Posted: 8/01/06

Explore the Bible Series for August 13

The Teacher focuses on integrity

• Ecclesiastes 9:1-11:6

By James Adair

Baptist University of the Americas, San Antonio

About six years ago, a non-profit corporation called Foundation for a Better Life started putting messages on billboards around the country. The billboards weren't trying to sell a product, promote a candidate, or push an agenda. Each one had a single image, a brief message and a note encouraging people to pass that message on to others. The messages were inspirational, and they used real people (for the most part)—both famous and largely unknown—to illustrate a principle of character.

Christopher Reeve was chosen to represent the character trait "strength." Reeve's choice wasn't surprising, since he played Superman in the movies, but the image shown on the billboard was Reeve as a quadriplegic, sitting in a wheelchair. His strength after his tragic accident, the billboard suggested, far surpassed the strength of the character he played in several films. Other billboards showed Abraham Lincoln as an example of "persistence," Mother Theresa as an example of "compassion," and the unknown Chinese man in Tiananmen Square who single-handedly faced down a column of tanks as an example of "courage."

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What is it that causes some people to demonstrate great character when others do not? In some cases, perhaps at least part of the motivation for acting with courage, or compassion, or persistence is the firm belief in a reward after death. Certainly many early Christians faced persecution and even death with resolve, because they believed that God would reward them for their faithfulness to Christ. But what if people had no such hope? What if they believed this life was all there was and their fate would be the same, no matter how they behaved?

The Teacher of Ecclesiastes was just such a person (see, e.g., Ecclesiastes 9:2-3). The prevalent idea about the afterlife throughout most of the Old Testament was that everyone went to the place of the dead (Sheol) after finishing life on earth, regardless of who they were or how they had lived their lives. The idea of different fates for the good and the wicked, or the faithful and the unfaithful, developed only very late in the Old Testament period, so the Teacher could not take advantage of the concept of post-mortem reward and punishment as a solution to the age-old question about the justice of God. Nor could he use the idea as a way of motivating his contemporaries to live exemplary lives. Nevertheless, he expected his hearers to live lives of character, following the way of wisdom to the best of their abilities.

Ecclesiastes 9:4-10

A Peanuts cartoon has Linus reading Ecclesiastes 9:4, "A living dog is better than a dead lion." Lucy asks, "What does that mean?" Snoopy, who has overheard the conversation, thinks to himself, "I don't know, but I believe it!" The Teacher is touting the value of life, but not just living for the sake of living. He says that while people are still alive, they have a chance to make a positive contribution. "Whatever your hand finds to do, do with all your might," he urges his listeners. It does no good to think about the great accomplishments of men and women of the past if such thoughts discourage us from acting, because we think that we can't measure up to their success. Enjoying life, making life better for others and being a positive example for others are undertakings that we all can do, and the world will be better for it.

Ecclesiastes 9:11-18

Israelite wisdom literature, including Ecclesiastes, is primarily practical in nature, but the lessons this material offers have the potential of making a great impact on modern life, if we are just willing to listen. After the end of the Cold War, many in the United States and around the world believed we were entering into an age of unparalleled peace and prosperity. Who now can think about the promise of a "peace dividend" without a wistful smile at our naiveté? But was such thinking really naïve, or are we just so used to settling our differences with force that we are unable to think of other options?

The Teacher offers some statements that certainly seem to apply to the modern world, and particularly to the situation in the Middle East. "Again I saw that under the sun the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to the skillful" (9:11). And again: "Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one bungler destroys much good" (9:18). There's a popular saying, "When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail." If the Teacher were living today, perhaps he would suggest that world leaders, and their supporters, search for other solutions to seemingly intractable international conflicts than bigger and better hammers. Jesus also had something to say on the subject: "Blessed are the peacemakers. . . ."

Ecclesiastes 11:1-6

Several years ago the Imperials popularized a song that urged people to "Keep on casting your bread upon the waters, and soon it will come back to you." This wisdom saying has a parallel in an Egyptian document called the Instructions of Ankhsheshonq, which says, "Do a good deed and throw it in the water; when it dries, you will find it." The Teacher urges his listeners to do good to other people, even if there is no likelihood of immediate return on their investment. Eventually, he says, one's good behavior in regard to others will pay off.

Os Guinness, in his book When No One Sees: The Importance of Character in an Age of Image, surveys the lives and writings of several people from many time periods in an effort to see why some people live their lives with integrity of character, while many others do not. "Integrity" is one possible translation of the Chinese word Te in the title of the famous Taoist work Tao Te Ching, and it is the subject of roughly half of the sayings in the book attributed to Lao Tzu. The importance of integrity of character has been well known in many cultures for many millennia, and it is one of the main themes of the book of Ecclesiastes as well.

Discussion Questions

• What difference would belief in a differentiated afterlife (i.e., heaven and hell) make on an individual's behavior in this life? Are all the effects of this belief positive?

• In what ways can learning about the lives of famous individuals of the past equip us to live more productive lives? Are there possible negative consequences of such knowledge? What if the people we learn about did bad things (e.g., biographies of Hitler or Stalin)?

• Is the saying "Wisdom is better than weapons of war" applicable in today's world? Is it true?

• Why do some people develop integrity of character, while others don't? What are the most influential factors in the development of character?

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 8/02/06

American, European Baptists call for Lebanon cease-fire

By Robert Marus

ABP Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON (ABP)—American and European Baptist leaders called for an immediate cease-fire of hostilities between Israel and militant wings of Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, but President Bush and other key United State leaders dismissed any cease-fire that does not include disarming Hezbollah.

