Last week the Southern Baptist Convention convened in San Antonio, Texas. On the final day Dr. Tom Ascol, pastor of Grace Baptist Church in Cape Coral, Florida stood to offer the following resolution that had previously been submitted to the resolutions committee:
Resolution on Integrity in Church Membership
Submitted by Tom Ascol
May 1, 2007
· Whereas the Baptist Faith and Message states that the Scriptures are “the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and religious opinions should be tried” (article 1); and
· Whereas life in a local church should be characterized by loving discipline as the Bible teaches in passages like Matthew 18:15-18, I Corinthians 5, and Titus 3:10-11 and
· Whereas the 2006 Southern Baptist Convention Annual Church Profiles indicate that there are 16,306,246 members in Southern Baptist churches; and
· Whereas those same profiles indicate that only 6,138,776 of those members attend a primary worship service of their church in a typical week; and
· Whereas the ideal of a regenerate church membership has long been and remains a cherished Baptist principle as described in Article VI of the Baptist Faith and Message; now, therefore, be it
· RESOLVED that the messengers of the Southern Baptist Convention meeting in San Antonio, Texas, June 12-13, 2007, urge Southern Baptists to repent of our failure to maintain responsible church membership, and be it further
· RESOLVED that we urge the churches of the Southern Baptist Convention to repent of the widespread failure among us to obey Jesus Christ in the practice of lovingly correcting wayward church members (Matthew 18:15-18), and be it further
· RESOLVED that we plead with pastors and church leaders to lead their churches to study and implement our Lord’s teachings on this essential church practice, and be it further
· RESOLVED that we encourage denominational servants to support and encourage churches that seek to recover and implement our Savior’s teachings on church discipline, especially when such efforts result in the reduction in the number of members that are reported in those churches, and be it finally
· RESOLVED that we commit to pray for our churches as they seek to honor the Lord Jesus Christ through reestablishing integrity to church membership and to the reporting of statistics in the Annual Church Profile.
At the risk of sounding naïve, I believe that most Southern Baptists would say “Amen!” to those words. When I read the resolution, as I have done multiple times, I am humbled and challenged. Who would deny the timeliness and propriety of such a resolution? But some among our denominational leadership have a habit of making the obvious, doubtful and the clear, complicated.
The Resolutions Committee refused to bring this resolution to the gathered messengers for a vote. Pastor Ascol then read the resolution from the floor where it was opened to a very brief discussion. A vote was taken to override the Resolutions Committee and bring the resolution on integrity in church membership to a vote. The vote failed. This was the second year in a row that Dr. Ascol sought approval for his resolution.
The reasons the Resolution Committee gave for rejecting the resolution on integrity in church membership were varied and, to my mind, nonsensical. Some said it would interfere with church autonomy, although it was never made clear how. Others had the strange idea that having unregenerate church members could be a positive thing. After all, they could serve as sort of “in-house prospects.” I’m not making this up.
Astonishingly, while the resolution on integrity in church membership was rejected, a flimsy resolution on, of all things, global warming was adopted.
And the band played on.
Resolution on Integrity in Church Membership
Submitted by Tom Ascol
May 1, 2007
· Whereas the Baptist Faith and Message states that the Scriptures are “the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and religious opinions should be tried” (article 1); and
· Whereas life in a local church should be characterized by loving discipline as the Bible teaches in passages like Matthew 18:15-18, I Corinthians 5, and Titus 3:10-11 and
· Whereas the 2006 Southern Baptist Convention Annual Church Profiles indicate that there are 16,306,246 members in Southern Baptist churches; and
· Whereas those same profiles indicate that only 6,138,776 of those members attend a primary worship service of their church in a typical week; and
· Whereas the ideal of a regenerate church membership has long been and remains a cherished Baptist principle as described in Article VI of the Baptist Faith and Message; now, therefore, be it
· RESOLVED that the messengers of the Southern Baptist Convention meeting in San Antonio, Texas, June 12-13, 2007, urge Southern Baptists to repent of our failure to maintain responsible church membership, and be it further
· RESOLVED that we urge the churches of the Southern Baptist Convention to repent of the widespread failure among us to obey Jesus Christ in the practice of lovingly correcting wayward church members (Matthew 18:15-18), and be it further
· RESOLVED that we plead with pastors and church leaders to lead their churches to study and implement our Lord’s teachings on this essential church practice, and be it further
· RESOLVED that we encourage denominational servants to support and encourage churches that seek to recover and implement our Savior’s teachings on church discipline, especially when such efforts result in the reduction in the number of members that are reported in those churches, and be it finally
· RESOLVED that we commit to pray for our churches as they seek to honor the Lord Jesus Christ through reestablishing integrity to church membership and to the reporting of statistics in the Annual Church Profile.
At the risk of sounding naïve, I believe that most Southern Baptists would say “Amen!” to those words. When I read the resolution, as I have done multiple times, I am humbled and challenged. Who would deny the timeliness and propriety of such a resolution? But some among our denominational leadership have a habit of making the obvious, doubtful and the clear, complicated.
The Resolutions Committee refused to bring this resolution to the gathered messengers for a vote. Pastor Ascol then read the resolution from the floor where it was opened to a very brief discussion. A vote was taken to override the Resolutions Committee and bring the resolution on integrity in church membership to a vote. The vote failed. This was the second year in a row that Dr. Ascol sought approval for his resolution.
The reasons the Resolution Committee gave for rejecting the resolution on integrity in church membership were varied and, to my mind, nonsensical. Some said it would interfere with church autonomy, although it was never made clear how. Others had the strange idea that having unregenerate church members could be a positive thing. After all, they could serve as sort of “in-house prospects.” I’m not making this up.
Astonishingly, while the resolution on integrity in church membership was rejected, a flimsy resolution on, of all things, global warming was adopted.
And the band played on.
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