By Joni B Hannigan, Christian Examiner ALPHARETTA, Ga. (Christian Examiner) – Kevin Ezell, president of the Southern Baptist Convention North American Mission Board, May 17 refuted accusations that "Cooperation Agreements" signed by state executives are "gag orders," but instead said they are "simply a commitment of charity and trust." Last week, several Southern Baptist state leaders accused NAMB of linking financial support from the national entity to the agreements that were said to include a non-disclosure agreement. NAMB declined to respond to Christian Examiner's request for comment, but posted an article on the organization's website May 17. To read the rest of the article, click here. … [Read more...]

By Will Hall, Message Editor MEMPHIS – Describing what his presidential priorities might mean for the Southern Baptist Convention, Steve Gaines emphasized during an exclusive interview the need to pray for revival in our churches and a spiritual awakening in our country, and an equally critical need to train to be soul winners again. Moreover, Gaines said there is a stewardship problem among Southern Baptists – starting with personal budgeting, and he made the point that “the Cooperative Program is by far the very best way to support Southern Baptist missions,” not societal giving. In that regard, Gaines said there needs to be greater emphasis on the value of local associations and state conventions in order to have healthy and growing national programs and entities. Finally, on the issue of Calvinism, Gaines said he believes “anybody can be saved” and that although there is room in the SBC tent for different beliefs, “I do not believe that Calvinism should be taught as the optimal exclusive theological position in our schools, whether our seminaries or our colleges.” DELIBERATE SOUL WINNING “We've got to win souls,” Gaines, pastor of the historic Bellevue Baptist Church in Cordova, Tennessee, a suburb of Memphis, told the … [Read more...]

By Will Hall, Message Editor NEW ORLEANS – David Crosby, pastor of the First Baptist Church in New Orleans, shared with the Louisiana Baptist Message some of his thoughts about what his possible election as president of the Southern Baptist Convention might mean for the denomination, emphasizing that “the work we do together is about the Great Commission and the Great Commandment.” Speaking by phone, Crosby said on that point “We’ve got to do both proclamation and incarnation.  I think the Gospel requires behavior as well as words.” He added he would work with our national entities to underscore compassion ministries as a way to unleash churches to reach the lost. Crosby also expressed “alarm” about the multi-year trend of designated giving -- the focus on independent work instead of cooperative ministries -- outpacing gifts through the Cooperative Program. Likewise, he expressed grave concern about the “almost accidental” downsizing of the International Mission Board, asking “Why didn’t we have a conversation about this?” instead of “just being blindsided by it.” Regarding the impact of Calvinism on the Convention, Crosby said Southern Baptists always before have been able to live together “with some tensions but in relative … [Read more...]

By Will Hall, Message Editor Despite making an appointment for a phone interview and after a substantive conversation, J.D. Greear declined to participate in a live question and answer session with the Louisiana Baptist Message about his run for the presidency of the Southern Baptist Convention. During the exchange, Greear made several special requests, some that were acceptable and one that was not. He asked for questions to be submitted in writing. The Message declined to grant this privilege because the two other candidates for SBC president -- Steve Gaines, pastor of Bellevue Baptist Church in Memphis, Tennessee, and David Crosby, pastor of First Baptist Church in New Orleans, Louisiana -- agreed to the live format, which requires the interviewee to be thinking on his feet and avoids getting typed responses ‘written by committee.’ For the record, to start their respective interviews, Gaines and Crosby each were asked to reflect on the axiom “keep the main thing the main thing” and then explain what the “main thing” would be in his presidency. Follow-up questions essentially were the same for both but were asked naturally during the respective conversations. Greear would have been treated the same. Greear also asked to … [Read more...]