Author: Scott Chafee

Scott serves on staff at King’s Grant Baptist Church in Virginia Beach.

Radical Transformation

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Here in America, we value transformation, remember that TV show called Extreme Makeover Home Edition? It came on ABC on Sunday nights. They take this deserving family, someone really making a difference in the community, or someone with special needs or a health condition, and they have this really run-down and unhealthy house. Then within one week they rally the whole community and totally transform the property into something very usable. It’s extraordinarily entertaining, and sometimes it’s pretty emotional. These people are so grateful and overwhelmed by the generosity of these sponsoring companies and the community’s volunteerism, encouragement and support. It really makes you feel good about people again.

Perhaps you remember the original Extreme Makeover show, the one where they took average looking girls who get the “ultimate package;” a transformation of clothing, hairstyle, veneer teeth, new makeup and perhaps even a nose job, face lift or “some other sort of lift” or augmentation. Then there are the “before and after” pictures of women who got the makeover. Not to be judgmental, but some of these girls were pretty “homely” until they got a new hair style, makeup and an outfit. Now they look like a supermodel.

These days, in order to keep up with the culture of America, there’s now a show called Extreme Makeover, Weight-Loss Edition. Well, season 2 is here. Recently we saw that Tony wants to lose weight before his wedding, and he’s nearly 400 pounds. We learned about his food addiction and unstable family life since he was a kid. At age 14 he worked at shoveling snow and at a fast food restaurant, where he would overeat because he did not know where his next meal was coming from. At 21, he and his first wife had a severely handicapped child where stress pushed him toward food for comfort. After a 30-year career in food service management, he decided to quit because his weight had gotten out of control. Now we all can pull for this jobless and divorced 49-year-old as he struggles and works to lose weight before his 50th birthday and his upcoming wedding.

I think Americans like a good transformation story, but when you think about it, these examples of physical transformation are only temporary. These homes can burn down, get destroyed in a storm, or have termites cause tremendous damage. These new bodies that people get, through artificial means or through a year of extremely hard work… they can get ill from diseases or die from anything from cancer or homicide or an accident.

As believers in Christ, we are more interested in spiritual transformation, which is permanent. That’s what I want to talk about today.

Ezekiel the Prophet: Only two verses in the Old Testament identify Ezekiel by name (Ezekiel 1:3; 24:24). The prophet Ezekiel was raised in a priestly family in Jerusalem and educated to become a priest himself, but this was not to be. He was taken into exile with other high-ranking Jews at the first siege of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar. While there, in his thirtieth year (593 BC), he received a powerful vision from the Lord and his call to be a prophet. Between this first exile and the final fall of Jerusalem (in 586/587 BC) many Israelites hoped to throw off the yoke of Babylon, often looking to Egypt for help (rather than God). Ezekiel’s prophecies against Jerusalem and some other nations take place in this context.

Ezekiel was given tremendous visions of God; and he also was called to act out God’s messages to the Jewish captives. He does some of the weirdest things you’ll read in the Bible!

Chariot-Throne of God: One of the most striking and memorable visions of the book is the throne of God, which is placed above a kind of moving revolving chariot (Ezekiel 1:4-28; 10:3-22). This is where we get that old folk song, Ezekiel Saw the Wheel. How to understand this vision has long been debated, some have even connected it with a UFO!

The Valley of Dry Bones: This odd scene has God asking Ezekiel what he sees, a valley full of very dry bones (Ezekiel 37:1-14). “Can these bones live?” God asks, and he eventually is told to prophesy to these bones. They begin to come together to form skeletons and soon flesh is again on them. We have sung about this too, Dem Bone, Dem Bone, Dem Dry Bones…

Extreme One-Man Dramas: As part of his prophetic vocation, Ezekiel engaged in a large number of extreme activities; he was to dramatize and symbolize his message of doom from the Lord. These activities strike us as odd, eccentric, or even weird. They include:

  1. Building a model of the city of Jerusalem and laying siege to it, part of which meant being tied up with ropes and lying on his left side for 390 days and on his right side for forty days (Ezekiel 4:1-15). He was to live on a daily ration of eight ounces of food and a pint of water. It represented the starvation diet they would experience in captivity.
  2. Shaving his head bald, dividing up his hair and striking part of it with a sword all around the city model (Ezekiel 5:1-4). Each third represented the fate of Jerusalem’s inhabitants when the city fell.
  3. Packing up his belongings every night in a mock exile, busting a hole in the wall rather than going through the door (Ezekiel 12:3-7).
  4. Trembling and shaking when he ate his food and drank water (Ezekiel 12:17-20).

Ezekiel’s wife died suddenly (Ezekiel 24:15-27): The prophet was called to do more than act out the fate of others. He was also called to experience the pain of judgment. Ezekiel was warned that his wife, “the desire of your eyes,” & “your dearest treasure” would die. God told His prophet, “You shall NOT show any sorrow at her death, don’t weep or even shed a tear. Sigh in silence, NO wailing at the grave; don’t uncover your head, or remove sandals from your feet; do NOT perform any mourning rituals, and do NOT accept food from your mourning friends” (Ezekiel 24:16-17).

While seemingly very strange, they may have been very effective, memorable ways, like using an object lesson for children. All this introduction, let’s take a look at Ezekiel 47.

After seeing the kitchens in the temple (Ezekiel 46:19-24) the prophet noticed a trickle of water running out of the holy of holies, past the altar on the south side. Ezekiel’s guide leads him out of the north gate (since the eastern gate was closed) and around the temple to the eastern gate where he saw the water running from under the south side of the gate. The guide measures the depth of the water four times and the river becomes so deep that he couldn’t swim across it.

Ezekiel learns that the river flows to the Dead Sea where it brought life to that forsaken area. The water from the temple would heal the Dead Sea as well as all the rivers. The water creatures would multiply wherever the waters went. Trees on the riverbank would bear fruit every month, and their leaves would be used for healing. What we see here is that life comes from the Temple of God, not from a king’s palace or from the government.

Jerusalem does not have a river in it, like we have the James River. These verses speak of this river as a literal body of water that accomplishes the life-giving work of God. Ezekiel is describing a literal river, yet it also has spiritual significance for us today. Think about the headwaters of the James River, which are not all that impressive, but the river gets much bigger by the time it gets to Hampton Roads. Ezekiel’s river gets water out of the temple into the Kidron Valley and to the Mount of Olives, and represents the transforming power of the gospel; life is growing wherever it goes.

Jesus saw the river as a symbol of the Holy Spirit (John 7:37-39)
On the last day, the climax of the festival, Jesus stood and shouted to the crowds, “Anyone who is thirsty may come to me! Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, ‘Rivers of living water will flow from his heart.’” (When he said “living water,” he was speaking of the Spirit, who would be given to everyone believing in him. But the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet entered into his glory).

The apostle John saw a similar scene in the heavenly city (Revelation 22:1-2)
Then the angel showed me a river with the water of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb. It flowed down the center of the main street. On each side of the river grew a tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, with a fresh crop each month. The leaves were used for medicine to heal the nations.

This river is an important part of the story of God, which begins in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 2:10-14)
A river flowed from the land of Eden, watering the garden and then dividing into four branches. The first branch, called the Pishon, flowed around the entire land of Havilah, where gold is found. The gold of that land is exceptionally pure; aromatic resin and onyx stone are also found there. The second branch, called the Gihon, flowed around the entire land of Cush. The third branch, called the Tigris, flowed east of the land of Asshur. The fourth branch is called the Euphrates.

It appears that this river starts in the Garden of Eden and flows into the heavenly city of God. Let’s get back to Ezekiel 47. I see a couple of significant truths in this passage:

1. Radical Transformation Advances and Does Not Remain Stationary: The water is measured in four different places, getting deeper in each spot. At the beginning, he is in ankle deep water. I believe this represents a time when someone first comes to Christ. It’s sort of like young children swimming in the kiddie pool. Just as the river moves along and gets deeper as it goes, it makes no sense for an adult believer to swim in the kiddie pool. After several months of being a follower of Jesus, we need to be growing and learning. Hebrews 6:1, tells us to press on toward maturity. This is done in two ways:

  1. Obedience: This is simply doing what Jesus says we are to do. If you love me, you’ll keep my commands (John 14:15). “One step forward in obedience is better than a year of study about it.” -Oswald Chambers
  2. Discipleship: after walking in obedience, we must be intentional in our growth. We need a plan, perhaps even mentoring, in order to become all that God desires for us to become.

I love Ezekiel 47:6, this guide says, “Do you see this?” Can you imagine the scene? THIS water? The Bible says Ezekiel was led through the water, so “Yeah, I’m standing in it; I’m really wet here, Michael Phelps couldn’t swim across this river, so yep, I’ve seen it.” Are you sure? So Ezekiel is led back to the riverbank for a closer look.

Notice the waters run toward the Dead Sea. Did you know that the water in the Dead Sea is 30% salty? The ocean is 3.5% salty. The Great Salt Lake is about 18%. Nothing lives in the Dead Sea. Once any water gets to the Dead Sea, there is nowhere for the dead water to go. But notice the dead waters are made fresh, which really means HEALED. This river brings healing to the people and the nations.

2. Radical Transformation Takes You to Unattractive Places: If we are to grow spiritually, we must go to some pretty unattractive places.

Perhaps it will be on a mission trip to Haiti, working with orphans in a hot, dirty, diseased place, working among people who smell bad, flies are everywhere and you don’t understand the language.

Perhaps you are called to feed homeless people at the Union Mission, or Judeo-Christian Outreach Center, or some other place that is uncomfortable, hot, at times full of rough or intimidating people.

American cities have a low percentage of Christians. Look at NYC. NYC is only 4% Christian. People visit there every day to see Wall Street, Broadway, Museums, Statute of Liberty, Freedom Tower, but how many people head for the Bowery area of NYC. There are believers who go there in spite of the smells, burdens, drug addicts, thieves, the homeless, and the hungry, to pray for and ease suffering of forgotten people. Downtown missions attempt to transform lives.

