The original issue can be found at: http://www.baptistpress.com/issue-02/19/2015 DISCLAIMER: Baptist Press should be credited for any reprinted stories that originate with BP. Suggested credit line: Reprinted from Baptist Press (www.baptistpress.com), news service of the Southern Baptist Convention. Please note that Baptist Press periodically carries stories from other sources by permission. Individuals interested in reprinting non-BP stories should contact the entity where the story originated to seek reprint permission. -------------------------------------------------------------------- SBC to vote on NAMB ministry amendment by Art Toalston Date: February 19, 2015 - Thursday NASHVILLE (BP) -- Chaplain-led ministry near overseas military bases someday may become part of the North American Mission Board's church planting outreach if a proposed ministry amendment is approved during the June 16-17 annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention. The SBC Executive Committee approved a recommendation to be presented to messengers in Columbus, Ohio, to enable NAMB to "provide specialized, defined and agreed upon assistance to the International Mission Board in assisting churches to plant churches for specific groups outside the United States and Canada." EC leaders said the possibility of military chaplains facing religious liberty constraints is a key factor for the recommendation, though the wording allows for other contingencies that may prompt NAMB-IMB overseas cooperation in the future. Our culture "is becoming increasingly hostile to Christianity and to the Christian message," EC chairman Mike Routt said in response to several questions raised before EC members voted without opposition to forward the recommendation to messengers in June. "There might come a day to where our chaplains can't really preach the Gospel," Routt said. "How are you going to minister to these military bases overseas, to these military personnel if you can't preach? "So these chaplains, on their own, not paid by the government but on their own, would plant a church close to that base so that they could have a Bible-believing, Bible-preaching church that our soldiers and their families could go to," said Routt, lead pastor of Circle Drive Baptist Church in Colorado Springs, where the Air Force Academy and NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command) are located, along with two Air Force bases and one Army base. "This is just to be proactive," said Ben Kelley, chairman of the EC's Cooperative Program Committee, in case military chaplains are "restricted in what they can do" in sharing the Gospel. Implementation, if it is ever needed, can proceed in cooperation with the International Mission Board and in matching stateside churches with potential church plants near military installations, said Kelley, a healthcare executive from Montgomery, Ala. Questions raised during the EC meeting included why the International Mission Board couldn't undertake church plants near military bases if need be. Al Gilbert, NAMB's vice president for evangelism, noted that the Executive Committee "approved the exact same language for the International Mission Board" in 2011 to enable the IMB to assist NAMB with unreached people groups in the U.S. "Since that time, we have been working in agreement with them, defining special needs and agreeing upon ways they can assist...," Gilbert said. The proposed ministry assignment amendment for NAMB, he said, is "an attempt to get consistent language for both of our boards to be able to cooperate globally for the Great Commission." The proposed amendment was approved by NAMB trustees in February 2014. The SBC's Organization Manual requires that changes to ministry statements of the SBC's entities be approved by the EC as well as a majority vote of messengers at an SBC annual meeting. IMB President David Platt, in a Jan. 15 letter to Page, reported, "The leadership of IMB gladly affirms and supports this recommendation, as a step toward further cooperation between the two entities, for the sake of the spread of the Gospel throughout the world." The proposed NAMB ministry amendment comes amid ongoing wariness among evangelicals of the military's attitude toward religious expression within its ranks. After the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act in 2013, NAMB adopted a policy stipulating that Southern Baptist-endorsed chaplains must not perform same-sex marriages nor provide counseling to same-sex couples. Rather, such individuals will be helped in finding other military chaplains willing to assist same-sex couples. NAMB faced criticism from homosexual rights advocates but the policy has given Southern Baptist chaplains -- to date -- denominational backing for their convictions. The NAMB guidelines also include explicit statements that Southern Baptist chaplains will practice ministry in light of the biblical definition of marriage as "the uniting of one man and one woman in covenant commitment for a lifetime," as described in the SBC Baptist Faith and Message. The guidelines also state that Southern Baptists view all sexual immorality as sin that violates God's biblical standards for purity and that "responsible pastoral care will seek to offer repentance and forgiveness, help and healing, and restoration through the mercy and grace of Jesus Christ's sacrificial gift of love on the cross." Finally, Southern Baptist military chaplains are prohibited from participating in jointly-led worship services "with a chaplain, contractor or volunteer who personally practices a homosexual lifestyle or affirms a homosexual lifestyle or such conduct." NAMB guidelines acknowledge that Southern Baptist chaplains serve in a pluralistic setting but expect, under U.S. Department of Defense guidelines, that the rights and freedoms of chaplains will be protected so they may "preach, teach and counsel in accordance with the tenets of their denominational faith group and their own religious conscience" while treating all others with dignity, respect and Christ-like love. Earlier in 2013, Kevin Ezell, NAMB's president, and Russell Moore, then-president-elect of the SBC's Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, released a joint statement assessing several alleged encroachments on religious freedom within the military. "We reject any and all attempts to sensationalize or misrepresent situations, in this or any other context. Having said that, we are concerned," Ezell and Moore stated, noting that various issues seem to be "indicative of a troubling lack of respect for true religious diversity in our military." The statement included a detailed section about Department of Defense definition of terms like "evangelizing" and "proselytizing." "After all, who defines what is proselytizing and what is evangelism?" Ezell and Moore asked. "What could seem to be a friendly conversation about spiritual matters to one serviceperson could be perceived or deliberately mischaracterized as 'proselytizing' to the person on the receiving end. The fact that this has been raised at all in such a subjective fashion could have a chilling effect on service personnel sharing their faith at all." -------------------------------------------------------------------- EC advances Golden Gate Seminary name change to SBC by Staff Date: February 19, 2015 - Thursday NASHVILLE (BP) -- Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary will become Gateway Seminary of the Southern Baptist Convention if messengers to the next two SBC annual meetings approve a Feb. 17 recommendation of the convention's Executive Committee. The EC also approved for recommendation to the June 16-17 SBC annual meeting in Columbus, Ohio: -- a proposed amendment to the North American Mission Board's ministry statement to include planting churches overseas in agreed-upon instances with the International Mission Board (see separate story today). -- SBC bylaw amendments for the potential use of electronic voting devices