Leaders of the European Baptist Federation passed a resolution July 26 in which the 51-nation group “joins the call of the United Nations Secretary General, the European Union and others for an immediate cessation of hostilities, praying for a just and lasting peace for all peoples and a negotiated cease-fire.”

The resolution expresses “concern at the death of so many innocent civilians in the countries involved and confesses deep disappointment at the disproportionate use of force by the Israeli military in their pursuit of Hezbollah, which has caused serious loss of life amongst the innocent Lebanese civilian population and the degradation of the basic infrastructure of the Lebanese state.”

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who visited the region July 25-26, said she and Bush fear an immediate cease-fire would result in a “status quo ante,” or a return to the situation that prevailed immediately before Israel’s air and ground strikes against Lebanon began July 12. Hezbollah militants have attacked Israeli troops and menaced cities in northern Israel with missiles.

Instead of a truce, Bush has called on Israel to show restraint in attacking targets that may cause civilians to be killed or injured.

But the head of the American Baptist Churches-USA said that’s not enough.

“In the face of such a humanitarian crisis, calls for the fighting parties to be restrained in their actions fall short of what is needed,” wrote ABC General Secretary Roy Medley, who also called for a cease-fire.

“This violent conflict has created a grave humanitarian crisis, and no hoped-for benefit should outweigh the cause of saving innocent lives,” Medley said in a July 24 letter to Bush.

“Your presidential leadership and the full weight of the United States, acting in concert with the international community, must be applied now to achieve an immediate cease-fire and to launch an intensive diplomatic initiative for the cessation of hostilities.”

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 7/05/06

Survey finds 60 Baptist women
ordained for ministry in 2005

By Hannah Elliott

Associated Baptist Press

ATLANTA (ABP)—About 1,600 Baptist women have been ordained to the ministry in the United States, a new report released by Baptist Women in Ministry revealed.

Authors Eileen Campbell-Reed and Pamela Durso presented their report, “The State of Women in Baptist Life,” at the organization’s annual meeting this summer in Atlanta.

The report helps validate the needs of Baptist clergywomen, illustrate growth and losses, and track nationwide trends, Campbell-Reed said.

The study reported 60 Baptist women became ordained ministers in 2005.

According to the survey, 102 women serve as pastors, co-pastors or church-starters in churches affiliated with the Alliance of Baptists, the Baptist General Association of Virginia, the Baptist General Convention of Texas, or the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. The study did not include traditionally African-American denominations or less-prominent Baptist organizations.

The authors said the study did not encompass all Baptist groups, but “the perspective of this report rests firmly in the moderate-to-progressive constellation of Baptist organizations in the southern United States.”

The results showed social, political and theological changes in recent decades that shifted church roles for Baptist women everywhere, they said.

“While the pastorate continues, for the most part, to be only marginally open to women, and growth there is incremental, a larger number of women now serve as associate pastors and in specialized ministry roles on church staffs,” the report states. “Many women have found places of ministry as chaplains in hospitals, prisons, the military and other organizations and agencies, although women make up only 29 percent of all chaplains endorsed by the American Baptist Churches, Alliance, CBF and SBC.”

The report started with a historical look at women in pastoral roles. One of the first groups to ordain women, Northern Baptists—now American Baptist Churches—ordained May Jones in 1882. Only after 1965, however, did percentages of ordinations rise to a more measurable level. That year, American Baptists adopted a resolution affirming the equality of women and advocating the ordination of women.

While growth has continued since then, it comes at a slow pace. According to the report, American Baptist Women in Ministry reported an increase of 13 more women who served as pastors in 2005 than 2004. Of these women, 374 served as pastors, and 29 served as co-pastors.

In the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, 5.5 percent of pastors in CBF-affiliated churches are women. About 28 percent of the chaplains and counselors in the CBF and ABC in 2005 were women, while the Alliance of Baptists recorded 52 percent of its chaplains were women. Southern Baptists reported 8 percent of their ordained chaplains and counselors were women, according to the report.

For much of the research regarding Southern Baptists, Campbell-Reed and Durso relied heavily on work from Sarah Frances Anders, a retired professor of sociology at Louisiana College. Anders kept extensive statistics about Baptist women and in 1997 documented 1,225 ordinations of Southern Baptist women.

That same year, the report said, Anders recorded 85 women serving as pastors and more than 100 serving as associate pastors. In 2005, Baptist Women in Ministry found that of the 102 women ordained in churches affiliated with the non-SBC Baptist groups on which the report focused, 66 served as pastors, 34 as co-pastors and two as church planters.

On the mission field, percentages between male and female workers remain closer. In a section of the study that evaluated SBC mission boards, 31 percent (3,096) of the North American Mission Board missionaries in 2005 were women appointed to full-time service. For the International Mission Board, 53 percent (2,695) of the total 5,050 workers were women.

In an address following the presentation, Baptist Women in Ministry Coordinator Rachel Gunter Shapard praised the report for helping the group “look back and see how far we’ve come and celebrate that.”

“But we can also see how far we have to go,” she said. “I hope that churches will celebrate but will also examine their own leadership and figure out ways to involve women. (Baptist Women in Ministry) wants to be a resource for churches trying to do that, because we believe it is important.”

Campbell-Reed is a doctoral candidate at Vanderbilt University in Nashville. Durso is associate executive director of the Baptist History and Heritage Society in Brentwood, Tenn.

