Posted: 2/19/04

LifeWay Explore the Bible Series for Feb. 29

Financial wisdom for financial managers

Selected Proverbs

By John Duncan

Lakeside Baptist Church, Granbury

“Put not your trust in money, but put your money in trust.” Those words from Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr. remind us money cannot be trusted for happiness but should be invested in the Lord's work, other people and Christ's service.

Families, churches and benevolence organizations have faced a crisis the last two years. Job layoffs have unsettled the economy. Corporate greed has led to business decline and has unnerved the economy, diminished personal portfolios and decreased discretionary income available to provide for charitable needs. National and family debt add daily pressure to the family life of paying bills, buying groceries and keeping up with the mortgage payment.

Proverbs provides financial wisdom for financial managers. His wisdom centers on the diligence of work, the wise management of financial resources, the heart of generosity and the ability to trust God in the area of finances.

Methodist John Wesley once said, “Make all you can, save all you can and give all you can.” When it comes to spiritual wisdom in the area of finances, proverbial wisdom challenges the believer to think of God first, then the wise management of resources so that money does not manage you but you manage money.

Start with God

Paul challenged the church at Corinth to give cheerfully (2 Corinthians 9:7). Long before Paul challenged the church, he asked them to consider three things: (1) God's sufficiency, not their own (2 Corinthians 3:5-6); (2) God's ability to do new things in the lives of his servants in the context of his compelling love (2 Corinthians 5:14, 17); (3) his servants work by his grace as faithful stewards of the mystery of Christ (2 Corinthians 6:1; 1 Corinthians 4:1-2).

In essence, any thought of managing personal finances and giving starts with God in the heart, soul and mind. God invites his people to a way of righteousness and promises the fruit of righteousness to those who faithfully serve him (Proverbs 11:30; 12: 28).

Work

When we start with God, we understand the importance of faithfulness in stewardship. Such faithfulness implies a strong ethic of work and diligence. Proverbs compares the diligent person to an ant (Proverbs 6:6-11). The Christian steward is not lazy, prepares for the future and understands that in labor there is profit (14:23). A steward responsibly disciplines himself or herself to profit not for profit's sake or merely to accumulate wealth, but to responsibly take care of job and family finances and to give cheerfully as Paul admonished the Corinthian church. Laziness produces waste for the lazy person and encourages waste (18:10). The person who wisely manages finances will be diligent to work hard.

Money?

The Apostle Paul said the love of money is the root of all evil (2 Timothy 6:10). Mark Twain once put a humorous spin on that verse when he said, “The lack of money is the root of all evil.” Paul was truly right and Mark Twain was not too far off either. Debt, financial worries and overspending present themselves as three challenges most families face today.

Proverbs warns against debt that strangles the emotions, causes constant family conflict and produces serious bondage from the borrower to the lender (Proverbs 22:7). Debt often proves a controversial topic. Debt was a reality in both Old Testament and New Testament times.

The writer of Proverbs warns against debt that overextends itself and debt that generates bondage of financial pressure. Obviously, most people have debt–a home mortgage or a car payment at the very least. Simple financial wisdom acknowledges two things: (1) the less debt you have and the less you owe others, the better off you are financially; (2) as a Christian, the less debt you owe, the more money you have to give to the Lord's work through his church and to minister to others. Those who start with God in their finances always give to God first but search for ways to reduce their debts in an effort to minister above and beyond.

Generously

Paul begged the church to give generously, not with a grudge or simply of duty (literally, “of necessity,” 2 Corinthians 9:7). Wise Christian stewards give in a spirit of joy; not with a tight fist, but with an open hand. They give out of grace. They give graciously and generously. Their eye actually watches for needs and ways to give for God's glory (Proverbs 22:9). Giving blesses them and others.

The writer of Proverbs speaks to the heart of generosity. The person who scatters seed increases. The person who gives liberally and freely shall be made fat. The person who waters others shall be watered (11:24-25). Give and it shall be given to you in an abundance of blessing (literally, “running over,” Luke 6:38). These Proverbs also sound like Paul: What a man or woman sows, he or she also reaps (Galatians 6:7-10). Give generously and experience the joy of giving.

Question for discussion

What is the secret to being a cheerful giver?

Posted: 2/19/04

LifeWay Explore the Bible Series for March 7

The gospel is all about changing people's lives

1 Timothy 1-2

By David Morgan

Trinity Baptist Church, Harker Heights

Trinity Baptist Church gathered yesterday to worship. Trinity scattered this morning into offices, classrooms and coffee shops across Central Texas. We assembled to praise God and hear a divine word. Our worship transformed us so that today we better reflect God's character in our community. Having encountered the living Lord, we eagerly proclaim the gospel to our friends and colleagues. We please God when we share the message of salvation with those who yet do not know Christ as Savior and Lord.

Focus on changing lives (1:3-7)

Paul had taught and ministered to the Ephesian church for about three years before being imprisoned in Rome. He had written to the church from that confinement. He had entrusted the church to his young apprentice, Timothy.

One challenge the young pastor faced was strange teachings in the church. We cannot be certain these teachings were heretical, but they surely diverted attention from the church's main task.

The goal of instruction within the church was to produce love and not spawn meaningless discussions and conversations. Genuine teaching would promote a “pure heart” (a godly personality), a “good conscience” (one which was without guilt) and a “sincere faith” (an undivided allegiance to God in Christ). Paul stressed to Timothy the importance of focusing on the central truth of the Christian life. The church could ill afford to get sidetracked by clever and entertaining, but meaningless, discussions.

The false teachers substituted fluff (fruitless discussions and speculation) for substance, love. They sought to be revered as teachers, but their reputation and expertise was based on deception and not genuine teachings.

Christians can easily be amused by conversations in Bible study and worship settings. Paul's word to Timothy warns us to keep focused on the purpose of Christian instructions–changed lives.

Realize God's power (1:12-15)

Paul considered himself a prime example that God's power can save even the worst of sinners. He never ceased to be amazed or grateful that God had redeemed and called him to proclaim the gospel. Paul understood the call to salvation also meant a call to service.

