Complementarian Confessional Conflagration
The Law Amendment simply clarifies what our Constitution already calls for—close identification with the BF&M. Messengers have already proved their commitment to hold the line on the BF&M’s teaching on female pastors.
If you had told me ten years ago that female pastors would become an item of contention again in the Southern Baptist Convention, I probably would not have believed you. It was not very long ago that most of us were under the impression that the issue had been settled by the Baptist Faith & Message 2000 (BF&M), which says that the office of pastor/elder/overseer is limited to men as qualified by Scripture. Nevertheless, here we are in 2024, and the issue is before us again.
The surprising thing this go round is that the debate appears to be an intra-complementarian conflagration as both sides at least claim to affirm the BF&M. Nevertheless, a profound difference exists among us about the propriety of cooperation with churches who have female pastors. To put it very bluntly, you have one set of complementarians who do not wish to cooperate with churches that have female pastors, and another set that do.
Enter Rob Collingsworth, who recently penned an essay for The Baptist Review arguing that Southern Baptists ought to be willing to cooperate with at least some churches that employ female pastors. For this reason, he is keen to persuade Southern Baptists to vote against the Law Amendment at our annual meeting this June in Indianapolis. If passed, the Law Amendment would clarify what the SBC Constitution already says—that cooperating churches should closely identify with the BF&M’s teaching about qualifications for pastors. Collingsworth believes that it would be bad for the Southern Baptist Convention to alienate churches who have female pastors but who would otherwise wish to contribute to our cooperative efforts. And for Collingsworth, the Law Amendment would alienate many such churches.
He gives five reasons for opposing the Law Amendment, each of which I believe to be problematic.
1. Should the SBC Cooperate with Churches that Employ Female Pastors?
First, he believes the SBC should be willing to cooperate with churches that give women the title pastor. As long as those female pastors don’t actually do the work of pastors, why should we split hairs over the title pastor? After all, the term pastor is “semantically challenged,” and we ought to recognize that some female pastors are nevertheless aligned with the “spirit” of the Bible’s teaching, if not the letter.
Collingsworth fails to recognize that the problem we are facing isn’t merely with churches that are confused about titles. I can think of two prominent examples right off the top of my head. One of the churches represented on the SBC’s Cooperation Committee employs a female executive pastor who preaches from time to time on Sunday mornings. Another church represented on the Cooperation Committee employs a variety of female pastors and has a senior pastor who publicly disagrees with the BF&M’s teaching about a male-only pastorate and who has publicly opposed the SBC’s removal of Saddleback. Neither of these situations represents mere confusion over nomenclature, but something far more substantive. Collingsworth doesn’t really explain the real scope of the problem right now in at least some cooperating churches. Voting down the Law Amendment would likely exacerbate that confusion, and yet that’s precisely what Collingsworth urges Southern Baptists to do.
2. Would the Law Amendment Exclude Churches that Subscribe to the Baptist Faith and Message?
Second, Collingsworth argues that the Law Amendment would exclude churches that hold to the BF&M. For him, while egalitarian churches with female pastors should be excluded from friendly cooperation, “complementarian” churches with female pastors should not. If churches are willing to give their money to a convention that does not share their views, why should the SBC refuse to cooperate with them?
The reason is because cooperating churches send messengers to the annual meeting. Messengers at the annual meeting vote on what the policies and priorities of the convention will be. How long will the SBC affirm the Bible’s teaching about a male-only pastorate if messengers increasingly disagree with what our confession says about a male-only pastorate? Cooperation is not merely about collecting money. It’s about messengers determining what our mission and priorities will be in our efforts to reach the nations for Christ. Do we want those messengers to agree with what our confession says about qualified male pastors? I think we do, and the Law Amendment helps to clarify our intention in this regard. Voting it down would send the opposite message.
3. Is the Law Amendment Out of Step with SBC History?
Third, Collingsworth argues that the Law Amendment would be out of step with how our Convention has operated for most of its history. The SBC was formed in 1849 but did not adopt the BF&M until 1925. And even then, it did not require cooperating churches to agree with the BF&M. It only required them to send in contributions. It wasn’t until 2015 that the convention adopted a requirement that cooperating churches “closely identify” with the BF&M. Nevertheless, Collingsworth contends that “closely identifies” allows for churches to contradict what the BF&M says on any given point, including what the BF&M says about the qualifications for pastors. He says that the chair of the SBC Executive Committee that proposed the “closely identifies” language confirmed to him privately that this is the case.
