Please do not tell the members of First Baptist Church in Muleshoe, but we have been having "Training Union" on Wednesday nights. (Members more than forty-five years of age have already uncovered my scheme, but they have been faithfully silent. Surprisingly, the forty and under crowd thinks this study is interesting.)

Several weeks ago we began a study of the 1963 Baptist Faith and Message. We discussed "A Confession vs. A Creed," "Theories of Inspiration," "The Meaning of Inerrancy" and so forth. The last line of the 1963 article on the Scripture stated, "The criterion by which the Bible is to be interpreted is Jesus Christ." From that, we discussed the primacy of Christ's words in the Scripture, as you would expect.

In contrast, we discussed the deletion of that statement and the addition of, "All Scripture is a testimony to Christ, who is Himself the focus of divine revelation," in the 2000 BF&M. I realized that for most everyone in the room the theological distinctions between these two sentences would sound like Congressman bickering over the minutia of legislation.

I had recently watched the digital debate from the SBC in Orlando on The Baptist Standard web page. So, I decided, why not let the words of the SBC BF&M Committee speak to the issue? After all, the statements made by the 2000 BF&M Committee concerning the primacy of Scripture were more defining than anything I would have read into their deletion and substitution.

When the video concluded, some were in tears, a few were angry, others were appalled, many were confused, and I was caught off guard. Very few grasped the meaning of the committee's words. What stood out upon the projection screen, that kairos evening, were the attitudes of arrogance and condescension demonstrated by the Seminary Presidents and Agency Leadership.

I was caught in conversation well after 10:00 p.m. In bed, I tossed and turned, fearful I had unleashed a dragon in our fellowship. Little did I know the dynamics that were at work.

"Our God is a God of peace. That kind of dissension cannot be of the Lord."

"Now, I understand why you do not consider yourself Southern Baptist."

"That is not how we want our next pastor to behave!"

"Is this the style of missionary leadership?" were examples of just a few statements or questions asked of me in the following days.

A few minutes spent viewing the video of the SBC leadership in Orlando had more impact than the previous nine years of conversation concerning the controversy.

Morris Chapman said, "The Cooperative Program is an agreement between the SBC and the state conventions. No state convention has the right to redefine this agreement unilaterally. The proposed BGCT action is a dagger thrust at the heart of the Cooperative Program. This is a sad day for all Southern Baptists, and a great tragedy for the BGCT."

In Muleshoe, these words are ringing a little hollow.

October 2000