when does family stop becoming family?

One of the things I have fought for since being called to vocational ministry has been my continual allegiance to my denomination, the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC). Regardless of my changing theological and methodological views, I steadfastly believe in the principles and values of the SBC. Why?

• The SBC has the Cooperative Fund, arguably one of the best missions-funding programs in existence
• The SBC has a great seminary system
• The SBC is amazing at providing children and students with missions education and opportunities
• The SBC values the local, autonomous church

Again, though some of my beilefs have changed over the years, I love these qualities of my denomination. Secondly, I love the people. I believe there is a vast group of people within the SBC who could blow the top off this world for the gospel if the Spirit moved among them...besides, these are the same people who raised me, who love me, who still go to the churches I have come to know and love. They are my family, my friends...I want them to have the passion for God's glory that I feel.

Yesterday was the first time I have truly questioned my calling to stay within the SBC. On Tuesday, the Missouri Baptist Convention (MBC) passed a resolution effective January 1st, 2008, ceasing Cooperative Program funding to all church plants affiliated with the Acts29 church planting network. Let me explain the circumstances surrounding this, and why I am shaken.

• The Journey is a church plant pastored by Darrin Patrick. Beginning in the early 2000s, the Journey grew from 30 to over 1200. The Journey is part of the Acts29 church Planting Network (of which Patrick is heavily involved in leadership).
• Acts29 is a trans-denominational church plant networking system that helps to direct funding for chruch plants from other local churches. They provide assesment services and training. They are Reformed in theology.
• The Journey recieved a $200,000 loan from the MBC to help fund their church plant.

Now the issue:

• The Journey began a program called Theology at the Bottleworks, which is exactly as it sounds: a theological discussion over drinks.
• MBC objected to this, to the point of calling for professor Mark DeVine of Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary to do a profile of the emrging church movement, of which they find Acts29 to be a member
• DeVine's paper can be found online, and his conclusions found Acts29 to be on the conservative side of the emerging church movement
• MBC then passed resolutions which obviously ignored DeVine's findings, associating Acts29 with streams within the emerging church movement which deny the substitutionary atonement of Christ
• This path has now led to the MBC denying funding to all Acts29-associated churches beginning January 1, 2008

Why do I have some issues with this? Shouldn't the MBC be able to decide to whom they give thier funding to?

The answer is yes. It's not that I have a problem with people choosing where to send funding. It is the why they make their choices that troubles me. DeVine's paper is spot on. I can do(and have done) the research myself the know that his conclusions are valid. And I cannot see within his paper how someone can make such resolutions. This makes me wonder: what is the real issue? Alcohol? I still don't agree with the decision, but why punish all the churches in the MBC for The Journey's choices (as Acts29's president has stated)? Is it about theological differences? If so, why the political war?

It is the ignorance that scares me. I hesitate to write this, because I am only 21, and arrogance and judgement can easily slip in here (though I pray this comes out of my passion for the SBC, and not to cause devision). But if a 21 year old can do the research necessary to see that churches affiliated with Acts29 are not a hinderance to but rather an asset to the SBC, I question why such decisions are upheld. I have not even mentioned the fact that Acts29 has a 99% success rate for planting churches (higher than NAMB's 70% rate), or that Dr. Ed Stetzer, Lifeway's chief missiologist, is on Acts29's board of directors.

At what point will the SBC stop being inclusive? When will we see the Word of God as our final standard, and the fruit of discipleship-making, new-believer baptizing, church-planting churches as our litmus test? I fear that someday the SBC may have no place for those who wish to engage our culture for the gospel. Including me.