The original issue can be found at: http://www.baptistpress.com/issue-12/13/2012 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. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Mohler tells grads: Feed, guard the sheep by Craig Sanders Date: December 13, 2012 - Thursday LOUISVILLE, Ky. (BP) -- Ministers are called and charged to feed the sheep, to tend the flock, and to guard the sheep entrusted to their care, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary President R. Albert Mohler Jr. said during the seminary's winter commencement Dec. 7. The seminary awarded diplomas to 188 graduate and doctoral students. "We celebrate today the call of God in the lives of those who graduate today, and in the lives and ministries of the thousands who have preceded them across this platform -- who even now serve Christ and tend His flock to the uttermost parts of the world," Mohler said. His commencement message, "Feed My Lambs -- The Tender Courage of the Christian Ministry," focused on the special role of the pastor as a shepherd to his congregation. Mohler examined the current state of the U.S. job industry, noting that, while technology can supplant certain vocations, such is not the case with the pastor. The position of the pastor is a divine calling "to be a shepherd and to feed the flock of God." Reading from John 21:15-19, Mohler offered Peter as a model for the graduates, a disciple whose profession changed from capturing fish to nurturing sheep. Mohler then focused on Jesus as the Good Shepherd who "will tend His flock and destroy its enemies." Pastors follow this example by defending the flock from enemies of the faith and spiritual warfare. The central calling of the pastor-shepherd, Mohler said, is "to teach and preach the Word of God so that the flock of God is fed" with an important emphasis on the inerrancy and infallibility of Scripture. --30-- Craig Sanders is a writer for Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress ) and in your email ( baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp). -------------------------------------------------------------------- BIBLE STUDY: Sunday, Dec. 16, 2012 by Staff/LifeWay Christian Resources Date: December 13, 2012 - 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 curriculum and additional resources for all age groups. This week's Bible study is adapted from the YOU! curriculum. Bible Passage: 2 Corinthians 4 Discussion Questions: -- How have you observed the culture distracting people from recognizing their need for God? -- How can you help people overcome those distractions? Food for Thought: Some needs are easy to see. A man on the street holds a cardboard sign that says he needs money for food. A child with protruding ribs and glazed eyes starves. A young homeless family huddled under a bridge on a cold night needs a warm place to stay. Hundreds of people lined up outside an employment agency need jobs. Not all needs are so obvious. It's not so easy to tell when a person needs Christ. The need for Christ is a heart thing, but the bottom line is that everyone needs Him. People have been deceived by the allure of the world: money, power, fame, pleasure, you name it. We need Christ because we are perishing, and oftentimes we don't even know it. We talk a lot about perishable products that have expiration dates, such as milk, eggs, bread, canned goods. People also have expiration dates. Without Christ, they are subject to death and decay -- just like a rotten piece of produce. Even worse, they will spend eternity separated from God. In 2 Corinthians, chapter 4, Paul said the Gospel has been veiled to those who are perishing because they have been distracted. Their pursuit of non-essential things has blinded them to what they need most. He also referred to Satan as the god of this age and identified him as the source for these distractions. While Satan cannot prevent the light of the Gospel from penetrating people's lives, he can divert them. The good news is that Satan is not stronger than God and cannot stand against the truth of Scripture. Believers have been called to a ministry that opens people's eyes and transforms their character. As believers, we can share the Gospel with confidence because we don't have to do things on our own. We simply need to be faithful in sharing the message and rely on the power of Christ to change people's lives. YOU! curriculum Intentionally focused on urban and multicultural believers, YOU is biblically based with culturally relevant and affirming lessons to help people connect, grow, serve and ultimately be engaged in impacting the world for Christ. This flexible, non-dated all-in-one quarterly resource offers weekly Bible study for leaders and learners, devotionals and teaching plans as well as articles on hot topics and missions. For additional information, visit LifeWay.com/YOU. Other ongoing Bible study options offered by LifeWay for all ages can be found at LifeWay.com/SundaySchool. --30-- Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress ) and in your email ( baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp). -------------------------------------------------------------------- Bible doesn't command wealth redistribution, presenters say at theological meeting by David Roach Date: December 13, 2012 - Thursday MILWAUKEE (BP) -- Scripture does not require governments to redistribute wealth to help the poor, presenters in a session at the Evangelical Theological Society's annual meeting said this fall. "Class warfare, wealth redistribution, and socialism can, at best, make people only equally miserable," Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary professor Craig Mitchell wrote in a paper he presented during a session titled "Does God Require the State to Redistribute Wealth?" Mitchell asked, "Is it surprising that free markets, which respect property rights, maximize both producer and consumer welfare, and create wealth (rather than dividing it) are far more compatible with biblical Christianity?" The meeting, attended by more than 2,000 evangelical scholars in Milwaukee, included the election of two Southern Baptists as officers. Thomas Schreiner, a professor of New Testament interpretation at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., was elected president-elect, and Gregg Allison, professor of Christian theology at Southern, was elected secretary. Focusing on the theme "Caring for Creation," plenary session speakers at the Nov. 14-16 meeting included Russell D. Moore, senior vice president for academic administration and dean of the school of theology at Southern, and E. Calvin Beisner, founder of the Cornwall Alliance for the Stewardship of Creation. In addition to Mitchell, the session on wealth redistribution featured Scott Rae, professor of philosophy of religion and ethics at the Talbot School of Theology in La