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Baptist Message

"Helping Louisiana Baptists Impact the World For Christ"

It’s too pristine

By Chuck Kelley Rarely does Hollywood contact a Southern Baptist seminary, but rarely is not never. One day location scouts for a major motion picture to be filmed in New Orleans called NOBTS and asked to tour the campus. They were looking for a place that with a bit of movie magic could be made to look like the United States Coast Guard Academy. As they looked around, the location scouts absolutely loved what they saw. The star of the movie, who was a major Hollywood player, also had to sign off on the location before they could make a formal request to film some scenes within our gates. After looking things over, he overruled the scouts and rejected the recommendation to use NOBTS, saying it was “too pristine,” meaning too unspoiled and fresh. When news of the Hollywood conversation reached the president’s Office, I found it amusing, Upon reflection, I realized how instructive it was for the future facing Baptists. Having lived and worked on the campus for more than four decades, I was accustomed to hearing people speak of how beautiful the campus was and how different it felt when entering our campus from the city of New Orleans. The classic academic quadrangle was designed by A. Hays Town, a legendary Louisiana architect, … [Read more...]

ANALYSIS: The truth about gambling

By Will Hall, Baptist Message executive editor ALEXANDRIA, La. (LBM) – Late last year, The Advocate reported John Alario, the immediate past president of the state Senate, as saying that it “would take a crowbar” to get rid of gambling in the state now. Unfortunately, he is right. Too many budgets in the state have been tied to gambling taxes as a key source of revenue –revenues that have been flagging for at least a decade (aside from the nearly billion-dollar pandemic losses in 2020), causing regular budget crises for the state, local governments, schools, and law enforcement. Furthermore, there is a whitewashing about gambling when budget notes are developed in the legislature. Potential tax revenue payouts are touted in testimony to legislators, but there is a near blackout of information about the actual costs to taxpayers on the expense side of the ledger. Importantly, public discussions and policy decisions about gambling in this state ignore the crippling human costs of gambling as well. CASINOS In general, casinos are not created for casual entertainment. Instead, they are designed to exploit the weakest among us. Most are windowless facilities that offer no clocks -- to avoid triggering a patron’s … [Read more...]

The SBC truly ‘exists’ only two days per year

By Don F. Mabry ALEXANDRIA, La. (LBM)--Each year in June, the Southern Baptist Convention holds an annual meeting -- in recent years beginning on the second Tuesday in June and closing the next day. This schedule highlights the reality of the nature of the SBC: It only exists two days every year. During the other 363 days, the SBC Constitution assigns specific duties to the officers, boards, institutions, and commissions of the Convention to conduct the business and execute the budgets approved by the messengers. But, legally, there is no SBC. Indeed, the SBC truly is not a denomination but in effect is merely a meeting, a gathering akin to the conventions held every four years by the two major political parties – a mix of rally and business. While millions of people refer to themselves as Southern Baptists, the truth is that churches are not members of the SBC and most members of these churches are not members of the SBC. According to Article III of the SBC Constitution, “The Convention shall consist of messengers who are members of Baptist churches in cooperation with the Convention.”  This founding document specifies what constitutes a cooperating church and explains how many messengers each cooperating church … [Read more...]

How many churches will it take to ‘church’ America?

By Don F. Mabry ALEXANDRIA, La. (LBM)-- The number of churches in our country constantly is changing and it is very difficult to acquire information from the various denominations, but estimates indicate that there are 330,000 Christian churches and congregations in the United States today. But the question that arises about that number is how many more churches are needed to “church” our country? One of the most interesting facts about the number of U.S. churches is that it has not changed much in the past 20 years or so because the number of new churches being planted and the number of established churches that are closing are nearly the same. Likewise, the number of denominations is constantly changing as new denominations come into existence. Plus, in recent years, one of the most prolific denominational changes has been the growth in non-denominational churches. Many of these fellowship and exchange information with other non-denominational congregations but their relationship with each other is informal. Regardless, with the estimated U.S. population of 328 million people, we can calculate that there is a congregation for nearly every 994 or so people in our country. But this average is misleading because … [Read more...]

What’s so great about the Great Commission?

By Lane Corley ALEXANDRIA, La. - Hudson Taylor, missionary to China in the 1800’s, may have been the one to popularize the term Great Commission for Jesus’ last command to his followers on earth. Matthew 28:18-20 CSB – “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” What’s so great about the Great Commission? For starters: Jesus said it. This is a directive straight from the Master himself. And it’s the last words he left with his followers. This statement makes it clear what Jesus wanted and expected the cause of our lives to be as his people until his return. It’s repeated in all four gospels. The four Gospels vary on some details about the life of Jesus. Some version of this Great Commission is repeated in all of them, as well as in the beginning of Acts. This tells us that this statement left an indelible mark on his followers and served as a highlight of Jesus’ teaching in their hearts and minds. If we obey it, people are changed for eternity. … [Read more...]