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This Is My Father’s World
The church has a high calling to bear witness to the Father’s glory throughout the entire world, which ultimately belongs to him. “This Is My Father’s World” is no ordinary hymn; it’s a powerful reminder of God’s sovereignty and the goodness of his creation. Unlike many of the kitschy and theologically anemic songs of today, it has earned its status as a timeless treasure.
In the world of hymns, there are those that stand the test of time, touching the hearts and souls of generations. “This Is My Father’s World” is undoubtedly one of these timeless treasures. Its profound theological message resonates as much today as when it was published more than a hundred years ago.
Written by Maltbie Davenport Babcock, an American Presbyterian minister, and published posthumously in 1901, “This is My Father’s World” packs a theological punch.
Unpacking the Hymn’s Lyrics
The opening line, “This is my Father’s world,” sets the tone for the entire hymn. It is a declaration that everything in the world ultimately belongs to God. In the beginning, God called forth something from nothing and then, in a successive series of moments, shaped that something into the awe-inspiring world which we now inhabit.
Thus, Babcock’s hymn makes a profound statement about the natural world as a signal of God’s goodness and beauty. As the Psalmist declared, the heavens “declare the glory of God” (Ps 19:1). As the apostle Paul wrote, the natural world teaches humanity that God exists and should be worshiped (Rom 1:18-22). Indeed, the world’s majesty and beauty point us to God’s magnificence and glory.
The hymn continues, “I rest me in the thought of rocks and trees, of skies and seas; His hand the wonders wrought,” emphasizing that the tangible aspects of God’s creation should be seen and cherished for what they are—gifts from God. Notice that Babcock isn’t longing for God to take him away from this world; he is expressing gratitude that he gets to live in this world.
The hymn also addresses the oft-misunderstood relationship between Creation, Fall, and Redemption: “O let me ne’er forget that though the wrong seems oft so strong, God is the ruler yet.” In other words, Satan doesn’t have the power to make bad what God has made good. God’s created world remains structurally good even though the Evil One twists and misdirects it toward bad ends.
Babcock’s original four-stanza song of praise ends with a reaffirmation of God’s kingship. “The Lord is King; let the heavens ring! God reigns; let the earth be glad!” Thus, the hymn comes full circle.
Applying the Hymn to Our Lives Today
More than a century after its composition, “This Is My Father’s World” continues to hold a special place in the hearts of many—and for good reason. It serves not only as a doxological prompt but also shapes what we believe and how we live.
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Gender Identity and Christian Discipleship
As parents, we are called to engage, instruct, and disciple our children for the glory of God. As we continue to watch the darkness spread across our land, we must be gaining resources, tools, and ultimately taking responsibility to educate our children through a proper biblical worldview.
Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock somewhere over the last couple of years, you’ve witnessed a drastic increase in the LGBTQA+ agenda in our nation. This agenda is well funded and far more organized than you might want to believe. While the stories of transgender athletes dominating women’s sports is concerning, you must know that this agenda transcends beyond swimming and track & field competitions. It involves a well organized political indoctrination campaign. In short, it’s called—discipleship.
A number of Disney employees are protesting what’s been called Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill. The employees are protesting as Gov. Ron DeSantis plans to sign the “Parental Rights in Education” bill into law in the state of Florida. This controversy has sparked much attention. What’s the issue? The bill will restrict K-3 grade students from being instructed or influenced by gender identity curriculum in the classroom. Once again, it points to the obvious reality that the LGBTQA+ agenda is using the classroom to make disciples, and this decision doesn’t fit within their deconstructive framework.
Ground Zero
The public school system and university campus have become ground zero for LGBTQA+ grooming. It’s called discipleship. Parents, if you don’t make disciples in your home with a biblical worldview, the enemy will gladly provide a worldly substitute. Such substitutes are offered by friendly and often very knowledgeable teachers and professors who engage in grooming activities to lead struggling children or teens into embracing a LGBTQA+ lifestyle.
The grooming starts early with children. For instance, one controversial activity that has become popular in many cities across our nation is “Drag Queen Reading Day.” This is an event sponsored by local libraries where transgender men who are obviously pretending to be women are given a public platform and access to children in a way that seems fun and interactive for children, but it’s extremely powerful.
