The Joy of the Catechism

I grieve over the fact that many Baptists are unaware of the fact that Baptists have a catechism. When I mention to people that we have 'catechism' for children on Wednesday nights, I usually get a blank stare or a raised eyebrow. This is a tragedy! I tell the truth when I say that there are few things in this life that give me greater joy than hearing my son saying his catechism. He is four years old, and these are some of the truths he has learned so far:

1. Who made you?

God made me.

2. What else did God make?

God made all things.

3. Why did God make you and all things?

For His own glory.

4. How can you glorify God?

By loving Him and doing what He commands.

5. Why are you to glorify God?

Because he made me and takes care of me.

6. Is there more than one true God?

No. There is only one true God.

7. In how many Persons does this one God exist?

In three persons.

17. How did God create man?

God created man, male and female, after His own image.

So far, my son has committed 22 of these questions to memory. Every night before he goes to bed and before we pray, we go over these questions and answers. If I get in a hurry to tuck him in, he will hold up a finger and say, "Wait Papa. We have to say the catechism." I love it. What a magnificent discipleship tool for our children. How, oh how, did Baptists let it fall by the way-side?

Calling out the Called

Last week, I sent an 'open letter' to the members of our church with the sole intent of calling out the men of our congregation who are interested in pastoral ministry. It is my sincere hope that several men of sound confession and character will join this fellowship. I'm going to post the contents of that letter here, and I'd love your thoughts and feedback concerning it. So far, I've had six men who have come forward with an interest in being involved in this. Here are the contents:

Looking for a Few Good Men

Unless I am greatly mistaken, this newsletter article will only immediately affect around six to eight men in our fellowship. In a newsletter that is mailed out to around 262 homes that seems like an inefficient use of space, but I do not believe that this is the case. Indeed, while this article may only immediately affect six to eight men, the impact, I hope, will influence the entire church for years to come. This article is dedicated to the men in our congregation whom God has called or will call out to do pastoral ministry in this body. I will talk briefly about the individual call to this great task, the responsibility of the church in this task, my personal mission in this task, and finally why I believe this is very important for our church.

First, I want to ‘demystify’ the call to pastoral ministry. Men, you are not looking for a burning bush or an angelic messenger from heaven in order to know that God is calling you to pastoral ministry. All you have to have is a good testimony, a blameless lifestyle, and a strong to desire to learn the Word of God and to teach it to others (see 1 Timothy 3:1-7). Unfortunately, many ‘pastors’ testify that when God called them to preach that they ran away, only to be forced in some sort of wrestling match of God to finally surrender to the ministry. While that makes for a great story, and while it may be true of some, the fact is that the man called by God will actually want to do pastoral ministry. If you have a desire to learn and to grow in order to teach others to learn and to grow, see me for further details.

Secondly, I want to let the church know what her responsibility is in this ‘calling out’ process. First, we are to be on the lookout for the type of man described in 1 Timothy 3:1-7. Have you noticed a man who is blameless (not perfect) in his conduct? Is he able and eager to teach? Does he demonstrate loving affection toward his wife and children? Does he have a good reputation amongst those outside the church? Keep an eye on that man and encourage him to pursue the desire that God has placed in his heart. In Acts 13:2 we learn that the Holy Spirit spoke through the church to set Paul and Barnabas aside for their special work to which He called them. God still does that to men today in our midst. Look for them, encourage them, pray for them, and when one presents himself for service that you have had your eye on, rejoice! We are not to be pushy, simply encouraging. If you know someone like that, encourage them to come to the class I am about to talk about, and if you have questions or thoughts come and talk to me.

Thirdly, I want you to know that this desire I have is not just a ‘good idea’ I had while brainstorming in my office. It is, I believe, my direct responsibility to train men in this church for pastoral ministry. Paul wrote this to Timothy, and I believe that it applies to every pastor, “The things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also” (2 Timothy 2:2). If a men desires to do the work of ministry, if the church affirms that this man displays the characteristics described in 1 Timothy 3:1-7, then it will be my sacred duty to help such a man grow and learn and to be the best that he can be. To that end, we will meet every other Thursday evening. We will study the Bible, books by God gifted teachers, discuss, give reports, learn to teach, and generally hold one another accountable. It will require serious thought, personal cost to buy the books, time spent in study and prayer, and a sincere devotion to this body of Christ that is called “Mount Calvary Baptist Church.” In the period between each meeting, I will personally meet with any man willing one on one at least once to discuss any questions and for general fellowship.

Finally, I want everyone to think about why this is so important for our church. Wisdom should inform us that the more mature our leadership the better our church will weather future storms. Further, it is not God’s intention for this church to be built around the cult of personality of one man. The early church did not have the convenience of heading down to the local association and picking up resumes when their pastor was martyred, died, or called to missions. They had to rely on God to raise up leadership from amongst themselves, and because they sought out this leadership, when one man was removed from the picture the church could function without a hitch. While the oversight of the ministries of this church will be my responsibility as long as it pleases this church andthe Lord, I am more than happy to share the burden and rewards of ministry with others.

