Originally posted by Hardsheller:
What denominational control over churches?
The control is subtle. Much like communism started.
Don't kid yourself some of the SBC leaders would like to have all the seminaries under a chancellor. I am told they would like to have Mohler as a chancellor. That way all the seminaries could be controlled by one person, the chancellor.
In one church I pastored I saw the power and control issue first hand. There was an undermining of the autonomy of the local church through the SBC papers, magazines and volunteers. For example several states went away form a state newspaper with editorials from the people to a fully controlled paper or magazine with only articles from the SBC down.
Often I heard the state volunteers come back from a state meeting and then tell me what we ought to be doing at the local church. One time I was so irritated that I told one of the ladies I wanted her to start a ministry exactly the way she suggested. That is what I fully expected. She could not get anything going and still hasn't to this day. Yet she continues to advise others.
I moved to another state and was told by a DOM about how to start a church. He has never pastored not ever started a church. I have planted three and replanted one. The DOM repeated what he had been told which is exactly the same thing I heard in another state earlier. Those at the top level don't talk with the pastors first at a pastors conference but to the voulnteers. I heard many things coming down from the state volunteers long before I ever heard about them from the state itself. That is kind of like a person telling children how parents should discipline their children before telling the parents.
In one of the churches I pastored that had some state workers I tried to get them to pray and ask God for direction. But they always came back with answers from the state. Almost every time I thought "What idiot were they talking to?" So I turned the table around and asked some of those state volunteers to do what they had been told. Not one of them could ever get anything going locally.
In another church I pastored there was a man who was a volunteer at the state level. He came with some ideas. As I began to disciple him and teach him how to do ministry he became less and less involved at the state level and eventually quit the state stuff. He began to disciple others in the local church. He never learned that in any other church or at the state level. But he is continuing to disciple others today in that same church.
Ministry has to be done at the local level first in accordance with scripture under the Holy Spirit's guidance.
Why do you think Southern Seminary hired a number of people at the seminary who were from outside of the SBC?
The SBC has also brought in a number of outside advisors who have never been a part of the SBC. These same people are on their advisory boards and are not even Baptists.
How do I know? Because some of those state volunteers asked for my opinion of certain people. Those state volunteers are on state boards.