in the convention hall and to establish a quorum on all SBC business matters as those present at the time of a vote. Forty-four Executive Committee members were able to travel to Nashville to comprise a quorum -- half of the EC's 82 members plus one -- before an ice storm crippled the city during the EC's Feb. 16-17 meeting (see Feb. 17 BP story). Golden Gate Seminary recommendation The EC recommended that the SBC amend Golden Gate's articles of incorporation as well as SBC Bylaw 14 to change its name to Gateway Seminary of the Southern Baptist Convention in conjunction with the move of its primary campus from the San Francisco Bay Area to Southern California near the Ontario International Airport. The EC's recommendation came in response to a request by the executive committee of the seminary's trustees. To take effect, the bylaw amendment must be approved by messengers at two successive SBC annual meetings. The articles of incorporation amendment must be approved by Golden Gate trustees in April and messengers to the SBC annual meeting in June. Last July, Golden Gate finalized the sale of its property near Mill Valley, Calif., for a base price of $85 million along with other terms favorable to the seminary. The purchase agreement allows Golden Gate to remain fully operational in its current facilities through the summer of 2016. The seminary announced in August that it had signed a purchase agreement for the site of its new primary campus in Southern California. The new site includes a six-story building, an adjacent ready-to-build lot and more than 700 parking places in the city of Ontario, part of Southern California's Inland Empire region. The building was constructed in 2009 and has remained vacant due to the economic downturn. The building's exterior is finished and all mechanical systems have been installed, but its interior is unfinished. The adjacent lot is already legally entitled for a future building. The seminary will maintain a regional campus in the Bay Area along with regional campuses in Brea, Calif.; Phoenix; Denver; and the Portland, Ore., area. Electronic voting In recommending SBC bylaw amendments to allow for electronic voting devices in the convention hall, the Executive Committee added a notation stipulating that their use could begin after this year's meeting in Columbus. The bylaw change notes that voting by "ballot" may include electronic voting that protects "the integrity of the voting process and provides for messengers' votes to remain confidential." According to background materials, the EC staff has assessed the viability and expense of taking and counting votes by messengers for the past several years. Following this assessment, the EC reported electronic voting could allow the ability to schedule elections closer together and "to make the best and most efficient use of time in annual meeting programming." In recommending a quorum for voting on SBC business as those present at the time of a ballot, the Executive Committee left bylaw requirements in force that a messenger must be present at the time a vote is taken in order to participate. Voting by proxy is not permitted. The tabulation of all votes is under the supervision of the registration secretary. In other items on its agenda, the Executive Committee: -- approved a 2015-16 Cooperative Program Allocation Budget of $186,500,000 for recommendation to the Southern Baptist Convention during its June 16-17 annual meeting in Columbus. The proposed budget maintains current allocations to the convention's ministries, including 50.41 percent of receipts to the International Mission Board and 22.79 percent to the North American Mission Board, for a total of 73.20 percent allocated for mission ministries nationally and internationally. The convention's six seminaries will receive 22.16 percent. The seminary enrollment formula for funding will be: Southwestern Seminary, 4.22 percent; Southern Seminary, 4.97 percent; New Orleans Seminary, 3.88 percent; Southeastern Seminary, 4.28 percent; Golden Gate Seminary, 2.09 percent; Midwestern Seminary, 2.48 percent; and .24 percent to the Southern Baptist Historical Library and Archives, a ministry overseen by the seminary presidents. (Cumulative numbers may not match the sum of individual seminary percentages due to rounding.) The budget proposal maintains a 1.65 percent allocation to the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission. The SBC Operating Budget, the only CP-funded facilitating ministry, encompassing the SBC annual meeting costs and the work of the Executive Committee, would receive 2.99 percent of the budget. -- approved a resolution of appreciation for Tom Elliff, who retired Aug. 27, 2014, after more than three years as the International Mission Board's 11th president. EC members noted Elliff's "boundless energy, a heart broken over lostness and a passion for prayer." Elliff's many initiatives as IMB president included the Embrace outreach to the more than 3,800 people groups identified as unengaged and unreached; the Ready Reserves program to reenlist retired IMB field personnel in service opportunities globally; the Global Strategic Mobilization of Southern Baptist business leaders in missions outreach; the Global Connect to train and supervise church members who volunteer for global missions; the School of Prayer for All Nations to train church leaders for focused prayer for the nations; and the Internationalization of Missions outreach to provide missions training to national Baptist groups and other Great Commission partners. The Executive Committee commended Elliff on a lifetime of ministry that included eight church pastorates spanning 42 years; denominational service at the local, state and national levels; a personal evangelism, preaching and writing ministry focused on spiritual awakening; and overseas missionary service with his wife Jeannie in Zimbabwe from 1981-83. Elliff served two terms as president of the Southern Baptist Convention, 1996–98; preached the annual sermon at the 1994 SBC annual meeting in Orlando, Fla.; chaired the Southern Baptist Council on Family Life, 1999–2003; and was president of the 1990 SBC Pastors' Conference. He and his wife Jeannie have four children, two of whom became missionaries, and 25 grandchildren. -- received a report from its communications workgroup that it is continuing to draft a report on progress in ethnic church and church leader participation in Southern Baptist life in view of recommendations adopted in 2011 by the SBC and the racial reconciliation resolution adopted in 1995 by the convention. The workgroup reported that it intends to present its completed report to the EC for consideration at its June 15 meeting in Columbus, Ohio, and upon approval by the EC, to make it available to messengers at the June 16-17 SBC annual meeting in Columbus. -- approved a new online daily devotional "Renew Daily," a digital publication proposed by LifeWay Christian Resources to replace its LifeWalk Devotional, which is no longer offered. Renew Daily, which will encourage men and women to seek God in daily devotions, will be available in March through a new digital platform called DevoHub along with other LifeWay devotionals. -- approved a request for an $80,000 reimbursement by the SBC Pastors' Conference for use of the Greater Columbus Convention Center's meeting hall and facilities, June 14-15, preceding the SBC annual meeting, as part of an annual reimbursement for costs in using the facility. -- elected William Lovell and Tom Boyd as Southern Baptist Foundation trustees for terms to expire in 2018. Lovell, of Nashville, is retired from Lovell Investments. Boyd, Of Murfreesboro, Tenn., is with Decker Wealth Management and is retired from Bank of America where he served as a senior vice president. -- retained the firm of CapinCrouse, LLP, as the Executive Committee's auditor for three years, beginning with the 2014-15 fiscal year. The EC's Business and Finance Committee reported that it had