Last week the SBTC held it’s annual meeting in Lubbock, Texas. Predictably, the wind blew and the temperatures dropped on the high plains. And, predictably, there were motions – three of them, to be exact – dealing with Fielder Church. One motion was that the convention not recognize (seat) the messengers from Fielder Church. A second motion was that the credentials committee that approved Fielder Church be suspended. A third motion was that Fielder Church be removed from the convention. All three motions came and went with the West Texas wind, all on account of procedural impropriety. In other words, Robert and his “rules” determined each motion “out of order.”

A good brother named Bart Barber wrote an article last week. That article is was titled “What Actually Happened with Fielder Church and the SBTC.” I have shamelessly and without permission played off the title of his article, and you can read Barber’s insightful article at the link above. I thank God for Bart and for pastors like Bart. Bart is what I consider a “regular pastor.” Bart is also incredibly intelligent. To be honest, Bart could run historical, denominational, and parliamentary circles around me … not to mention his expertise in cattle ranching. In all seriousness, I thank God for Bart, and I lack the parliamentary expertise to respond to his article.

A few days later, another brother named John Whitehead wrote an article titled “Brothers, We Are Not Presbyterians: On the Unnecessary Constitutional Crisis at the SBTC.” Whitehead is a lifelong Southern Baptist and the founding attorney of the Law Offices of Jonathan R. Whitehead LLC, located in Missouri. He is a trustee at the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the SBC and serves on the Advisory Board for the The Center of Baptist Leadership. He strongly disagrees with Barber’s take, and insists that the issue wasn’t poorly written bylaws and a prickly parliamentary process. Rather, the issue, he says, is the leadership of the SBTC who continues to block, thwart, and frustrate any attempt by the messengers to deal with the issue of Fielder Church. His article is also well written.

Reading Barber and Whitehead, I’ll simply admit to my own inadequacies when it comes to Robert, his rules, parliamentary procedures, legalese, making motions, calling the question, points of order, and all the rest. I am a simple, regular pastor.

I also want to affirm that I believe the SBTC, like the SBC, is an incredible force for good. I want to be an unashamed contributor to the Cooperative Program. I want our missions agencies and seminaries to thrive. I want to see more churches planted in Texas, North America, and around the world. I think the reports of “rampant” liberalism in the SBC are grossly misleading. I think the vast majority of SBC and SBTC pastors understand and agree about the biblical qualifications for a “pastor.” I have been part of the SBC for life, and I want to remain in a healthy, functioning, faithful convention of churches. I want to have confidence in the Cooperative Program and the institutions it funds so that I am confident in asking my church to give more, not less, to the CP. Close to home, I thank God for the leadership and enthusiasm of Nathan Lorick, and I hope to continue partnering with the SBTC under his leadership for years and decades to come.

However, as a regular pastor who has seen the last half decade of SBTC politics up close, I’m weary of the parliamentary parlor tricks. I’m a regular pastor. I’m not a denominational insider – I’m a total outsider, and I’m writing from the cheap seats. I’ve never attended a SBC annual meeting (sigh, groan – I know), and I’ve only attended SBTC annual meetings over the last half decade (when I served on the COOB of the SBTC, and following that service). From where I sit, it seems as though the SBTC has a simple choice – will we hide behind parliamentary procedures or will we stand for biblical fidelity?

Some will say, “Trust the process.”

Others will say, “The SBC and the SBTC are big, and they move really slow.”

Still others will say, “We want to do the right thing, the right way.”

I say, “It’s been five years, and we’re still talking about the same issue. If the SBTC claims to be a confessional convention, there has been plenty of time for our leaders to find a “parliamentary procedure” that allows the will of the messengers to be carried out with both grace and integrity. That will is clear – the messengers of the SBTC believe that the title, office, and function of pastor is reserved for qualified men.”

Al Mohler, President of The Southern Baptist Seminary, posted this on social media last Wednesday, after the SBTC’s inaction. I greatly appreciate and agree with his candid statement.

As a regular pastor, I have two hopes. One, I hope that the SBC will “handle” the Fielder Church situation this summer, as our President Clint Pressley has indicated. At the end of last week, pastor Willy Rice announced that he would allow his name to be nominated for the presidency of the SBC in Orlando next summer. It seems to me that, like president Pressley, pastor Rice understands what needs to happen within the SBC and our state conventions, which is good. At times, I’ve felt like the SBTC actually preferred that the SBC take the lead on this issue. As a member of the SBTC, I’ve wanted them to take the lead and do what’s right, regardless of the action or inaction of the SBC. However, if what’s needed is for the SBC to “handle” the Fielder Church situation, so be it.

Two, I hope that the newly appointed SBTC constitutional committee will work on a revised version of our constitution and by-laws so that we are not hindered by parliamentary rules when it comes to carrying out business in accordance with the clear teaching of the Bible. Additionally, I hope the newly appointed SBTC constitutional committee will seek to carry out the clearly expressed will of the messengers. This committee and our denominational leaders are not a gathering of Cardinals imposing policy and doctrine on our churches. They are, rather, called to carry out the clearly expressed will of the messengers of the SBTC. If we need a parliamentary way to do what the Word of God calls us to do, by all means, make that way.