To not "look Catholic" is a terrible rationale for a Baptist Church to base decisions upon.

The Red Bank Baptist Church of Lexington, South Carolina, recently voted (in Baptist Churches all members have a vote, and can vote at regular congregational business meetings regarding matters both great and small, i.e. the church budget, the calling/dismissing of a pastor, program and building issues, etc.) to remove a 7 ft. statue of Jesus which had been displayed outside the entrance to the church for the past decade.  According to Pastor Jeff Wright, "This is not a denomination issue, its a church decision.  We are removing it to end some confusion.  Some people have seen it, guests that have been here and have asked, 'Why is this on the front of a Baptist Church?"  In a letter the church sent to the artist, Delbert Baker Jr., Pastor Wright explained that the statue brings into question, "the theology and core values" of the church.

AP story: Baptist church's 'Catholic' Jesus statue to find new home

The Jesus statue at Red Bank Baptist Church that is being removed.

We live in interesting times.  On the one hand we have an ongoing debate that roils people's emotions and has led to protests and bloodshed concerning the removal of statues on public land which were erected to honor those who fought to retain slavery in America, and at the same time, we have a congregation choosing to remove a statue of Jesus from their property because it makes the building appear "too Catholic".

Whether or not a Baptist Church has a statue or painting of Jesus prominently displayed is not the most pressing theological question facing most churches, but the line of reasoning that led to the decision made by the people of Red Bank Baptist Church is of import to all churches, regardless of denomination.  We, as local churches and/or as part of a denomination, ought not to be deciding how we carry out our Biblical mandate to share the Gospel and make disciples on the basis of not doing so "like them".  The "them" in this case is the Catholic Church, but it could just have easily been the Methodists, Lutherans, Pentecostals, or a host of others.  Why we do what we do, and how we do it, are questions far too important to be decided based upon a desire to have a unique "brand" as a church.

What is the proper standard for a church to base its decisions upon?  The bedrock standard is the Word of God itself.  Does the Bible encourage, prohibit, or is it silent on the issue at hand?  If the Bible encourages/commands the behavior/attitude in question, the discussion is over.  Our task is simply to obey.  If the Bible prohibits/condemns the behavior/attitude in question, again, the discussion is over, our task is to obey.  If the Bible is silent on the particular issue, we then look to see if principles contained in God's Word apply, we consider the wisdom of the collective Church's viewpoint on the issue over the ages, and we examine our own God-given reason and consciences as well.  These are the proper channels for discussion and debate among a local church or denomination regarding the choices we face and decisions we must make.  However, being "not Catholic", "not Pentecostal", or "not Presbyterian" is an invalid viewpoint, one that heightens divisions, encourages emotional instead of reasoned decisions, and in the end, leads to faulty theology.  In case you're wondering, making a decision based upon trying to mimic another church is an equally faulty methodology, albeit one that at least has a positive connotation.

Baptists are not alone in falling to this temptation.  Historically speaking many of the Counter-Reformation decisions of the Catholic Church were made on this same basis, to be "not Protestant", with less than helpful results.  Time and time again, churches have made decisions that were not based upon a careful and obedient understanding of God's Word, or upon wisdom received from our ancestors in the faith combined with our own reasons/consciences, but rather upon lesser criteria.  When we make decisions based upon reasoning and motivations that are less than ideal, or even downright foolish, how can we expect the decisions themselves to be God honoring and wise?

Not being privy to the internal discussions that took place at Red Bank Baptist prior to the decision, I don't know why they believe that the "theology and core values" of their church are threatened by an artist's depiction of Jesus, but if the answer contains any of this sentiment, "because it makes us look too Catholic", whether in the end they came to the right decision or not, the reasoning was dangerously faulty.




For some perspective, I write this as the pastor of an American Baptist Church with a rather unique architectural and artistic style among baptist churches that reflects the oil boom heritage of the Franklin area when the church sanctuary as it looks now was completed in 1904.  We have more art than most churches on the walls, including two giant murals of Jesus flanking the pulpit.  It would be a tragedy if a future generation decided to whitewash those murals to avoid looking like other Christians.

