenging the Verdict: A Cross-Examination of Lee Strobel’s “The Case for </em><em>Christ”</em>. Ottawa Canada: Age of Reason Publications, 2001.<br />
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After opening the front cover of <em>Challenging the Verdict</em>, one finds an advanced review of the book written by Lee Salisbury, a former evangelical church pastor; now writer and speaker for atheist groups. In his advanced review, Salisbury claims that Strobel and his “expert witnesses” in <em>The Case for Christ</em> sacrifice intellectual integrity, speak half-truths and misrepresentations in defense of Christian doctrine. On the other hand, Doherty is praised by Salisbury for his reasoned refutation and maintenance of intellectual integrity. If Salisbury’s review is accurate then Doherty will have proved with <em>reasoned refutations</em>, <em>truthful representations</em>, and <em>intellectual integrity</em> that the Gospels are not history and that Christianity is a myth. <em>Challenging the Verdict</em> will have, as is claimed on the back cover, demonstrated the deficiencies, the fallacies, and the selective and misleading use of the evidence inherent in <em>The Case for Christ</em>.<br />
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Enough of the “atta boy” awards until the claim of Doherty’s superior reasoning powers are validated. Doherty has claimed that he will “expose the fallacy, distortion of evidence and extensive misinterpretation of the record inherent in the ‘case’ for Christian orthodoxy . . .” (2). He has claimed that Strobel’s “overall case has been marked by shallow argument and deficient reasoning; special pleading (meaning a selective adoption and interpretation of evidence); and techniques that can be said to be fundamentally misleading, in that a particular conclusion has been established ahead of time, and evidence and argumentation is often selected and applied in light of this desired conclusion” (6). It is only fair that the reader hold Doherty to the same standards of logic, honesty, and integrity that he claims Strobel violates.<br />
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Did Doherty achieve his purpose? No! Instead of reasoned refutations, truthful representations, and intellectual integrity, Doherty used shallow argument and deficient reasoning; special pleading; and techniques that are fundamentally misleading and violate intellectual integrity.<br />
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However, before establishing these failures of Doherty, his accomplishment in his book needs to be verbalized. Doherty <em>unknowingly</em> revealed the inability of evidential apologetics to answer his deep rooted and real problem with Christianity, namely, that the God of Christianity is unjust and His method of atonement is both illogical and immoral. Doherty said, “Should we not expect a just Deity to fashion a punishment fitting the crime? . . . What, after all, was Adam and Eve’s purported ‘sin’? Eating fruit, even a forbidden one, hardly sinks to the depth of depravity” (124). A few pages later Doherty said, “But why did he require such an ultimate sacrifice in order to forgive humanity its sins? Is there not, indeed, some logical if not moral contradiction in ‘redeeming’ men of sins like murder through an act of murder on their part? Why did he not embody the act of redemption in something more exemplary, perhaps by having Jesus perform a few thousand hours of community service? What a moral example that would have set” (126). No amount of external evidence can give an answer to these objections. God’s revelation of the meaning of these facts is needed to answer Doherty’s deep rooted and real problem with Christianity.<br />
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The failures of Doherty are threefold: (1) he failed to provide reasoned refutations, (2) he failed to provide truthful representations, and (3) he failed to provide intellectual integrity.<br />
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<strong>Instead of reasoned refutation, Doherty resorted to shallow argument and deficient reasoning</strong>. Doherty attempted to prove that changes have been made to the original text (also called by Doherty both original eyewitness accounts and source material) of which he admits we do not possess (7) through the postulated source document known as Q (12) of which he admits that we do not actually possess a <em>copy</em> of it (85). We do have copies of the Gospels; we do not have a copy of Q; and Doherty expects us to believe that he is demonstrating through reasoned refutation that the evangelists made wholesale changes to their source material (7). No thanks! I am not into myths.<br />
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<strong>Instead of truthful representations, Doherty resorted to special pleading</strong>. Here Doherty attempted to prove that the Scriptures are inconsistent and contradictory (145). Doherty presumed from the outset a fixed interpretation of the Gospels (146) to show them inconsistent and contradictory. He especially pitted the Gospel of John against the synoptic Gospels. Here is one of Doherty’s representations of inconsistency and contradiction in the Scriptures: the synoptic Gospels record that Jesus stumbled while carrying His cross to Calvary because of His weakened condition and had to receive help by Simon of Cyrene to carry His cross. Yet John’s Gospel says, “He went out, bearing his own cross” (John 19:17). Because of this Doherty said, “Yet another indicator, by the way, that John is fashioning his Jesus character the way he wants him, and not the way any tradition said” (151). ROFL – that means that I am “rolling on floor laughing.” Does “he went out bearing his own cross” contradict the other Gospels that record he began the journey carrying his own cross?<br />