The former persecutor of Christians also described himself as a blasphemer and a violent man. He characterized himself as the worst of sinners. I hesitate to agree with Paul that he was the most sinful person who ever lived. I'm not sure that's what he meant. What he intended was to highlight the power of God's grace. Christ came to save sinners. If God's super-abundant grace in Christ could save someone like Paul, God could save anyone.

That Paul would refer to himself as worst of sinners reveals how close he had grown in his relationship to God. In “Why Live the Christian Life?” T.B. Maston wrote several times of people who are maturing in their faith. The deeper one's relationship with Christ grows, the deeper the consciousness of sin. “It seems that the more the image (of God) has been restored in one's life, the more aware he is of his failure to realize fully the image of God in his life,” he wrote.

Pray for the salvation of all (2:1-7)

Worship was an important issue Paul addressed in his letter to Timothy. Paul began his discussion of worship by encouraging the church to pray for all people. His joining of the four words, “requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving” accents prayer's richness.

Paul specifically commanded the church to pray for civic leaders (“kings and all those in authority”). Praying for civic leaders would enable them to rule well. A stable society would allow Christians to live in peace and proclaim the gospel to others.

To pray for everyone is beautiful (“good”) in God's eyes. Paul further described the God whom the church worshipped (vv. 3-7). He related prayer to God's saving character. When Paul wrote that God wanted to save all people, he was emphasizing the universal relevance of the Christ event. Christ died for all, not for some only. To come to the knowledge of the truth is to come to Christ as Savior and Lord.

Humankind has a basic unity because God is one. People are united by a common God who seeks to redeem everyone.

One person, “the man Christ Jesus,” mediates between God and humanity. A mediator restores peace between two people. The one who represented God needed to be a divine being. The one who represented humanity needed to be a human being. Christ was both–fully human, fully divine.

Christ served not only as mediator, but also voluntarily offered himself as a ransom for all people. The concept of paying a ransom stresses the costly price paid for humanity's redemption. The idea of ransom further indicates Christ gave himself in his crucifixion as a substitute for humanity.

Paul recognized his role as one who was to proclaim the message that Christ could save the world. His mention of Gentiles here reminds us of his discussion in the book of Ephesians where he announced God had created one new humanity out of Jew and Gentile (Ephesians 2:11-22). Christians today continue to be called to proclaim to the world that Jesus saves.

Question for discussion

Is becoming diverted from the primary task a concern in today's church as well?

Posted: 2/19/04

LifeWay Family Bible Series for Feb. 29

Serve God for his glory, not for earthly gain

Matthew 20:20-28; Romans 12:9-13

By David Jenkins

New Hope Baptist Church, Big Sandy

This lesson completes the series related to establishing spiritual disciplines. Like many other human experiences, these are not one-time accomplishments. All of these disciplines can be either destroyed or greatly weakened by wrong motives. At no point in our lives is the presence of the Holy Spirit more desperately needed to keep us focused than in these areas of ministry. These five emphases form the pilings upon which we can most effectively establish a spiritual foundation for living.

The danger of desiring privilege, status and power (Matthew 20:20-24)

As the end of Christ's earthly ministry drew near, he spoke more often concerning his approaching death. None of his disciples wanted to hear this. Their dream was to see Jesus assert his divine power and authority and establish his kingdom on earth immediately.

They had observed his miracles and his overwhelming influence over the people. In fact, they were so convinced this would happen that James and John had begun to seek aggressively the top places of power in Christ's kingdom. These ambitious young men sought to strengthen their case by having their mother make the appeal.

To sit on either side of Jesus in his kingdom suggested proximity to him. Thus they would share more in his power and prestige than the other disciples. They believed such a kingdom had to be close at hand, and certainly without the need of a cross!

Jesus' answer indicated the brothers had asked for this favor in ignorance, which often is the basis on which power, leadership and glory are sought. James and John had no idea what they were requesting. They had quickly responded to Jesus' question by saying, with no hesitation, that they could “drink the cup” with Jesus. They had no understanding of the sufferings that lay ahead for Jesus, nor were they willing to appropriate his humility and attitude of servanthood to themselves.

Jesus told them plainly that it was not his prerogative to make these assignments, which had already been decided by the Father. The other disciples were offended because of what James and John had done–not so much out of humility as because of jealousy.

The joy of servanthood (Matthew 20:25-28)

Jesus immediately addressed this issue with his disciples. He wanted them to understand that greatness is determined by service. Anyone who wants to be great must become a servant.

Then he made his statement even stronger by using another word for servant that meant “slave.” The attitude of genuine humility permeated everything Jesus had to say about service. In the pagan world, humility was not regarded as a virtue but as a vice. The very idea of a slave being given a position of leadership or authority! Consequently, Jesus' ethics having to do with leadership and power within the community of his followers were totally revolutionary.

Jesus concluded this tense confrontation between the disciples with a clear statement about himself. Surely his words must have shamed and humiliated these spiritually immature disciples. Jesus was the supreme example of how to serve others.

When Jesus said that he came to give his life a “ransom” for many, he used a word that most commonly described the purchase price for freeing slaves. Jesus had one goal when he came to earth. He came to serve others and not to be served. His greatest service, of course, was the gift of his sinless life for the sins of a hopelessly lost world.

A description of true Christian conduct (Romans 12:9-13)

A superficial love expressed in words more than in action is not genuine love. Everything a Christian does–for the Lord or for others–must be bathed in love. If we are not able to love our brother or sister, then it is highly doubtful our love for God is genuine (1 John 4:19-21). Interestingly, Paul combines “hatred” and “love” in one statement: “Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.” In this sense, hatred follows love legitimately, for true love hates evil.

To love one another in “brotherly love” points to the family of believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. No body of believers can be effective in serving God and others unless those who make up that body “are one in the bond of love.” In this oneness, there is spiritual strength to overcome the opposition of the forces of evil. Paul dealt with both vertical and horizontal relationships in this passage. Our love toward God is vertical, of course. But for that love to be genuine and constant, it must be expressed in a horizontal love toward our fellow believers.

The word translated “hospitality” literally means “love for strangers.” The kind of hospitality practiced by the early Christians often meant the host did without in order to meet the needs of the guest. The discipline of service often includes both inconvenience and sacrifice.

