J.D. Greear says Southern Baptists face a ‘defining moment’ regarding critical issues in the denomination; Law Amendment has ‘significant negative ramifications’
J.D. Greear, a megachurch pastor and former president of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), authored a nearly 4,000-word article on June 6 at jdgreear.com, expressing his stance on critical issues faced by the denomination. The SBC Annual Meeting is June 11-12 this week in Indianapolis.
In the article, Greear discusses the controversial Law Amendment, the report on the Great Commission Resurgence Task Force, sexual abuse reform, and the need to focus on disciple-making and world evangelization. He argues that the Law Amendment is unwise, and unnecessary, and will have “significant negative ramifications.” He believes the issue has nothing to do with complementarianism, but rather historic Baptist principles of cooperation.
The Law Amendment attempts to fix something that isn’t broken, Greear says, adding that supporters argue that the current Baptist Faith and Message (BF&M) and principles for defining cooperation are insufficient in dealing with doctrinal deterioration among churches.
Greear writes that egalitarianism is not seeping into SBC institutions, as alleged, and no significant contingent in the SBC has mounted a challenge to their clear affirmation of complementarianism in the BF&M. He believes the conservative resurgence successfully maintained these principles. He also discusses the possibility of addressing theological and ecclesiastical errors in the BF&M, such as Sunday being the “Lord's Day” and the appropriate day for corporate worship.
Read Greear’s entire article: The Southern Baptist Convention’s Defining Moment: The Law Amendment and The Great Commission Resurgence