reviewed and approved the EC's 2013-14 audited financial statements as prepared by CapinCrouse. -- authorized a 0.8 percent increase in the Executive Committee salary structure for the 2015-16 fiscal year. -- received as information that C. Barry McCarty will be retained as the chief parliamentarian for this year's annual meeting in Columbus. -------------------------------------------------------------------- FIRST-PERSON: Evangelism -- a daily walk with Jesus by Chuck Kelley Date: February 19, 2015 - Thursday NEW ORLEANS (BP) -- There is one truth in evangelism about which all can agree: Most of those who do not know Christ are not in any church on Sunday mornings. This being true, much of the work of evangelism must take place outside church walls. The proclamation of the Gospel from the pulpits of the land is necessary each week in the church, but just as necessary is the sharing of the Gospel by believers with the lost wherever they encounter them. We must go to those who do not come! Personal evangelism is not a task God assigns to "trained professionals." It is not a task rooted in a special skill set or a certain type of personality or particular gifts. Personal evangelism happens when Jesus splashes out of those who follow Him. Personal evangelism is introducing Jesus into conversations and relationships whenever possible and appropriate. Personal evangelism is seeking out those in your community who are ready to talk about spiritual concerns. Conversions and baptisms are the fruit of people in the pew sowing the seed of the Gospel in the lives of those who are outside our worship services. This relates to a second truth I have learned through the years. Most believers, including pastors and other ministers, are nervous about starting spiritual conversations with lost people. Preaching to people is easier than talking with people. After teaching personal evangelism for 30 years in classrooms and churches, I have learned that apprehension is far more common than excitement when the subject is sharing your faith. First, it all starts with your walk. Sharing your faith is an outgrowth of following Jesus. Making each day of life a walk with Him launches personal evangelism. Consider Matthew 4:19: "Follow Me and I will make you fishers of men." This verse is not a command to witness. It is a command to follow. When you follow after Him, He promises to do what is necessary to make you a fisher of men, a witness. In other words: When Jesus is on your mind, He will find a way out of your mouth. Personal evangelism is not something you do for Jesus. It is something He does through you. Live with Jesus, live like Jesus, live for Jesus and you will see Jesus express Himself through you. Imagine your life today as a prayer without an "amen." Stay engaged with the Lord by keeping the conversation with Him going. Keep Jesus on your mind and watch Him find a way out of your mouth. If you are walking with Him, you will find yourself talking about Him. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Former Atlanta fire chief sues city, mayor by Scott Barkley/The Christian Index Date: February 19, 2015 - Thursday ATLANTA (BP) -- "Americans are guaranteed the freedom to live without fear [of] being fired because of their beliefs and their thoughts," said David Cortman, senior counsel for Alliance Defending Freedom, explaining the lawsuit ADF filed on behalf of dismissed Atlanta Fire Chief Kelvin Cochran. "... In America a religious test cannot be used to fire a public servant," Cortman said yesterday (Feb. 18) in a press conference moments after the lawsuit was filed at the state capitol. The federal civil rights lawsuit against the city of Atlanta and Mayor Kasim Reed is necessary "in order to protect not only [Cochran's] Constitutional rights, but everyone else's Constitutional rights of free speech and the free exercise of religion," Cortman said. Cochran was suspended in late November and ordered to undergo sensitivity training after a section of the book he self-published, "Who Told You That You Were Naked?", was found offensive for including sections from the Bible that described marriage as being between one man and one woman. He was later terminated by Reed in early January. Cortman quoted Atlanta City Councilman Alex Wan, a leader of the move to remove Cochran, who told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that "when you're a city employee and [your] thoughts, beliefs, and opinions are different from the city's, you have to check them at the door." Cortman said, "That should be a startling statement to all of us." Reaching the U.S. Capitol Cochran's case has now spread beyond Atlanta. On Feb. 10, a letter from several members of the Georgia delegation to Washington called on Reed to reinstate Cochran. The letter signed by Republican Representatives Barry Loudermilk, Buddy Carter, Lynn Westmoreland, Tom Price, Austin Scott, and Jody Hice describe Reed's actions as "violat[ing] fundamental principles of free speech and religious freedom" and that "... in terminating [Cochran], the City of Atlanta itself engaged in an act of discrimination, and worse, did so on the basis of religious beliefs." Calling Reed "a man I continue to respect," Cochran told gathered media that during his 34-year career he had a personal mission "to treat everyone in the communities in which I've served and the members of the departments in which I have served with dignity, with respect, and with equity." Cochran said not only did he value every person he served as a firefighter and fire chief, but "would gladly lay down my life in service to save another life" for anyone regardless of opinion or demographic "because that's what firefighters do." An investigation into Cochran's leadership over his career found no cases or even accusations of discrimination. As a child in Shreveport, La., Cochran observed firefighters extinguishing a blaze that had consumed a shack nearby and similar to the one he shared with his mother and siblings. He pursued the career, achieving that goal in 1981 before becoming fire chief in 1999. Cochran would be named Atlanta fire chief in 2008, holding the position until the following year, when he was appointed U.S. fire administrator by President Obama. An ADF press release stated that in 2014 Mayor Reed said in his State of the City address how in 2010 he "begged" Cochran to return to Atlanta. Cochran did with the city council's unanimous approval to serve as fire chief. In 2012, Fire Chief magazine named him "Fire Chief of the Year." Cochran is a member of Elizabeth Baptist Church in Atlanta, affiliated with the Georgia Baptist Convention. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Bible Study: February 22, 2015 by Staff/LifeWay Christian Resources Date: February 19, 2015 - Thursday NASHVILLE (BP) -- This weekly Bible study appears in Baptist Press in a partnership with LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention. Through its Leadership and Adult Publishing team, LifeWay publishes Sunday School curricula and additional resources for all age groups. This week's Bible study is adapted from the Explore the Bible curriculum. Bible Passage: Nehemiah 10:28-39 Discussion Questions: What distractions cause a person to get derailed in their spiritual life? What steps should we take to avoid potential spiritual distractions? Food for Thought: While driving home from work, your mobile phone buzzes, beeps or sings to let you know you have a message. The temptation is too much, and you check to see who sent the message before reading it. In that very moment, the car in front of you slows down, and you tap them in the back. The police officer and the driver you tapped are not impressed by who texted you. National campaigns emphasize the dangers of texting and driving. Apps are available that can send reply messages to help eliminate the distraction. Driving safely requires us to minimize the distractions. Nehemiah was well aware of the dangers of distractions. The