Baptist Women in Ministry leaders said they plan to update the report yearly.

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 7/28/06

CYBER COLUMN:
Baptist definitions

By Jeanie Miley

“Don’t let anyone crowd you,” my father told me when I was an adolescent. And “Watch extremes!”

What he told me “took,” especially when it comes to being backed into the corner of a religious, denominational or political label!

Labeling diminishes and dishonors human beings, and yet we seem to live in a culture that is fraught with those who love to label and polarize, divide and conquer us.

Recently, I awoke to the reality that even if I don’t like being labeled, definitions are a part of life, and perceptions matter. I needed to do a little deeper thinking about just what kind of Baptist I am.

As it often happens, my awakening came through a challenge from somebody much younger than I, someone who backed me into a corner.

“Don’t assume that I know what you mean when you say you are a _______ Baptist,” the young person said to me, and I realized that, indeed, definitions evolve over time. What he understood about Baptist life was not necessarily what I understood.

“You need to step out there and be clear,” he said, and he was right.

My young teacher told me a term may mean one thing in one part of the country and something else in another! Nuances, projections and interpretations get layered on to all of our definitions of what it means to be Baptist.

Thinking through what it means to be a Christian in this contemporary culture, and what it means to be a Baptist, I’ve pondered what it means to view religion as a means of keeping people in line or religion as a means of setting them free. It makes a difference if you believe the Bible is a book of rules or that it is the account of God’s relationship with his people, guiding us into a relationship with him and with each other.

It makes a difference if you believe the church exists to indoctrinate people or to educate them, to promote a political agenda or to nurture a community of faith. It makes a difference if you believe God is Love or God is Judge and Jury, or maybe both.

It makes a difference in how you carry out your church life if you believe the pastor is a shepherd, the authority, a teacher or a CEO. It makes a difference if you believe in the priesthood of every believer or if you believe some people have privileged access to God. Hierarchical structures and independent and autonomous structures both reveal and shape how people carry out their lives of faith, and the differences are big.

It makes a difference if you start your theology with the original creation of human beings, made in the very image of God, or if you start with the Fall. It makes a difference if you start your theology with the teachings of Paul, or if you are begin with and are committed to the centrality of Christ.

You can fill in the blank with any number of adjectives that narrow the definition of what it means to be a Baptist, but you can’t be sure anyone else will have a clue what that means—or care. And yet, for others, once you use any one of the adjectives we have come to use to define ourselves in our religious lives, you are locked in to the definition someone else has of you.

The truth is that what kind of Baptist you are opens some peoples’ hearts to you, and sometimes, it closes them, and a lot of that is outside your control!

Jeanie Miley is an author and columnist and a retreat and workshop leader. She is married to Martus Miley, pastor of River Oaks Baptist Church in Houston, and they have three adult daughters. Got feedback? Write her at Writer2530@aol.com.

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 7/26/06

BaptistWay Bible Series for August 6

Leaving—and learning from—a legacy

• 2 Timothy 4:1-8

By Joseph Matos

Dallas Baptist University, Dallas

Some of the most poignant words in the Bible are spoken at a time of departure. Think of the farewell speeches of Jacob (Genesis 48-49), Moses (Deuteronomy 31-34), Joshua (Joshua 23-24), David (1 Chronicles 28-29) and Jesus (Luke 22; John 13-17).

Before Paul returned to Jerusalem after his third missionary journey, he spoke words of farewell to the leaders of Ephesus (Acts 20:17-38). Their words reflected on the past but prepared the hearers for the future, as well.

As Paul brings his second letter to Timothy to conclusion, he sees the end of his life closing in on him. The entire letter is a farewell of sorts. It is replete with instructions for Timothy in his ministry task.

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But Paul’s words in chapter 4 reveal much of his motive. He will not live much longer. So, he offers parting words to Timothy. In many ways, they repeat those earlier instructions, but an added element in these verses of chapter 4 is open reference to Paul’s departure.

2 Timothy 1-2

Paul gives his “charge” to Timothy with two factors in mind. The first is being “in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus.” Jesus, Paul states further, is judge (see 4:8), especially one who would “judge the living and the dead.” The second is “in view of his appearing and his kingdom.” Christ’s appearing and the consummation of the kingdom may still lie in the future, but Paul’s mention of them brings before Timothy the gravity of his instructions. These are matters of kingdom import.

With the solemnity of the occasion established, Paul specifies five actions which must encompass Timothy’s ministry. In some ways, these words serve as important summary of Paul’s injunctions to Timothy throughout the letter.

First, Timothy was to “preach the Word.” His task in leadership included proclaiming the word of God.

The second command may be as much a means by which Timothy was to carry out the first as it was a separate command itself. Paul told Timothy to “be prepared in season and out of season.” This was a call to readiness, always being on duty, never growing weary. This would be particularly important when negative circumstances arose. “Preach” and “be prepared” have a more positive, proactive meaning behind them.

But the next three commands are actions Timothy was to take in response to approaching circumstances. Paul told Timothy to “correct, rebuke and encourage.” Whether it was someone who held to a wrong belief, engaged in a wrong action or became discouraged, Timothy was to step up and respond appropriately.

The last command, “encourage,” in the original, shares the same root as the word John 14-16 used to characterize the Holy Spirit. There it can be variously translated “comforter,” “counselor,” “encourager.”