Children will respond to the drag queen like you might expect them respond to a fun character at Disney World. They enjoy the costume and the fun stories. However, the transgender man is dressed up in a glitter covered costume with loads of makeup and eyelash extensions as an ambassador to deliver a message. The message is about gender fluidity. The goal is to make disciples and allies in local communities in order to normalize transgender and homosexual behavior in the eyes of little children and their parents. Remember the word of the year for 2021 for Dictionary.com? It was allyship.
Prior to their first day of kindergarten, little children are attending these powerful experiences in local libraries and this prepares their mind and heart to receive the more extensive grooming instruction as they enter the local school system.
The Wave of LGBTQA+ Studies
There has been a steady agenda to impact students through curricula within the local school system and university campus for decades. Back in 2008, a lesbian student at a high school in Vallejo, California filed a complaint with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) accusing the school district of discrimination. The settlement involved the introduction of films that were assigned to students as a homework assignment that depicted homosexual families. This assignment was issued as early as elementary school.
The agenda has picked up speed in recent years. An article published by Time Magazine back in 2014 was titled, “It’s Time to Write LGBT History into the Textbooks.” The social justice agenda has dramatically intensified the homosexual agenda in the sphere of education. For instance, back in 2016, California became the first state to add the LGBTQA+ agenda into the public school curriculum. After the new law passed and the new framework was adopted into the school system, it was highly praised by the California Superintendent of Public Instruction, Tom Torlakson who called it “a big win.” He stated the following:
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Wise Words on Wise Speech
Our tongues may only be brought under control by the one who made them: Jesus, the incarnate Word (John 1:1–14). He had the power to still the waves because He made the ocean. He could give sight to the blind because He formed their eyes. He alone has the power to come to a swearing, cutting, barbarous, spiteful, gossiping tongue and make it brand-new so that it is trained and ordered to speak that which builds up, exalts, and encourages.
Words are not trivial. As Proverbs says, “The tongue has the power of life and death” (18:21). Words hurt, and they heal; they destroy, and they restore. Leaders can move markets, nations, and peoples—toward both greatness and disaster—with their words. Mothers and fathers nurture their children—and wound them—with their words. We may never take up arms against others, but many of us do far greater damage with words than we could ever manage with a weapon. Yet the wise person, God teaches, uses words to bring life.
The book of Proverbs is the Bible’s book of wisdom for living, and standing out among its many concerns is the matter of words and how we use them. If we want to speak in a way that brings life instead of death, there is practical advice to heed in this book of Scripture. We may look to them to learn how our words can glorify God.
Our Words Should be True
Whoever gives an honest answer kisses the lips. (Prov. 24:26)
Sales are often secured on promises that salespeople know they won’t keep. And this problem is not unique to them. In academia, in politics, in families, and even in churches, dishonest speech is rampant.
But if we want our words give life, then they need always to be true—not just technically true, but fully honest. We need to tell it straight and not deceive others with clever evasions and strategic silences. That is not to say that absolutely everything we know to be true needs to be said, but every answer we give ought to be both true and sincere. This sort of honesty is a refreshing gesture of love to our neighbor: it “kisses the lips.”
When Paul describes our spiritual armor in Ephesians 6, the first piece, and the one that holds everything else in place, is “the belt of truth” (v. 14). If we leave off truth, if we talk out of both sides of our mouth, if we cease to speak the truth in love (Eph. 4:15), we will wreak havoc in our relationships and in the fellowship of God’s church. But choosing honest speech honors God and brings blessing to those around us.
Our Words Should be Few
When words are many, transgression is not lacking, but whoever restrains his lips is prudent. (Prov. 10:19)
There are many reasons we speak when we shouldn’t. Sometimes we speak because we feel bad, and it makes us feel better to lash out. Other times, our words come because we are under pressure, and we try to relieve our stress by spreading it around to others.
This verse is a helpful reminder that we should speak with intentionality and not just for the sake of speaking. The difficult truth is that when we give our tongues free rein, they tend to do more harm than good. It is far better to refrain from speaking at all unless we are doing so to give life with our words.
If we would sit down at night and honestly review our day, we would quickly discover the prevalence of sin in our many words. Perhaps our words were true but unkind, true but unnecessary, true but unhelpful.
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