Mirada, Calif.; Art Lindsley, vice president of theological initiatives at the Institute for Faith, Work & Economics in McLean, Va.; and Wayne Grudem, research professor of theological and biblical studies at Phoenix Seminary in Arizona. Mitchell, chair of the ethics department and associate director of the Richard Land Center for Cultural Engagement at Southwestern Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas, said those who argue that the Bible requires governments to redistribute wealth often take Old Testament passages out of context. He told Baptist Press that the Land Center's website includes audio, video and printed resources on economics from a Christian perspective. God required Israelites to leave a portion of their crops in the field after harvest for the poor to gather, Mitchell said, and He instituted the Year of Jubilee, when land was returned to its original owner every 50th year. But neither Old Testament requirement means that modern governments should redistribute wealth to the poor, Mitchell said. "The laws concerning the gleaning of fields in the Pentateuch (Leviticus 19:9-10 and also Deuteronomy 24:21) require the poor to work by picking up the leftovers at the edge of the fields," Mitchell wrote. "Those who own the fields do not have their produce taken by the government and then given to the poor. Since the Old Testament extols the virtue of work and deplores the vice of laziness, the contemporary concept of wealth redistribution is alien to the Ancient Israelite conception of justice or righteousness." The Year of Jubilee was intended only for ancient Israel and has no application to modern social policy, Mitchell wrote, adding that New Testament commands on economic justice are directed toward individual believers, not governments. "The sin of covetousness all too often ends in the sin of stealing," Mitchell wrote. "Those who argue for class warfare call this stealing the redistribution of wealth. The most gentle way that this theft occurs is by taxation." Rae, in his paper, said the Bible requires all communities to create an economic "safety net" for the poor but leaves open the question of whether that safety net should be built with government or private funds. Some use of tax dollars to help the poor is legitimate and not a form of theft, Rae wrote. "Providing for those who cannot provide for themselves is certainly not a 'leveling' of wealth per se (though it is a form of redistribution), but providing a means of sustenance for those who cannot provide it for themselves," Rae wrote. "Thus I would not say that all redistribution is necessarily theft, but instead is part of the price paid for being a responsible member of the community, to which we implicitly consent by virtue of our membership in society." Still, proponents of wealth redistribution are wrong to argue that economic inequality is evil in itself, Rae wrote. God hates injustice and oppression but not mere inequality, he noted, adding that the Year of Jubilee -- a favorite topic of redistribution advocates -- did not help the poorest members of Israelite society because they did not have any land to reclaim. "It's not true to say that all inequality is the result of injustice, or that the inequalities that result from participation in the market system are necessarily unjust," Rae wrote. "Certainly when people are exploited so that someone else can make a profit, that's wrong, and we have grave problems with human trafficking and a good deal of sweatshop labor that goes on around the world. But be very careful that you don't fundamentally equate capitalism with exploitation." Lindsley, in his paper, said the Bible does not require governments to redistribute wealth and answered scriptural arguments used by redistribution advocates. The Year of Jubilee did not mean forgiveness of debt, he wrote, and it did not abolish private property. Under the jubilee system, an Israelite who owned land could sell the right to farm it until the Year of Jubilee, with the price based on the value of each year's crop and the number of years remaining until the jubilee, Lindsley said. When the Year of Jubilee arrived, the land reverted back to its original owner. "This understanding of Jubilee as the payoff of a lease is common in Old Testament commentaries," Lindsley wrote, noting that the jubilee does not provide an argument for wealth redistribution. In the New Testament, advocates of wealth redistribution refer to Acts 2-5 to support their position, Lindsley wrote, where early Christians sold their property to meet one another's needs. But such sharing did not eliminate private property and was entirely voluntary, he wrote. "These early believers contributed their goods freely, without coercion, voluntarily," Lindsley wrote. "Elsewhere in Scripture we see that Christians are even instructed to give in just this manner, freely, for 'God loves a cheerful giver' (2 Corinthians 9:7). There is plenty of indication that private property rights were still in effect (remember Barnabas, Ananias, and Sapphira). This is neither communism (abolition of private property) nor socialism (state ownership of the means of production). This was not even socialism as defined as a community-owned or regulated system." Grudem did not present a paper but distributed an outline of the Bible's teaching on wealth redistribution. He warned that "the power of government is great and therefore exceptionally dangerous." Government should provide a "safety net" for meeting basic needs like food, clothing and shelter, Grudem affirmed. "But there does not seem to be any justification in Scripture for governments seeking to attempt to equalize income or property between rich and poor, or to take from all the rich," Grudem noted. "I do not think biblical terms for 'justice' indicate such responsibility." Property in the Bible normally belongs to individuals rather than societies or governments, Grudem wrote. The command not to steal assumes private ownership of property and 1 Samuel 8 warns against a king who would take too much from the people. In the end, God's standard of "justice" requires governments to uphold His moral code, not ensure an even distribution of wealth, Grudem wrote. --30-- David Roach is a writer based in Shelbyville, Ky. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress ) and in your email ( baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp). -------------------------------------------------------------------- Hurricane changes view of N.Y. community toward faith by Erin Roach Date: December 13, 2012 - Thursday NEW YORK (BP) -- Hurricane Sandy was a tragedy in the Northeast, but God used the life-altering superstorm to change the hearts of people in Rockaway Beach, a neighborhood in Queens, New York, from totally disinterested in the Gospel to yearning for spiritual guidance. A couple of years ago, Larry Holcomb, director of Urban Impact, a ministry connected with a Southern Baptist congregation in New York, arranged for the purchase of a large old house in a rough part of Rockaway Beach, not fathoming what God would do next. After renovating the beach house, Holcomb moved in bunk beds to house short-term mission teams coming to New York to help Urban Impact reach immigrants in the city through language and job training classes. With a goal of launching Beach Church in the summer of 2013, Holcomb and others this past summer handed out about 5,000 invitations to Bible studies in Rockaway Beach. "We went door-to-door, handing them out to people," Holcomb, a former North American Mission Board church planter, told Baptist Press. "We got less than a dozen responses. Through that, from the surrounding community, maybe five people had come to Bible study. So that was a ratio of 5 to 5,000. We knew it was a hard neighborhood. People don't have the time or the interest in spiritual things. "But after the tragedy, we've handed out thousands of tracts and Bibles, and people eagerly say, 'Can I have this?' 'Can you please give me this? I need this guidance.' They're asking us for prayer and saying, 'Can you please come to my house?' "It has really turned around the spiritual openness of the neighborhood, and where before we were slaving away to find someone who had any interest, now the problem is, How can we possibly have time to address these hundreds and hundreds who are asking us to help them understand the Bible and get closer to God?" Holcomb said. Hot meals and supplies When Sandy hit, the beach house lost power along with most others on Rockaway Beach. It also sustained some water damage. Holcomb realized in the immediate aftermath of the storm that "there was no Red Cross, no FEMA, no church here." So he called his staff at Urban Impact and said, "You won't see me for at least a few weeks," as he aimed to repair the beach house and help as many other people as he could. Rockaway Beach is home to about 40,000 people, and there are two Catholic churches and one church "that's not evangelical or biblical by any means," Holcomb said. "That's it. That's all we have." Two days after the storm upended Rockaway Beach, Holcomb and "a hodge-podge of totally unrelated people" began giving hot meals and basic supplies to hurting people in the unchurched community. After repairing the centrally-located beach house, it became a makeshift relief center. Before the storm, Holcomb had approached the landlord of a nearby warehouse about the possibility of renting the space as a location for future worship services. The landlord was not necessarily warm to the idea. After the storm, the landlord's property had sustained some damage, and Holcomb led a team of volunteers to pump out the whole building, saving him thousands of dollars. "He called us back and said, 'Hey, you know, about renting, I'll be glad to do that. I'm going to see if I can cut you a deal.' That's locked in, and now we've got a space just a few blocks from the beach house that's a warehouse," Tom Richter, pastor of New Hope Christian Church, a Southern Baptist congregation in Flushing, N.Y., told Baptist Press. Holcomb planted New Hope, and he and Richter minister together in the area. "The landlord, I don't even think he's a believer, but he's been so moved by all this," Richter said. Holcomb and the others moved their relief supplies, ranging from diapers to dog food to canned goods, from the beach house to the warehouse, and the ministry to the community has flourished. "It's going to be a church, but right now it's a relief center for Hurricane Sandy in a much larger space," Richter said. "We're able to focus on doing good in the community beyond the hurricane. Now people know us. They know that there are Christians down there that care and they'll be able to get help long-term. "In the midst of all of this, we've been meeting families and connecting. Some folks come for some diapers and some canned goods and you hook them up and that's it. Other folks say, 'I could use some help cleaning out my basement,'" Richter said. Church on the horizon As relationships developed, Holcomb invited about 50 people to a Thanksgiving dinner in the warehouse and was able to connect with them on a more personal level. "We hope many of them will form the core group of this new church," Richter said. "I get pretty excited thinking about in the midst of this disaster God all along is being glorified. In this case a church had been on our hearts, but now it's going to happen sooner." Holcomb spoke of a middle-aged man named Bobby who lives a few doors down from the beach house. Bobby's house was totally washed out by the storm. Though the walls were still standing, nothing of value was left inside. Holcomb began ministering to him right away. "He was unemployed at the time, so he started volunteering with us every day," Holcomb said of Bobby. "He asked a lot of questions about why we do things and commented on how great it is that people care and really help. We found out that he was a Muslim man -- American, but Muslim. He had some experience with the church as a kid. He grew up in America. His parents are American. But he turned away. "He hasn't converted, but every day he comes to visit and to volunteer for at least two hours to help other people," Holcomb said. "He has said, 'As soon as you start your Bible study and prayer meetings, I will be there every time.' That's the kind of progress we've made with many people in the neighborhood." The opportunities to change lives like Bobby's abound in Rockaway Beach, Holcomb said. Holcomb and his fellow volunteers, made up largely of people from other states who have traveled to the region for disaster relief, have struggled to keep up with the physical needs of people there, and next they hope to enlist New York-area volunteers and focus on meeting spiritual needs. The Northeast, Holcomb said, is not like the South where after a hurricane churches are there to address long-term spiritual needs. "The thing that people don't realize is in an area like we are, there are no evangelical churches," he said. "I don't mean Southern Baptist. I mean there are no evangelical churches in our neighborhood of 40,000 people within a 10-block radius." Holcomb, who moved to New York 20 years ago as a church planter after graduating from Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary, requested that Southern Baptists pray "that churches will be there to follow up and disciple people" in Rockaway Beach long after the disaster relief work is over. "Something like this gives us that opportunity where people are open and eager to have a church," Holcomb said. "This gives us the opportunity not just to hand out some food, not just to help people with their houses, but an eternal destiny. We can now establish something through this tragedy that will be in the community for a long time but better than that will see people saved and discipled and can carry on to win the whole region." --30-- Erin Roach is assistant editor of Baptist Press. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress ) and in your email ( baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp). -------------------------------------------------------------------- Student expelled over beliefs wins settlement by Staff Date: December 13, 2012 - Thursday WASHINGTON (BP) -- Eastern Michigan University has agreed to settle a lawsuit filed by a graduate counseling student whom it expelled after she declined to affirm the "sexual orientation" of a homosexual client because of her Christian beliefs. A federal judge dismissed the case Dec. 10 after Eastern Michigan (EMU) and Julea Ward agreed to a settlement. EMU agreed to pay her $75,000, saying it did not want to continue spending money on an expensive trial. It also removed the expulsion from her record, according to Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), which represented Ward in the suit. The settlement followed by nearly 11 months a win by Ward at the federal appeals court level. A three-judge panel of the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati, Ohio, unanimously overturned a federal court's summary judgment that was in favor of EMU. The judges sent the case back to the federal judge for a trial, saying a "reasonable jury" could find Ward did not breach a code of ethics and the school violated her "religious views and speech." ADF is pleased Ward and "her constitutionally protected rights have been vindicated," said a spokesman for the legal organization. "Public universities shouldn't force students to violate their religious beliefs to get a degree. The 6th Circuit rightly understood this and ruled appropriately, so the university has done the right thing in settling this case," ADF Senior Legal Counsel Jeremy Tedesco said in a written release. The school, meanwhile, said the settlement enables it to maintain the requirements in its counseling program. "The resolution of the lawsuit leaves the University's policies, programs, and curricular requirements intact," said Walter Kraft, EMU's vice president for communications, in a written statement. " Ward had only four classes remaining at EMU when she entered in 2009 a required practicum that consisted of one-on-one counseling, according to the Sixth Circuit decision. Ward had told her professors her Christian beliefs prevented her from "affirming" or "validating" homosexual behavior. The file for her third client in the practicum reported he sought counseling about a same-sex relationship. When Ward asked her faculty supervisor how she should proceed, the supervisor reassigned the client to another counselor. A school official said Ward violated sections of the American Counseling Association's (ACA) code of ethics, including "discrimination based on . . . sexual orientation." A review committee agreed and dismissed her from the counseling program, though Ward said she was not opposed to counseling homosexual clients if she was not required to affirm their "sexual orientation." In its opinion, the Sixth Circuit panel said EMU "cannot point to any written policy that barred Ward from requesting this referral" and several textbooks used in her classes "say that sound counseling practices permit values-based referrals." The panel questioned why the counseling department treated Ward differently than students in other settings. "That her conflict arose from religious convictions is not a good answer; that her conflict arose from religious convictions for which the department at times showed little tolerance is a worse answer," Jeffrey Sutton wrote in his opinion for the panel. Sutton was nominated to the court by President George W. Bush. The panel wondered what else the non-discrimination policy might require. "Surely, for example, the ban on discrimination against clients based on their religion (1) does not require a Muslim counselor to tell a Jewish client that his religious beliefs are correct if the conversation takes a turn in that direction and (2) does not require an atheist counselor to tell a person of faith that there is a God if the client is wrestling with faith-based issues," the opinion said. "Tolerance is a two-way street. Otherwise, the rule mandates orthodoxy, not anti-discrimination." EMU, which is located in Ypsilanti, Mich., has more than 23,000 students, including nearly 4,800 in graduate programs. --30-- Compiled by Tom Strode, Washington bureau chief for Baptist Press. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress ) and in your email ( baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp). -------------------------------------------------------------------- New Hispanic generations to be conf. topic by Tobin Perry Date: December 13, 2012 - Thursday ALPHARETTA, Ga. (BP) -- Although Southern Baptists have a long history of reaching and starting churches among Hispanics, changing demographics will require a new strategy, a North American Mission Board evangelism consultant has noted. "The majority of the growth in the Hispanic population is coming from second and third generations," said Joshua Del Risco, evangelism coordinator for the mission board's God's Plan for Sharing nationwide outreach. "That presents a whole new set of challenges because if there's an area that we've struggled to reach as a convention, it's second and third generations." Del Risco is among the organizers of the National Hispanic Evangelism & Mobilization Conference, Jan. 17-19 in San Antonio, that will focus on key challenges in outreach to Hispanics. According to a Pew Research Center report in 2009, 9 of 10 Hispanic children had been born in the United States -- and that number was growing. Overall, U.S. Census stats show that Hispanics in the country grew by a rate four times faster than the U.S. population between 2000-2010. Historically, Del Risco noted, Southern Baptists have started most churches among Hispanics born outside of the United States. The number of Hispanic SBC churches grew by more than 65 percent between 2000 and 2010, according to Annual Church Profile statistics provide by LifeWay Christian Resources. What makes reaching second and third generation Hispanics a challenge is both language and culture, said Del Risco, who came to the United States from Cuba at age 5. Many second and third generation Hispanics aren't fluent in Spanish, making the Gospel inaccessible in traditional Spanish-language churches. From a cultural standpoint, many have grown up in a Hispanic home and with Hispanic culture but they identify much more than their parents with the broader American culture, Del Risco said. "Many second and third generation Hispanics