Paul then described for Timothy the means by which he was to carry out these activities. He was to do it with “great patience” (literally, “all patience”) and “careful instruction” (literally, “teaching”). Timothy was to exhibit patience and to seek most of all to teach his people.

2 Timothy 4:3-4

In verses 3-4, Paul warned Timothy that in time people would reject sound teaching and instead would seek teaching that satisfied them. They would determine what they wanted to hear and avoid what they needed to hear. They would turn away from truth and turn toward myths. They would be in control of what they heard and listened to as opposed to listening to what God wanted them to hear. How important, then, would patience and instruction be!

2 Timothy 4:5

When this occurred, Timothy was not to give up or become discouraged. He was to keep control of himself (“keep your head”), regardless of the situation. Also, he was to “endure hardship,” a phrase recalling Paul’s earlier exhortations to Timothy about persevering through suffering. The times would be difficult for Timothy, but he was to endure.

Additionally, Timothy was to do the work of an evangelist. Though Paul had elsewhere described this as a specific gift granted to some in the church (Ephesians 5:11), being an evangelist appeared not always to be so limited in scope. So Timothy should bear the “good news” even as he should “preach the word.” In a summary command, Paul charged Timothy to fulfill his service (“discharge all the duties of your ministry”).

2 Timothy 4:6-8

Unfortunately, for Timothy, he would face these problems in the absence of his “father in the faith.” Paul spoke of his own “departure” in sacrificial terms (as a drink offering). Paul soon would die, leaving Timothy alone. But with his death on the horizon, Paul left Timothy with more than just his words. He stood as one who had lived out what he had taught.

Three images describe Paul’s accomplishment in ministry. He “fought the good fight” (something he twice commanded Timothy to do, 1 Timothy 1:18; 6:12). He “finished the race” (or completed the course). He “kept the faith.” Paul had warned Timothy of those who had and/or would abandon the faith (1 Timothy 1:19; 4:1; 6:10, 21), but Paul, for all his faults, remained faithful.

So, while these words speak about the end of his life, they sound the words of triumph, not defeat. Paul had reached his goal. Paul left Timothy the legacy of a life lived for Christ.

Thus, Paul, and all who look forward to Christ’s appearing, was promised a crown of righteousness, the reward for perseverance.

As Timothy moved forward, he could draw on the words and works of his mentor.

Discussion questions

• What do you suppose Timothy thought as he read these words about Paul’s impending death?

• Given the opportunity to receive parting words, how would you remember them?

• Given the task of imparting words to family and friends, what would you say?

• What is the impact on others of our words if no actions support them?

• What is/would be your legacy right if you faced separation from those important to you? How would your words and life complement one another?

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 7/26/06

Family Bible Series for August 6

Set apart by God for service, righteousness

• John 17:9-23

By Greg Ammons

First Baptist Church, Garland

I recently visited Meteora in northeastern Greece. It is an impressive formation of natural rock pillars in the Pindus Mountains, ascending hundreds of feet into the air. In the 15th century, hermits would ascend these rock formations in baskets while being hoisted with ropes. Once on top the pillars, the hermits would live out the remainder of their days, either in fissures of the rocks or in a monastic order. They felt it was the best way to draw closer to God while not being influenced by the world.

Is this lifestyle what Jesus had in mind for believers? Before his death, our Savior prayed to the Father on behalf of his disciples. In this prayer, Jesus gave us insight into how he expects us to live as his followers. He shows us how God sets us apart for his service.

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In the world (John 17:9-13)

In this beautiful prayer, Jesus poured out his heart to his father. As a part of this prayer, he realized his children would be living in a hostile world. Jesus prayed specifically for his followers and not for the world in general (v. 9). “I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world. … Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name … so that they may be one as we are one” (v. 11). Jesus stated that he protected his disciples and kept them safe while he was with them (v, 12). But after his death, Jesus would be taken out of this world, and his followers would remain in it.

Today, believers must live out their faith in the world. They are not to retreat to a high mountain in order to escape from civilization. Believers are to make a difference in the world in which God has placed them. Jesus stated we are to be in the world but not of the world.

It has been my privilege to grow up in church. From my earliest childhood days in Honey Grove to my current ministry in Garland, God has allowed me the privilege of being in his church. It is our responsibility as churches to make an impact for Christ upon the world around us. It is our reason for being in the world. We are God’s representatives to a world that desperately needs him. He has blessed us with the privilege of being in his church to carry out this mission.

Different from the world (John 17:14-19)

Jesus continued his prayer to God for his followers, “I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world” (v. 14). He reminded us we are to be different from the world. Interestingly, Jesus prayed not that God would take his followers out of the world but that they would be protected from the evil one (v. 15). He also prayed for his followers to be sanctified by the word of truth (vv. 18-19).

Several members of my congregation are scuba-diving enthusiasts. Scuba is an acronym for “self-contained underwater breathing apparatus.” This acronym was coined in 1939 by the U.S. Navy. Scuba divers submerge themselves into a body of water, yet they breathe their own air while in the depths. They take their own environment with them as they dive. Their life source comes from their own environment while they are immersed into that of another.

In similar fashion, Christians are different from the world in which they live. Believers are living in an environment much different than their new nature in Christ. They are submerged in the world and making a difference in it for Christ, yet their vital life source comes from elsewhere.

United in divine purpose (John 17:20-23)

Jesus did not simply pray for his immediate followers. He prayed also for all believers in the ages to come who would believe in him (v. 20). He prayed they would be unified in their purpose. Our Lord prayed: “I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me …” (v. 23).