distractions that concerned him were far greater than texting and driving. The people of Israel had allowed themselves to get sidetracked in the past for allowing spiritual distractions. They married people who worshiped idols. They built business partnerships with people who did not honor God in their practices. Nehemiah called on the people who returned to Jerusalem to commit to avoiding the potential distractions that could compromise their loyalty to God (Nehemiah 10:29). They worshiped God through their obedience. When we think about our spiritual lives today, we must also consider the potential distractions. We may get involved in some good things, but those good things may get in the way of our full loyalty to God. These distractions may be different for each one of us based on our weakness and the area in which we are most tempted. As God reveals these potential spiritual distractions, we must be willing to take the actions needed to minimize them. Just like silencing the phone when driving, we must silence anything that calls our attention away from the commitment we have made to God. Nehemiah called on the people of his day to declare their commitment in a public way. We can share our commitment with others in our Bible study groups as a way to solidify our resolve to remain focused on Him. Explore the Bible Explore the Bible is an ongoing Bible study curriculum that helps groups dig into the key truths of each Bible book, while keeping the group on pace to study through the Bible books in a systematic way. More information can be found at www.LifeWay.com/ExploreTheBible. Other ongoing Bible study options for all ages offered by LifeWay can be found at www.LifeWay.com/SundaySchool. -------------------------------------------------------------------- FROM THE SEMINARIES: Convocations at GGBTS & SBTS by Staff Date: February 19, 2015 - Thursday EDITOR'S NOTE: "From the Seminaries" includes news releases of interest from Southern Baptist seminaries. Iorg says ministry leaders are called to lead change By Tyler Sanders MILL VALLEY, Calif. (GGBTS) -- Ministry leaders are called to lead change, which is often difficult for the people going through those changes, said Jeff Iorg, President of Golden Gate Seminary, in a convocation address on Feb. 2, 2015. There is a key difference between change and transition, said Iorg. Change is the new set of facts -- new locations, responsibilities and procedures. Transition is the emotional and spiritual process people work through to adjust to change. "The biggest mistake ministry leaders make during major change is confusing change with transition," Iorg said. "Because change is painful, as a ministry leader you are responsible to lead people through transition during major change in your future ministry settings." Iorg preached from Acts 20:17-38, using Paul's announcement of imminent changes in his relationship with the church in Ephesus to illustrate how to interpret, mitigate and manage change processes in ministry. In his application, Iorg said students have a unique opportunity to learn about leadership in major change by observing how the school is proceeding through the relocation process of its primary campus to Ontario, Calif. In the passage, Paul believed God led him to leave Ephesus, and the elders of the Ephesian church were now being called to take full leadership responsibility for their church. Iorg pointed out the importance of discerning God's will through supernatural circumstances, though great care must be taken to avoid misinterpretation to validate only what we hope should happen. "There are five clear ways God has intervened to confirm we are following His direction in this relocation," Iorg said. First, the school received governmental approval for the conditional use permit for the Ontario campus several weeks ahead of schedule, despite the often slow process of property development in California. Second, there has been virtually no opposition to the relocation from constituents. Third, a special gift of $850,000 for church planting scholarships was recently given to the school by a first-time donor after our initial relocation announcement. Fourth, enrollment continues to hold steady. Though there has been a slight drop at the Northern California Campus, the rest of the system has balanced this with offsetting growth. Fifth, a church donated land valued at $2.9 million for the new Bay Area Campus in Fremont, Calif., which is due to open in fall 2016. In light of the changes the Seminary is facing, Iorg described ways students can learn to lead in spite of and because of painful change. "From the beginning of our change process, we have implemented strategies to help manage the transition process -- your emotional and spiritual response to the change -- as well as implement the organizational changes we are making," Iorg said. He continued, "While we can't eliminate the grief associated with transition through major change, we can provide a framework for processing it." Iorg listed the ways Golden Gate Seminary has been dealing with the transition including accurate communication of time-sensitive topics, personal attention from executive leaders for all staff members, generous severance and continuance policies, customized graduation paths for students and transparent dialogue sessions with faculty, staff and students. Iorg concluded the convocation by reiterating an earlier statement about the difficulty of the phase of the relocation the school is currently experiencing. "The middle of any transition is the toughest part. We are now moving through that phase," he said. A full recording of Dr. Iorg’s message is available at http://www.ggbts.edu/news.aspx?item=184. The complete manuscript is also available for download. Mohler emphasizes ethnic diversity as gospel imperative By Andrew J.W. Smith LOUISVILLE, Ky. (SBTS) -- Ethnic diversity is part of God's purpose for humanity and the reflection of the fullness of his gospel plan, said R. Albert Mohler Jr., president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, during his Feb. 3 convocation address. "Diversity isn't an accident and isn't a problem, but instead is a sign of God's providence and God's promise," Mohler said in his address, "The Table of the Nations, The Tower of Babel, and the Marriage Supper of the Lamb: Ethnic Diversity and the Radical Vision of the Gospel of Jesus Christ." "If the church gets this wrong, we are not getting race and ethnic difference wrong -- we are getting the Gospel wrong," he said. "We cannot obey the Great Commission without celebrating the glory of the new humanity that only Christ can create." Mohler said the Gospel story is pitted against secular worldviews competing for cultural primacy. The modern story of multiculturalism, the cosmopolitan story of pluralism, the story of radical individualism, and the demonic story of racism all grapple with the gospel story of Jesus Christ revealed in the pages of Scripture, he said. "For Christians," Mohler said, "the question comes back to the one asked of Jesus by a lawyer: 'Who is my neighbor?'" Only the message of real hope, rooted in a Christological interpretation of the whole Bible, can overturn the false stories that harm our world, Mohler said. This Gospel "counter story" offers a lens through which Christians can make sense of tragedies like those in recent months in Ferguson, Missouri and Paris, he said. Employing a biblical-theological reading of the Table of the Nations text paired with the story of the Tower of Babel in Genesis 10-11, Mohler observed that the Bible emphasizes the common descent of all humanity from an historical Adam and an historical Noah. After the Flood, three lines from the three sons of Noah compose the whole of humanity into 70 nations. At the Tower of Babel, these descendants are dispersed throughout the earth because of their disobedience, though Mohler carefully noted the precise nature of their sin. While God had ordered Adam to "fill the earth and