God values the afflicted. My very first sermon was when I was 19 years old. Since I sensed God calling me into the ministry, my church asked me to go to the Jimmy Hale Mission, in downtown Birmingham. They fed homeless people all week and since they were a captive audience, they had to stay for the preaching if they wanted to eat!

I love the words of Psalm 9:18, But the needy will not be ignored forever; the hopes of the poor will not always be crushed.

Here in Norfolk, how many of us would rather drive through rather than stop at a traffic light? We LOVE worship here, and our gathering HERE, but radical transformation often takes you to unattractive places, dirty places, even dangerous places.

Ezekiel 47:10 tells us about fisherman standing at the Dead Sea. No one would do this; to catch what? But there will be such a variety and amount of fish, from the western side (Engedi) all around to the east. Why? Because this river makes all the salty water fresh. Wherever the river flows, there will be swarms of living creatures in it. Where the river flows, everything will live (Ezekiel 47:9)

Notice the marshes will remain salty, so practically, as a domestic product, people still need salt. But spiritually speaking, some people will refuse to be transformed by this life-giving river. Some people desire to remain stuck in the mire of their own sinfulness and choose NOT to be healed.

The life is transferred from the water to the riverbank; fruit bearing trees will produce every month, on both sides of the river. This life comes from the sanctuary (from Almighty God himself). This is just like John 15:5, to abide in Jesus and allowing his words to abide in you, for apart from ME you can do nothing.

3. Radical Transformation is a Catalyst for Real Change: Everywhere the river went, it made a difference. How about YOU? Like in your neighborhood, is it different in the neighborhood because you live there? What about adopting a missionary and his UPG? A catalyst for change means praying and going. UPGs are in the Dead Sea, spiritually. They need an advocate praying for them, and people going as they are able. Missions is about church planting, starting with Bible storying groups in their homes. Many people around the world are coming to Christ, and they are the FIRST EVER believers in their tribe or region. God is saving people all around the world. He is bring life and light to dark places. How can we be a part of that?

4. Radical Transformation Comes When We Allow God to Transform Us: Place your faith in Christ, NOW. No more waiting. Paul said it like this,

But their minds were made dull, for to this day the same veil remains when the old covenant is read. It has not been removed, because only in Christ is it taken away. Even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts. But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. (2 Corinthians 3:14-16)

Removing the veil and understanding happens only when you come to Christ. At the bottom of your outline, look at that statement. What are we to do? Step out of the kiddie pool, be a disciple and disciple others. It is always inappropriate for adults to pretend to be spiritually mature while hanging out in the kiddie pool. The Bible says to “grow up” (Ephesians 4:14-15).

Let me tell you about Rosie Ruez: She appeared to be the female winner of the 84th Boston Marathon on April 21 1980. Her time of 2:31:56 would have been the fastest female time in Boston Marathon history as well as the third-fastest female time ever recorded in any marathon. Only eight days later, the title is taken away. She actually jumped into the race in the last mile to cross the finish line. They went back to look at tapes and found what had happened. This was not even the first time. During a NYC marathon, she took a subway and jumped out toward the end of the race.

On the other hand, Bill Rodgers won his 3rd straight Boston Marathon that day. He paid the price and trained long and hard to achieve his record-setting victories. But all his work and effort was overshadowed by the pretender.

What can this church be like when we impact our community and the world for Christ? Do the hard work, no more posers, pretending to be in the game.

We must be a people who desire Radical Transformation. No business as usual, because we want to make an impact on the world around us.

  1. We will NOT remain stationary, but advance the cause of the kingdom.
  2. We will go to the unattractive places in this city and world for the cause of the kingdom.
  3. We will be the catalyst for real change in our society and circle of influence.

God help us to make a difference.

The Story of William Borden

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The Story of William Borden (1887-1913) This story was a part of my message on Investing in Eternity back in October 2010.

In 1904 William Borden graduated from a Chicago high school. As heir to the Borden Dairy estate, he was already a millionaire. For his high school graduation present, his parents gave 16-year-old Borden a trip around the world. As the young man traveled through Asia, the Middle East, and Europe, he felt a growing burden for the world’s hurting people. Finally, Bill Borden wrote home to say, “I’m going to give my life to prepare for the mission field.”

One friend expressed surprise that he was “throwing himself away as a missionary.” In response, Bill wrote two words in the back of his Bible: “No reserves.”

During his college years, Bill Borden made one entry in his personal journal that defined what his classmates were seeing in him. That entry said simply: “Say ‘no’ to self and ‘yes’ to Jesus every time.”

He was a graduate of Yale University in 1909 and of Princeton Theological Seminary. Borden was converted to Christianity under the ministry of Dwight L. Moody. He later decided to become a missionary to the Muslims of China, but died of spinal meningitis in Egypt during his training there at the age of 25. He is buried in the American Cemetery in Cairo.

When news of William Borden’s death was cabled back to the U.S., the story was carried by nearly every American newspaper. “A wave of sorrow went round the world . . . Borden not only gave (away) his wealth, but himself, in a way so joyous and natural that it (seemed) a privilege rather than a sacrifice” wrote Mary Taylor in her introduction to his biography.

Across town in the Egyptian National Museum is another grave, this one is called the King Tut Exhibit. The Boy King was only 17 when he died and his tomb was filled with literally tons of gold. The Egyptians believed in the afterlife, and that you could take it with you. But all of King Tut’s eternal treasures stayed right there until Howard Carter discovered his burial chamber in 1922. It hadn’t been seen or touched in 3000 years.

There are two graves in Cairo, one is off the beaten path, dusty and littered with garbage while the other is filled with unimaginable wealth. Our phrase of the month has been “you can’t take it with you, but you can send it on ahead.” One had invested in eternity and the other did not.

After Borden’s death, his Bible was found and given to his parents. In it they found in one place the words “No Reserve” and a date placing the note shortly after he renounced his fortune in favor of missions. At a later point, he had written “No Retreat,” dated shortly after his father told him that he would never let him work in the company ever again. Then shortly before he died, when in Egypt, he added the phrase “No Regrets.”

God may not call you to the international mission field, but it is an insult to our faith if we don’t ask the question, “What do you want from me?” or “What do you want me to do?” There are many needs in this world and many pathways to serving. The first step is to embrace the mission, then we can submit to the father’s direction, get out of the boat and onto the water where Jesus is calling out your name.

On Borden’s Tombstone in Cairo:

A Man in Christ
He arose and forsook all and followed Him
Kindly affectioned with brotherly love
Fervent in spirit serving the Lord
Rejoicing in hope
Patient in tribulation
Instant in prayer
Communicating to the necessity of saints
In honour preferring others

Apart from faith in Christ there is no explanation for such a life.

What will people say about you? Are there changes you need to make in your life to invest more in eternity?

Radical Commitment

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Do me a favor. Take out your copy of God’s Word, and hold it in your hand. If you’ve done what I just asked, you are now holding in your hands something extraordinary. You are holding a book that’s more than 3000 years old.

You are holding a book that is illegal in several countries of the world. Just to possess this book can land you in jail in some parts of the world. It was not too long ago, the government of Malaysia confiscated 10,000 Bibles that were on their way into the country.

Possessing a copy of this book just a few centuries ago in Europe could have gotten you killed. Even today, you could be subject to arrest and beatings, at the very least, in some parts of the world. This book is feared in many places. Yet people still take risks in order to have a copy or to even read it.

It is by far the best-selling book worldwide. In all its versions it is estimated between 2.5 and 6 billion copies have been sold. At least parts of this book are available in 2,400 languages.

You are also holding a miracle. Perhaps the second most extraordinary miracle since creation, second only to the incarnation of God’s Son. You are holding words from the Creator of the Universe. You can open it anytime, anywhere, and hear God’s voice.

You are holding something extraordinary.

Why the Bible is special and unique:
Have you ever thought about WHY the Bible is unique? The Bible is actually sixty-six different books. They include books of law, history, poetry, prophecy, biographies and epistles (formal letters) written to churches and people.

The Authors: About 40 different human authors contributed to the Bible, which was written over a period of about 1500 years. The authors were kings, fishermen, priests, government officials, farmers, shepherds, and a doctor. From all this diversity comes an incredible unity, with common themes that are woven throughout the Bible.

The Bible’s unity is due to the fact that, ultimately, it has one Author—God Himself. The Bible is “God-breathed” (according to 2 Timothy 3:16). The human authors wrote what God wanted them to write, and the result was this book we call the Word of God (Psalm 12:6; 2 Peter 1:21).

The Divisions: The Bible is divided into two main parts: the Old Testament and the New Testament. In short, the Old Testament is the story of a Nation, and the New Testament is the story of a Man. The Nation was God’s way of bringing the Man—Jesus Christ—into the world.

The Old Testament describes the founding and preserving of the nation of Israel. God promised to use Israel to bless the whole world (Genesis 12:2-3), and once Israel was established as a nation, God raised up a family within that nation through whom that blessing would come: it was the family of David (Psalm 89:3-4). From the line of David was promised the one Man who would bring the promised blessing (Isaiah 11:1-10) and salvation to the world.

The New Testament tells us the coming of that promised Man, Jesus the Messiah, and He fulfilled all the prophecies of the Old Testament as He lived a perfect life, he died to be the perfect sacrifice for sin, and rose from the dead to set us free.

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The Central Character: Obviously, Jesus is the central character in the Bible—the whole book is really about Him. The Old Testament predicts His coming and sets the stage for His entrance into the world. The New Testament describes His coming and His work to bring salvation to our sinful world.

Jesus is more than a historical figure; in fact, He is more than a man. He is God in the flesh, and His coming was the most important event in the history of the world. God Himself became a man in order to give us a clear, understandable picture of who God is.

As Baptists, it may be good to understand what we believe about the Bible. According to the 1963 Baptist Faith and Message:

The Holy Bible was written by men divinely inspired and is the record of Gods revelation of Himself to man. It is a perfect treasure of divine instruction. It has God for its author, salvation for its end, and truth, without any mixture of error, for its matter. It reveals the principles by which God judges us; and therefore is, and will remain to the end of the world, the true center of Christian union, and the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and religious opinions should be tried. The criterion by which the Bible is to be interpreted is Jesus Christ.