Questions for discussion

How can one have ambition and still reflect Christian servanthood? In what ways is serving God a costly endeavor?

Posted: 2/19/04

LifeWay Family Bible Series for March 7

God selects his leaders from those who listen

Judges 4:4-10, 14-16; 5:1-2, 6-9

By Rodney McGlothlin

First Baptist Church, College Station

All of us have gone on extended journeys. They take time to prepare, money to go and often several weeks to recuperate. If small children are involved, the latter can take several months. The writers of the Family Bible Study series have invited us on a journey with them. It is my glad task to help you prepare and to point out some resources for this journey of discovery. You will be on your own for recovery.

Our road map for the first four weeks of the journey is found in the lives of several Old Testament heroes who took courageous stands for God under extreme circumstances. The first two of these are found in the book of Judges. If Judges had been written as a hymn, there is no doubt about the theme of the chorus. The repeated sad refrain of the book is, “The Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord” (Judges 2:11; 3:7,12; 4:1; 6:1; 10:6; 13:1).

The musical litany and its corresponding history are repeated often in the book–that God gave them over to captivity, they called upon the Lord and he raised up a deliverer. It is only truly a song of grace when its rhythms include judgment, forgiveness and restoration.

Privilege and responsibility are ever the twin brothers born of God's grace. Courage is required to accept both. We need some spiritual heroes today to show us the way between these Gibraltar-like towers. Perhaps they are in your class, waiting to be called, inspired and equipped to take a courageous stand for God.

One such hero was Deborah. She did not come suddenly on the scene as heroic leader. Like Paul in Antioch (Acts 13), who was faithfully serving and ministering to the Lord when the Holy Spirit burned the vision of missionary journeys into his life, Deborah already was faithfully serving God. “She held court under the Palm of Deborah … and the Israelites came to her to have their disputes decided” (Judges 4:5).

God seldom calls people from inactivity to courageous leadership. He calls those who are faithful where they are to accept the responsibility of leading others to where they need to go and to what they need to be. That is how the lady with the Ph.D in conflict resolution was suddenly called to serve the Lord as military strategist and encourager of armies. She accepted the call.

Leadership is a choice. God's choice first. God chose and gifted Deborah to lead at this time. Deborah chose to listen and obey. She sent for Barak, the leader of Israel's armies, and shared God's vision with him. Leadership not fueled by a God- given vision is destined to burn out before the task is complete. Leaders lead with the vision of God.

We fashion bracelets that say, “What Would Jesus Do?” but we never bother to ask, “What did Jesus say?” How can we know what he would do if we never bother to learn what he said? Deborah began with “The Lord, the God of Israel, commands you …” (Judges 4:6).

Leadership is a partnership. Leaders participate in the vision. Deborah agrees to go with the armies of Barak. Her presence, like the raised staff of Moses in the wilderness, encouraged the soldiers to continue the fight until they had prevailed. Spiritual leadership is never simply telling others to be faithful to God. We also must drink freely at the well of obedience if we ever expect others to do the same. Together we can accomplish the vision God has given us.

Spiritual leaders point to the sufficiency of God. It is not organizational finesse or the tweaking of flow charts that give spiritual victory, but complete dependence on God. Deborah said: “Go! This is the day the Lord has given Sisera into your hands. Has not the Lord gone ahead of you?” (Judges 4:14). The Lord has done it all or we cannot succeed at all.

We ought not expect that all our spiritual leadership will result in everybody's participation. Spiritual pied pipers often find their mouse flocks to be a bit deaf to tunes that call for courage and promise a dangerous battle before there can be a glorious victory. In her victory song, Deborah lists some who did not dance to her heroic tune. When her courageous call went out, some stayed near their herds, others refused to cross over the Jordan and some stayed with the ships in safer harbors (Judges 5:15-17).

But others heard and came. Lead those who will follow. God may as a result deliver even those who don't. The call to spiritual leadership is not a call to succeed. It is a call to faithfulness.

When we see God do great things through courageous leadership, we often heap praise on the leaders. Deborah led Israel to give glory to God (Judges 5:1-31). Like Moses before and Mary after, Deborah would sing God's praises before the people because he had given the victory. Surely our people are waiting to be led into courageous obedience of God and into victorious songs of praise at his provisions.

Questions for discussion

If a hymn was written outlining the course of your life, what would the chorus highlight?

What are you doing that will prepare you to be used by God?

How has God prepared you for leadership?

Posted: 2/19/04

Christian Fitness: Body & soul

By Adelle Banks

Religion News Service

Pittsburgh, Pa. (RNS)–Larry Swain of Pittsburgh is proud of the fact he's lost more than 50 pounds in the last year and a half.

He attributes it to several factors. He wanted to wear a smaller tuxedo to his daughter's wedding. A doctor's visit showed his cholesterol and blood pressure at unhealthy levels.

And it didn't hurt when his Pittsburgh Baptist Association invited an annual meeting speaker who focused on the self-care of clergy.

Annuity Board President O.S. Hawkins (center) approaches the finish line at the Annuity Board's first annual walk for wellness at the Southern Baptist Convention in Phoenix, Ariz., last June.

“He did ask me, 'Larry, what are you doing to take care of yourself?'” recalled Swain, executive minister of the association.

Swain recently was the recipient of a $300 “wellness grant” from the American Baptist Churches USA, and he used some of that money to hear that same expert address his fellow pastors at a national conference last month.

Others among the nation's denominations are sponsoring fitness walks or runs during their major meetings. Books like “Body by God” have been best sellers. And “gospel aerobics” classes seem to be on the rise.

With almost 65 percent of Americans overweight, the nation's churches are working to get clergy and their congregants to lose weight and take better care of themselves overall.

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America hired a medical doctor as a consultant three years ago to help in its efforts.

When her work began, Gwen Halaas, the ELCA's director of ministerial health and wellness, found that its ministers and lay leaders were more overweight than the average American and were more prone to be under stress, depressed and less physically active.

Now, the denomination has teamed with the Mayo Clinic and set up a website focused on healthy living, including nutrition and exercise advice.