The immediate effects of this ministry will, perhaps, be minimal. In the long term, I believe the impact will be great. We will have men who will be better Sunday School teachers, men who will begin new ministries in this church, and hopefully, God will raise up men from inside our own fellowship to come on staff and serve in ministry. That may be years down the road, but it is a future that I am hoping for. I am praying for God to call out young men from our number to serve in ministry, and I am praying that he will call out older ones as well. Man, are you excited about this? Then join me, I need your help. Church, do you believe that God can do great things through the men of our church? Pray that He will call them out. The nations are waiting, the fields are ripe for harvesting; pray that God will send laborers into His fields from our number.

If you are interested, talk to me after church, call me in the office, or stop by and see me there. We will begin the first Thursday of March. I look forward to growing with you.

Calling out the Called,

Bro. Brad

Training Pastors

I heard from a reliable source that Al Mohler was recently asked a question along the lines of, "Dr. Mohler, when do you think that seminaries should stop training young men for the ministry and the local church start doing the job." His response was, "Tomorrow morning." (Dr. Al Mohler is the president of Southern Seminary.) In saying this, I don't believe that Dr. Mohler meant that seminaries are unnecessary, but rather that the churches should not abdicate their role in the training of men for the ministry.

To that end, I have been struggling over a curriculm to begin at my church in order to train men for the ministry. I believe and know that there are men in this church who are gifted for that service. The studies will consist of Systematic Theology, preaching/teaching help, and studies in Biblical exegesis. All of these things go hand-in-hand. My problem is that there is so much to learn that I am having trouble breaking it down into mouthfuls. Should I go with a Systematic Theologies for teaching Systematic Theology, should I write something on my own? Should I look up particular articles considering subjects : i.e., atonement, Divinity of Christ, etc., and pass these out for study and discussion? How long should I spend on each, and where should we start?

I want to do this well, and so I would appreciate any thoughts you have on the matter.

Onward, Thinking Baptist

Yesterday, I paid a visit to a retired Southwestern Baptist Seminary professor. During his tenure, he saw around 25,000 students come through his classes and oversaw well over 50 Ph.D's. His name is Dr. Leon Marsh, and he is quite the character at a spry 87.

I enjoy Dr. Marsh's wit, and one then that he said made me laugh and it made me sad. He said, "Son, if you'll be a thinking Baptist you'll find that you don't have any competition." I hate it, but I am afraid he's pretty on target there, at he has been. I hope that things are changing.

Dr. Marsh and I do not agree on many things. He claims to be a 3 point Calvinist with a laugh. His idea of inerrancy and infallibility of the Scriptures are not the same. I did not argue with him but I let him have say his mind. I enjoyed his banter and candidness if not his theology. His love of Christ was evident, and his joy at our visit was apparent. I was thankful to have gone and hope to go back.

His comment on being a thinking Baptist stuck in my head. Thinking, after all, is no easy task. Even though many Baptists have grown up under "Bible teaching," I find that few have been forced to think through Scripture. Few have dealt with Romans 9 and Ephesians 1 concerning election. Few want to deal with the warnings against apostasy in Hebrews. We have no idea, in general, of what to do with the Old Testament and the law and grace relationship. I believe that the greatest struggle that many have endured revolves around church music, and that is sad. A good debate over theology and coffee is a about the best thing in the world. After all, how will we be conformed to truth if our errors are never confronted, and conversely, won't we be more grounded in the truth and confident of it after it survives a hearty challenge?

So I hope that the Church I pastor will be a thinking church. And I hope that we will trust one another enough to allow our assumptions about things to be questioned Scripturally.

An Exciting Project

One of the first things I desire to do here at Mt. Calvary is to take the church through the church covenant. It is my goal, and I believe my duty as a minister, to have oversight of the membership of the church. Technically, that means I am currently responsible for some 1,200 souls. Of that number, we have had in the 250's present on Sunday mornings for worship. That makes for quite a large number being unaccounted for!

I believe that these absentee members, to the best of our ability, need to be contacted. First, we need to find out why they aren't attending, as is their duty (and joy!) in the Lord. Then we may be able to seek reconciliation for them to the body, or else we may remove them from the membership role. This sounds harsh in modern ears, but it is a necessary part of serious, loving church ministry.

In order for the body of Christ here to understand this, it will be important to understand the obligation and responsibility of every member who joins this covenant fellowship. To that end, I plan on teaching through the church covenant this Sunday night, beginning with the Baptist Faith and Message.

As I am certain is fairly typical across the Baptist landscape, Mt. Calvary has never made the transition from the 1963 BFM to the 2000 BFM. I doubt this is due to any opposition, but rather it is most likely attributable to the lack of zeal in amending constitutions and by-laws. This gives me, as a pastor, a great opportunity to teach through the BFM, to highlight the revisions and the reasons behind them, and to point out those things which remain the same. The BFM is foundational for our covenant since has been adopted as our statement of faith.

It will be an ambitious project. We have suspended all other classes on Sunday nights until this is finished. It is my goal to be finished in eight weeks. From these classes, I will endeavor to create a prospective members class that will be a pre-requisite to membership. It is only fair that someone seeking to join with this fellowship knows what their obligations and responsibilities are before they actually join.

I am looking forward to this time of learning. I believe that if other churches would do something similar, we may find our associations to be strengthened and many problems addressed.