Baptists are “people of the Book.” The Bible is our only source for faith and practice. It is a remarkable book that gives us everything we need pertaining to life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3) and will stand forever (1 Peter 1:24).

The Bible Rediscovered:
Perhaps you have heard about the massive religious reformation that t took place across Europe in the 16th century. Perhaps you’ve heard names of Martin Luther, Philipp Melanchthon, John Calvin, John Knox, Ulrich Zwingli, William Tyndale and John Wycliffe. The key great driving force behind the reformation can be seen as the rediscovery of the Bible:

  1. The translation of the Bible into everyday language: no longer would people gather at church with no clue as to what was being read from the book, they could have it in their own language.
  2. The wider availability of the Bible due to the newly invented printing press.
  3. A commitment to expository preaching, (explaining what the text means); and
  4. The taking of the Bible out of the hands of a corrupt ecclesiastical elite and putting it into the hands of ordinary people.

This huge upheaval fundamentally changed the social, political, religious, intellectual, and even scientific landscape of Europe, and profoundly influenced the development of America. Rediscovering the Bible literally changed the world.

For the text of this message, I actually want to go back much further, to a much earlier rediscovery of the Bible and a time of reformation. I want to have a look at the passage that was read earlier, from 2 Kings 23:1-3.

These events took place during the reign of King Josiah in Jerusalem in 622 BC. He was 26 years old and had been king since he was eight. Now, Josiah was one of the most godly kings Israel ever had because, He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord and walked in all the ways of his father David, not turning aside to the right or to the left. (2 Chronicles 34:2)

Josiah’s Background:
Unfortunately, Josiah’s reign followed close behind that of his grandfather Manasseh who was the most evil king that Judah ever had. Manasseh ruled for 55 years, and under him the whole nation turned away from God. He defiled the temple in Jerusalem, and built shrines and altars to idols all over the place. Somewhere during his reign, the Book of the Law, which was the extent of the Bible at that time, was lost. Toward the end of Manasseh’s life, he repented and humbled himself before the Lord (2 Chronicles 33:13, 23).

Josiah’s father, Amon, was also an evil king. I suppose that a lifetime of rebellion against God gets passed down from father to son. Amon was so bad that he lasted as king for only two years, and his own officials assassinated him (2 Chronicles 33:24). The Bible is clear that as bad as Manasseh was, Amon sinned even more (2 Chronicles 33:23).

So, on this Father’s Day, and since no father is perfect, perhaps you are here in spite of the poor legacy that your father passed on to you. Maybe you had a lousy father, maybe he was abusive, or never instilled any spiritual direction in your life. How in the world did Josiah become the godliest king ever in Judah, with a father and grandfather that he had? I believe the answer lies in the fact that when he was 16, during the eighth year of his reign, while he was still young, Josiah began to seek the God of his ancestor David (2 Chronicles 34:3). His heart was tender toward God and knew that he had a much longer heritage than his immediate family. He was determined to end the cycle of dysfunction in his family’s life.

By age 20 Josiah is cleansing Judah and Jerusalem of all the pagan influences in the land (2 Chronicles 34:3-7). Then at age 26, he decides to restore the temple, and in the course of this renovation project, the Book of the Law is rediscovered.

Then in 2 Kings 22:10-11 we read, Shaphan also told the king, “Hilkiah the priest has given me a scroll.” So Shaphan read it to the king. When the king heard what was written in the Book of the Law, he tore his clothes in despair.

Cut to the heart by what he hears, Josiah decides he must rededicate himself and the people to God. And that’s what happens in 2 Kings 23:1-3.

Take a look at these verses. One thing you can see is that the word “all” occurs a few times.

All the people:
First, a radical commitment to the Bible involves all the people.

In 2 Kings 23:1-2, Then the king called together all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem. He went up to the temple of the Lord with the men of Judah, the people of Jerusalem, the priests and the prophets — all the people from the least to the greatest.

All the elders and all the people. The writer wants to make sure we know that all the people, from the least to the greatest were present at the reading of the Book.

This has always been a foundational Baptist teaching: the Bible is for all people. Biblical understanding and interpretation is never limited to an elite or privileged class of Christian. Every single believer has both the privilege and the responsibility of seeking out God’s Word for him or herself.

Of course, some are better equipped than others to do this. Some are theologically trained; some are gifted and called to be teachers. But no one has a monopoly on Bible truth and interpretation, and every single believer has access to the truth for themselves, from the least to the greatest.

A half-hearted commitment to the Bible hands over all the work of Bible study and explanation to others; a radical commitment to the Bible recognizes that every one of us has a stake in understanding the Bible, and hearing God through it.

And people have died to make this possible again for us. Perhaps you know the story of William Tyndale. He was burned at the stake in 1536, although they did him the kindness of strangling him first.

Tyndale’s life’s work was to translate the Bible from the original Hebrew and Greek into common English that everyone could understand. He had a passion for placing the Word of God into the hands of ordinary people so that, ‘The Church could no longer effectively dictate its interpretation.’

This was a real issue at the time. Soon after Tyndale’s death, Henry the Eighth restricted, by law, Bible reading to only men and women of noble birth. He complained to Parliament that “the Word of God, is disputed, rhymed, sung and jangled in every ale-house and tavern.” Well, I say, wouldn’t it be wonderful if this were true today!

In the end, Tyndale’s work was not in vain, because his translation makes up about 80% of the 1611 King James Version, published more than 70 years after his death, and which became widely distributed. His vision was fulfilled.

A radical commitment to the Bible involves all the people.

There are many Christian believers around the world today who have very limited or no access to the Bible at all — up to 50 million in China alone. If we are radically committed to the Bible this should bother us.

Perhaps you support the Bible Society or Gideons, both charities who work to get God’s Word into the hands of people worldwide. But I wonder: is it sometimes easier to support getting the word to people “out there” than it is to be completely committed to the Bible “back here?”

A radical commitment to the Bible involves all the people. That means you, doesn’t it?

Over the centuries, God led dozens of his greatest saints through terrible persecution and agonizing deaths so that you and I might have the privilege of hearing and understanding His voice. How dare we neglect his word!

What are you doing to get more of God’s Word into your life and out to the world?

All the words:
Second, a radical commitment to the Bible is to all its words.

Look halfway through 2 Kings 23:2, He read in their hearing all the words of the Book of the Covenant, which had been found in the temple of the Lord.

The Bible that Josiah had found was quite a bit shorter than the Bibles we have today. It may have been the first five books of the Old Testament, or it may have been only the book of Deuteronomy. But the writer is intentional for us to know that Josiah read to the people all the words in it.

Now, not only is the book of Deuteronomy a bit heavy going at times, but there’s also a whole bunch of curses and other unpleasant verses in there. Frankly, wouldn’t it have been better for Josiah just to give them some edited highlights, a quick executive summary, or some bullet points on a PowerPoint slide?

But Josiah knows that a radical commitment to the Bible is a commitment to all its words, because they are all God’s words. Our Bible reading is deficient if we are content with memorizing a few well-known Bible verses and stories and never strive to explore the whole book.

A radical commitment to the Bible is to all its words.

John Piper once said. “If all you want is a pile of leaves, then you just need to scrape the surface. But if you want to find gold, you need to dig down deep.”

We don’t skip parts of the Bible because they seem dull, or difficult, or irrelevant to our lives today, or they teach doctrines that we don’t like. We need to wrestle with all the words to hear what God has to say to us.

It’s all God’s word to us: not just John 3:16, Romans 8:28 and Psalm 23. He has so much more to say to us! Let’s be more radical in our Bible reading. If it doesn’t make sense, why not get into a small group to discuss the meaning of the Bible, and help you grow in your faith?

All the heart and all the soul:
Third, a radical commitment to the Bible is with all the heart and all the soul.

Look at 2 Kings 23:3, The king stood by the pillar and renewed the covenant in the presence of the Lord — to follow the Lord and keep his commands, regulations and decrees with all his heart and all his soul.

This is about application; it’s about how far we let God’s Word into our lives. A radical commitment to the Bible means that we seek ways to apply what it says in all our lives. Not just letting God’s living Word into our head, but into all our heart and all our soul. A radical commitment to the Bible is life-changing.

Perhaps Josiah only had the book of Deuteronomy, which is widely regarded, along with Leviticus, as being one of the least exciting parts of the Bible. Yet as he read it, it caused him to tear his clothes and weep in anguish. It turned his life upside down.

How much more should the complete Bible that we have today speaks to our hearts and souls? We have in our hands the whole story of God’s plan to save us: not just a glimpse, but the whole thing, culminating in Jesus, his own son who died for us.

If our Bible reading is not causing us to weep and rejoice, to break out in gratitude and anguish, in joy and sorrow, then, frankly, we’re not doing it right. If our Bible reading is not life-changing, then we’re not doing it right. We’re not engaging our hearts and souls.

A radical commitment to the Bible engages all our heart, all our soul. No part of our life is out of scope for God’s word.

The same goes for our life together as a church. The Bible informs and guides every aspect of our lives together. Therefore, if we are radically committed to the Bible as a church, those who are connected here should be people who commit themselves to hearing, understanding and obeying the Bible with all their hearts and all their souls.

This should be one of the key factors that guide us in ministry and relationships: is this person someone who paddles in the shallow end of God’s word, or someone who has jumped into the deep end? Has this person been gripped by God’s Word?

A radical commitment to the Bible is with all our heart and all our soul.

Conclusion:
On this Father’s Day, has this message penetrated your soul? Are we attempting to raise the next generation with a strong foundation; a foundation that is built upon the Word of God? Are we attempting to make a difference in the world, and in particular, in our families? How can we do anything without a radical commitment to the Word of God?

Do we want to be a church that truly hears God’s words and does his work in this world — a radical church — then let’s be like Josiah and like the reformers.

  1. Let’s commit ourselves, every one of us, to hearing God’s word: all of the people.
  2. Let’s commit ourselves to exploring the whole of what he has to say to us: all of the words.
  3. And let’s commit ourselves to applying and obeying what he tells us in our lives: all our heart and all our soul.