They're simply following the commandment “to love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength and to love others as we love ourselves,” Halaas said.

“What we have, through our American culture, ended up doing is really forgetting or suppressing that 'love yourself' phrase.”

Church leaders hope by having healthy leaders, they eventually will be able to redirect church money used to treat illness to better uses, she said. Leaders with less stress might also be more likely to attract younger people to join their ministry ranks.

Ministers say these arguments are hardly a tough sell. A total of 227 participants rose early to join the “Run Walk 'n' Roll” during the Lutherans' churchwide assembly in Milwaukee last summer, logging more than 2,500 miles in four days.

The Southern Baptist Convention has joined other denominations on the road to healthier members by conducting health screenings at annual meetings and giving away books on topics like reducing stress.

The denomination's Annuity Board recently launched a website for medical plan participants. The site includes a health assessment, “virtual trainer” and calorie counter among its options.

“They can look at restaurants and foods that are served in restaurants,” said Curt Sharp, spokesman for the Annuity Board. “They can determine whether they should eat a Big Mac or a fajita pita.”

Last June, at the Southern Baptist Convention in Phoenix, more than 300 showed up for a first-time, 6:30 a.m. “Run for the Son.”

The one-mile run may be expanded to a five-kilometer event this year when they meet in Indianapolis.

When people aren't running with fellow members, some of them are reading up on how to be fit.

“Body by God” by Ben Lerner has been on the New York Times and Christian retailing best-seller lists. The author says he considers his book, which includes tips on exercise, diet and reducing stress, to be “a supplement to the Bible.” He encourages readers to eat foods on his “Food by God List”–which includes fruits, vegetables, turkey breast and lean beef–and to reduce their diet of “Food by Man”–shellfish, fast and fried foods and refined sugar.

“I believe if people see the body as the temple of God and that it's a gift from God and it's in fact the body by God, that they'll be more than motivated short-term to care for it,” said Lerner. “They'll be inspired long-term.”

LaVita Weaver, author of “Fit for God” agrees and said healthier diets within the church also are a part of the faith-related focus on fitness.

“You see all the time the macaroni and cheese, candied yams, ham, fried chicken,” she said.

Weaver, a fitness trainer and an assistant to the pastor at her non-denominational Clinton, Md., church, has fostered a menu change in her own congregation.

“Now we bring salads,” she said. “We also bring pasta salad, so people are now experimenting with healthier dishes.”

Marie Griffith, an associate professor of religion at Princeton University, said there is no definitive research on whether religiously based fitness programs are more successful than secular ones.

“Everybody's got sort of the pitch that our way is the best way,” said Griffith, who has focused on religion and dieting and has a forthcoming book called “Born Again Bodies: Flesh and Spirit in American Christianity.”

“I don't think we really know.”

But she said the more holistic focus on mind, body and spirit has become popular across the board, in religious circles and outside them.

People who don't have time to go to church and the gym in different places are combining their needs in a package plan.

“I think it does make … sense that people bring all these aspects of their lives together,” she said.

Victoria Johnson, an author and fitness expert in Portland, Ore., has started an online “Gospel Aerobics Directory” featuring churches and community centers with weekly or biweekly workouts set to energetic Christian music.

Johnson, who has written a book called “Body Revival” and developed exercise videos, says worship can be combined with workouts.

“I encourage everyone who walks on a treadmill to make that their morning devotional or their evening devotional,” she said.

“Let's take our time of movement and turn it into a time of worship, a time of praise and a time of devotion, a time of prayer.”

Posted: 2/19/04

Health-conscious Christians
ask, 'What would Jesus eat?'

By Alexandra Alter

Religion News Service

WASHINGTON (RNS)–If doctors had to identify the deadliest sin affecting Americans today, they probably would name gluttony as the No. 1 killer.

As obesity in the United States reaches epidemic proportions, with more than 60 percent of adults overweight or obese, public-policy makers and health officials are scrambling over ways to improve the American diet.

But Don Colbert, physician and nutritionist, thinks the obesity crisis could be solved if Americans would pause before inhaling a super-sized fast food meal and ask themselves a simple question: “Would Jesus eat this?”

If it's loaded with saturated fats, sugar or artificial ingredients, the answer is no, said Colbert. Her book “What Would Jesus Eat?” combines biblical scholarship with conventional dietary wisdom.

“The gluttonous spirit is deadly,” he said. “I've seen so many diseases related to dietary excess, so why not go back to the owner's manual, the Bible, to see what Jesus ate?”

Jesus essentially ate a Mediterranean diet rich in whole grains, fish, fruit and vegetables and modest amounts of olive oil, meat and wine, Colbert said. Anything the Old Testament blacklists in its dietary prescriptions is out, including shellfish, pork products, horses, camels, birds of prey and other carnivores.

Colbert, a Mississippi native who studied for a year at a Bible college as well as training at medical school, said he wrote the book and its companion, “The What Would Jesus Eat Cook Book,” both published by Thomas Nelson, after realizing many of the fattest Americans are dedicated fundamentalist Christians.

“Most people say, 'Hey, it's important that I live a Christian life, but my body's not that important,'” he said. “They'll go to heaven. The only problem is, if they neglect their bodies, they'll go to heaven a lot faster.”

With six new books in his Bible Cure series, including books on combatting cholesterol, diabetes and thyroid problems through diet and prayer, Colbert's Bible-based diet empire has expanded far beyond his private practice at the Divine Wellness Center in Longwood, Fla.

And Colbert's not the only Christian diet guru urging people to ask what Jesus would eat. Christian advocates of vegetarianism say if Jesus were alive today, he would maintain a plant-based diet out of compassion for animals.

Others say Jesus would approve of genetically modified food, given his propensity for transforming and multiplying food.

Although there may be disagreement over what Jesus would choose given the option of a veggie burger, broiled lamb with garbanzo beans, or genetically modified corn on the cob, growing numbers of Christians are looking to the Bible for dietary guidance, hoping Scripture might succeed where science has failed in inspiring healthy eating habits.

Stephen Kaufman, co-chair of the Christian Vegetarian Association, hopes more Christians will start making faith-based choices about what they eat.