The sanctuary of First Baptist Church of Franklin

Sermon Video: In Him we have redemption - Colossians 1:12-14

The 4th of Paul's examples of what it means to "live a life worthy of the Lord" (The first three were: bearing fruit through good works, growing in the knowledge of God, and being strengthened by his power) is the one that he chooses to expound upon: giving joyful thanks to the Father.  We have, as followers of Jesus Christ, ample reasons for ongoing gratitude toward God, here Paul chooses to focus upon how we became disciples of Jesus in the first place: God rescued us from darkness and brought us into the light.  All of the verbs that Paul uses to describe our redemption are passive and past tense.  In other words, it is something which God, and he alone, accomplished, and it is something that has already happened.  In addition, Paul reminds us that the mechanism by which God rescued us was the payment of our sins (redemption) by the Son, which made the forgiveness of our sins possible.  In the end, we have every reason to continue in joyful thanks to the Father.

To watch the video, click on the link below:

Sermon Video: Our Prayer - Live a Life worthy of the Lord, Colossians 1:9-11

Having already expressed his thanks to God for the good report of the faith, hope, and love evident at the church of Colossae, Paul goes on to share that because he has already heard of God's work among them, he has not stopped praying for them.  As they are people already saved from spiritual death by Christ, for what does Paul pray on their behalf?  That they might live lives worthy of the Lord.  I don't know about you, but that sounds like a monumental task.  And yet, it is within the ability of every disciple of Jesus Christ, empowered by the Spirit, and as a matter of fact, expected of us.  What characterizes a Christian who pleases the Lord?  Paul lists four things: (1) Bearing fruit through every kind of good work, (2) growing in the knowledge of God, (3) being strengthened by God's power, and (4) having an attitude of gratitude {explained in vs. 12-14}.  We, as God's people, called to repentance by the Holy Spirit, CAN accomplish this by God's power; we can, and we must.

To watch the video, click on the link below:

Sermon Video: Thanking God for the faith and love of his people - Colossians 1:1-8

In the introduction to Paul's letter to the church at Colossae, we see the concern of Paul, the apostle, for a church that he himself did not found, manifested in prayers of thanksgiving from Paul (and Timothy) to God on behalf of fellow faithful brothers and sisters in Christ.  Having heard about their faith, Paul describes it as a faith combined with love that springs forth from their hope in heaven, a powerful combination of growth in the Spirit made possible by their acceptance of the "true message of the gospel".  Paul ends the introduction by crediting the founder of the church at Colossae, Epaphras, whom Paul calls "our dear fellow servant" and a "faithful minister of Christ", a reminder that Paul considers those who worked with him in the harvest field of the Lord by witnessing to the Gospel to be teammates not rivals.

To watch the video, click on the link below:

Sermon Video: Paul in the midst of a partisan feud - Acts 22:30-23:11

Following his near-death encounter with the mob at the temple, the Apostle Paul was brought before the Sanhedrin by the local Roman commander who hoped to ascertain the cause of the turmoil and thus know if Paul ought to be charged with any crime.  Standing before the Sanhedrin, Paul first declared his innocence, "I have fulfilled my duty to God in all good conscience to this day."  The High Priest, Ananias, ordered Paul struck in the mouth for that claim.  At this point, Paul switched his strategy and instead declared himself to be on the side of the Pharisees in their long-running feud with the Sadducees regarding the resurrection of the dead.  While the Pharisees did not believe that Jesus Christ had been raised from the dead, they were perfectly willing to defend the idea of the resurrection of the dead, and while they did not believe that Paul had been given a vision from God, they were willing to defend the idea of God speaking to his people through visions and angels.  In the end, the Sanhedrin's bitter divisions not only prevented them from taking action against Paul, but convinced the Roman commander that for Paul's safety he needed to be taken back to the barracks.

To watch the video, click on the link below: