Comments on: The Future of the Southern Baptist Convention (Pt. 5) http://betweenthetimes.com/2009/12/19/the-future-of-the-southern-baptist-convention-pt-5/ Sat, 11 Feb 2012 17:32:23 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.6 hourly 1 By: Debbie Kaufman http://betweenthetimes.com/2009/12/19/the-future-of-the-southern-baptist-convention-pt-5/comment-page-1/#comment-10712 Debbie Kaufman Sun, 20 Dec 2009 07:07:13 +0000 http://betweenthetimes.com/?p=1468#comment-10712 Amen. Amen.

]]> By: Robert Reeves http://betweenthetimes.com/2009/12/19/the-future-of-the-southern-baptist-convention-pt-5/comment-page-1/#comment-10709 Robert Reeves Sun, 20 Dec 2009 04:25:47 +0000 http://betweenthetimes.com/?p=1468#comment-10709 Dr. Akin is right on with this post. Opening ourselves up as Southern Baptists to more racial diversity within our congregations will not only be a blessing to ourselves but will send an important message to a world without Christ that we really do love ALL people like He does. We are blessed here in Louisville, Kentucky, to have a powerful example of what can be accomplished when churches make the decision to break down racial barriers. Earlier this year, the St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church, a predominantly black congregation, and Shively Heights Baptist Church, a predominantly white congregation, merged to form the new St. Paul Baptist Church at Shively Heights. Dr. Lincoln Bingham, who is now serving as senior pastor, serves as cooperative ministries consultant for the Kentucky Baptist Convention and has worked for years to promote racial reconciliation. He and Mark Payton, who was the pastor at Shively Heights and is now Bingham's associate pastor, have been friends for years and provided the leadership that enabled the merger. The two pastors don't say this is the model that all Baptists should follow -- only that it was what God called their congregations to do. The Lord has certainly blessed, however, and the newly-merged church is growing both numerically and spiritually. You can listen to an NPR interview with pastors Bingham and Payton at: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=112329855 Dr. Akin is right on with this post. Opening ourselves up as Southern Baptists to more racial diversity within our congregations will not only be a blessing to ourselves but will send an important message to a world without Christ that we really do love ALL people like He does.

We are blessed here in Louisville, Kentucky, to have a powerful example of what can be accomplished when churches make the decision to break down racial barriers. Earlier this year, the St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church, a predominantly black congregation, and Shively Heights Baptist Church, a predominantly white congregation, merged to form the new St. Paul Baptist Church at Shively Heights.

Dr. Lincoln Bingham, who is now serving as senior pastor, serves as cooperative ministries consultant for the Kentucky Baptist Convention and has worked for years to promote racial reconciliation. He and Mark Payton, who was the pastor at Shively Heights and is now Bingham’s associate pastor, have been friends for years and provided the leadership that enabled the merger.

The two pastors don’t say this is the model that all Baptists should follow — only that it was what God called their congregations to do. The Lord has certainly blessed, however, and the newly-merged church is growing both numerically and spiritually.

You can listen to an NPR interview with pastors Bingham and Payton at: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=112329855

]]> By: ed elliott http://betweenthetimes.com/2009/12/19/the-future-of-the-southern-baptist-convention-pt-5/comment-page-1/#comment-10690 ed elliott Sat, 19 Dec 2009 17:29:45 +0000 http://betweenthetimes.com/?p=1468#comment-10690 Daniel, Now you're talking. In 2002, I went to the Alexandria, VA jail to preach and teach every Wednesday evening (the demographics of Alexandria leads to a jail that is about 80% black men). After a few years, one of the black Christian men who volunteered there took me to lunch and said, "Do you know what it means to us (referring to the other black jail volunteers) that a very white Southern Baptist has come in here faithfully for three years." I've had a goal for years to engage Southern Baptists to seriously invest in Prison and jail ministry to blacks. What better way to put feet to our 1995 apology than to REALLY help black men transition from prison? AND to send teaching teams from our sound SBC churches into the jails--we must combat the rampant prosperity teaching that infects jails and prisons. I have recently developed an appeal that I plan to present to Mark Dever, Eric Redmond, and other SBC church leaders who are part of the Sothern Baptist Conservative of Virginia (SBCV) here in the DC Area. I am agitating for serious investment in Jail Ministry and short-term financial help for transitioning Christian inmates. I think NAMB would do well to add PLANTING MINISTRIES to our admirable aim to PLANT CHURCHES. We can possibly win our black families by fiercely loving the Christian men who are returning from prison. Daniel, keep up the good work... Daniel,
Now you’re talking.
In 2002, I went to the Alexandria, VA jail to preach and teach every Wednesday evening (the demographics of Alexandria leads to a jail that is about 80% black men). After a few years, one of the black Christian men who volunteered there took me to lunch and said, “Do you know what it means to us (referring to the other black jail volunteers) that a very white Southern Baptist has come in here faithfully for three years.”

I’ve had a goal for years to engage Southern Baptists to seriously invest in Prison and jail ministry to blacks. What better way to put feet to our 1995 apology than to REALLY help black men transition from prison? AND to send teaching teams from our sound SBC churches into the jails–we must combat the rampant prosperity teaching that infects jails and prisons.

I have recently developed an appeal that I plan to present to Mark Dever, Eric Redmond, and other SBC church leaders who are part of the Sothern Baptist Conservative of Virginia (SBCV) here in the DC Area. I am agitating for serious investment in Jail Ministry and short-term financial help for transitioning Christian inmates. I think NAMB would do well to add PLANTING MINISTRIES to our admirable aim to PLANT CHURCHES. We can possibly win our black families by fiercely loving the Christian men who are returning from prison. Daniel, keep up the good work…

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