“There are a lot of people out there for whom diet is a reflection of their faith,” he said. “We're taught to take care of our bodies, the temple of God's spirit, as Paul said.”

Kaufman disagrees with Colbert's claim that Jesus would eat meat, arguing that although lamb and red meat may have been acceptable fare in Jesus' time, modern agricultural practices make meat an unhealthy dietary choice, as well as an immoral one.

Posted: 2/19/04

Filibuster halts lawmakers' attempt
to limit or undo gay marriage ruling

By Greg Warner

Associated Baptist Press

BOSTON (ABP)–The Massachusetts legislature adjourned its historic constitutional convention Feb. 12 without reversing the state supreme court's recent legalization of gay marriage.

With thousands of protesters gathered outside Feb. 11, legislators began debating legal measures that would limit marriage to heterosexual couples, while perhaps creating a category of civil unions for gays.

But during two tumultuous days of legislative wrangling and emotional debate, legislators were unable to pass any of four proposed amendments.

Lawmakers defeated a constitutional amendment that would have banned gay marriage. Another proposal to ban gay marriage but create legally binding civil unions for gays also was defeated.

In the end, gay-marriage supporters closed the session down with a filibuster at midnight of the second day, sending lawmakers home without resolving the legislative crisis that has divided the state and thrust it into the national spotlight.

Any constitutional amendment will require approval by voters. Angry gay-marriage opponents complained the deadlocked legislative session deprived Massachusetts voters of voicing their opinion on the divisive issue.

Another constitutional session is scheduled for March 11.

Legal experts say the constitutional showdown in Massachusetts will have an impact on the nationwide debate over gay rights and the legal definition of marriage.

In November, Massachusetts became the epicenter of that growing debate when a closely divided Supreme Judicial Court ruled a state agency could not deny same-sex couples the right to marry.

The same court ruled Feb. 4 a civil-union law under consideration would create an “unconstitutional, inferior and discriminatory status for same-sex couples,” forcing the constitutional convention.

The November supreme court decision gave the state's legislature 180 days to enact statutes creating same-sex marriage.

Instead, armed with widespread criticism of the high-court ruling from within the state and beyond, legislators proposed amending the constitution to circumvent the court's ruling and limit marriage to heterosexuals.

If the constitution is left unchanged, Massachusetts will become the first legal jurisdiction in the United States to sanction same-sex marriage.

Neighboring Vermont has a civil-union law that offers same-sex couples most of the legal rights of marriage while reserving the term “marriage” for opposite-sex couples.

Gay marriage is viewed by political analysts as a “wedge issue” in the 2004 presidential campaign.

“This is the cultural issue of our lifetime,” Ronald Crews, spokesman for the Coalition for Marriage, told the Boston Globe. “This has the same import of the Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion, in terms of potential divide.”

Republicans are expected to use the constitutional showdown in Massachusetts to attack local Sen. John Kerry, the Democratic presidential frontrunner.

The Democratic National Convention will take place in Boston in July, only weeks after gay couples will be able to secure civil marriage licenses beginning May 17.

Opponents of gay marriage, including a coalition of Religious Right and other conservative groups, is pushing the Federal Marriage Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which would ban gay marriage in all 50 states.

Its supporters claim it would leave it up to individual state legislatures or voters to create civil unions to provide marriage-like benefits to gay couples. But some legal scholars and gay-rights activists dispute that interpretation.

Others want the amendment to include language explicitly banning civil unions for same-sex couples.

The amendment's supporters say it is necessary to prevent states from being forced to recognize same-sex marriages performed in Massachusetts or other states.

But many legal scholars say the Constitution would prevent states with a clearly stated policy opposing gay marriage–such as the 38 that have passed state versions of the Defense of Marriage Act–from being forced to recognize same-sex marriages from elsewhere.

Legal experts say the constitutional showdown in Massachusetts will have an impact on the nationwide debate over gay rights and the legal definition of marriage.

Posted: 2/19/04

Follow Christ's call without regard
to consequences, Mercer tells students

By Charles Richardson

Hardin-Simmons University

ABILENE–One biblical promise kept Heather Mercer from losing hope when she was imprisoned in Afghanistan: Jesus' pledge to be with his disciples until the end.

Mercer shared her story of imprisonment in Afghanistan and strong passion for missions with Hardin-Simmons University students earlier this month.

Mercer and Dayna Curry, both Baylor University graduates, captured international headlines during their 105-day imprisonment by the Taliban in Afghanistan beginning Aug. 3, 2001.

Authorities accused the two young missionaries of sharing their Christian beliefs with Muslims. They were arrested after they gave a copy of the “Jesus” video to a family who reported them to the Taliban.

While in a prison cell, Mercer recalled a biblical promise that became real to her as a Baylor student: Jesus' telling his disciples he would be with them to the end.

That promise became personal to her again, she said.

Meanwhile, Christians everywhere were urged to pray for their freedom.

Mercer believes those prayers were answered when they were freed by American Special Forces who had been sent to liberate the Afghans from the rule of the Taliban.

At one point during her captivity, Mercer truly became convinced to trust Jesus and his promises, whatever the consequences, she said.

“If I live, I live for you. If I die, I die for you,” she prayed, fully convinced she might die in Afghanistan.

Christian students should share their faith wherever God calls them to go, she told the Hardin-Simmons students.

“I believe God will call many of you to go. That's my prayer,” she said.

Loretta Fulton, Abilene Reporter-News, contributed to this report.

Posted: 2/19/04

IMB reports passing half-million
mark in baptisms worldwide for first time

By Mark Kelly

International Mission Board

RICHMOND, Va. (BP)–Southern Baptist missionaries witnessed double-digit increases in eight of their 13 categories of work in 2003, including for the first time more than 500,000 baptisms, trustees of the International Mission Board learned this month.

While more than 5,000 people groups still have little or no access to the gospel, Southern Baptist missionaries and their overseas partners also opened work among 192 people groups during 2003, said Avery Willis, the board's senior vice president for overseas operations.

Those new works included the engagement of 146 unreached people groups with a total population of more than 359 million.

Southern Baptist missionaries and their overseas partners baptized 510,357 in 2003, a net increase of 76,838 (17.7 percent).

The total number of congregations worldwide reached 87,419, a net increase of 15,516 (21.6 percent) over 2002.

That growth was fed by 16,721 new congregations, an increase of 8,314 (98.9 percent) over 2002, Willis said.

He also noted that the board uses seven criteria distinctives of Baptist churches to ensure only churches that are Baptist in faith and practice are reported.

A total of 10,031 outreach groups also were started in 2003, Willis said.

While that represented 38 fewer than in 2002, it still brought the total number of outreach groups to 47,103, a net increase of 5,648 (13.6 percent) for the year.

In other categories:

Overseas church membership surpassed 7.04 million, a net increase of 336,411, for an annual growth rate of 5 percent.

Bible teaching enrollment increased 182,806 (5.1 percent) to 3.77 million.

New Christians in discipleship training increased 42.8 percent (128,035) to 426,849.

Church members in discipleship training grew 24.9 percent (180,255) to 894,470.

Non-residential leadership training enrollment grew by 27,832 (47.8 percent) to 86,059.

Residential leadership training programs showed a net increase of 557 (2.6 percent) to 22,366.

The total number of international missionaries fielded by Baptist partners grew at an annual rate of 11.9 percent to 1,523.

The total number of Baptist partner “home” missionaries dropped by 231 (-9 percent) to 2,339.

The board atributed this, in part, to better application of the definition of home missionary as someone who goes to a people group other than his own within the same country.

When the number of new congregations is rapidly multiplying in a church-planting movement, leadership training and doctrinal integrity become vital concerns, Willis noted.

Toward that end, the trustees adopted a plan to create three permanent subcommittees to exercise “careful watch-care” over new work. The committees will “review and monitor” efforts in the areas of general administration, leadership development, and global strategy and research.

“When there are issues to be brought up, we will know where to send them to be reviewed and then brought back to the overseas committee for action,” said Jay Owens of Roanoke, Va., chairman of the IMB overseas committee.

Trustees adopted a motion directing the overseas committee “to perform routine audits of new IMB church plants and submit an annual report to the board of trustees.”

Posted: 2/19/04

TEXAS BAPTIST FORUM
Confusing partnership

FamilyNet, the Southern Baptist Convention's television entity, has just entered a three-year partnership with FOX News.

Is it just me, or does it seem strange that the SBC announces it will do business with the FOX network at the time the SBC Executive Committee votes to completely withdraw support from the Baptist World Alliance? Isn't it odd that the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship is the enemy and FOX, known for sleaze, is now a business partner?

What's next? FamilyNet promos for “The Littlest Groom” and “My Big Fat Obnoxious Fiancé”? SBC ads during “That '70s Show”?

I guess this is the part of Empowering Kingdom Growth I don't understand.

Frank Dudley

Harlingen

Inflammatory rhetoric

I would like to comment on Charles Foster Johnson's column, “Now is time to do unto the SBC as it's doing unto the BWA” (Feb. 9).

The Cooperative Program dollars given through the Baptist General Convention of Texas currently are divided 79/21. The BGCT keeps 79 cents of every dollar given. Every year, we see the Cooperative Program getting less and less cooperative.

Now Johnson is calling for Texas churches to defund the SBC and all their causes. This is an irresponsible reaction to the situation taking place between the SBC and the Baptist World Alliance.

Johnson must realize that would mean defunding both the International Mission Board and North American Mission Board and the Texas Baptists who are on the mission field through them.

For the Standard to publish this inflammatory rhetoric is to foster a continued atmosphere of dissension. The question now raised is whether the Standard and the BGCT support this view or not.

Micah Meurer

Amarillo

BWA's 'liberalism'

SBC leaders used two key words to justify their actions–“liberals” and “liberalism.” Those two words hide the real reasons for their actions.

When these leaders began their quest to take over the SBC, word was spread that there were “liberals” teaching in SBC seminaries and such persons should be removed. All seminary teachers and professors were tainted by their broad accusation. Doubt was placed in the minds of many SBC people about the condition of the seminaries, even though such persons did not know whether there were any “liberals.”

SBC leaders espoused the word “liberals” so that they could obtain control over the SBC and become the holders of its main offices and positions.

These SBC leaders have alleged that the Baptist World Alliance is guilty of “liberalism.” The “liberalism” of the BWA is admitting the CBF as a member. Everything was all right with the BWA until that time. These leaders did not care what all the other Baptist organizations did and stood for or what other organizations joined the BWA.

Like an unhappy bully, the SBC will take its marbles from the game and start another game.

Hornor Shelton

Waco

Commands of men

“Crybaby committee” should be the name of the SBC study committee that recommended leaving the Baptist World Alliance. A crybaby lies to mother for sympathy.

Fundamentalists gave up controlling the BWA like they gave up controlling the BGCT. They screamed “liberal” against the Baptist Standard and the BGCT. They compete with their new Texas convention.

This scheme worked once, so they cried “liberal” against the BWA. They made the mistake of quoting a man who was not dead and destroying records. The man replied: “All your allegations are totally unsubstantiated. … I beseech you … to repent and turn from your wicked ways.”

Red-faced, with no evidence and none of the 210 conventions joining a competing BWA, they suggest using “BWA” money for teaching seminars.

They'll probably teach that the 2000 Baptist Faith & Message (which fired missionaries opposed) is their doctrinal guideline. This mandatory creed is an example and a slap in the face of Jesus' warning about “teaching as doctrines the commands of men” (Matthew 15:9).

Every church is allowed up to 10 messengers to the SBC annual meeting. I hope SBC messengers use Mordecai's gallows meant for the BWA to end the study committee's reign of control.

Will you be a messenger to lead the SBC to restore autonomy of the church and individual priesthood and return the CEOs' control to the Holy Spirit? If we can do this, we can stand with all Baptists of the world to lift up Jesus.

Rex Ray

Bonham

Expected Outcome

This is in response to revoking scholarship funds from a Truett Seminary student (Feb. 9). His name is Matt Bass, and he is a friend of mine. He is likeable and charismatic.

About a month ago, he “came out” to me. Needless to say, I was shocked to discover that he was gay.

