By Andy Johnson, Pastor Cross Roads Baptist Church, Farmerville Think back to the time that you accepted Jesus Christ into your heart. [img_assist|nid=6053|title=Andy Johnson, Pastor Cross Roads Baptist Church, Farmerville|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=75|height=100]Can you remember it? Do you remember the weight of sin being lifted from you as you slowly began to realize you were forgiven? Did you cry tears of joy as God revealed to you that you had become a child of the King? Were people there to help you celebrate your decision? How about that smile on your face that just wouldn’t go away? Salvation is the single most wonderful miracle that God performs in the life of an individual. We should never forget what it felt like when we chose to follow Christ. But what happens after that? Just as a new-born babe cannot grow without the loving care of his or her parents, new believers need guidance and instruction from God-loving people as well. Paul told the Corinthian Christians that believers are literally brand-new creatures in Christ. From the time of the initial decision to follow Christ, there should be an ongoing process of growth rooted in discipleship. But many times the aforementioned … [Read more...]

By T. Preston Pearce, Missionary in residence Louisiana College Editor’s note: All Scripture references are from HCSB. In my previous article, I described eternal security, perseverance, and assurance as a “cord of three strands.” Scripture teaches that we must persevere to the end to be saved (that is, faith is proven genuine by endurance); and we will persevere (we are secure) and cannot be lost because God keeps us. I would like now to explain briefly the biblical basis for assurance of salvation, the third strand in our cord. In my next and final article I will show how these three relate to each other. Assurance of salvation is our confidence that we possess eternal life here and now. We can be certain that we are indeed children of God and need not fear banishment at the final judgment. We are assured we will spend eternity in heaven. Assurance has two aspects. The first is related to the object of our faith. It is confidence that Jesus can save us. The second is connected to the reality of our faith. It is confidence that Jesus has saved us because our lives give evidence that we have been born again and that our faith is genuine. I will focus primarily on the second aspect, because it seems many … [Read more...]

By Archie England, PH.D., NOBTS Professor of Old testament and Hebrew Question: What does the Old Testament say about the resurrection of the dead? And, what about the resurrection of the Christ? [img_assist|nid=6013|title=Archie England PH D NOBTS Professor of Old Testament and Hebrew|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=73|height=100]Archie England responds: Though no form of the word resurrection appears in the Old Testament, the concept does occur. One of the most notable examples, albeit highly figurative, is that of Ezekiel’s vision of the Valley of Dry Bones (Ezekiel 37). By the power of God’s breath, bones re-assemble, tissue and flesh form, blood flows, and life reanimates those formerly dead corpses. Those long-dead (very dry bones) were raised back to life. Despite the absence of special terms, the Old Testament writers employ simple words, “raised” or “caused to stand,” to convey the concept of resurrection. Two examples illustrate this. First, Elisha stretches himself – mouth to mouth, hands to hands, and body to body – upon the corpse of a recently deceased child, and life returns to the boy. Though the child had not been dead long (several hours, not days), the text states that the lad died (2 Kings … [Read more...]

  [img_assist|nid=6267|title=Baptist encampments offer plenty of summertime fun like sliding in the mud on a hot day.|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=100|height=75] Harris Baptist Assembly Mike Latham, Director 2800 Harris Road Minden, LA 71055 318.927.3706 mail@harrisbaptist.com www.harrisbaptist.com [img_assist|nid=6268|title=Learning how and playing a game of softball.|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=100|height=76]Camp Bethany Robert Cole, Director 9766 Hwy. 679 PO Box 250 Bethany, LA 71007 318.938.1221 www.campbethany.com campbethany@aol.com [img_assist|nid=6270|title=Holding a retreat for your church or for your church staff in special cabins.|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=100|height=67]Friendship Baptist Camp 16507 Highway 4 Beinville, LA 71008 318.259.9369   [img_assist|nid=6271|title=Learning how to work with others on the ropes course.|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=100|height=82]Clara Springs Baptist Encampment Jack Mills, Director 4420 Hwy 177 Pelican, LA 71063 clarasprings@cp-tel.net www.clarasprings.com   [img_assist|nid=6272|title=Learning how to ride a horse at an equestrian camp.|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=100|height=82]Tall … [Read more...]

By Karen L. Willoughby, Managing Editor [img_assist|nid=6277|title=Only part of Ronnie and Carol Frith s home in the Willow Bayou Community, five miles north of Tallulah, remains standing.|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=100|height=75]TALLULAH – Members and guests of Willow Bayou Baptist Church told harrowing stories Sunday morning of the tornado that flattened their community about five miles north of Tallulah about noon on Saturday. “I’ve seen a lot of damage from tornadoes; never any worse,” said Jay Morgan, director of missions for Bayou Macon Baptist Association in Northeast Louisiana,about 70 miles southwest of Yazoo City, Miss., where there were fatalities as well asdestruction. “Our Northeast Louisiana Disaster Relief team showed up and brought chain saws,” Morgan said. “They did some cutting but Tornado slashes community there’s nothing left to trim limbs off of.” Nine homes in the Willow Bayou community were completely demolished; three more, nearly so. In addition, a chemical plant where most of the people worked also was destroyed, and the shipyard itself, according to several news reports. “This morning I used the service time to sing praises and to let them debrief, let them describe what happened to … [Read more...]