This is a radical commitment to the Bible.

First Dates and Road Trips

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You all know that I am the guy in charge of small groups at King’s Grant, so I want to make sure that I address why small groups are so important.

On this Mother’s Day, I want to remind you that the FAMILY is the ORIGINAL small group. Think about what is accomplished in a family.

  1. Relationships are developed.
  2. Chores and workload are shared.
  3. Family members are protected and encouraged.
  4. Family and individual events are celebrated.
  5. There is a balance of time in working and playing.
  6. Children are birthed and raised.
  7. Children are nurtured and educated.
  8. Children are taught to become social beings in our society.
  9. Children become more independent and move out to begin their own families.
  10. Disagreements or a rouge family member, the so-called Black Sheep, bring grief and hurt to the rest of the family.

If it were not for faithful moms and dads, the family as a small group is not going to thrive or survive. To have a successful family it involves commitment by each parent, a shared vision, common goals, cooperation, patience, forgiveness, encouragement, and love (which is spelled T-I-M-E).

As was see the role of the family, I see a great comparison to the ministry of small groups. Let me broaden your understanding of families AND small groups by using two illustrations:

First dates: Think about the emotions that a first date evokes (fear, panic, shyness, self-consciousness, worry). There is pressure on a first date when the point of the date is to get to know the other person and they are supposed to get to know you.

There are the obligatory exploratory questions (Where are you from? What are your hobbies? Where have you lived? What is your major? Tell me about yourself. Tell me about your family? Siblings? Parents? What’s your dad like? Will he like me? (Guys, you know this is always in the back of your mind, or at least it SHOULD be if you want to date my daughter!).

Then there are the awkward responses, trying to look good, to look and act cool, make sure there’s nothing stuck in your teeth, any zits acting up? we want to make a good first impressions, (Is my deodorant still working? Does my breath smell bad? Is my hair sticking up?).

There is attention to the atmosphere and the place you go (quiet conversation, comfortable lighting, soothing music, attractive surroundings), after all, THIS could be leading somewhere. The point of a first date is to be alone; the relationship we are trying to develop is exclusive.

The same is true with church meetings. Think of a time when new people are stepping into the church, or into the faith community. Just this week we started three new small group classes. We want to make a good first impression so that people will come back for the second week (basically, will there be a second date?). There can be ice breakers to get to know other people. There can be sub-grouping to develop more conversations and lines of communication.

In Sunday School, we talk about our classes being open and welcoming of new people, but let’s face it, to new people, it often feels like showing up at someone else’s family reunion. It’s pleasant enough but the first date doesn’t always go well and many people choose not to takes a risk, or become vulnerable, or reach out. They just say, “It’s not for me” or “The topic or class is not of interest to me” or “I’ll attend if nothing else comes up” or “Don’t call me, I’ll call you.” The desire for anonymity often keeps people from getting connected.

Road trip: This is where you grab 10 random people who don’t know each other, and they get stuffed into the back of a van and head off to a certain location. I remember doing this in college; we had one of those out-of-state mission trips; 10 days of serving in downtown Detroit. There were freshmen, sophomores, juniors and seniors all together; not really knowing the people at all. It was nervous at first. Some were not too sure if this is what they wanted to do, but…

Twelve hours later when they get out of the van, how are they? Excited, laughing, there are inside jokes about Bob’s stomach ache for eating too many sunflower seeds, the tire blew out and the driver forgot his Visa card and everyone had to pitch in to buy a new tire, something happens inside that van as you move toward your destination. What is so different?

Everyone has a common goal, no matter how different each person is, when they open the door at the destination, they are excited to be there since they were on a common mission.

There is also something different about everybody, too. Everyone came for a different reason. Joe came because he wanted to do missions in the inner city. Ted came to see what it was like outside of the South. Judy came because she was stressed at school and needed to get away from campus to relax. Bob came because Judy was going and she’s kind of hot, so Bob wanted to sit next to her in the van. But remember that Bob ate too many sunflower seeds and got sick so his game was totally off.

So, when our small groups are so much like a first date, how can we make them more like a road trip? We need to create a context where we can build community, because that’s what it is all about. So often our goal is to build a larger Bible study class, when our goal should be to build a safe environment where authentic community can happen.

Starbucks is a great example: When you’re a regular at Starbucks, the barista knows your name, and you know theirs. Starbucks is more than a supplier of a great cup of coffee, it becomes a part of the daily routine for many people.

Every once in a while you might see it on the tables; a little card that promotes career opportunities at Starbucks or perhaps some other restaurant you’ve been to. Not that you were looking for a job, but perhaps you noticed what it said, “Create community: make a difference in someone’s day.” Since the topic of community is of interest to you, let’s pick up that card and read what’s on the back. “When you work at Starbucks, you can make a difference in someone’s day by creating an environment where neighbors and friends get together and reconnect while enjoying a great coffee experience.”

Starbucks appears to see itself in the business of doing more than selling a premium cup of coffee. It is part of their corporate purpose to create environments that connect people so meaningfully, it changes the quality of their lives. Now THAT seems familiar. The church needs to have such a mission statement!

According to the Starbucks website, they are selling the “Starbucks Experience,” there are even books written about it: one I found had five principles of the Starbucks Experience:

  1. Make it your own
  2. Everything matters
  3. Surprise and delight
  4. Embrace resistance
  5. Leave your mark

These can certainly be developed and found applicable for the church.

As far as the experience, are we as a culture are buying it. Starbucks is one of the 10 most trusted brands in the world. From a company whose primary product is coffee beans, they are selling coffee and promoting connection. Their success tells me that we are a culture of people who crave relationship.

Today the mission of Starbucks is this: to inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup and one neighborhood at a time.

So, what are we going to do in the church? Just like at Starbucks, we have to LOVE what we are doing for the community. If we don’t love what we do or love the community in which we do it, no one else is going to love and sense that community we say that we want to develop.

When you are truly in love, you go to great lengths to be with the one you love. You’ll drive for hours just to be together, even if it’s only for a short while. I remember going to visit Kim who had gone home on a college break, at Thanksgiving. I drove what should have been two hours just to spend time with her, yet it took longer because my car was a 1961 Corvair that had an air-cooled engine that tended to overheat on longer trips, especially ones that involved driving through the mountains. And think of the stupid things you do: like inviting her to a state championship game playing in her city, when one team was a rival to YOUR high school, and then she goes with you, and she doesn’t even like football. But with her being a band person, I seem to remember leaving after the halftime show, freezing our tails off.

And then there are the special times together. You don’t mind staying up way too late to talk. Walking in the rain is romantic, and not annoying. You’ll willingly spend a small fortune on the one you’re crazy about. When you are apart from each other, it’s painful, even miserable. Kim was doing summer missions here at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront, while I stayed in my college town working as a youth pastor at University Baptist Church. I HAD to drive all the way up here to see her, for a couple of days. That special someone is all you think about; you jump at any chance to be together.

In his book God Is the Gospel, pastor John Piper essentially asks whether we are in love with God:

The critical question for every generation is this: If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisfied with heaven, if Christ was not there?”

How many of you heard those words and thought, “You know, I just might be okay with that?” If you are as deeply in love with God as you say you are, you know you could never be satisfied in a heaven without Christ.

Sometimes a statement like that might evoke fear and guilt, but personal experience has taught me that actions driven by fear and guilt are not an antidote to our being casual toward God. I hope you realize that our only motivating factor is love.

Don’t we all crave love? And isn’t that what God wants from us, to crave this relationship with Him as we crave all genuine love relationships? Isn’t that what brings Him glory; when believers desire Him and are not merely slaves who serve Him out of obligation?

There is often a great disparity between how we feel about faith and how we are meant to feel. Why do so few people genuinely find joy and pleasure in their relationship with God? Why do most people feel they have to either pay God back for all He’s done (buy His love) or somehow keep making up for all their inadequacies and failures (prove their love)? Why are the words of Psalm 63:1-5 not an honest reflection of our lives on most days?

O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water. I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands. My soul will be satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise you.

The solution for lukewarm living isn’t to try harder, fail, make bigger promises, only to fail again. We can’t muster up more love for God. When loving Him becomes an obligation, we end up focusing even more on ourselves.

As believers, we are called to surrender everything for Christ, and many churchgoers are not particularly thrilled with surrender. Beth recently led a Bible study on surrender, and it was confirmed that it is not something we really understand, like it is a sign of weakness to raise the white flag.

We can’t change without God’s help. The answer lies in letting Him change you. Remember His counsel to the lukewarm church in Laodicea? “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me” (Rev. 3:20). His counsel wasn’t to “try harder,” but rather to let Him in. James puts it this way, “Come near to God and he will come near to you” (James 4:8).

This is a fact: we need God to help us love God. And if I need His help to love Him, who is a perfect being, I definitely need His help to love people. Something supernatural must happen in order for genuine love for God to grow in our hearts.

Jesus tells us that the world will know that we are his disciples, that we have love for one another, but how does God know that we have love for HIM?

Look around at the Christians you may know. How would you define what a follower of Jesus really looks like? Perhaps your list looks something like this:

  1. Careful student of Scripture
  2. Zealous and active in their stand for God
  3. Appetite for worship and prayer
  4. Consistent in worship attendance
  5. Practices Scripture memorization
  6. Not afraid to pray in public
  7. Active in the local church
  8. Fasts and tithes regularly
  9. Has desire to stand against blasphemy and ungodliness
  10. Has firm grasp of basic foundational theological truth

For a long time I thought this is what would honor God and help me become more like Jesus. But look again; these are behavior traits not of Jesus’ disciples, but of His chief opponents, the Pharisees.

I’m convinced that real-life discipleship (becoming more like Jesus in character and attitude) is what happens between the gathering times at church. What are people like at home, at school, in the lunchroom, in the office, on dates, at parties, in the locker room, in the boardroom, on the computer, or the after-school job? What are they like when no one is looking? Do they demonstrate unconditional love, joy, peace, patience, concern for others, kindness, servanthood?