subdue it" in Genesis 1:28, in Genesis 11 Adam's descendants built a tower in defiance of God's command. By creating language barrier at Babel, God was condemning their sin and restricting their communion. The divine judgment, Mohler said, was no difference or dispersion, but confusion. Far from countering God's intended purpose for humanity, Mohler said, the dispersion was actually in fulfillment of His plan from the beginning. In the Abrahamic Covenant, God's purpose in blessing "all the nations of the earth" (Gen 12:3) is introduced, and the international program of God is fulfilled in the life of Jesus, the apostolic founding of the church, and the final victory of God at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. "Repentance and the forgiveness of sins are to be proclaimed in Fis name to all nations," Mohler said. "Common humanity, common ancestry, common story, common need of forgiveness of sins, and common singular hope in Christ. Out of many nations, one new humanity." Pernicious misinterpretations of the biblical story perpetuate racism, Mohler said, as there is nothing mentioned in the Table of Nations or the Tower of Babel about skin color or physical difference between people. The differences between cultures and people groups are to be celebrated and enhanced by the biblical story. It is only sin that sprouts racism and ethnocentricity, he said. "To be human is to be ethnic," Mohler said. "[Diversity] is not overcome by the Gospel but glorified by the Gospel." Before Mohler's address, three professors elected to the faculty during the fall trustee meeting signed the Abstract of Principles during convocation. The Abstract is the doctrinal statement of Southern Seminary. The professors signed the original document drafted and signed by founding faculty including James Petigru Boyce, John A. Broadus, Basil Manly Jr. along with every subsequent faculty member of the school. Signee numbers 251-253 of the Abstract were Denny Burk, professor of biblical studies at Boyce College; Adam W. Greenway, William Walker Brookes associate professor of Evangelism and Applied Apologetics and dean of the Billy Graham School of Missions, Evangelism and Ministry; and Donald S. Whitney, professor of biblical spirituality and associate dean of the School of Theology. Mohler also recognized Michael Pohlman, who recently was appointed as assistant professor of Christian preaching. Audio and video of convocation can be found at sbts.edu/resources. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Obamacare prompts church to close day care by Erin Roach/Southern Baptist TEXAN Date: February 19, 2015 - Thursday LONGVIEW, Texas (BP) -- A church is closing the day care center it has operated for more than 30 years in response to requirements imposed by the Obama administration's Affordable Care Act (also known as Obamacare"). Mobberly Baptist Church in Longview, Texas, said in a statement on its website, Feb. 12, that closing the day care "comes with much sorrow" and follows months of Mobberly staff "praying, researching and discussing the issue." Under the health care law, employers that meet a certain employee count threshold must provide full-time workers with comprehensive health insurance. Although the number of full-time Mobberly Child Development Center workers falls below the threshold, the day care is part of the church and the federal government includes church staff and day care workers when accounting for the total number of employees. So the day care, which serves newborns through age 5, will close March 13. Church leaders spent considerable time praying and evaluating options. In order to comply with the new regulations and keep the day care open, leaders determined there were four main options. The Child Development Center could increase tuition to cover the cost of additional insurance, but they realized the increase would mean most of the families that currently send children to the center would no longer be able to afford the service. Also, Mobblery's day care would not remain comparably priced to local day care centers that do not exceed the ACA threshold. Another option was to separate the Child Development Center from the church as its own corporation in order to reduce the total number of employees. The church consulted two nonprofit attorneys, according to the statement, who advised against that option for several reasons, including a loss of property tax exemption, loss of control and the possibility of the Internal Revenue Service ignoring the restructuring. A third option, the church said, was to reduce the number of teachers and classrooms at the day care, but teacher/student ratios are subject to state regulations, and "the past historical quality of the CDC was built around the teacher/student ratios used." The fourth option cited by leaders was to reduce the number of full-time Child Development Center teachers. "Utilizing primarily part-time teachers has been tried by CDC leadership in the past and has led to instability and higher staff turnover," Mobberly's statement said. "We are aware of one other large day care operation that attempted to utilize only part-time teachers recently, and they have now changed their philosophy and hired multiple full-time teachers." Gregg Zackary, Mobberly's senior associate pastor, told the TEXAN the Child Development Center operates under its own budget and its own leadership. "The church does have a Child Development Center committee that oversees it in terms of big picture, and because of that link we do have some control," Zackary said. "But it has its own director; it pays its own salaries; it pays most of its expenses." Workers at the center care for about 120 full-time students and about 40 after-school students. The church provides space for the day care and does not charge for utilities or cleaning, Zackary said, "But in terms of their supplies and their workers and any insurance, it operates on its own budget." Zackary said his survey of other day care centers in Longview led him to believe Mobberly is not unique to not provide health insurance for employees. However, those centers are not affected because they do not exceed the total employee threshold. The decision to close the day care has caused displeasure among parents who have placed children there. "They've expressed their sadness because their kids got excellent care," Zackary said, "and they're disappointed that the Child Development Center has to close." Most families already have been able to find alternative care for their children, Zackary said. The closure also has affected the center's workers, including some who have served there for 20 years or more. "We're very saddened that they're impacted," Zackary said. "We have been able to work through the Child Development Center's budget to provide severance for those workers based on their tenure and their pay rate to help ease the transition for them as they look for new jobs." Many of the workers already have been hired at other centers, Zackary said. Though Mobberly Baptist is losing its influence on countless young lives, Zackary said the main mission of the church -- to lead people to a life-changing relationship with Jesus Christ -- has not changed. "This doesn't impede us from continuing to fulfill our mission in many different ways," he said. "Our goal is to continue the mission the Lord has given his church." -------------------------------------------------------------------- Moore: Pray for ISIS' defeat, salvation by Tom Strode Date: February 19, 2015 - Thursday NASHVILLE (BP) -- Prayers for both the defeat of and the salvation of Islamic State terrorists are not contradictory, Southern Baptists' lead ethicist says. Christians should "pray for the Gospel to go forward, and that there might be a new Saul of Tarsus turned away from murdering to Gospel witness," wrote Russell Moore, president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, in a Wednesday (Feb. 18) blog post. "At the same time, we