By Kelly Boggs, Editor BATON ROUGE – Taking the first steps toward having a more visible presence at sessions of the Louisiana Legislature, the Moral and Social Concerns Committee of the Louisiana Baptist Convention met in Baton Rouge, April 14. [img_assist|nid=6278|title=Rod Masteller and Moral and Social Concerns Committee Chairman Louis Husser present plaque to Gov. Bobby Jindal|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=100|height=75]The highlight of the Committee’s day at the Louisiana state house was an afternoon meeting with Governor Bobby Jindal in his office on the fourth floor of the Capitol. Prior to the meeting with the governor, committee members’ prayer-walked the Capitol, attended a variety of hearings and even offered support on bills being considered in committee hearings. Prior to its trip to the Capitol, Committee seeks more visible presence at legislature the Committee began the day with a briefing at the Hyatt Place Hotel. John Yeats, Communication Director for the LBC, and Louis Husser, committee chairman and pastor of Crossgate Baptist Church in Robert, La., convened the meeting that focused on ten items of concern being considered during the current session of the legislature. Yeats briefed committee … [Read more...]

By Staff, Baptist Press ORLANDO, Fla. (BP) – Jim Law of First Baptist Church in Gonzales, La., has been named to the SBC Resolutions Committee by SBC President Johnny Hunt. Law will serve during the June 15-16 Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting in Orlando, Fla. A resolution has traditionally been defined as an expression of opinion or concern, as compared to a motion, which calls for action. A resolution is not used to direct an entity of the Southern Baptist Convention to specific action other than to communicate the opinion or concern expressed. Resolutions are passed during the SBC annual meeting. Hunt, pastor of the Atlanta area First Baptist Church in Woodstock, appointed the committee in keeping with the provision in SBC Bylaw 20 that its members be named 75 days prior to the start of the annual meeting. Report of the appointments appeared online March 31 on Baptist Press, official news service of the SBC at www.bpnews.net. Hunt named Russell Moore of Kentucky as committee chairman. Moore is dean of the school of theology and senior vice president for academic administration at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky. The other committee members, in alphabetical order, are: Kie … [Read more...]

By Chad H. Mills, Pastor First Baptist, Oil City Last June, I represented my church as a messenger to the Southern Baptist Convention that was held in Louisville, Ky. I was excited when a Great Commission Resurgence Task Force was proposed. I think we would all agree there is a need to be concerned about the future of our convention. [img_assist|nid=6281|title=Chad H. Mills Pastor First Baptist Oil City|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=67|height=100]Statistics show a decline in almost every measurable factor within the SBC. My initial support of the GCR Task Force was based on my passion for evangelism and missions. I saw the task force as a necessary tool to implement needed change. But what a difference a year makes. When the GCR Task Force’s initial recommendations were released, I was surprised by the tone that was implied. Perhaps it wasn’t intended, but it seemed to me that the task force was making accusations of wasteful spending and laying that solely at the feet of the state conventions. I don’t deny there is probably some measure of waste at the state convention level. I even have some waste in my own finances and stewardship. I believe we all could eliminate some wasteful spending from our lives. That said, … [Read more...]

I spoke with Stacy Morgan, Church Administration Strategist for the Louisiana Baptist Convention, at an evangelism conference in Ruston a couple of years ago and he told me about a new program called “Shepherd’s Rest.” The concept sounded like music to my weary ears. At the time, I was a typical Southern Baptist pastor, overworked, stressed out and burnt to a frazzle. I had been the pastor of the same church for over 17 years and had experienced little or no down time in all that time. As a result, four weeks of rest and relaxation seemed like an impossible dream. To be honest, I have always felt (quite erroneously, of course) that the church would never survive four weeks without me. Stacy was able to convince me to give the program a try and this past March he worked out all the details and my four weeks of “Shepherds Rest” began. I want to tell you that I have not felt so relaxed and recharged in years. Not only did the church survive, they flourished, both in the knowledge that their pastor was resting and the fact that they had the opportunity to hear four outstanding men of God preach. I would like to take this opportunity to personally thank Bill Robertson, Stacy Morgan, and the rest of the Pastoral … [Read more...]

By Kenneth S. Hemphill, SBC Strategist For Empowering Kingdom Growth [img_assist|nid=6284|title=Kenneth S. Hemphill, SBC Strategist For Empowering Kingdom Growth|desc=|link=none|align=left|width=76|height=100]I was privileged to hear the initial progress report of the Great Commission Resurgence Task Force Feb. 22 in Nashville, Tenn. I have great respect for the members of the task force and was interested to hear what they were thinking concerning the work of the SBC. Since that time I have been following Baptist Press articles about the GCR with great interest. I am encouraged to see the interest generated by the report and the renewed focus on the Great Commission. Surely that is a positive for all concerned. We should all be delighted to hear from people all across the landscape of Southern Baptists – north to south, small church to large church. We are talking about how we can join hands to be more effective in our goal to fulfill the Great Commission. I think it is both appropriate and necessary for any entity to look continually at structural issues to determine if there are changes that can be made which would help us to be more effective and efficient. Such an exercise is simply a matter of good … [Read more...]