Real-life discipleship is marked more by footprints than by monuments. For me, discipleship focuses on long-term commitments rather than a one-time decision to “accept Christ.” It is forward motion, a journey, a marathon. People may look at imperfection and failures of so-called Christians, but remember that the word disciple means learner, not expert.

So, if these characteristics don’t describe a follower of Jesus, a disciple, a Christian, what does?

A fully devoted disciple of Jesus is actively:

Depending on the Spirit: A person who is actively depending on the Holy Spirit to transform and empower him/her to walk as Jesus walked (John 14:26 – But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you).

Interacting in Community: A person who is actively interacting with other believers in a small group for mutual care and spiritual formation (John 13:35 – Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples).

Submitting to His Lordship: A person who is actively submitting to Christ’s Lordship in every area of his/her life (Luke 6:46 – So why do you keep calling me ‘Lord, Lord!’ when you don’t do what I say?).
Communing with the Father: A person who is actively developing intimacy with God through the spiritual disciplines (John 8:31 – Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings”).

Investing His Resources: A person who actively sees himself/herself as a steward of his/her resources (time, treasure & talents) rather than an owner, and invests them to advance God’s work (Matthew 6:20-21 – Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be).

Participating in Service: A person who is actively participating in acts of service toward those inside and outside the church for the glory of God (Matthew 20:27-28 – and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many”).

Leading People to Christ: A person who is actively seeking opportunities to share his/her faith with lost people through his/her personal style of evangelism (John 4:35 – You know the saying, ‘Four months between planting and harvest.’ But I say, wake up and look around. The fields are already ripe for harvest).

Expanding the Kingdom: A person who is actively committed to a ministry of multiplication both here at home and abroad (Matthew 6:33 – Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need).

So, the purpose of this message is to encourage us to love, love God in such a way that HE knows that we are his disciples. The 3:16 Scripture passages for this morning have a logical progression.

  • John 3:16 – God so loved US that he gave his only Son so that we might have everlasting life.
  • First John 3:16 – This is how we know love, that Jesus gave his life for us, we ought to lay down our life for others.
  • Revelation 3:16 – After a while, our love and passion for God can and usually fades, we don’t get cold toward God but we become lukewarm. The only reaction that Jesus has for this sort of casual relationship with him is to spit us out of his mouth, literally vomit out lukewarm water. Oh, how he longs for us to be either hot or cold.

This message is for all of us.

If you don’t know Christ personally, it is time to accept his invitation. He is knocking at the door and wants to come in and change your heart. It’s time to stop closing the curtains, hiding quietly behind a locked door, waiting for Jesus to go away like we treat a Jehovah’s Witness who comes to our door. It’s always at an inconvenient time, you have other things on your list to do that day, but your decision to follow Christ is one that you can put off for only so long.

As the famous evangelist Billy Sunday once said, “It’s payday someday” and one day every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord. It’s not that everyone will be saved, but everyone will one day acknowledge that Jesus is Lord. Some will do so in the presence of God in heaven, while others will recognize this fact while they are eternally separated from God, because they chose to gain the whole world and forfeited their own soul.

Perhaps you are a believer but you recognize that your love for God has faded. You want to get back to your first love, reignite the passion that you once had for God. Today is the day to get things right with God. Don’t put it off until another day.

There are some in here that have never really experienced Christian community because you are involved in “drive-by church,” you float in and out of the worship experiences at your convenience and actively avoid getting involved in the lives of other believers. You can’t understand the Starbuck’s Experience of developing community if you never stop by the store. When is the time you finally tell yourself that you are going to get involved in a small group? It’s for personal development, spiritual growth, and to practice the 31 “one another” commands of the New Testament (I’ll save that for another day). Commands to

  • Love one another (John 13:35, 13:34, 15:12, 15:17, Romans 13:8, 1 Thessalonians 3:12, 4:9, 2 Thessalonians 1:3, 1 Peter 1:22, 4:8, 1 John 3:11, 4:7, 4:11, 2 John 1:5)
  • Be at peace with one another (Mark 9:50, 1 Thessalonians 5:13)
  • Be devoted to one another (Romans 12:10)
  • Build up one another (Romans 14:19, 1 Thessalonians 5:11)
  • Accept one another (Romans 15:7)
  • Admonish one another (Romans 15:14, Colossians 3:16)
  • Confess your sins to one another (James 5:16)
  • Encourage one another (1 Thessalonians 5:11, Hebrews 3:13, 10:25)
  • Comfort one another (1 Thessalonians 4:18)
  • Pray for one another (James 5:16)
  • Serve one another(1 Peter 4:10, Galatians 5:13)

How can any of this being done in the context of a corporate worship experience? We can only obey THESE commands of the Bible by participating in a small group.

If you’re ready to get connected to THIS church, why put it off another week. Join this congregation by requesting membership, attend a Connections Class, or talking with me more about what it means to be a member of this congregation.

Right now, this time of dedication is for YOU to do business with God. You know when he’s knocking on the door of your heart. Open the door and allow him to come in and change your life forever.

Baptist Faith & Message 1963

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REPORT OF COMMITTEE ON BAPTIST FAITH AND MESSAGE
Adopted by the Southern Baptist Convention: May 9, 1963

I. THE SCRIPTURES

The Holy Bible was written by men divinely inspired and is the record of Gods revelation of Himself to man. It is a perfect treasure of divine instruction. It has God for its author, salvation for its end, and truth, without any mixture of error, for its matter. It reveals the principles by which God judges us; and therefore is, and will remain to the end of the world, the true center of Christian union, and the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and religious opinions should be tried. The criterion by which the Bible is to be interpreted is Jesus Christ.

Exodus 24:4; Deuteronomy 4:1-2; 17:19; Joshua 8:34
Psalm 19:7-10; 119:11, 89, 105, 140
Isaiah 34:16; 40:8; Jeremiah 15:16; 36:1-32
Matthew 5:17-18; 22:29; Luke 21:33; 24:44-46
John 5:39; 16:13-15; 17:17; Acts 2:16; 17:11
Romans 15:4; 16:25-26; 2 Timothy 3:15-17
Hebrews 1:1-2; 4:12; 1 Peter 1:25; 2 Peter 1:19-21

II. GOD

There is one and only one living and true God. He is an intelligent, spiritual, and personal Being, the Creator, Redeemer, Preserver, and Ruler of the universe. God is infinite in holiness and all other perfections. To Him we owe the highest love, reverence, and obedience.

The eternal God reveals Himself to us as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, with distinct personal attributes, but without division of nature, essence, or being.

A. God the Father

God as Father reigns with providential care over His universe, His creatures, and the flow of the stream of human history according to the purposes of His grace. He is all powerful, all loving, and all wise. God is Father in truth to those who become children of God through faith in Jesus Christ. He is fatherly in His attitude toward all men.

Genesis 1:1; 2:7; Exodus 3:14; 6:2-3; 15:11; 20:1
Leviticus 22:2; Deuteronomy 6:4; 32:6; 1 Chronicles 29:10; Psalm 19:1-3
Isaiah 43:3, 15; 64:8; Jeremiah 10:10; 17:13
Matthew 6:9; 7:11; 23:9; 28:19; Mark 1:9-11
John 4:24; 5:26; 14:6-13; 17:1-8; Acts 1:7
Romans 8:14-15; 1 Corinthians 8:6; Galatians 4:6; Ephesians 4:6
Colossians 1:15; 1 Timothy 1:17; Hebrews 11:6; 12:9; 1 Peter 1:17; 1 John 5:7

B. God the Son

Christ is the eternal Son of God. In His incarnation as Jesus Christ he was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. Jesus perfectly revealed and did the will of God, taking upon Himself the demands and necessities of human nature and identifying Himself completely with mankind yet without sin. He honored the divine law by His personal obedience, and in His death on the cross He made provision for the redemption of men from sin. He was raised from the dead with a glorified body and appeared to His disciples as the person who was with them before His crucifixion. He ascended into heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of God where He is the One Mediator, partaking of the nature of God and of man, and in whose Person is effected the reconciliation between God and man. He will return in power and glory to judge the world and to consummate His redemptive mission. He now dwells in all believers as the living and ever present Lord.

Genesis 18:1; Psalm 2:7; 110:1; Isaiah 7:14; 53:1-12
Matthew 1:18-23; 3:17; 8:29; 11:27; 14:33; 16:16, 27
Matthew 17:5; 27; 28:1-6, 19; Mark 1:1; 3:11
Luke 1:35; 4:41; 22:70; 24:46
John 1:1-18, 29; 10:30, 38; 11:25-27; 12:44-50
John 14:7-11, 16:15-16, 28; 17:1-5, 21-22; 20:1-20, 28
Acts 1:9; 2:22-24; 7:55-56; 9:4-5, 20
Romans 1, 3, 4; Romans 3:23-26; 5:6-21; 8:1-3, 34; 10:4
1 Corinthians 1:30; 2:2; 8:6; 15:1-8, 24-28; 2 Corinthians 5:19-21
Galatians 4:4-5; Ephesians 1:20; 3:11; 4:7-10; Philippians 2:5-11
Colossians 1:13-22; 2:9; 1 Thessalonians 4:14-18; 1 Timothy 2:5-6; 3:16
Titus 2:13-14; Hebrews 1:1-3; 4:14-15; 7:14-28
Hebrews 9:12-15, 24-28; 12:2; 13:8; 1 Peter 2:21-25; 3:22
1 John 1:7-9; 3:2; 4:14- 15; 5:9; 2 John 7-9
Revelation 1:13-16; 5:9-14; 12:10-11; 13:8; 19:16

C. God the Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God. He inspired holy men of old to write the Scriptures. Through illumination He enables men to understand truth. He exalts Christ. He convicts of sin, of righteousness and of judgment. He calls men to the Savior, and effects regeneration. He cultivates Christian character, comforts believers, and bestows the spiritual gifts” by which they serve God through His church. He seals the believer unto the day of final redemption. His presence in the Christian is the assurance of God to bring the believer into the fulness of the stature of Christ. He enlightens and empowers the believer and the church in worship, evangelism, and service.