But I was not surprised by the responses from Baylor University and the Baptist General Convention of Texas. Both have clear and openly stated policies about homosexuality. It logically follows that neither entity can fund a gay student's ministerial education. If either did, then they would not be acting out of their integrity.

I believe this situation will prove to be good for both Matt Bass and Truett. I know Matt will be more comfortable in an accepting environment, and since he is now out in the open about his orientation, he must be feeling much better. I wish and hope Matt nothing but the best.

On the flip side, this can be good for the seminary also. Truett's detractors have constantly accused the seminary of being liberal and even pro-homosexuality, mostly because of its connection with the BGCT and its shaky relationship with the Southern Baptist Convention. Now Truett can show its nay-sayers it is firmly standing on a position that rests well within Christian and Baptist tradition. But more importantly, Truett is upholding God's word by taking action in this situation.

Matt Barnes

Waco

Jesus calls

Scripture shows homosexual behavior only in opposition to God (Romans 1:19-27; 1 Corinthians 6:9; 1 Timothy 1:10). When Scripture speaks to the natural order and marriage with gender specificity, it references only heterosexual relationships.

Even if we discount the scriptural condemnations, there still remains no scriptural affirmation of homosexual behavior.

It is reasonable to believe Scripture identifies homosexual behavior as sin. It also is scripturally reasonable for Christians to call other Christians to repentance. Thus, it is reasonable when Truett Seminary holds a practicing, unrepentant gay student accountable for his homosexual behavior (Feb. 9).

Truett took a loving approach, offering redemption if Matt Bass would repent.

Many advocates of homosexuality argue that their position is absolutely correct but do not cede the reasonableness of opposing ideas. This leads to uninformed, sometimes slanderous, diatribes against those who lovingly try to live out their own scriptural convictions.

Society has fostered a sense of entitlement to a sexual relationship, regardless of orientation. Many homosexuals have projected this sense of entitlement onto Scripture.

Upon seeing the difficulty of making the scriptural argument, they rationalize that God could not have created them with a predisposition to desire something sinful, readily ignoring that all humans, despite being created by God, experience temptation.

Such thinking suggests that, instead of using Scripture to discern God-pleasing behavior, we consult our predispositions, rendering Scripture meaningless.

The good news is that Jesus still calls us all to repentance and salvation in him.

Daren Butler

Houston

Real sanctity

Apparently the state of Massachusetts has given its approval to gay marriage. This is now the topic of discussion everywhere. I am amazed at the arguments used to justify positions on both sides of the issue.

I must say the most irritating arguments are made in the name of Christ. They are irritating because the Christian community says gay marriage destroys the sanctity of marriage. This is a very hypocritical argument coming from a community that has accepted the de-sanctification of marriage by their complete acceptance of divorce among their flocks, most often without any regard for the reasons for the divorces.

The Bible speaks of few acceptable reasons for divorce. But Christians divorce for any and all reasons.

The divorce rate among Christians is as high, if not slightly higher, than it is in the non-Christian society. Christian families are trashed, adults and children are shattered and the bitterness goes on and on. Divorce, the destruction of families and the resulting broken hearts do not demonstrate the sanctity of marriage.

In the Bible, we are told God hates divorce (Malachi 2:16). If God hates divorce, why don't Christians?

Truly marriage is pertinent. The definition of marriage is pertinent. So is the sanctity–the real sanctity–of marriage.

Mike McNamara

Conroe

Condescending tone

In the story “Homeless advocates see little hope beyond spiritual renewal” (Jan. 12), volunteer Charles Little from Cornerstone Baptist Church in Dallas said, “God can help them (homeless) overcome vices that keep them homeless.”

Little's point is valid, but I believe his observation is misguided and hurts the cause of working to remove people away from a terrible situation like homelessness. The spirit of the rest of the article and others in the issue seemed to continue this condescending tone.

My wife and I work with the homeless, and we know a man who has successfully achieved sobriety and is a wonderful example of God's work in a troubled life. Have his problems gotten better? Truthfully, they have gotten worse. After being released from a treatment center, he had no place to go and became homeless last summer. He has overcome his vice, but that hasn't created a new place for him to live, a helpful treatment for his severe diabetes or a way to get to his hometown to clear up legal matters against him.

You can take away the drugs and the alcohol, and homelessness can still be overwhelming and terribly debilitating. God has provided this man with a stronger relationship with him, and his testimony brings tears to the eyes. But at the end of the day, he is still looking for a warm place to sleep and a healthy meal to wake up to.

Scott Jeffries

Abilene

World security

God created the earth long, long ago. God planted in the earth a tremendous potential for the formation of abundant natural resources. They would be used millions of years later by God's most important resource, humankind. God knew one day humanity would discover some of the wonders of God's creation and live in a mechanized world. There would be an increasing demand for the ground's slow-forming raw materials.

Today, it is interesting to note the most industrialized nations depend on less-developed countries for needed supplies of oil and metals. No nation has every resource it needs. Could the purposeful way resources were distributed around the world have been the Creator's means of bringing humankind closer to oneness with God and to oneness with his neighbors?

In these critical times, the world's survival will be determined by how fairly and lovingly neighbors share the earth's resources. God is glorified when people from different racial, religious and socio-economic backgrounds collaborate to meet each other's needs.

Now is the time for nations to put aside selfish national pride and begin to work together in the interest of world security. My first allegiance should be to God and then to my neighbor.

Peace, without war, is possible in an emerging global community.

Paul L. Whiteley Sr.

Louisville, Ky.

Posted: 2/19/04

Logsdon student returns to South
Africa for 10 months of study, service

By Loretta Fulton

Abilene Reporter-News

A summer trip to Africa two years ago evoked two powerful emotions in Jessica Glaze– homesickness and a deep sympathy for the poverty-stricken people she encountered.

Glaze, a Hardin-Simmons University junior from Seymour, had swept the memory of the homesickness under the rug when the opportunity arose to go back to Africa to help the people who so moved her.

She left Abilene recently for two semesters of study at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa.

Although she will be a full-time student, Glaze, 21, also will volunteer at the nearby African Cooperative Action Trust, a Christian-based agency that helps people of the region learn skills and trades.