will attend Anglo congregations because of the language issue," Del Risco said. "But they don't find the cultural identity there that they're looking for. So they'll also visit off and on a Spanish-speaking congregation but never plug in." Eloy Rodriquez, who recently planted his third Hispanic Southern Baptist congregation in Florida, underscored another major challenge -- the diversity of Hispanics. While many Anglos think of Hispanics as a single block, they come from many nationalities. "We are so diverse," said Rodriquez, who was born in the United States but lived from ages 1 to 18 in the Dominican Republic. "Any location where you try to plant a Hispanic church, you've got to figure out what kind of Hispanics are there. It changes completely how you're going to reach them -- whether they come from Central America, the Caribbean or South America. They are different in their identities." Each of Rodriquez's three church plants had a different makeup of nationalities. About half of the attendees at his current plant, a part of Idlewild Baptist Church in Tampa, Fla., come from Columbia. Del Risco said NAMB's upcoming National Hispanic Evangelism & Mobilization Conference will address these and other issues, noting that the conference will focus on helping first generation Hispanic churches understand and reach its members' children and grandchildren. The Jan. 17-19 conference also will include, along with the main Spanish-language track, an English-language track. Del Risco said the English track is mainly for Hispanic church leaders trying to reach English-speaking Hispanics in either a multi-cultural or predominantly Hispanic setting. Because the ministry contexts of those serving among first and second generations Hispanics are so different, Del Risco said the content for the conference will be different in the two tracks. The conference will include such sessions as "Send North America Overview," "Growing an Evangelistic Church," "House Church Models for Church Planting" and "Churches Planting Churches Training." "It's Kingdom focused," Del Risco said. "It's the only one of its kind with the diversity of people that'll attend. Our hope is that it helps Hispanic leaders reach Hispanics. But it's about more than just reaching Hispanics. We believe that Hispanics will be mobilized to reach others in North America -- regardless of ethnicity -- and people around the world with the Gospel of Jesus Christ." The conference will be held at Parkhills Baptist Church in San Antonio in partnership with the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention, the Baptist General Convention of Texas and the Hispanic Baptist Convention of Texas. For registration information, click here. --30-- Tobin Perry writes for the North American Mission Board. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress ). -------------------------------------------------------------------- FIRST-PERSON: Jovan Belcher, ruined lives and manhood by Thomas White Date: December 13, 2012 - Thursday FORT WORTH, Texas (BP) -- In the wake of Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Jovan Belcher's murder-suicide, Fox Sports columnist Jason Whitlock wrote, "How many young people have to die senselessly? How many lives have to be ruined before we realize the right to bear arms doesn't protect us from a government equipped with stealth bombers, predator drones, tanks and nuclear weapons?" Whitlock and many others have decided to blame guns for tragedies like this one; however, I don't hear the same outrage over alcohol when a drunk driver kills someone on the roads. Guns are not the problem. Kevin Powell from the original season of "The Real World" came closer to the point, blaming a misguided culture of male bravado for the tragedy that occurred in Kansas City. But then we've been trying to blame others for our actions ever since Genesis 3. Adam blamed Eve by saying "the woman whom you gave me" and Eve blamed "the serpent who deceived me." Blaming others does not remove personal responsibility. Jovan Belcher holds the blame for what happened. He did it. And it's about time that we stopped blaming others for our actions and take responsibility for them ourselves. Now, figuring out how men get to this point … that's a different discussion and perhaps one that can be useful around the family dinner table or in your church men's group. I think the problem is a lack of proper biblical manhood. We live in a world that wants to remove gender differences, from the Easy Bake Oven to the Supreme Court. Anyone who has reared boys and girls knows that natural differences exist, and in the case of my children, those differences emerge in almost every area of life. I believe God created men and women equal yet different. Instead of fighting against God's intended design, we should embrace the biblical model. We need to teach, foster, and encourage men to be biblical men. So what does this look like? Well here are a few talking points for further discussion: -- A biblical man seeks God's will for his life and how he can best glorify God in relationships, in occupation and in entertainment. He doesn't seek his own riches at the cost of others and use people for his own gain. -- A biblical man intentionally looks for the lady God has for him (if God wants him to marry). A lady who has a Bible and knows what is in it. Along the way, he leaves every girl better than he found her and treats each woman like his own sister. He does not selfishly use women for what he wants or what temporary pleasure he may obtain to throw them aside later. -- A biblical man seeks to protect, provide for, and spiritually lead his family. He does not abandon them for his own happiness. -- A biblical man takes responsibility for his actions, including rearing any children he fathers. The earthly father represents a shadow of the heavenly Father who loved mankind enough to send His Son to die for our sins. Earthly fathers should demonstrate unconditional, unselfish love toward children, protecting them and rearing them with consistency and intentionality. -- A biblical man takes responsibility for his mistakes and does not look for the easy way out. He demonstrates integrity, honesty and responsibility in his actions at home and in society. Perhaps you can have a conversation with your children this evening at dinner about what type of manhood you want to model, what your son should strive to become, and the only type of guy your daughter should ever think about marrying. As Deuteronomy 6:7 says, teach your children "when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise." During this or the next tragedy, don't blame it on guns, sowing wild oats or a culture of violence. Blame it on personal sin and the lack of true biblical manhood. Then educate your own children to overcome the problem. --30-- Thomas White is vice president for student services and communications at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. This column first appeared at http://thomaswhite.wordpress.com and was later re-posted at TheologicalMatters.com. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress ) and in your email ( baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp). -------------------------------------------------------------------- Northwest Baptists reduce executive board by Cameron Crabtree Date: December 13, 2012 - Thursday PORTLAND, Ore. (BP) -- Northwest Baptist Convention messengers reduced the size of the executive board and approved a $5 million budget that increases funding for new churches. With the theme "Making, Marking & Maturing Disciples," the convention's 65th annual gathering drew 313 messengers and more than 40 visitors Nov. 13-14 at the Embassy Suites Airport in Portland. Steve Schenewerk, pastor of Community Baptist Church in Winston, Ore., was re-elected as president, along with two new officers: first vice president, Dale Jenkins, pastor of Airway Heights Baptist Church in Washington, and second vice president, Michael Brownell, pastor of Pine Street Baptist Church in Othello, Wash. All were elected by acclamation. The $5 million budget for 2013 anticipates $2,840,000 in Cooperative Program gifts from Northwest churches. The CP gifts comprise 56.3 percent of the spending plan. Additional revenue for the overall 2013 NWBC budget includes more than $1,729,000 from the North American Mission Board, nearly $64,000 from LifeWay Christian Resources and another $407,000 from the convention's regional offering and other sources. While the 2013 budget is roughly 1 percent lower than the current year, it increases by 0.5 percent the amount of CP funds forwarded to the Southern Baptist Convention. The SBC will receive 27 percent ($766,800) of NWBC CP funds, while state ministries will receive about 67 percent ($1,894,400). The convention does not set aside shared expenses. The roughly 6 percent ($178,800) of the remaining CP portion of the budget will support the Pacific Northwest Campus of Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary in Vancouver, Wash. Messengers also approved a $140,000 goal for the convention's regional mission offering in 2013. Gifts to the Sylva Wilson Mission Offering, named in memory of one of the Northwest's early Woman's Missionary Union leaders, will be allocated evenly between church planting efforts and leadership development ministries. Messengers amended the constitution and bylaws to reduce the size of the convention's executive board from 36 elected members to 20. "A smaller board is more easily engaged," Schenewerk said in affirming the constitution committee's proposal. During discussions of the proposed change in board committees over the last several months, board members indicated support for the change, saying the board is too large for individual members to participate in meaningful ways. The change also eliminates the president of Woman's Missionary Union -- currently Laura Harper of Seattle -- as an ex officio member of the board. A move during the business session to retain the WMU position on the board was withdrawn after officials pointed out it could result in current NWBC staff member Brian Harper losing his post, since the constitution prohibits the convention from employing a board member's spouse. "Let me encourage you to take a longer look at this," Nancy Hall, a member of First Baptist Church in Beaverton, Ore., and a former Northwest WMU president, said. "We consider it to be a great privilege to be in partnership with the Northwest Baptist Convention." After additional questions and conflicting parliamentary rulings, the reduction in board size and elimination of the WMU position on the board was approved on a voice vote. Officials pledged to reconsider the WMU-related matter and report back to next year's convention. The change also eliminated specification of committees for the board's work. For years, the board achieved its work through three committees: administrative, finance and program. Officials indicated their desire to align the work of the board's committees more closely with the assignments and priorities of the convention's work. "This gives us the flexibility to appoint committees that relate to the work we're actually doing," said Schenewerk. Messengers approved five resolutions. Among them were statements affirming a focus on Gospel impact among local churches, expressing appreciation for the service of retiring executive director Bill Crews, pledging prayer support for the NWBC executive director search committee and support for men and women serving in uniform. In other business, messengers heard reports from various entities related to the NWBC. No new members were elected to the executive board during the nominating committee's report. The current 24 members with terms expiring in 2013, 2014 and 2015 were elected for service. Officials did not specify how or when the board would meet the new requirement of 20 elected members that will take effect. The Northwest Baptist Historical Society presented its annual Heritage Awards to two couples: Frank and Betty Jo Barnes and Bill and Jo Ann Crews. In what was expected to be his last message as executive director, Crews urged church leaders to renew a passion for evangelism, church planting and "whatever it takes" to reach people in the Northwest. "Despite our growth as Northwest Baptists, our impact is smaller than it was when we started," Crews said. "This world needs to be changed. Your community needs to be changed. The way it is going to be changed is through Jesus. "God has committed that to our hands and given us a ministry of reconciliation," Crews said. "It's not the things we can do, but what God did. We need to do whatever it takes to reach those around us." During his presidential message, Schenewerk emphasized the basics of ministry regardless of style or form: "Our structures look different, reflecting the unique culture we are trying to reach. The foundation on which my grandparents started churches is the same then as now. The same Gospel was preached then as now. They didn't look like the churches we have today, but the foundation was the same." Schenewerk asked messengers to "recommit with me to ensure the foundation of our lives as leaders remains solid. Will you recommit with me as the NWBC moves forward to do our utmost to ensure our foundation does not change?" Next year's annual meeting of the Northwest Baptist Witness will be Nov. 12-13 in Yakima, Wash. --30-- Cameron Crabtree is editor of the Northwest Baptist Witness, newsjournal of the Northwest Baptist Convention. -------------------------------------------------------------------- New England Baptists partner with new college by Jim Wideman Date: December 13, 2012 - Thursday