Genesis 1:2; Judges 14:6; Job 26:13; Psalm 51:11; 139:7
Isaiah 61:1-3; Joel 2:28-32
Matthew 1:18; 3:16; 4:1; 12:28-32; 28:19; Mark 1:10, 12
Luke 1:35; 4:1, 18-19; 11:13; 12:12; 24:49
John 4:24; 14:16-17, 26; 15:26; 16:7-14
Acts 1:8; 2:1-4, 38; 4:31; 5:3; 6:3; 7:55; 8:17, 39
Acts 10:44; 13:2; 15:28; 16:6; 19:1-6
Romans 8:9-11, 14-16, 26-27; 1 Corinthians 2:10-14; 3:16; 12:3-11
Galatians 4:6; Ephesians 1:13-14; 4:30; 5:18; 1 Thessalonians 5:19
1 Timothy 3:16; 4:1; 2 Timothy 1:14; 3:16; Hebrews 9:8, 14
2 Peter 1:21; 1 John 4:13; 5:6-7; Revelation 1:10; 22:17

III. MAN

Man was created by the special act of God, in His own image, and is the crowning work of His creation. In the beginning man was innocent of sin and was endowed by his Creator with freedom of choice. By his free choice man sinned against God and brought sin into the human race. Through the temptation of Satan man transgressed the command of God, and fell from his original innocence; whereby his posterity inherit a nature and an environment inclined toward sin, and as soon as they are capable of moral action become transgressors and are under condemnation. Only the grace of God can bring man into His holy fellowship and enable man to fulfill the creative purpose of God. The sacredness of human personality is evident in that God created man in His own image, and in that Christ died for man; therefore every man possesses dignity and is worthy of respect and Christian love.

Genesis 1:26-30; 2:5, 7, 18-22; 3; 9:6
Psalm 1:1-6; 8:3-6; 32:1-5; 51:5; Isaiah 6:5; Jeremiah 17:5
Matthew 16:26; Acts 17:26-31
Romans 1:19-32; 3:10-18, 23; 5:6, 12, 19; 6:6
Romans 7:14-25; 8:14-18, 29; 1Co 1:21-31; 15:19, 21-22
Ephesians 2:1-22; Colossians 1:21-22; 3:9-11

IV. SALVATION

Salvation involves the redemption of the whole man, and is offered freely to all who accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, who by His own blood obtained eternal redemption for the believer. In its broadest sense salvation includes regeneration, sanctification, and glorification.

A. Regeneration, or the new birth, is a work of Gods grace whereby believers become new creatures in Christ Jesus. It is a change of heart wrought by the Holy Spirit through conviction of sin, to which the sinner responds in repentance toward God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Repentance and faith are inseparable experiences of grace. Repentance is a genuine turning from sin toward God. Faith is the acceptance of Jesus Christ and commitment of the entire personality to Him as Lord and Savior.

Justification is Gods gracious and full acquittal upon principles of His righteousness of all sinners who repent and believe in Christ. Justification brings the believer into a relationship of peace and favor with God.

B. Sanctification is the experience, beginning in regeneration, by which the believer is set apart to Gods purposes, and is enabled to progress toward moral and spiritual perfection through the presence and power of the Holy Spirit dwelling in him. Growth in grace should continue throughout the regenerate persons life.

C. Glorification is the culmination of salvation and is the final blessed and abiding state of the redeemed.

Genesis 3:15; Exodus 3:14-17; 6:2-8
Matthew 1:21; 4:17; 16:21-26; 27:22-28:6
Luke 1:68-69; 2:28-32
John 1:11-14, 29; 3:3-21, 36; 5:24; 10:9, 28-29
John 15:1-16; 17:17; Acts 2:21; 4:12; 15:11; 16:30-31
Acts 17:30-31; 20:32; Romans 1:16-18; 2:4; 3:23-25; 4:3
Romans 5:8-10; 6:1-23; 8:1-18; 29-39; 10:9-10, 13
Romans 13:11-14; 1 Corinthians 1:18, 30; 6:19-20; 15:10
2 Corinthians 5:17-20; Galatians 2:20; 3:13; 5:22-25; 6:15
Ephesians 1:7; 2:8-22; 4:11-16; Philippians 2:12-13; Colossians 1:9-22; 3:1
1 Thessalonians 5:23-24; 2 Timothy 1:12; Titus 2:11-14
Hebrews 2:1-3; 5:8-9; 9:24-28; 11:1-12:8, 14
James 2:14-26; 1 Peter 1:2-23; 1 John 1:6-2:11
Revelation 3:20; 21:1-22:5

V. GOD’S PURPOSE OF GRACE

Election is the gracious purpose of God, according to which He regenerates, sanctifies, and glorifies sinners. It is consistent with the free agency of man, and comprehends all the means in connection with the end. It is a glorious display of Gods sovereign goodness, and is infinitely wise, holy, and unchangeable. It excludes boasting and promotes humility.

All true believers endure to the end. Those whom God has accepted in Christ, and sanctified by His Spirit, will never fall away from the state of grace, but shall persevere to the end. Believers may fall into sin through neglect and temptation, whereby they grieve the Spirit, impair their graces and comforts, bring reproach on the cause of Christ, and temporal judgments on themselves, yet they shall be kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation.

Genesis 12:1-3; Exodus 19:5-8; 1 Samuel 8:4-7, 19-22
Isaiah 5:1-7; Jeremiah 31:31
Matthew 16:18-19; 21:28-45; 24:22, 31; 25:34
Luke 1:68-79; 2:29-32; 19:41-44; 24:44-48
John 1:12-14; 3:16; 5:24; 6:44-45, 65; 10:27-29
John 15:16; 17:6, 12, 17-18; Acts 20:32
Romans 5:9-10; 8:28-39; 10:12-15; 11:5-7, 26-36
1 Corinthians 1:1-2; 15:24-28; Ephesians 1:4-23; 2:1-10; 3:1-11
Colossians 1:12-14; 2 Thessalonians 2:13-14; 2 Timothy 1:12; 2:10, 19
Hebrews 11:39-12:2; 1 Peter 1:2-5, 13; 2:4-10
1 John 1:7-9; 2:19; 3:2

VI. THE CHURCH

A New Testament church of the Lord Jesus Christ is a local body of baptized believers who are associated by covenant in the faith and fellowship of the gospel, observing the two ordinances of Christ, committed to His teachings, exercising the gifts, rights, and privileges invested in them by His Word, and seeking to extend the gospel to the ends of the earth.

This church is an autonomous body, operating through democratic processes under the Lordship of Jesus Christ. In such a congregation members are equally responsible. Its Scriptural officers are pastors and deacons.

The New Testament speaks also of the church as the body of Christ which includes all of the redeemed of all the ages.

Matthew 16:15-19; 18:15-20
Acts 2:41-42, 47; 5:11-14; 6:3-6; 13:1-3; 14:23, 27
Acts 15:1-30; 16:5; 20:28; Romans 1:7
1 Corinthians 1:2; 3:16; 5:4-5; 7:17; 9:13-14; 12
Ephesians 1:22-23; 2:19-22; 3:8-11, 21; 5:22-32
Philippians 1:1; Colossians 1:18; 1 Timothy 3:1-15; 4:14

VII. BAPTISM AND THE LORD’S SUPPER

Christian baptism is the immersion of a believer in water in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. It is an act of obedience symbolizing the believers faith in a crucified, buried, and risen Savior, the believers death to sin, the burial of the old life, and the resurrection to walk in newness of life in Christ Jesus. It is a testimony to his faith in the final resurrection of the dead. Being a church ordinance, it is prerequisite to the privileges of church membership and to the Lords Supper.

The Lord’s Supper is a symbolic act of obedience whereby members of the church, through partaking of the bread and the fruit of the vine, memorialize the death of the Redeemer and anticipate His second coming.

Matthew 3:13-17; 26:26-30; 28:19-20; Mark 1:9-11; 14:22-26
Luke 3:21-22; 22:19-20; John 3:23
Acts 2:41-42; 8:35-39; 16:30-33; 20:7
Romans 6:3-5; 1 Corinthians 10:16, 21; 11:23-29; Colossians 2:12

VIII. THE LORD’S DAY

The first day of the week is the Lords Day. It is a Christian institution for regular observance. It commemorates the resurrection of Christ from the dead and should be employed in exercises of worship and spiritual devotion, both public and private, and by refraining from worldly amusements, and resting from secular employments, work of necessity and mercy only being excepted.

Exodus 20:8-11; Matthew 12:1-12; 28:1; Mark 2:27-28; 16:1-7
Luke 24:1-3, 33-36; John 4:21-24; 20:1, 19-28
Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 16:1-2; Colossians 2:16; 3:16; Revelation 1:10

IX. THE KINGDOM

The Kingdom of God includes both His general sovereignty over the universe and His particular kingship over men who willfully acknowledge Him as King. Particularly the Kingdom is the realm of salvation into which men enter by trustful, childlike commitment to Jesus Christ. Christians ought to pray and to labor that the Kingdom may come and Gods will be done on earth. The full consummation of the Kingdom awaits the return of Jesus Christ and the end of this age.

Genesis 1:1; Isaiah 9:6-7; Jeremiah 23:5-6
Matthew 3:2; 4:8-10, 23; 12:25-28; 13:1-52; 25:31-46; 26:29
Mark 1:14-15; 9:1; Luke 4:43; 8:1; 9:2; 12:31-32
Luke 17:20-21; 23:42; John 3:3; 18:36
Acts 1:6-7; 17:22-31; Romans 5:17; 8:19
1 Corinthians 15:24-28; Colossians 1:13; Hebrews 11:10, 16; 12:28
1 Peter 2:4-10; 4:13; Revelation 1:6, 9; 5:10; 11:15; 21-22

X. LAST THINGS

God, in His own time and in His own way, will bring the world to its appropriate end. According to His promise, Jesus Christ will return personally and visibly in glory to the earth; the dead will be raised; and Christ will judge all men in righteousness. The unrighteous will be consigned to Hell, the place of everlasting punishment. The righteous in their resurrected and glorified bodies will receive their reward and will dwell forever in Heaven with the Lord.