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However, that is not the thrust of Doherty’s argument to truthfully represent the inconsistencies and contradictions in the Scriptures. To make his case, Doherty attempted to show that the Gospel of John is inconsistent with and contradicts the synoptic Gospels by claiming that the Gospel of John does not portray Jesus’ death as an atoning sacrifice for sin (17). Doherty’s argument rests on the assumption that the Lord’s Supper in John 13 is not the same as the Lord’s Supper in the synoptic Gospels because it lacks the Eucharist elements (229). But wait! The Gospel of John establishes that Jesus is the fulfillment of the Old Testament sacrificial system beginning with Him as the tabernacle (John 1:14), the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29), and proceeds to Him making atonement on the Mercy Seat (John 20:12 compare to Exodus 25:18).<br />
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Doherty is under no illusion as to the significance of the Lord’s Supper (Eucharist). He knows that it portrays Jesus’ death as an atoning sacrifice for sin and that it declares him to be that very thing (p. 17). Doherty even went so far as to say, “In fact, there are elements within the Gospels that are decidedly un-Jewish, such as the Eucharist, which involves the eating and drinking of Jesus’ flesh and blood” (p. 169). One wonders how Doherty can then say, “The establishment of the Eucharist…is notably missing in John and elsewhere” (p. 233), since John 6:54 says, “He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” This oversight by Doherty is so astonishing that one must conclude he is guilty of special pleading.<br />
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<strong>Instead of intellectual integrity, Doherty resorted to misleading techniques</strong>. Doherty completely ignores the literary genre of the epistles (that these are letters to churches or Christians) and treats them as though they should be the Gospels (Christological biography). This is a misleading technique that confuses categories for the sake of making arguments and marshalling evidence in ones favor. In so doing, Doherty is able to make the claim that the epistles do not speak of Jesus Christ as a historical, human figure but as a cosmic Son of God who shares in God’s nature. As an example, Doherty said, “The death and resurrection of their Christ is never placed in an historical, earthly setting. A crucifixion on Calvary and the empty tomb story, the rising from the grave outside Jerusalem, are not to be found outside the Gospels” (55). In this way, Doherty can postulate a mythical Christ in the epistles with a contradictory historical, human Christ in the Gospels as an “evolution in Christian traditions within the first few generations of the faith” (39).<br />
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Having conveniently confused categories, Doherty is then able to demand evidence from the epistles that does not belong in the epistles. The mantra in Challenging the Verdict becomes the Jesus of the Gospels is not the Jesus of the epistles because the epistles do not repeat the Christological biography of Christ (21, 24, 28, 29, 39, 55, 64, 66, 83, 94, 99, 101,103, 104, 105, 135, 139, 159, 162, 170, 171, 176, 200, 210, 218, 225, 231, 235).<br />
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Not only does Doherty violate intellectual integrity by conveniently confusing categories, treating the epistles as though they should be the Gospels, he also violates intellectual integrity by conveniently creating categories in which to put any opposing evidence so that it can be declared inadmissible. For instance, coherence becomes either reading the content of one set of documents into another (104) or “the evangelists constructed their story by drawing on scriptural elements in the process known as midrash” (134). Midrash is the practice of copying and reworking passages from the Old Testament in order to build up a new story based on old material (112).<br />
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Another conveniently created category by Doherty is close correspondences become plagiarisms. Speaking of the close correspondences between the Gospels, Doherty said, “Most scholars have concluded that the close correspondences between Mark and the later evangelists, overall and in many small ways, does indeed make them technically plagiarisms” (173). What happens when there seems to be no correspondences? No correspondences become radical revisions and contradictions (17).<br />
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Confusing categories by treating the epistles as though they should be the Gospels and creating categories by which to declare as inadmissible any evidence to the contrary, is an exercise in misleading techniques and is <strong>not</strong> intellectual integrity. Doherty has failed to provide reasoned refutations, truthful representations, and intellectual integrity. Naturalism will have to continue its search for its hero – Doherty has failed.<br />
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I have not forgotten Doherty’s deep rooted and real problem with Christianity. I will address that problem in the next post.olan stricklandhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05345193051857763038noreply@blogger.com0