MARLBOROUGH, Mass. (BP ) -- New England Baptists learned the latest news of their disaster relief outreach to survivors of superstorm Sandy and approved a partnership with a new Baptist college during their 30th annual meeting, Nov. 9-10 in Marlborough, Mass. John Scoggins, one of the convention's DR volunteer leaders, told the 118 messengers in attendance that assessments were being done of damaged homes along the south shore of Connecticut. Scoggins also updated messengers on New England-operated feeding units in the disaster zone. Messengers approved a recommendation from their board of directors to enter into partnership with Northeastern Baptist College, a new institution that will open next fall. Northeastern's president, Mark Ballard, has served in New England for nearly 15 years as a convention president, pastor, church planter and interim director of missions. Messengers approved a 2013 budget of $2,465,355, a decrease of 4 percent from the 2012 amount of $2,576,652. The convention has budgeted for $709,419 in Cooperative Program receipts from its churches, a 7.6 percent increase, allocating 25 percent of the CP gifts to national and international SBC causes, after a designation of $252,439 to shared ministry items with the SBC. The overall budget includes $1,583,957 in funding from the North American Mission Board and $65,000 from LifeWay Christian Resources. The convention awarded the Robert H. Brindle Award to church planters Rich Clegg and Matt Hastey of Manchester, N.H., for their work in cross-cultural church planting. Grace Baptist Church in Hudson, N.H., was given the Raymond C. Allen Award for missions and evangelism, recognizing their numerous community ministries and commitment to worldwide missions. Messengers re-elected as president Ron Mills, a layman at Island Pond Baptist Church in Hampstead, N.H., and, as vice president, Neal Davidson, pastor of Hope Chapel in Sterling, Mass. The group also re-elected Sandy Coelho as clerk and Sandy Wideman as historian. Ed Stetzer, president of LifeWay Research, presented the keynote address and Shaun Pillay preached the annual sermon. Pillay is pastor of Cornerstone International Church in Norwich, Ct., and NAMB church planting catalyst for southeastern New England. Messengers honored transformational leadership director Randy Sprinkle with a resolution of appreciation, a cash gift and a book of remembrances. Sprinkle is taking an early medical retirement after serving since 2006 on the leadership development team, focusing on ministry to pastors and other church leaders. Sprinkle also served 25 years in various capacities with the International Mission Board and two years as executive director of the Wyoming Baptist Convention. Messengers also approved a resolution calling for prayer for national leadership and revival for America, based on the current state of declining morality across the nation. The 2013 annual meeting will be Nov. 8-9, also in Marlborough. Larry Green, pastor of Timothy Baptist Church in Roxbury, Mass., was chosen to preach the 2013 annual sermon, with Clark Rumfelt, pastor of The Church at Waverly, as alternate. The messengers and 83 guests represented over 70 churches and all seven associations. The BCNE encompasses more than 325 churches and church plants in Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. --30-- Jim Wideman is executive director of the Baptist Convention of New England. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress ) and in your email ( baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp). -------------------------------------------------------------------- Ohio Baptists celebrate church planting by Staff Date: December 13, 2012 - Thursday SANDUSKY, Ohio (BP) -- Ohio Baptists celebrated 44 church starts and heard an address by Southern Baptist Convention President Fred Luter during their 59th annual meeting in Sandusky. The new church plants include seven language groups and two primarily African American congregations, joining the 241 new churches that Ohio Baptists have planted the past 15 years, reaching a total of some 700 churches in the state. Luter challenged Ohio Baptists to share the Gospel with a lost and dying world in his message "The Transforming Power of the Gospel," drawn from Romans 1:16-17. Reflecting the annual meeting theme "Mission Ohio: An Unchanging Mission in a Changing World," Luter proclaimed the Gospel as personal, powerful, practical and persistent. The convention presented a Church Planting Achievement Award to Jim Mayes, retiring as associational missionary for the Buckeye Erie Baptist Association. The number of churches in Buckeye Erie doubled during Mayes' tenure. In business sessions, messengers adopted a $4,371,479 budget for 2013 for the State Convention of Baptists in Ohio, anticipating $2,629,445 in Cooperative Program receipts from its churches. Messengers allocated 40.25 of CP receipts, or $1,771,330, to national and international SBC ministries, the same percentage as in 2012. The state budget does not utilize any SCBO/SBC shared expenses designation. Through the Cooperative Program, Southern Baptists support mission work from "Jerusalem, to Judea, to Samaria, and to the ends of the earth" simultaneously, SCBO Executive Director Jack Kwok told the Nov. 7-8 convention. Several Ohio Southern Baptist churches helped Ohio's Northcoast Baptist Association in Intensive Mission Projects to Affect Community Transformation (IMPACT) and as a result, many Northcoast churches are reporting professions of faith and new church starts, messengers were told. In preparing for the next IMPACT outreach, targeting the Northwest Baptist Association, messengers prayed for Northwest associational missionary Steve Long and church pastors and members in the region. Those interested in supporting IMPACT 2013 may find details at www.scbo.org. Kwok and Randy Davis, executive director for the Tennessee Baptist Convention, signed a partnership agreement between the Tennessee and Ohio conventions. Messengers adopted a resolution affirming Ohio's partnership with the North American Mission Board and agreeing to pray for NAMB's leaders. (The full text of the resolution follows this story.) In another resolution, Ohio Baptists voiced support for the SBC's Resolution on Marriage and Civil Rights. Messengers re-elected the full slate of officers: president, Mike Wilson, pastor of the Lincoln Heights Baptist Church in Mansfield; first vice president, Mark Stinson, pastor of Trinity Baptist Church in Cambridge; and second vice president, James Edwards, pastor of Mt. Calvary Baptist Church in Bedford Heights. Also elected were recording secretary Faye Rodgers; assistant recording secretary Annett Dessecker; and historian Kwok. In his presidential address, Wilson preached on "An Unchanging Message in a Changing World," reminding Ohio Baptists that while the Gospel