ought to pray, with the martyrs in heaven, for justice against those who do such wickedness." Prayers for both the defeat of such enemies and their conversion to Christ "are not contradictory prayers because salvation doesn't mean turning an eye away from justice," he said. "We can pray for Gospel rootedness in the Middle East, and we can pray to light up their world like the Fourth of July, at the same time." Moore's comments came three days after the release of a video showing the apparent beheadings of 21 Egyptians -- all, or nearly all, Coptic Christians -- in Libya by members of the Islamic State. Many news reports said all were Coptic Christians, while National Public Radio reported one of the victims was not. Text that accompanied the video is addressed to "The people of the cross, followers of the hostile Egyptian church," according to news reports. The beheadings appear to demonstrate the Islamic State's terrorism is spreading beyond Iraq and Syria. The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) is carrying out a murderous campaign in those countries to establish a militant Muslim regime in the Middle East. The Sunni Muslim terrorists that largely make up ISIS have executed, driven from their homes, abducted, tortured, enslaved or forced into marriages hundreds of thousands of Christians and other minorities, as well as moderate Muslims. On Feb. 11, President Obama requested congressional authorization for limited use of American armed forces to defeat ISIS. The terrorists in the video released Feb. 15 are identified with a Libyan group that allied itself with the Islamic State last year, The Wall Street Journal reported. Frank S. Page, president of the Southern Baptist Executive Committee, said in comments for Baptist Press, "It has been said that those who were executed by [the Islamic State] were citizens of Egypt. While I certainly did not know any of them individually and do not know their hearts, they were self-proclaimed citizens of the Kingdom and followers of Christ. "It is my prayer that Christ stood to welcome them into the Kingdom as He did for the martyr Stephen," Page said, referencing the early Christian whose stoning death is recorded in Acts 7. Like Moore, Ronnie Floyd, president of the Southern Baptist Convention, offered a two-fold approach to Islamic terrorism. "Unquestionably and undeniably, the No. 1 need and the No. 1 hope in this world is the Gospel of Jesus Christ," Floyd said Feb. 16 in addressing the semi-annual SBC Executive Committee meeting. "And our No. 1 goal that should never ever be compromised is to penetrate and push back the lostness in this world. "Simultaneously, we must speak for those who are unable to speak up for themselves tonight." Southern Baptists "need to stand for the children, the women and the men who are being brutalized and abused and murdered globally, all in the name of religion," and they need to challenge America's leaders also to stand for the victims, Floyd said. "We need to champion, as Southern Baptists, religious liberty globally." He urged Executive Committee members to call on their churches "to join in this valiant effort of deep prayer for men and women and children who are being abused and murdered in all kinds of ways." In his blog post, Moore said Christians feel prayer for the defeat of the Islamic State and for the salvation of its members is contradictory primarily because "we sometimes forget that we are called to be a people of both justice and justification, and that these two are not contradictory." The Islamic State "is raping, enslaving, beheading, crucifying our brothers and sisters in Christ, as well as other innocent people," he wrote. "To not pray for swift action against them is to not care about what Jesus said we should seek, what we should hunger and thirst for, for justice. A world in which murderous gangs commit genocide without penalty is not a 'merciful' world but an unjust horror show." The Gospel of Jesus "does not say, 'Don't worry about it; it's okay,'" Moore said. "The Gospel points us to the cross where sin is absorbed in a substitute. God's righteous condemnation of sin is there. He does not, and cannot, enable wickedness. And God's mercy is there in that he is the One who sends his Son as the propitiation for sin. "The Gospel doesn't leave sin unpunished. Every sin is punished, either at the Place of the Skull, in Christ, or in the judgment of hell, on one's own." In this case, Christians "not only have the common grace standing of caring about stopping murder and injustice, rooted in the image of God and the law written on the heart," he wrote. "We also have the personal implication here. It's our household being wiped out in the Middle East, the very place where our church started. For us, this isn't a matter of 'they;' it's a matter of 'us.'" In a Feb. 18 news release, Moore announced the ERLC's Leadership Summit on racial reconciliation March 26-27 will include addresses about understanding and evangelizing Muslims. Afshin Ziafat, pastor of Providence Church in Frisco, Texas, will speak in both the plenary and breakout sessions. He grew up in a family of Iranian immigrants in Texas. The Egyptians who supposedly were beheaded by the Islamic State were working in Libya because of the unavailability of jobs in their home country, according to news reports. They had been kidnapped by the terrorists several weeks before their execution. Christians make up about 10 percent of Egypt's population of 85.3 million, according to a 2013 estimate by the U.S. State Department. About 80 percent of Egypt's Christians belong to the Coptic Orthodox Church, but the word Copts sometimes is used to include evangelicals and Catholics. In the Fifth Century, the Christian Church divided over Christology, with the Coptic Orthodox rejected as "believers in Christ's one nature to the point of denying his humanity," according to Christianity Today. The Coptic Orthodox now reject the notion they are heretics but believe Christ's human and divine nature make up a single nature, Christianity Today reported. About 200,000 Coptic Christians live in the United States, according to a 2012 report by Christianity Today. -------------------------------------------------------------------- 'Inclusive' Ala. church may be disfellowshipped by David Roach Date: February 19, 2015 - Thursday HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (BP) -- The officers of an Alabama Baptist association have recommended that the association's executive board withdraw fellowship from a church whose leaders have given their pastor freedom to perform same-sex weddings. The Madison Baptist Association in Huntsville said in a written statement released to Baptist Press that Weatherly Heights Baptist Church, also in Huntsville, is in violation of a section in the association's bylaws that defines marriage as "a union between one man and one woman." Associational officers met with representatives of the congregation Feb. 17, prompted by media reports that Weatherly Heights' volunteer, unpaid minister to the community, Ellin Jimmerson, intended to perform a same-sex wedding. The meeting led to a recommendation by the officers that the association's executive board withdraw fellowship from Weatherly Heights at the board's March 5 meeting. Weatherly Heights -- which describes itself on its website as "an inclusive, discovering fellowship" -- confirmed to BP Feb. 10 that Jimmerson had performed at least one same-sex wedding. According to the Madison Association's statement, "As the meeting between leaders progressed it became evident that there would be no agreement on this issue concerning same sex marriage, and that the Association's Constitution & By-Laws, with relation to this issue, would not be adhered to. Thus, the General Officers of the Madison Baptist Association are making a recommendation to the Executive Board that Weatherly Heights Baptist Church be dismissed from membership in the Madison Baptist Association." The Madison