It is God’s will that all believers be united in their purpose of affecting this world for Christ. It is a difficult task because the world often makes sin look normal and righteousness look strange. As believers bind together in purpose, they are more powerful in their witness.

This task is made more difficult when believers desire to become like the world. Many Christians allow the trappings of this world to blind them to their greater task. The fiery evangelist of the mid-19th century, D.L. Moody, said some believers have one eye on the Lord and one eye on the world. As a result, their vision becomes blurred.

May you have a clear vision of your divine purpose to impact your world for Jesus Christ.

Discussion questions

• What are some practical ways Christians can affect their world?

• How are Christians different from the world?

• In what ways can believers work together to impact their world?

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 7/26/06

Explore the Bible Series for August 6

Fear God, but beware legalism

• Ecclesiastes 7:1-8:17

By James Adair

Baptist University of the Americas, San Antonio

In his Nicomachean Ethics, the great philosopher Aristotle discusses the “doctrine of the mean.” He says the excellence of a thing, be it a human or a horse, may be defined as its ability to perform its function well. Further, he says, “well” may be defined as that point midway between excess and deficiency, that is, the mean.

Aristotle’s discussion is sometimes summarized by the saying, “all things in moderation.” Many other philosophers, from Thales, the founder of Greek philosophy, to the Stoics accepted the same principle, which is sometimes expressed as “nothing to excess.”

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How universally applicable is this principle? In Lucy Maud Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables, Anne asks her guardian Matthew a telling question: “Which would you rather be if you had the choice—divinely beautiful or dazzlingly clever or angelically good?” Clearly Anne was not one who was inclined toward moderation!

It must be acknowledged that many notable people seem to ignore the doctrine of the mean, committing themselves to extremes of one sort or another. What great accomplishments would never have been reached without commitment to extreme? What great tragedies could have been avoided?

Perhaps a more relevant question for modern Christians is whether the Christian life should be characterized by the pursuit of extremes or by moderation. The monks who forsook their normal lives and went to live in the deserts of Syria and Egypt beginning in the third century certainly were extreme in their practice, and few today, even if they acknowledge their virtuous lives, would want to follow their example.

Some extreme elements of the Radical Reformation in the 16th century took over the city of Münster, Germany, because they were convinced their radical acts would hasten the Second Coming of Christ.

Such extreme acts in the name of religion are rightly condemned today, even by people who share a common faith tradition. These and numerous other examples from church history would seem to support the principle of moderation.

Ecclesiastes 7:15-18

The condemnation of the lukewarm in Revelation 3:16 is probably a reference to the tepid water of the city of Laodicea rather than a rebuke of moderation between extreme goodness and extreme wickedness, so what other biblical texts might address the question of “living in the mean”?

Perhaps the most obvious is this somewhat enigmatic passage in Ecclesiastes. The teacher advocates his followers not be too righteous or too wise, but at the same time, they should not be too wicked or too foolish. Does he want people to strike a balance between righteousness and wickedness, between wisdom and foolishness? Is he advocating a life characterized by a few good deeds, and a few bad deeds, and so forth? No! That interpretation is inconsistent with both the immediate context and the overall thrust of the book.

What the teacher is saying is sometimes there is room for debate over what is good and what is bad, what is wise and what is foolish. The attitude to be avoided is the commitment to an extreme position without any flexibility. The idea that the only correct view of the world is the way your church views it is a dangerous point of view, according to the teacher.

It is one thing to be committed to your beliefs, but it is another to condemn all those with whom you disagree. The middle ground between these groups should center on “fearing God” (7:18) rather than legalism.

Ecclesiastes 8:14-17

One of the primary conclusions the teacher draws as a result of his investigation of life is that life isn’t always fair. Sometimes the righteous are treated as though they are wicked, and sometimes the wicked are treated as though they are righteous. That doesn’t mean people shouldn’t pursue righteousness, but it does caution against the assumption that the righteous will receive tangible rewards from God. The teacher would agree with the statement that righteousness is its own reward.

How should people live their lives? Eat, drink and be merry! The teacher is not advocating a lifestyle of wanton excess (remember his advocacy of moderation), but neither does he think a life of misery and gloom is spiritually beneficial. Bad things will come to everyone in life, he says, so there is no reason to go out looking for them. Life is a gift from God, and it should be enjoyed.

The idea that the spirit is good and the flesh is bad, so prevalent in the first several Christian centuries, is based on certain strains of Greek philosophy, not on either the Old Testament or the teachings of Jesus. In fact, Jesus’ own disciples were criticized for being too free in their interpretation of the law (that is, they were too moderate). Life was made for enjoyment, and God’s people should live life to the fullest.

That will mean different things to different people, but if we will remember that a life lived in the mean precludes us from judging the reasonable choices of other people, our own enjoyment of life will increase, and so will that of people with whom we interact.

Discussion questions

• How does the principle of moderation apply to living a life of virtue? To pursuing wisdom? To getting along with other believers?

• How does the principle of moderation apply to living the Christian life in a secular world? Are there exceptions to the idea of “living in the mean”?

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 7/21/06

VBS ‘makeover’ puts children to work

By George Henson

Staff Writer

BEAUMONT—Children attending Vacation Bible School at North End Baptist Church in Beaumont learned you don’t have to be on television to make a difference in someone’s life.

The VBS team at North End chose to write their own curriculum this year and settled on “Extreme Church: Service Edition,” a take-off on the television series Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.