The seeds for the 10-month adventure were planted in the summer of 2002 when Glaze and other students accompanied Rob Sellers, professor of missions at Hardin-Simmons' Logsdon School of Theology, on a trip to Kenya and South Africa.

Seeing children begging in the streets is a sight Glaze will never forget.

She had seen poverty in the United States on student mission trips, but this was different.

“The sheer amount of poverty was overwhelming,” she said.

The powerful memory stuck with Glaze. But after returning home, she wasn't sure if what she was feeling was mere emotion or if she had a true calling to serve the people she saw.

Then, things started falling into place. She learned she could transfer credits from the University of KwaZulu-Natal to Hardin-Simmons and that her scholarships would apply there.

She found out she could volunteer at the cooperative that provided aid to the people she wanted to help.

The final piece came one day as Glaze read a verse from the book of Isaiah.

The prophet heard God asking, “Whom shall I send?” And Isaiah answered, “Here am I; send me.”

That Scripture convinced Glaze of what she must do.

“Right then I knew that God was calling me back to South Africa,” she said.

For the next 10 months, Glaze will live with a family she stayed with on the previous trip. She will take courses in African theology, Greek and Hebrew.

Glaze's professor, Sellers, said he wasn't surprised by the decision.

It wasn't the first time students have responded to the wider world once they have been exposed to it, Sellers said.

“They get into this other culture, and their eyes are opened,” he said.

Sellers and his wife were missionaries to Indonesia for 25 years.

Their interest was spurred by two-year mission trips after they graduated from college.

Now, Sellers wants his students to have that same exposure to different cultures.

Each summer he takes groups to different parts of the world, with a trip to Spain and Morocco planned this year.

In 2001, Sellers led a group to Europe, and one of his students, Jeff Hobbs, returned for an 18-month stint with the International Baptist Church of Zurich.

“His whole horizon has changed,” Sellers said.

He expects the same will happen to Glaze.

She's not quite sure what to think about being so far away from home for nearly a year.

The thought of the people she will be serving keeps reassuring her she made the right decision.

“That's really what I want to do,” Glaze said, “help the people who need it most.”

Jessica Glaze

Posted: 2/19/04

NAMB stops endorsing women
for military, federal chaplain positions

By John Hall

Texas Baptist Communications

ALPHARETTA, Ga.–The North American Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention will stop endorsing women to chaplain positions “where the role and function of the chaplain would be seen the same as that of a pastor.”

The action apparently ends SBC endorsement of female military and prison chaplains but will not necessarily preclude NAMB from endorsing women as hospital chaplains.

NAMB trustees took the action during their winter meeting, where they noted military and federally employed women chaplains serve in a pastoral role because they administer the Lord's Supper, baptize, preach, counsel and perform weddings and funerals.

Endorsing women to minister in that capacity would be inconsistent with the “spirit of the Baptist Faith and Message 2000,” according to Terry Fox, NAMB trustee chairman and pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church in Wichita, Kan. The document limits “the office of pastor” to men.

The move affects new Southern Baptist women chaplains in the military, Federal Bureau of Prisons and Department of Veteran Affairs. Outside military and federal roles, chaplains are not viewed as pastors, Fox said.

Following discussions with military and civilian chaplains, the trustees came to understand soldiers often view military chaplains as pastors, Fox said. Soldiers look to the ministers for counseling, weddings, funerals, preaching and baptisms.

“If you think the military chaplain is not seen as a pastor, you're kidding yourself,” Fox said.

He argued the pastoral role sets military chaplains apart from those who work in other venues such as health care.

However, many hospital chaplains routinely perform most of the acts that NAMB trustees deemed fit for a pastor only, according to Mike Patrick, chaplain at the Hendrick Health System in Abilene. They counsel patients, perform weddings and funerals and lead worship services.

But hospital chaplains rarely administer ordinances, choosing to leave those to church staff, said Patrick, who has ministered in the hospital since 1990.

That self-limitation does not stop people from viewing him as a pastor, he said. Individuals commonly use the term in referring to him and look for chaplains to provide spiritual guidance.

“It is a generic term that many people use in ministry for someone representing God,” said Patrick, who is endorsed by the Baptist General Convention of Texas.

Of the approximately 2,500 NAMB-endorsed chaplains, 196 are women.

Twenty of the 430 NAMB-endorsed military chaplains are women.

Seven endorsed female chaplains work for the Federal Bureau of Prisons and the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Those already endorsed by NAMB and ministering in those fields can continue serving.

Chaplains working in any setting typically are required to be endorsed by a denominational entity. NAMB is the Southern Baptist Convention endorser.

The Baptist General Convention of Texas and the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship also endorse chaplains and will continue endorsing women military chaplains.

NAMB formed a task force to examine the issue following a motion at the SBC annual meeting by two military chaplains who felt NAMB should make ordination a requirement for endorsed military chaplains.

Ordination is not required by the military to be a chaplain but can be required for a denominational endorser.

Endorsement is necessary to be a military chaplain.

The trustees' decision follows NAMB's 2002 action to stop endorsing all ordained women, but Fox insisted the action does not spell the end of Southern Baptist women chaplains.

They play a crucial role in Southern Baptist work, he said.

“The one thing I was real excited about is there was a stronger affirmation of women chaplains than I thought would be there,” Fox said.

The testimony the trustees heard distinguished hospital chaplaincy from military chaplaincy, Fox said.

Hospital chaplains are not called to perform many of the pastoral duties that military chaplains are to carry out, particularly when dealing with the Lord's Supper and baptism, he noted.

“I think we are satisfied,” Fox said. “We are happy with women being hospital chaplains.”

Sherry Blankenship, member of the NAMB task force and a non-ordained chaplain at Missouri Baptist Medical Center in St. Louis, insisted women chaplains serve under different circumstances in hospital and counseling roles.

She gives a “devotional” every other-week during a worship service for a crowd “about the size of a Sunday school class,” but said she is viewed as a “caregiver,” not a pastor.

She maintains the role of pastor is for men, as stated in the Baptist Faith and Message 2000.