Association's bylaws state, "Marriage is a union between one man and one woman, following biblical principles ... God sanctions only the union in marriage of a man to a woman." The association's constitution defines "the latest revision adopted by the Southern Baptist Convention" of the Baptist Faith and Message as the "Biblical doctrines which churches of this body hold in common." The BF&M defines marriage as "the uniting of one man and one woman in covenant commitment for a lifetime" and states that Christians should oppose "all forms of sexual immorality, including adultery, homosexuality, and pornography." Weatherly Heights Pastor David Freeman called the meeting with Madison Association officers "cordial" and said in written comments to BP, "MBA representatives determined that my beliefs about homosexuality and same sex marriage fall outside the positions adopted in the association's bylaws." Freeman added, "If our church is dismissed, I will be saddened. My Baptist roots run deep. My tent is big enough to include people who disagree with me on these issues. I hope their tent will be big enough to include me. If we are dismissed by the MBA, we have options for mission and ministry engagement with other Baptist bodies." In an email to the Weatherly Heights congregation following his meeting with associational leaders, Freeman speculated that the church will be disfellowshipped. "I emphasized that our church has not formed a position on these matters," Freeman wrote regarding homosexuality, according to WHNT news in Huntsville. "Members of our church are free to form their own positions. My positions are mine alone." Freeman argued in a 2013 sermon that "adult, loving, monogamous, same-sex relationships are not condemned in the Bible," according to a printed version of the sermon on the church's website. Freeman wrote in the Feb. 10 edition of Weatherly Heights' newsletter that the congregation's leaders had given him "the freedom to officiate a same sex marriage." In related news, Freeman told BP that he has also "had a cordial conversation with [Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions Executive Director] Rick Lance." The Alabama Baptist Convention has not taken any official action related to Weatherly Heights. Lance told BP in a written statement, "We have full confidence in the leadership of the Madison Baptist Association, and we are assured that they are handling this situation in the proper Biblical way. Our position is that any church that allows staff members to perform marriage ceremonies for same-sex couples has demonstrated that they are no longer in like-minded fellowship and friendly cooperation with Alabama Baptists and Southern Baptists. "We have publicly stated that this position, concerning the Biblical definition of marriage between one man and one woman, is a non-negotiable basic belief among the overwhelming majority of Southern Baptists," Lance said. The SBC has not taken action related to Weatherly Heights either. However, SBC Executive Committee Executive Vice President D. August Boto told BP regarding the Huntsville congregation, "Although such cases are rare, when they have happened, it has usually been the case that the various bodies in Southern Baptist life -- including the association, state convention and SBC -- have viewed the facts similarly and have taken similar courses of action. This is because most Southern Baptists generally do not differ on the authority of Scripture." Boto added, "In such cases, when the national convention has examined the facts, it has considered the collective view of the entire church body more determinative than the view of any individual member, including the pastor." Article III of the SBC Constitution states, "Among churches not in cooperation with the Convention are churches which act to affirm, approve, or endorse homosexual behavior." -------------------------------------------------------------------- Jeffress: ISIS requires heavy U.S. response by Erin Roach Date: February 19, 2015 - Thursday NEW YORK (BP) -- The United States must do "whatever is necessary -- including boots on the ground -- to eradicate this cancer of ISIS and radical Islam before it destroys us," Southern Baptist pastor Robert Jeffress said on "The O'Reilly Factor" Feb. 17. Jeffress, pastor of First Baptist Church in Dallas, contended on the Fox News program hosted by Bill O'Reilly that President Obama is "continually lecturing us that we're not in a religious war against Islam." "While that's true, it's time for this president to get off his high horse and acknowledge that radical Islam is in a religious war against us," Jeffress said. Until Americans understand they're targets in a war, they won't grasp the dangers ahead, he warned. "These Islamists will not rest until they've exterminated every Jew and every Christian from the face of the earth, and if you think that is hyperbole, just listen to what they said on that Libyan beach after they butchered those 21 Christians," Jeffress said. ISIS, in a video titled "A Message Signed with Blood to the Nation of the Cross" released Feb. 16, beheaded a group of Egyptian Coptic Christians and said they intend to conquer Rome next. "While Rome may be their next stop, I guarantee you it won't be their final stop," Jeffress said. "They're coming after every one of us as well if we don't stop them now." O'Reilly said Obama seems to be downplaying the threat of ISIS to the United States. He asked Jeffress to surmise why. "I think part of it is the influence of Islam on his own life," Jeffress said. "He sees radical Islam as a tiny minority, and while that's true, a powerful minority is much more potent than a passive majority." Rather than acknowledging that ISIS is a branch of Islam, Obama seems to hope that if he ignores or contains the threat it will go away, Jeffress said. "This is not going away," the pastor said. Jeffress said he believes in the prophecies of the Bible, "that things are going to get worse before the Lord returns, but that is no excuse for fatalism, and I believe that Christians ought to be on the forefront of fighting this evil, and this is unmitigated evil -- burning people alive." Jeffress called on Christians everywhere to "demand that this president do whatever is necessary -- including boots on the ground -- to eradicate this cancer of ISIS and radical Islam before it destroys us." O'Reilly noted that Obama, in a statement condemning the beheadings, referred to the victims only as Egyptian citizens rather than acknowledging that Muslims brutalized Christians. "These weren't activists or soldiers or anything like that," O'Reilly said of the Christians. "They were poor people who went from Egypt to Libya to try to make a buck for their family, and [ISIS] rounded them up and they cut their heads off." Also appearing on the show was Gerald Murray of Holy Family Catholic Church in New York, who said Pope Francis "will continue to say that the West has a duty to protect the innocent and fight this." O'Reilly lamented a lack of moral leadership regarding ISIS. "A cohesive moral leadership does not exist on this earth," he said. Reiterating Jeffress' call for Christians to demand action, O'Reilly said, "I think all Christians, Jews and secularists who love their country and want to protect humanity should email and call the White House and say, 'Enough.'" O'Reilly also called on "every pastor, every priest, every rabbi and every imam" in the country to address the matter with their congregations this week by saying, "We people of good faith have to tell our leader to get in gear." In related news: -- President Obama, during a summit on countering violent extremism at the White House Feb. 18, said "many Muslim Americans are worried and afraid." He emphasized that ISIS leaders "try to portray themselves as religious leaders -- holy warriors in defense of Islam" but "they are not religious leaders. They're terrorists." The president said no religion is responsible for