The Scripture verse for the week was Ephesians 2:10: “We are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Bible stories for the week reinforced the thoughts in that verse.

Monday and Tuesday, children heard the stories of the Good Samaritan and Nehemiah and learned the importance of recognizing a need and then responding to it under God’s leadership.

Wednesday, Pastor Robert Miller led the children in “Demolition Day,” when he counseled them on the importance of getting rid of the old sin nature and putting on the armor of God.

Thursday and Friday, a ventriloquist and his “friends” talked about the importance of building on a good foundation and using spiritual gifts to serve God.

The children did far more than just hear about the importance of serving and working to help others. The traditional crafts and missions sessions became opportunities for service.

Children chose from sewing, baking, puppetry, drama/choreography, design and construction.

“The children were given the chance to attend six special classes tailored around using their own special talents and abilities to serve God in some tangible way,” Minister of Children Josh Baker said. “There were no cheap little cut-and-paste, put-on-your-refrigerator-or-just-throw-away crafts.

“Instead of taking those things home, they made some tangible things for the benefit of the community.”

Kids take a break in the remodeled rooms of the youth and children’s wing of the church’s gymnasium.

One of the recipients of the children’s handiwork was Golden Triangle Baptist Association’s homeless shelter, Calvary House. The shelter received child-sewn pillows and child-assembled furniture to makeover its rooms. Youth who participated in the church’s design team delivered and placed the furniture and other household items for maximum effect.

“They remodeled two of the three apartments we have there,” reported Dion Ainsworth, the association’s director of ministry evangelism. They placed beds they assembled and installed sofas and fans the church purchased. “They just made it look much more pleasant and cheery than it did before.”

Ainsworth said the unique Bible school took care of some needs that could not be met through the association’s budget.

Children visited North End’s homebound ministry, a local retirement home and Buckner Children and Family Services’ Children’s Village with baked goods from the VBS baking class.

The church puppeteers performed for the retirement home, and the drama class depicted a Bible story for children the following Sunday morning.

A stuffed-animal drive brought in 165 furry friends for the local hospital’s pediatric ward and for the police department.

Some of the 150 children also helped more than 125 youth and adults do a makeover of the youth and children’s wing of the church’s gymnasium, giving all the rooms new thematically fun designs and constructing a performance stage for the children’s Sunday morning program.

More important than the actual tasks for the week was a change in mindset, Baker said, noting it is not enough to teach young people they should serve others, but to give them opportunity to do so.

The goal for the week was “that servants’ hearts would be born and that the world’s future church ministers and community servants be taught valuable spiritual truths,” he said.

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 7/23/06

Volunteers fleeing Beirut reach Cyprus
on U.S. Navy ship, heading home soon

By Erich Bridges

LARNACA, Cyprus (BP)—After being trapped for more than a week in Beirut as Israeli-Hezbollah fighting raged, 19 tired and relieved Southern Baptist volunteers arrived in Cyprus from Lebanon early July 21 aboard the Navy transport USS Nashville.

The volunteers from two churches in Georgia and Texas were transported by bus with hundreds of other U.S. evacuees from the Cypriot port of Larnaca to Nicosia, where U.S. embassy officials have set up a receiving area equipped with cots, food and beverages in a city convention center. From there, the volunteers were expected to board one of the charter flights U.S. officials have arranged to take Americans exiting Lebanon home to the United States.

The two volunteer groups include 10 members from First Baptist Church of Forney, Texas, and nine from Eagle’s Landing First Baptist Church in Henry County, Ga. They had been participating in various summer ministries with Lebanese Baptists through churches in Beirut when cross-border bombing and rocket attacks broke out between Hezbollah guerrillas based in southern Lebanon and Israeli forces.

Southern Baptist International Mission Board workers are providing assistance to the volunteers in Cyprus. They are scheduled to leave Cyprus for Baltimore and several other U.S. cities. Once back in the United States, the Forney group will fly on to Dallas/Fort Worth. The Eagle’s Landing volunteers will fly to Atlanta.

John Brady, IMB regional leader for Northern Africa and the Middle East, met with the volunteers after they arrived in Nicosia, Cyprus.

“They were elated to be out of Lebanon and praising the Lord for His protection,” Brady said. “They also had some very kind words about how the Lebanese Baptist brothers and sisters helped them every step of the way, as well as the way the U.S. government responded to rescue Americans.

“They’re heartbroken for the people in the Middle East, and they’re praying God will resolve this tragic situation soon.”

Todd Bradley, one of the Forney volunteers and an associate professor at Criswell College in Dallas, spoke to the Dallas Morning News July 19 before leaving Beirut. He told of moving several times to different locations to avoid the bombing.

“The Lebanese Baptists here are putting food containers together for the people who have been displaced in south Beirut, which is an amazing thing, and we’ve been a part of that,” Bradley said.

Tim Dowdy, pastor at Eagle’s Landing First Baptist, told WXIA-TV in Atlanta that volunteers from his church also got involved in Baptist ministry to refugees before leaving Beirut.

“They just kind of jump(ed) in and said, ‘Hey, we can help unload a truck, we can help feed people, we can help pass out food and water and blankets or pillows, whatever is needed,’” Dowdy reported.

Bradley, in an interview with Christian radio station KCBI in Dallas, called the situation in the region “very sad.” He added, “It’s not a matter of whose side you’re on. You love these people here, and they’re watching their country be systematically destroyed, and it’s hard to watch.”