is an exclusive message, offensive, abrasive and foolish to the world, it is to Christians the power of God to salvation. David Starry, pastor of Vandalia First Baptist Church, delivered the annual sermon from Romans 12:1-2, exhorting messengers to wholly give their lives to the Lord in sacrifice and worship. Messengers awarded Guy Morton the 2012 Darty Stowe Award in absentia and applauded national Bible drill winner Julia Bonifield, a member of the Kettering First Baptist Church in the Greater Dayton Baptist Association. The 2013 meeting is scheduled Nov. 6-7, at the French Quarter Holiday Inn in Perrysburg. Rick Williams, pastor of Violet Baptist Church in Pickerington, is scheduled to preach the 2013 annual meeting sermon, with alternate Rick Shoemaker, pastor of New Carlisle First Baptist Church. --30-- Adapted from a report by the State Convention of Baptists in Ohio. Affirmation of Partnership with the North American Mission Board Whereas, The State Convention of Baptists in Ohio has enjoyed a fruitful partnership with the Home Mission Board and the North American Mission Board since the 1950's; and Whereas, The partnership of the North American Mission Board has provided strong assistance in the starting of churches across Ohio; and Whereas, Leadership of the North American Mission Board heard and responded to concerns voiced in a resolution of the 58th Annual Meeting of the State Convention of Baptists in Ohio; and Whereas, The North American Mission Board earlier requested that the ratio of joint funding move from the current 62% NAMB and 38% Ohio ratio to a 55% NAMB and 45% Ohio ratio and later to a 50/50 ratio; and Whereas, The North American Mission Board recently revisited the calculation of jointly funded ratios and determined to move those ratios to a financial basis of Cooperative Program gifts utilized within a state; and Whereas, The new calculations for the joint funding ratio which move to a 75% NAMB and 25% Ohio ratio in 2013 are beneficial for Ohio by eliminating the earlier announced additional budget reduction from NAMB; and Whereas, the millions of lost people in the state places Ohio as an under-reached and underserved area for the gospel of Christ; and Whereas, Missionaries of the North American Mission Board continue to serve as an integral part of Mission Ohio in a number of ministries across the state; and Whereas, The North American Mission Board has named Cincinnati, Columbus, and Cleveland as SEND North America cities and serves as a key partner in church planting and promotes partnership development for church planting in those cities; and Whereas, The North American Mission Board continues to serve as a partner in church planting and other joint ministries throughout the state of Ohio; therefore, be it Resolved, That the messengers of the 59th Annual Meeting of the State Convention of Baptists in Ohio meeting in Sandusky, Ohio, affirm to pray for the president, vice-presidents, trustees, and employees of the North American Mission Board as they continue in leadership to work with partners across North America to help reach people for Christ; and be it further Resolved, That we count it a privilege for Ohio Baptists to have the partnership of the North American Mission Board as we seek to reach people for Christ and work together to fulfill the Great Commission. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Iowa Baptists increase church plants by Staff Date: December 13, 2012 - Thursday DES MOINES, Iowa (BP) -- Iowa Baptists planted more than twice as many churches in the state this year than last, messengers to the group's 2012 annual meeting learned. Church planters and others from across Iowa shared stories of their successes and evidence of God's power in their ministries. "We are developing a culture in Iowa that understands that reproduction is natural and something every individual believer, church, association and cluster should be involved in doing," said Tom Law, Baptist Convention of Iowa interim executive director. Iowa Baptists anticipate they will have planted more than 25 churches by year's end, compared to 10 in 2011, Law said. Messengers adopted a BCI budget of $1,589,031 for 2013, anticipating $505,000 in Cooperative Program receipts from its churches, down from $540,000 budgeted for the current year. Iowa Baptists will continue to send 20 percent of CP receipts, or $101,000, to national and international Southern Baptist Convention causes. No shared BCI/SBC shared expenses were designated in the budget distributed to messengers. The BCI's annual meeting at the Holiday Inn and Suites attracted 157 messengers and 49 guests from 54 churches across the state. After extensive discussion, messengers accepted the proposed BCI Strategy Plan designed to "reap the harvest of the Great Commission," Law said, by utilizing church clusters to support each other, work on common problems, pool resources, plant churches and further God's work. Law expressed amazement at God's work within the state and challenged Iowa congregations to ask themselves, "What does God want me to do in His Kingdom?" "God is blessing us and giving us a tremendous opportunity to expand His Kingdom," Law said. "It is our responsibility to join Him in His work and do what He has asked us to do." Messengers amended the BCI constitution to alter the selection method for annual meeting messengers, giving greater representation to smaller churches and congregations that give to the CP and state missions offerings. Other constitutional changes involved the procedure to fill positions on the BCI Executive Board between annual meetings. These changes will be presented again at the 2013 annual meeting for final approval, as required by the constitution. Messengers re-elected Dan Wiersema, pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church in Cedar Rapids, as president. Others elected as officers: first vice president, Dan Doolin, pastor of Solid Rock Baptist Church in Wapello; second vice president, Lloyd Eaken, pastor of Fairview Baptist Church in Anamosa; and secretary, Jerome Risting, a member of Temple Baptist Church in Mason City. Wiersema exhorted attendees to embrace the Philippians model for cooperative giving. Jeff Iorg, president of Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary, in the annual sermon challenged Iowa Baptists to develop a greater sensitivity to the Holy Spirit as the convention engages in courageous leadership and transformational strategic planning. The 2013 annual meeting is scheduled for Nov. 1-2 at the Holiday Inn & Suites on Merle Hay Road in Des Moines. --30-- Adapted from reports by the Baptist Convention of Iowa and its newsjournal, the Iowa Baptist. Get Baptist Press headlines and breaking news on Twitter (@BaptistPress), Facebook (Facebook.com/BaptistPress ) and in your email ( baptistpress.com/SubscribeBP.asp).