Isaiah 2:4; 11:9; Matthew 16:27; 18:8-9
Matthew 19:28; 24:27, 30, 36, 44; 25:31-46; 26:64
Mark 8:38; 9:43-48; Luke 12:40, 48; 16:19-26
Luke 17:22-37; 21:27-28; John 14:1-3
Acts 1:11; 17:31; Romans 14:10; 1 Corinthians 4:5
1 Corinthians 15:24-28, 35-58; 2 Corinthians 5:10; Philippians 3:20-21
Colossians 1:5; 3:4; 1 Thessalonians 4:14-18; 5:1; 2 Thessalonians 1:7; 2:1-17
1 Timothy 6:14; 2 Timothy 4:1, 8; Titus 2:13; Hebrews 9:27-28
James 5:8; 2 Peter 3:7; 1 John 2:28; 3:2
Jude 14; Rev 1:18; 3:11; 20:1-22:13

XI. EVANGELISM AND MISSIONS

It is the duty and privilege of every follower of Christ and of every church of the Lord Jesus Christ to endeavor to make disciples of all nations. The new birth of mans spirit by Gods Holy Spirit means the birth of love for others. Missionary effort on the part of all rests thus upon a spiritual necessity of the regenerate life, and is expressly and repeatedly commanded in the teachings of Christ. It is the duty of every child of God to seek constantly to win the lost to Christ by personal effort and by all other methods in harmony with the gospel of Christ.

Genesis 12:1-3; Exodus 19:5-6; Isaiah 6:1-8
Matthew 9:37-38; 10:5-15; 13:18-30, 37-43; 16:19
Matthew 22:9-10; 24:14; 28:18-20; Luke 10:1-18; 24:46-53
John 14:11-12; 15:7-8, 16; 17:15; 20:21
Acts 1:8; 2; 8:26-40; 10:42-48; 13:2-3
Romans 10:13-15; Ephesians 3:1-11; 1 Thessalonians 1:8; 2 Timothy 4:5
Hebrews 2:1-3; 11:39-12:2; 1 Peter 2:4-10; Revelation 22:17

XII. EDUCATION

The cause of education in the Kingdom of Christ is co-ordinate with the causes of missions and general benevolence, and should receive along with these the liberal support of the churches. An adequate system of Christian schools is necessary to a complete spiritual program for Christs people.

In Christian education there should be a proper balance between academic freedom and academic responsibility. Freedom in any orderly relationship of human life is always limited and never absolute. The freedom of a teacher in a Christian school, college, or seminary is limited by the pre-eminence of Jesus Christ, by the authoritative nature of the Scriptures, and by the distinct purpose for which the school exists.

Deuteronomy 4:1,5,9,14; 6:1-10; 31:12-13; Nehemiah 8:1-8; Job 28:28
Psalm 19:7; 119:11; Proverbs 3:13; 4:1-10; 8:1-7, 11; 15:14
Ecclesiastes 7:19; Matthew 5:2; 7:24; 28:19-20; Luke 2:40
1 Corinthians 1:18-31; Ephesians 4:11-16; Philippians 4:8; Colossians 2:3, 8-9
1 Timothy 1:3-7; 2 Timothy 2:15; 3:14-17; Hebrews 5:12-6:3
James 1:5; 3:17

XIII. STEWARDSHIP

God is the source of all blessings, temporal and spiritual; all that we have and are we owe to Him. Christians have a spiritual debtorship to the whole world, a holy trusteeship in the gospel, and a binding stewardship in their possessions. They are therefore under obligation to serve Him with their time, talents, and material possessions; and should recognize all these as entrusted to them to use for the glory of God and for helping others. According to the Scriptures, Christians should contribute of their means cheerfully, regularly, systematically, proportionately, and liberally for the advancement of the Redeemers cause on earth.

Genesis 14:20; Leviticus 27:30-32; Deuteronomy 8:18; Malachi 3:8-12
Matthew 6:1-4, 19-21; 19:21; 23:23; 25:14-29
Luke 12:16-21, 42; 16:1-13; Acts 2:44-47
Acts 5:1-11; 17:24-25; 20:35; Romans 6:6-22; 12:1-2
1 Corinthians 4:1-2; 6:19-20; 12; 16:1-4; 2 Corinthians 8-9; 12:15
Philippians 4:10-19; 1 Peter 1:18-19

XIV. COOPERATION

Christs people should, as occasion requires, organize such associations and conventions as may best secure cooperation for the great objects of the Kingdom of God. Such organizations have no authority over one another or over the churches. They are voluntary and advisory bodies designed to elicit, combine; and direct the energies of our people in the most effective manner. Members of New Testament churches should cooperate with one another in carrying forward the missionary, educational, and benevolent ministries for the extension of Christs Kingdom. Christian unity in the New Testament sense is spiritual harmony and voluntary cooperation for common ends by various groups of Christs people. Cooperation is desirable between the various Christian denominations, when the end to be attained is itself justified, and when such cooperation involves no violation of conscience or compromise of loyalty to Christ and His Word as revealed in the New Testament.

Exodus 17:12; 18:17; Judges 7:21; Ezra 1:3-4; 2:68-69; 5:14-15
Nehemiah 4; Nehemiah 8:1-5; Mat 10:5-15; 20:1-16; 22:1-10; 28:19-20
Mark 2:3; Luke 10:1; Acts 1:13-14; 2:1; 4:31-37; 13:2-3
Acts 15:1-35; 1Co 1:10-17; 3:5-15; 12; 2 Corinthians 8:1-9:15
Galatians 1:6-10; Ephesians 4:1-16; Philippians 1:15-18

XV. THE CHRISTIAN AND THE SOCIAL ORDER

Every Christian is under obligation to seek to make the will of Christ supreme in his own life and in human society. Means and methods used for the improvement of society and the establishment of righteousness among men can be truly and permanently helpful only when they are rooted in the regeneration of the individual by the saving grace of God in Christ Jesus. The Christian should oppose in the spirit of Christ every form of greed, selfishness, and vice. He should work to provide for the orphaned, the needy, the aged, the helpless, and the sick. Every Christian should seek to bring industry, government, and society as a whole under the sway of the principles of righteousness, truth, and brotherly love. In order to promote these ends Christians should be ready to work with all men of good will in any good cause, always being careful to act in the spirit of love without compromising their loyalty to Christ and His truth.

Exodus 20:3-17; Leviticus 6:2-5; Deuteronomy 10:12; 27:17
Psalm 101:5; Mic 6:8; Zechariah 8:16
Matthew 5:13-16, 43-48; 22:36-40; 25:35
Mark 1:29-34, 2:3; 10:21; Luke 4:18-21; 10:27-37; 20:25
John 15:12; 17:15; Romans 12-14; 1 Corinthians 5:9-10; 6:1-7
1 Corinthians 7:20-24; 10:23-11:1; Galatians 3:26-28; Ephesians 6:5-9
Colossians 3:12-17; 1 Thessalonians 3:12; Philemon 1:1-25; James 1:27; 2:8

XVI. PEACE AND WAR

It is the duty of Christians to seek peace with all men on principles of righteousness. In accordance with the spirit and teachings of Christ they should do all in their power to put an end to war.

The true remedy for the war spirit is the gospel of our Lord. The supreme need of the world is the acceptance of His teachings in all the affairs of men and nations, and the practical application of His law of love.

Isaiah 2:4; Matthew 5:9, 38-48; 6:33; 26:52; Luke 22:36,38
Romans 12:18-19; 13:1-7; 14:19; Hebrews 12:14; James 4:1-2

XVII. RELIGIOUS LIBERTY

God alone is Lord of the conscience, and He has Left it free from the doctrines and commandments of men which are contrary to His Word or not contained in it. Church and state should be separate. The state owes to every church protection and full freedom in the pursuit of its spiritual ends. In providing for such freedom no ecclesiastical group or denomination should be favored by the state more than others. Civil government being ordained of God, it is the duty of Christians to render loyal obedience thereto in all things not contrary to the revealed will of God. The church should not resort to the civil power to carry on its work. The gospel of Christ contemplates spiritual means alone for the pursuit of its ends. The state has no right to impose penalties for religious opinions of any kind. The state has no right to impose taxes for the support of any form of religion. A free church in a free state is the Christian ideal, and this implies the right of free and unhindered access to God on the part of all men, and the right to form and propagate opinions in the sphere of religion without interference by the civil power.

Genesis 1:27; 2:7; Matthew 6:6-7, 24; 16:26; 22:21
John 8:36; Acts 4:19-20; Romans 6:1-2; 13:1-7
Galatians 5:1, 13; Philippians 3:20; 1 Timothy 2:1-2; James 4:12
1 Peter 2:12-17; 3:11-17; 4:12-19

XVIII. THE FAMILY (Added in 1998)

God has ordained the family as the foundational institution of human society. It is composed of persons related to one another by marriage, blood or adoption.

Marriage is the uniting of one man and one woman in covenant commitment for a lifetime. It is Gods unique gift to reveal the union between Christ and His church, and to provide for the man and the woman in marriage the framework for intimate companionship, the channel for sexual expression according to biblical standards, and the means for procreation of the human race.

The husband and wife are of equal worth before God, since both are created in Gods image. The marriage relationship models the way God relates to His people. A husband is to love his wife as Christ loved the church. He has the God-given responsibility to provide for, to protect, and to lead his family. A wife is to submit herself graciously to the servant leadership of her husband even as the church willingly submits to the headship of Christ. She, being in the image of God as is her husband and thus equal to him, has the God-given responsibility to respect her husband and to serve as his helper in managing the household and nurturing the next generation.

Children, from the moment of conception, are a blessing and heritage from the Lord. Parents are to demonstrate to their children Gods pattern for marriage. Parents are to teach their children spiritual and moral values and to lead them, through consistent lifestyle example and loving discipline, to make choices based on biblical truth. Children are to honor and obey their parents.