terrorism. "People are responsible for violence and terrorism," he said. Obama rejected the notion that terrorists like ISIS genuinely represent Islam, and he said Muslim Americans are "most targeted and potentially most affected" by the threat of violent extremism. "Muslim Americans protect our communities as police officers and firefighters and first responders and protect our nation by serving in uniform and in our intelligence communities and in homeland security," Obama said. "And in cemeteries across our country, including at Arlington, Muslim American heroes rest in peace, having given their lives in defense of all of us. And of course that's the story extremists and terrorists don't want the world to know -- Muslims succeeding and thriving in America." -- Evangelist Franklin Graham, in comments posted on Facebook Feb. 16, asked, "Can you imagine the outcry if 21 Muslims had been beheaded by Christians? Where is the universal condemnation by Muslim leaders around the world?" Graham added, "As we mourn with the families of those 21 martyrs, we'd better take this warning seriously as these acts of terror will only spread throughout Europe and the United States." In a subsequent post, Graham said the evil of ISIS "shouldn't shock us." "God's Word tells us that there will be a final battle one day, but it will result in the defeat of Satan and all those allied with him," Graham wrote. "One thing is for sure -- one day every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." -- Columnist Peggy Noonan wrote in The Wall Street Journal that President Obama "has been way out of sync with American public opinion on Islamic State." "The president's long-reigning assumption is that a war-weary public has grown more isolationist," Noonan wrote last fall. "But ... more than 6 in 10 back moving militarily against Islamic State." She credited Christian news outlets including "the Baptist press" with informing Americans of the atrocities committed by ISIS against Christians in the Middle East. "The anguish and indignation of American Christians at what is being done, by Islamic State, to their brothers and sisters in faith is surely part of the reason Americans are backing U.S. action against the terror group," Noonan wrote. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Court rules against florist for refusing gay wedding by Staff Date: February 19, 2015 - Thursday UPDATED, Feb. 19, 6:20 p.m., with new 7th paragraph quoting Russell Moore of SBC Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission. KENNEWICK, Wash. (BP) -- The Alliance Defending Freedom will appeal a Washington state judge's ruling against a 70-year-old Christian florist and grandmother who refused to provide flowers for a gay wedding. Barronelle Stutzman, owner of Arlene's Flowers in Richland, Wash., violated a gay couple's constitutional rights and state laws, according to Benton County Superior Court Judge Alexander Ekstrom, when Stutzman refused to provide flowers for the couple. Ekstrom's summary judgment Feb. 18 also stipulates that Stutzman must fulfill all future floral requests for wedding ceremonies that violate her Christian faith. The judgment follows Ekstrom's Jan. 7 ruling holding Stutzman personally liable for damages against the plaintiffs, as well as their attorney's fees, putting Stutzman in danger of losing her business and personal holdings. Both the state of Washington and the gay couple, Robert Ingersoll and Curt Freed, who have since married, sued Stutzman for the March 2013 incident. In her defense, Stutzman had cited a Southern Baptist Convention resolution upholding the biblical model of marriage, according to the judge's ruling. "Stutzman has a firmly held religious belief, based on her adherence to the principles of her Christian faith, that marriage can only be between a man and a woman," Ekstrom wrote in the factual background section of the ruling. "Specifically as part of the Southern Baptist tradition, Stutzman asserts that she is compelled to follow Resolutions of the Southern Baptist Convention Resolutions (sic) (hereinafter Resolutions of SBC). Those resolutions include both a definition of marriage that excludes same-sex marriage, and an explicit rejection of same-sex marriage as a civil right. As a result, Stutzman asserts that she cannot participate in a same-sex wedding." Russell Moore, president of the SBC Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, said in a statement to Baptist Press, "Let's be clear about what this is. This grandmother is being threatened with the loss of her home and her savings, not because she was impeding anyone else's freedom, but simply because she could not in good conscience participate in something she believes would be morally wrong for her to do. Such bullying is neither right nor American. It ought to signal to us, once again, how imperiled liberty of conscience is." ADF senior counsel Kristen Waggoner, one of Stutzman's attorneys, termed the message of the rulings "unmistakable." "The government will bring about your personal and professional ruin if you don't help celebrate same-sex marriage," Waggoner said in a press release. "The two men had no problem getting the flowers they wanted. They received several offers for free flowers, and the marketplace gives them plenty of options. Laws that are supposed to prohibit discrimination might sound good, but the government has begun to use these laws to hurt people -- to force them to conform and to silence and punish them if they don't violate their religious beliefs on marriage." Ekstrom ruled that Stutzman violated the state's Law Against Discrimination and its Consumer Protection Act by refusing to provide flowers for the ceremony. In the future, Stutzman must provide full wedding support for same-sex ceremonies, including the custom design of ceremony decorations, delivery to the wedding venue, attending the ceremony to touch up arrangements and assisting the wedding party. Stutzman, who has said she considered Robert Ingersoll a friend, and had sold him flowers during his courtship with his current spouse, drew the line at providing flowers for his wedding. Instead, she referred him to another florist. "America would be a better place if citizens respected each others' differences and the government still protected the freedom to have those differences," Stutzman said in the ADF press release. "Instead, the government is coming after me and everything I have just because I won't live my life the way the state says I should. I just want the freedom to live and work faithfully and according to what God says about marriage without fear of punishment. Others have the freedom to say or not say what they want to about marriage, and that's all I'm asking for as well." ADF legal counsel Jonathan Scruggs said the judge's ruling violates the very law the court is charged to uphold. "The court somehow concluded that forcing Barronelle to create expression against her will does not violate her free speech and free exercise rights under the state and federal constitutions," Scruggs said. "To the contrary, this ruling ignores the pre-eminent civil right law of our nation -- the First Amendment -- and allows the state to force citizens to choose between conforming their beliefs to the state's ideology and suffering severe consequences." In a 1996 resolution on homosexual marriage, the SBC resolved, among other statements, "... because any law, or any policy or regulation supporting a law, that legalizes homosexual marriage is and must be completely and thoroughly wicked according to God's standards revealed in the Bible, we do most solemnly pledge our decision never to recognize the moral legitimacy of any such law, policy or regulation, and we affirm that, whatever the stakes (Dan. 3:17-18), we will never conform to or obey (Acts 4:19) anything required by any governing body to implement, impose or act upon any such law. So help us God." EDITOR'S NOTE: Original headline was adjusted for clarity, accuracy.