On that first Easter the tombs were opened

By Will Hall, Baptist Message executive editor ALEXANDRIA, La. (LBM)—The days leading up to and including Resurrection Sunday were unlike any others in history and any since, with the Gospel accounts detailing the various events that took place on each. Yet, one of the most remarkable facts often overlooked about that first Easter is that others were resurrected with Christ – namely, followers of the Way. Matthew 27 is the only Gospel account to record this detail, documenting in verse 52 that “the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose.” Moreover, the next verse informs us that these revived believers “went into the holy city and appeared unto many.” In other words, these grandmothers, grandfathers, husbands, wives, sisters, brothers, and children – who had received salvation because of their faith in Jesus as the Christ – had their decomposed bodies restored and they returned to their homes, still wearing death shrouds with the smell of the grave embedded in the cloth. The significance of this aspect of Easter is enormous in at least two aspects. POWER AT PENTECOST First, the resurrection of the many saints helps give context to the great awakening that took place on Pentecost, … [Read more...]

Your brown bag miracle

By Steve Horn ALEXANDRIA, La. (LBC) - Over the last year we’ve been asked to cut back on most everything – time with family, trips to restaurants, retail establishments and public gatherings. During the recent winter storm we’ve been asked to cut back on our power usage, water usage and more due to the demand on the system. While our infrastructures may be limited in their ability to meet currents demands, I’m reminded that God’s resources are not. Take the miracle of the feeding of the 5,000 in John 6. From nothing, Jesus fed the multitudes! He does that which otherwise seems impossible. Like the other miracles, this miracle confirms who Jesus is, confirms what others say about Him, and what He said about Himself. This miracle appears in all four Gospels so I believe God is trying to communicate something of importance if we’ll take a moment to reflect on this truth. If other miracles communicate “nothing is too big for God” (and this miracle stands in agreement with that) this miracle reveals “nothing is too small for God.” We need to be reminded of that sometimes – maybe even today. Roofs are leaking, pipes are bursting, no electricity, no water—all small problems on the global scale, but still very real, especially … [Read more...]

Are you ready to pray?

By Stewart Holloway PINEVILLE, La. - I’ve heard people say, “If that doesn’t light your fire, your wood is wet.” I would say that about yesterday. It’s been a while since I had a 15 1/2 hour Sunday and was so jazzed when I got home that it was hard to come down. But yesterday was that. First, we had baptisms in both services. In the first service, I baptized a father and daughter. That kind of baptism is always extra special, especially when the little girl says, “Yes sir!” with joy and certainty when I ask, “Have you trusted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior?” Second, in our second service, we honored a young man who made a difference in a kid’s life. That moment was moving as our entire congregation stood and clapped, some wiping tears from their eyes. Third, we had our highest worship attendance since the shut down a year ago, falling just twenty-five people short of pre-Covid attendance. It was also good to see even more of our people back for the first time in a year. Every Sunday is like a homecoming now! We had powerful worship services. I got a text from one person watching online that simple read, “Glory!” People left saying, “I felt the Spirit today” and “I feel like I’ve been to heaven.” Fourth, … [Read more...]

What’s your story like?

By Stewart Holloway Everyone has a story. No one’s story is perfect. We’ve all faced disappointments, made bad decisions, struggled with sin, and more. The difference for Christians is we have welcomed God into our story. We have come to a point in our lives where we repented of our sins and received Jesus Christ as our Savior and surrendered to Him as our Lord. Our stories before we met God can run the gamut from G-rated ones of being raised in church and then finally realizing that just church was not enough to R-rated stories with plenty of sin and bad decisions before coming to faith in Christ. Some of us, even after welcoming God into our story, run astray or drift away from Him for awhile, and then turn back. Others are fortunate to begin their God-story early in life but only later discover a deeper relationship with Him that goes beyond a distant God of Sunday School posters and flannel-graphs. Whatever a person’s story with God, it is powerful and needs to be shared. No one can argue with your God-story. When brought before King Agrippa, in Acts 25-26, Paul shared his story. Having broken no Roman law about which he needed to make a defense, Paul used the audience with the king and the surrounding people to … [Read more...]

A mother’s resolve: God is sovereign, faithful, and loving

By Judy Patrick ALEXANDRIA, La. (LBM) -- Oct. 14, 2020, will be ingrained in my mind forever. Around 7:00 that morning my daughter-in-law called my husband to tell us that our 41-year-old son had died suddenly from an apparent cardiac arrhythmia. We were in shock! David had no history of heart issues. He was disciplined to watch what he ate and to exercise regularly. He was a very slim and fit young man. Just a week earlier he had passed his annual physical with flying colors. How does a parent wrap her mind around such news!? My first reactions were: “I didn’t get to tell him goodbye. I didn’t get to see him one last time. Did my child suffer? Did he die in pain?” But the thoughts that have carried me through this horrific crisis have been: “God is sovereign. God is faithful. And God is loving.” At first, I simply repeated these three phrases over and over in my head. But after a few weeks, I began to ask myself, “What do you really believe about these three statements? What is it about these three declarations that sustains you?” Truly, the loss of my son was a crisis of belief for me. Before I go any further, I need to share a few details about David’s life in the months prior to his … [Read more...]