Genesis 1:26-28; 2:18-25; 3:1-20; Exodus 20:12; Deuteronomy 6:4-9; Joshua 24:15
1 Samuel 1:26-28; Psalm 78:1-8; 127:1-4; 128:1-6; 139:13-16
Proverbs 1:8; 5:15-20; 6:20-22; 12:4; 13:24
Proverbs 14:1; 17:6; 18:22; 22:6,15
Proverbs 23:13-14; 24:3; 29:15,17; 31:10-31
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12; 9:9; Malachi 2:14-16
Matthew 5:31-32; 18:2-5; 19:3-9
Mark 10:6-12; Romans 1:18-32; 1 Corinthians 7:1-16
Ephesians 5:21-33; 6:1-4; Colossians 3:18-21; 1 Timothy 5:14; 2 Timothy 1:3-5
Titus 2:3-5; Hebrews 13:4; 1 Peter 3:1-7

The 1962 session of the Southern Baptist Convention, meeting in San Francisco, California, adopted the following motion.

“Since the report of the Committee on Statement of Baptist Faith and Message was adopted in 1925, there have been various statements from time to time which have been made, but no overall statement which might be helpful at this time as suggested in Section 2 of that report, or introductory statement which might be used as an interpretation of the 1925 Statement.

“We recommend, therefore, that the president of this Convention be requested to call a meeting of the men now serving as presidents of the various state Conventions that would qualify as a member of the Southern Baptist Convention committee under Bylaw 18 to present to the Convention in Kansas City some similar statement which shall serve as information to the churches, and which may serve as guidelines to the various agencies of the Southern Baptist Convention. It is understood that any group or individuals may approach this committee to be of service. The expenses of this committee shall be borne by the Convention Operating Budget.”

Your committee thus constituted begs leave to present its report as follows:

Throughout its work your committee has been conscious of the contribution made by the statement of “The Baptist Faith And Message” adopted by the Southern Baptist Convention in 1925. It quotes with approval its affirmation that “Christianity is supernatural in its origin and history. We repudiate every theory of religion which denies the supernatural elements in our faith.”

Furthermore, it concurs in the introductory “statement of the historic Baptist conception of the nature and function of confessions of faith in our religious and denominational life.” It is, therefore, quoted in full as part of this report to the Convention.

(1) That they constitute a consensus of opinion of some Baptist body, large or small, for the general instruction and guidance of our own people and others concerning those articles of the Christian faith which are most surely held among us. They are not intended to add anything to the simple conditions of salvation revealed in the New Testament, viz., repentance towards God and faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.

(2) That we do not regard them as complete statements of our faith, having any quality of finality or infallibility. As in the past so in the future Baptists should hold themselves free to revise their statements of faith as may seem to them wise and expedient at any time.

(3) That any group of Baptists, large or small have the inherent right to draw up for themselves and publish to the world a confession of their faith whenever they may think it advisable to do so.

(4) That the sole authority for faith and practice among Baptists is the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments. Confessions are only guides in interpretation, having no authority over the conscience.

(5) That they are statements of religious convictions, drawn from the Scriptures, and are not to be used to hamper freedom of thought or investigation in other realms of life.”

The 1925 Statement recommended “the New Hampshire Confession of Faith, revised at certain points, and with some additional articles growing out of certain needs …” Your present committee has adopted the same pattern. It has sought to build upon the structure of the 1925 Statement, keeping in mind the “certain needs” of our generation. At times it has reproduced sections of the Statement without change. In other instances it has substituted words for clarity or added sentences for emphasis. At certain points it has combined articles, with minor changes in wording, to endeavor to relate certain doctrines to each other. In still others, e.g., “God” and “Salvation” it has sought to bring together certain truths contained throughout the 1925 Statement in order to relate them more clearly and concisely. In no case has it sought to delete from or to add to the basic contents of the 1925 Statement.

Baptists are a people who profess a living faith. This faith is rooted and grounded in Jesus Christ who is “the same yesterday, and today, and for ever.” Therefore, the sole authority for faith and practice among Baptists is Jesus Christ whose will is revealed in the Holy Scriptures.

A living faith must experience a growing understanding of truth and must be continually interpreted and related to the needs of each new generation. Throughout their history Baptist bodies, both large and small, have issued statements of faith which comprise a consensus of their beliefs. Such statements have never been regarded as complete, infallible statements of faith, nor as official creeds carrying mandatory authority. Thus this generation of Southern Baptists is in historic succession of intent and purpose as it endeavors to state for its time and theological climate those articles of the Christian faith which are most surely held among us.

Baptists emphasize the souls competency before God, freedom in religion, and the priesthood of the believer. However, this emphasis should not be interpreted to mean that there is an absence of certain definite doctrines that Baptists believe, cherish, and with which they have been and are now closely identified.

It is the purpose of this statement of faith and message to set forth certain teachings which we believe.

Herschel H. Hobbs, Chairman Howard M. Reaves Ed. J. Packwood C.Z. Holland W.B. Timberlake C.V. Koons Malcolm B. Knight Dick H. Hail, Jr. Charles R. Walker Walter R. Davis Garth Pybas V.C. Kruschwitz Luther B. Hall Robert Woodward Douglas Hudgins Paul Weber, Jr. R.A. Long Nane Starnes C. Hoge Hockensmith Hugh R. Bumpas David G. Anderson E. Warren Rust James H. Landes R.P. Downey

 

Evidence of Salvation

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Take a little test that will help reveal to yourself some things about salvation. On a sale of 1-5 rate yourself:

  1. Never true
  2. Rarely true
  3. Sometimes true
  4. Usually true
  5. Always true
  • ____ I have an awareness and brokenness over my sin.
  • ____ I have a hunger for God’s word.
  • ____ I have a desire for living the Christian life of obedience.
  • ____ I have seen an increase in Satan attacking my faith.
  • ____ I have genuine love for others.
  • ____ I have a desire to share my faith with others.
  • ____ I have experienced social pressure or ridicule from non-believing family, friends, classmates, co-works, etc.

We will ALWAYS be growing in these areas, and we will NEVER reach a point where we perfectly do all of these things, but these seven areas are indicators that we are believers and are actively pursuing God. Let’s look at why these are solid evidences of salvation.

1. Brokenness over Sin:

  • 1 John 1:6 “If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth.”
  • 1 John 1:8-10 “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives.”

2. Hunger for God’s Word:

  • 1 Peter 2:2 “Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation,”

3. Christian Life Transformation and Obedience:

  • 2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!”
  • 1 John 2:4 “The man who says, ‘I know him,’ but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him.”

4. Testing, Troubles and Trials in Life:

  • 2 Timothy 3:12 “In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,”

5. Genuine Love for Others:

  • 1 John 4:7-23 “Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. We know that we live in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother.”

6. Desire to Tell Others About Your Faith:

  • Mark 8:28 “If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.”
  • Acts 1:8 “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

7. Social Pressure Because of Your Faith:

  • John 15:18 “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first.”
  • John 17:14 “I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world.”
  • 1 John 3:13 “Do not be surprised, my brothers, if the world hates you.”

Jesus as the Son of Man?

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It’s a question that has come up at at one time or another in most any small group… we know that Jesus is the Son of God, the second person of the trinity, God incarnate, and the exact representation of God’s nature (Hebrews 1:3), so why in the world did Jesus refer to himself as the Son of Man? (Matthew 8:20, 9:6, 10:23, 11:19, 12:8, 12:32, 12:40, 13:37, 13:41, 16:13, 16:27-28, 17:9, 17:12, 17:22, 19:28, 20:18, 20:28, 24:27… oh, I guess that’s enough references).

The term is not too flattering in some verses of the Bible (Job 25:6, Psalm 8:4, 144:3, Isaiah 51:12). A Chafee fun fact is that Jesus is referred to as the “Son of Man” 88 times in the New Testament.

A first meaning of the phrase “Son of Man” is as a reference to the prophecy of Daniel 7:13-14

“In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.”

The description “Son of Man” was a Messianic title. Jesus is the One who was given dominion and glory and a kingdom. When Jesus used this phrase, he was assigning the Son of Man prophecy to himself. The Jews of that era would have been intimately familiar with the phrase and to whom it referred. Jesus was proclaiming himself as the Messiah.

A second meaning of the phrase “Son of Man” is that Jesus was truly a human being. God called the prophet Ezekiel “son of man” 93 times. God was simply calling Ezekiel a human being. A son of a man is a man.

  • Jesus was fully God (John 1:1), but he was also a human being (John 1:14).
  • First John 4:2 tells us, “This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God.”

Jesus was the Son of God (he was in his essence God) and Jesus was also the Son of Man (he was in His essence a human being): the GOD-MAN.

So, the phrase “Son of Man” indicates that Jesus is the Messiah and that he is truly a human being.

Churches and Bridge Events

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Kim Jessie at the Norfolk Area Baptist Association has some great advice for churches planning on hosting community outreach events, like sports camps, children’s activities, VBS, movie nights, etc. The hope is that we can build a bridge from the church to the community.

Here are some easy to do tips for a more successful bridge event:

  1. Have plenty of smiling volunteers to meet and greet participants and parents.
  2. Have volunteers prepared to start conversations with parents or other adults who bring children to the event.
  3. If you are outside for the camp, provide cold drinks, chairs, and shade for the adults who hang out and watch their children.
  4. Provide a glimpse of what happens in worship. This can be done with a song and a brief devotional message at some point during the event.
  5. Make sure everyone is personally invited to worship, Bible study, and other summer events.
  6. Encourage children’s Sunday School teachers, worship leaders, mission/Awana leaders to be present to meet and interact with the children and their parents.

May God richly bless all that is done in His name!

Some Good Advice

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I read about this good advice from which we can all learn. It is a quote from Mother Teresa (Missionary, 1910-1997). Imagine people living this way!

  • People are often unreasonable and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.
  • If you are kind, people may accuse you of ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.
  • If you are honest, people may cheat you. Be honest anyway.
  • If you find happiness, people may be jealous. Be happy anyway.
  • The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.
  • Give the world the best you have and it may never be enough. Give your best anyway.
  • For you see, in the end, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.

Forgive, be kind, be happy, do good, and give your best. What more could you give in life and who matters more than God? When it is between you and God, will you follow this path of honor? Mankind has the ability to choose an honorable path or the world’s path. Be a person of honor. Take the path that leads to an honorable destination.