Phil was too ill to deliver it at the Texas Baptists Committed breakfast Tuesday, so George Mason read it at the meeting.
This is an extraordinarily good example of the prophetic leadership that Phil has been providing for Texas Baptists. Here is Strickland's thought provoking conclusion:
We desperately need a "theology of enough." We are stewards, not owners, of what we have, at least in Christian teaching. So do we have any walls around what we will spend on ourselves? Do we have any sense of enough for ourselves? That's where the prophets will emerge.
Ah, but what about one more?denominations. Should they take risk and speak prophetically or declare that the only real role of the denomination is meeting the need of the churches who are a member of the BGCT? To me the answer is easy. Meeting the will of churches, vital as it is, comes in behind one other: listening for and meeting the will of God.
What trumps the prophetic role in denominations is fear of financial loss, and the lack of understanding what crosses they are willing to die on, if any. What is so compelling that a denomination will stand there and ignore the consequences? Do we know the answer to that question? The question must be asked of laypeople and pastors and churches.
A half century ago in this very city some of the brightest lights of Baptists shone in church pulpits. One of the brightest was Blake Smith, pastor of the University Baptist Church. One Sunday morning he stood tall in that pulpit and declared that it was past time that the University of Texas open its doors to all Texas citizens. The time for integration had come. What's more, he said to his all-white church, the time had come for University Baptist Church to open its doors to all for whom Christ died.
Well, right after the benediction the predictable took place. An emergency deacons meeting was called for that afternoon. For hours those men grumbled on about what the preacher had said that morning, about whether he had the right to say those things, about the autonomy of the local church to decide who would and who would not be its members, about whether Blake Smith ought tobe their pastor at all. After all long while, the moderator looked to the back of the room where an old respected judge was sitting quietly. The man said, "Judge, we haven't heard from you on this matter. What do you think?" The judge rose to his feet and said solemnly, "Well, boys, you know I don't like what our pastor said this morning any more than any of the rest of you. But I think Jesus liked it a lot." Motion to adjourn.
Where have all the prophets gone?
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