As Israelis and Lebanese civilians continue to get caught in the cross-fire and the Israeli-Hezbollah conflict threatens to escalate into a ground war, Southern Baptist workers in the Middle East are appealing for continuing prayer.

“Please lift up the precious people who are not boarding ships out this week,” said one worker in the region. “Pray for those whose lives have been turned upside down so much that it seems the norm. They have no peace.

“(But) expect to hear in the coming weeks how God is going to be doing great works among the people here. Just from this past week, we have seen Him working in the midst of this turmoil, bringing people together and His Word being shared with many who are in such need of His peace and hope.”

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Storylist for week of 7/10/06

TAKE ME TO: Top Story |  Texas |  Opinion |  Baptists |  Faith in Action |  Faith & Culture |  Book Reviews |  Classifieds  |  Departments  |  Bible Study



• Southland’s Friendship Class gives retired veterans a sense of family

• Forney group trapped in Lebanon

• Watch a slideshow from the African American Fellowship Conference in Lubbock
(Photos by David Clanton. Quicktime Player required)

• Ethicists weigh in on court’s decision to protect Guantanamo detainees

• Bo Pilgrim provides record gift to DBU

• New York’s highest court punts gay-marriage dispute to legislators

• Summer Camp High: Follow-up important

• Summer Camp High: Follow-up important

• Preparation eases jitters for first-time church campers

• Single ministers face multiple hurdles

• Longview church in home of its own

• DBU students serve Peruvian orphans through Buckner

• Handle theology with care, chaplain says

• ‘Passionate people change the world,’ pastor believes

• Baylor Choir sings in Australia

• On the Move

• Around the State

• Texas Tidbits

• Charges dismissed against Missouri institutions

• Baptist Briefs

• DBU students serve Peruvian orphans through Buckner

• Lawyers see future in stem-cell research

• New York’s highest court punts gay-marriage dispute to legislators

• Gibson’s Passion sparked new relationship between faith & film

• Superheroes draw on universal themes

• Books reviewed in this issue: Books reviewed in this issue: Hell’s Broke Loose in Georgia. Survival in a Civil War Regiment by Scott Walker, 102 Fascinating Bible Topics for Group Discussion by Preston Taylor and Leaves of Hope by Catherine Palmer.

• Around the State

• On the Move

• Cartoon

• Classified Ads

• Texas Baptist Forum

• EDITORIAL: What difference does it really make?

• DOWN HOME: It’s summertime; put on your parka

• TOGETHER: BGCT: Working separately & together

• RIGHT OR WRONG? Ordaining divorced deacons

• 2nd Opinion: Of Jonathan Edwards & McDonald’s

• Texas Baptist Forum

• Cybercolumn by Berry Simpson: Workover

• Cybercolumn by Brett Younger: The whole story

• BaptistWay Bible Series for July 9: Investigate your heart’s desire

• Family Bible Series for July 9: God can be trusted to help in times of struggle

• Explore the Bible Series for July 9: Elihu seeks to set things straight concerning Job

• BaptistWay Bible Series for July 16: Invest yourself in the spiritual life of another

• Family Bible Series for July 16: God guides believers with strength

• Explore the Bible Series for July 16: Beware of speaking rashly for God

Previously Posted
• Survey finds 60 Baptist women ordained for ministry in 2005

• WMU may move annual meeting

• Houston Baptist University names interim president

• Layman’s passion for Brazil fuels missions partnership

• African-American cowboy church defies stereotypes

• View a video clip on the African-American cowboy church

• BGCT treasurer: No ‘financial crisis’

• VP Vernon to be nominated for BGCT president

• Hispanic convention elects new officers

• Partners sign church-starting agreement

• President challenges Hispanic Baptists

• Nathan Porter says NAMB denying wife hospice care

Cooperative Baptist Fellowship General Assembly Coverage
• Baptist colleges face crisis, Godsey says

• Yee urges Fellowship to become fully intercultural

• Convocation urges immigration reform

• Quiet CBF general assembly focuses on the future

• AIDS summit challenges Baptists to ‘break the silence’

• Religious freedom threatened in U.S.

• CBF, emergent church good fit, Myers says

• Hudson: Step out of bubble and hear God

• CBF broke tradition in commissioning service

• Lotz: Be more like the early church

• ABP urged to pursue ‘information integrity’

• CBF names Rob Nash global missions coordinator

• See complete list of articles from our 6/26/ 2006 issue here.

Posted: 7/21/06

If they can quit fighting, anyone can

By Trennis Henderson

Kentucky Western Recorder

MEXICO CITY—Acknowled-ging Christians “will always have conflict,” Paul Msiza of South Africa advocated for conflict resolution during the Baptist World Alliance annual gathering in Mexico City.

Msiza, general secretary of the Baptist Convention of South Africa, recounted how his convention broke away from the Baptist Union of South Africa almost two decades ago.

Amid escalating tensions between the two Baptist organizations, “there was not sheep stealing but congregation stealing,” Msiza noted. “We ended up as Baptists hating each other’s guts.”

Repeated efforts to reconcile failed as Baptist leaders “kept on blaming one another,” he recalled.

But during a dialogue session in 2000, participants wrote down all the hurts they had experienced and affixed them to a wall.

“The wall was full of all these bad things Christians were doing to one another,” Msiza reported. The leaders then agreed to celebrate the Lord’s Supper together the next day, but “they began to realize they couldn’t have communion without confession.”

“It was kind of like a breakthrough,” he said. “We put this under the blood of Jesus. We started to be able to talk to one another.”

