While I am grateful for my Independent Baptist heritage, I am not uncritical of Independent Baptists. And though some might call me picky, I struggle with much of what I see coming from Independent Baptist churches. 

I recognize the independence of each church, and I do not write these things to sow discord among brethren. I have written previously about my love and appreciation for “fundamentalism,” and I am not backtracking here. I hope you will consider this a kind of “gentle nudge” toward what I think would be a more Biblical ordering of our churches. 

In all, I have ten things I wish would change among Independent Baptist Churches. And given my propensity for wordiness, I’ll share those ten in small bites, a couple at a time, beginning with today’s blog post. Here’s my first two…

Gospel lite

There is, among IFB churches, a default easy-believism. Sure, we tend to take the “correct” view of easy-believism itself. I rarely (though occasionally) hear of a church that embraces easy-believism openly. But easy-believism is everywhere in our movement. We deny easy-prayerism, and we preach easy-prayerism. If, in your evangelism, you look at The Sinner’s Prayer as the finish line, then you have a part in this. 

Perhaps my biggest objection to our default easy-believism is the shallow treatment of the riches of God’s grace. Too often, we barely scratch the surface of all that the gospel entails. In the average Independent Baptist church, I am afraid that the gospel is only preached to visitors and children, not to the membership of the church. Or, if the gospel is preached to the membership, it is preached “evangelistically” to produce salvation decisions rather than Biblically to deepen understanding, strengthen saints, and enrich the spiritual lives of the people.

The gospel is central to all we believe, and every part of our life in Christ springs out of and flows from it. Our understanding of the gospel (or lack thereof) affects everything. A right understanding of the gospel provides protection for the Christian’s feet against the difficult terrain we are called to walk in this life (Ephesians 6:15). The helmet of the hope of salvation protects against the wiles of the devil – usually aimed at our head and intended to cause doubts in our minds about the assurances of the gospel. 

The Apostle Paul certainly did not view the gospel as only for sinners. In Colossians 2, Paul expressed his longing to preach the fullness of the gospel to the believers as Colossae.

For I would that ye knew what great conflict I have for you, and for them at Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh; That their hearts might be comforted, being knit together in love, and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ; In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. (Colossians 2:1-3)

In another place, Paul argued that this is the reason God saved us: so that we could sit together in heavenly places and learn the exceeding riches of His grace.

But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. (Ephesians 2:4-7)

Preacher, we must preach the gospel. It is the central message of the Bible. What doesn’t flow into the gospel and set the stage for it flows out of the gospel and builds on it. So, the gospel must be the reference point for all our preaching. 

“In (Christ) are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”  That is, Jesus is the key to interpreting all of Scripture. Every ordinance of the Pentateuch, every wise saying of the Proverbs, every deep thing of Revelation, all should be understood in the life of Jesus Christ. And how can we know Jesus if we ignore the central act, the primary purpose of His life?

Now is my soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour. (John 12:27)

The Bible plainly teaches that we must preach the gospel, even to believers. In fact, Paul urged Timothy to preach doctrine faithfully, as if the eternity of the believers depended on it.

Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee. (I Timothy 4:16)

The people who came to hear Timothy preach week after week were believers, followers of Christ (see v. 12). And yet, Paul urged Timothy to preach doctrine to them as if their eternal souls depended on it. This fits with the whole of New Testament teaching. Saints – not sinners – are urged to “make your calling and election sure.” 

Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 1:10-11)

Peter speaks as if there is some danger to Christians of falling from grace. Nor is he the only one.

For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries. (Hebrews 10:26-27)

Jesus Himself warned those who put their hand to the plow and turned back.

And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God. (Luke 9:62)

And Paul urged believers,

Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. (Philippians 2:12-13)

These New Testament passages are not written because a born-again believer might lose their salvation. They are written because you might prove that you have never received the new birth. Those who take their salvation for granted, who take God’s grace for granted and live presumptuously, should be afraid. And faithful gospel preaching from the pulpits of our churches – not aimed at unbelievers, but at believers – is part of God’s plan for bringing His children safely home. Because if it is possible for you to “walk away from the faith,” then it proves that you never had saving faith. 

Preach the gospel in all its depth, in all its nuance, in all its glory.

Opinionating instead of preaching

We might recognize a common theme here. From my perspective, much of our trouble traces directly to the pulpit. Independent Baptist pastors are among the most opinionated people in the world. Is that opinion? I admit it – strong opinion, in fact. I don’t condemn strong opinions or reject them as wrong. I much prefer it to the kind of weak-willed capitulation we see in the broader world of evangelicalism. I have strong views about the need for strong opinions.

I’ll take it further: there is a place for expressing strong opinions. We should take care that our opinions are rooted in God’s Word. We should express them with humility. Given the transforming power of God’s grace in salvation, we can have some confidence that, inasmuch as our worldview is shaped by Scripture, our opinions have some bearing in this lost and dying world.

But we should also be careful about opinionating in the pulpit. We are called to preach the Word (2 Timothy 4:2). Although we all have opinions about what God means by what He says, we must distinguish between an expressed opinion about a passage and a direct interpretation of that passage. 

But my objection runs even deeper than this. Too often, a Bible text becomes the launch pad for an opinion tirade. Having yanked the text out of its socket, we make it twirl around acrobatically, showing off all the unusual ways we can bend it. And this is devastating for the people of God. 

I have vivid memories from my youthful days of ministry when I studied passages I had heard preached as a teen. To my horror, I discovered just how rarely the things I heard preached actually traced to the text. This is the sort of discovery that destroys entire generations of would-be followers of Christ. I know, because it nearly ruined me and did destroy some of my good friends. 

Several years ago, a couple of young men visited our church. They came from Texas, and we ended up spending a good deal of time together – long enough for them to really open up about what they were struggling with. The older of the two explained: “Growing up, we knew every opinion our pastor had, but we didn’t know the Bible at all.” 

Listen, God didn’t give you a pulpit so you could bloviate. If you want to spout, go join a pod of whales. But God has called us to preach His Word, which requires us to actually study what it says, declare what it says, and apply what it says to the place where our shoes make skid marks. 

If you want to opinionate, get a Twitter account. Better yet, be like me: write blog posts!