Lessons learned during the conflict resolution-process include:

• Leaders are a key to resolving conflict.

• Leaders must realize the need to resolve conflict.

• Leaders must be willing to extend a hand of reconciliation to one another.

• Leaders must be prepared to pay the price for reconciliation. “The big price you pay is to swallow your pride,” he pointed out.

• The church has the spiritual means available to bring about reconciliation.

• Avoid the temptation to celebrate reconciliation too early.

During reconciliation efforts in South Africa, “we could have made more progress,” Msiza said. “We embrace, but sometimes we don’t go to the root of what makes us fight.”

Anne Wilkinson-Hayes, a regional minister for the Baptist Union of Victoria in Australia, also spoke on conflict resolution.

Noting church conflict often begins with minor differences, she said one key to reducing conflict is to “help our churches strengthen their conflict-resolution skills in peacetime.”

Some of the primary causes of church conflict include individuals not feeling listened to, people harboring hidden agendas, poor skills in handling differences, gossip and unclear or unrealistic expectations of roles, she said.

“In any growing church, there will be change and disagreements,” Wilkinson-Hayes said. “The whole congregation needs to be listening to God together to discern his will.”

Urging Christians to seek to resolve differences based on Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 18:15-18, she added, “Try and go directly to the person concerned.” Encouraging churches to adopt a covenant for church health, she said local congregations should strive to become “communities of Christians who are resolved to act differently—to act Christianly.”

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.

Posted: 7/21/06

BWA shows Baptists’ ‘essential unity’

By Trennis Henderson

Kentucky Western Recorder

MEXICO CITY (ABP)—The Baptist World Alliance ushered in its second century by unveiling plans to expand participation in the international organization.

For starters, BWA’s annual General Council meeting was renamed the BWA annual gathering, signaling a desire to expand participation beyond BWA’s leadership circle.

About 420 people from 50 countries attended the early July gathering in Mexico City. By contrast, the group’s Baptist World Congress, held once every five years, attracts thousands of participants from around the globe.

BWA General Secretary Denton Lotz said the annual meeting is an opportunity “to show the essential unity of Baptists in Jesus Christ—that’s what Baptist World Alliance is all about.”

That unity was tested two years ago, when the Southern Baptist Convention, the BWA’s largest member body, withdrew. SBC leaders cited concerns about a drift toward theological liberalism—charges BWA leaders insisted were unfounded.

Since that time, BWA has continued to attract new member bodies, including the Baptist General Convention of Texas and the Baptist General Association of Virginia, which were voted into membership last year, and the Baptist General Convention of Missouri, which was voted in this month.

Mexico City participants also approved membership for the Ethiopian Addis Kidan Baptist Church, a convention of 63 congregations, and the India Baptist Convention, which includes 65 congregations.

BWA now has 214 member bodies from about 120 nations.

Format changes at the annual gathering included reducing the number of business sessions from four to one and adding a dozen forums on such topics as AIDS, pastoral leadership and understanding youth culture.

Wanda Lee, executive director of Woman’s Missionary Union in the United States, is co-chairing an implementation task force seeking to flesh out BWA’s ministry strategy for the 21st century.

“There’s a new generation coming along in BWA,” she explained. “We want to help a younger generation learn what the BWA is all about. As Christians, we share a common desire to make a difference in the world.”

BWA will seek to focus on several major “clusters of commitment,” including worship and fellowship, missions and evangelism, human rights and religious freedom, and theological reflection and education.

During the business session, participants adopted resolutions addressing concerns about violence against women and children, the international HIV/AIDS crisis and human-rights abuses in Myanmar and Sudan.

BWA President David Coffey, who retires this month as general secretary of the Baptist Union of Great Britain, cited “big questions” and “big mysteries” faced by Baptists around the world.

Urging Baptists to have “big ears” in order to hear God’s “big answers,” Coffey added, “Dare to believe God has more light and truth to bring forth from his word. … There are so many big answers in Scripture.”

Coffey also challenged Baptists to “listen to the voice of God through the voices of each other,” noting, “We’re going to be pulled forward by the vision God gives us.”

Ministry reports addressed such issues as a BWA team’s recent visit to Vietnam to promote human rights and BWA’s first “Living Water” leadership and evangelism conference held last fall in St. Petersburg, Russia. Future conferences are planned for Kenya later this year and Thailand in 2007.

Victor Rembeth, former general secretary of the Union of Indonesian Baptist Churches, reported about Baptists’ widespread ministry efforts in the aftermath of the region’s devastating tsunami and other recent natural disasters.

Ongoing relief efforts mean “we can really show our love to the people, the majority of whom are Muslim,” Rembeth said. “Please pray for the churches in Indonesia that we will be able to love our enemies,” he added.

Sally Smith, partnerships adviser for the United Nations’ AIDS initiative, told meeting participants, “The death toll of AIDS is equal to a tsunami every six weeks.”

Urging Baptists to “provide a loving and warm welcome for people living with HIV,” Smith added: “Make every church a safe place. … A resolution isn’t enough. We need to have an action plan.”

Lotz has announced plans to retire next year as BWA general secretary. “At a time of great unity and great hopefulness, this is the right time to turn over leadership—hopefully next year—to a younger leader,” he said.

John Sundquist, chairman of BWA’s personnel committee, said nominations for Lotz’s successor will be received through Oct. 31. The search committee’s goal is to recommend a new BWA leader for consideration during next year’s annual gathering in Ghana, he said.

News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.