For the Church Phoenix

Last week I reflected on joining the team at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Today and tomorrow I would like to highlight some of the many resources MBTS offers. If you are a pastor, these are resources that will serve you well in the church. And if you are thinking of coming to MBTS then these are the type of messages you may have the opportunity of benefiting from first hand. Today I draw your attention to the series of messages by SBC leaders:

Midwestern Seminary hosted “For the Church Phoenix,” its third in an annual series of micro-conferences, on June 13 at the Phoenix Convention Center during the 2017 Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting. The event featured leaders from across the SBC presenting on featured topics in a seven-minute TED Talk-like format.

Al Mohler, the president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary presented on the topic, “Why Inerrancy Matters,” stating the bottom line is that God’s word is true, and when the Scripture speaks, God speaks.

Steve Gaines, SBC President and pastor of Bellevue Baptist Church, covered the subject, “Why Prayer Matters.” In doing so, he explained that one simply needs to follow Jesus’ example to understand this concept.

Thom Rainer, the president of LifeWay Christian Resources explained “Why Exclusivity Matters,” during his presentation, but opened with the shocking statement, “There are many heretics in this room.”

Mark Dever, the pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church discussed “Why Baptism Matters” by providing a series of reasons. He noted that the ordinance matters, most notably, because Jesus was baptized, and that Jesus commanded all who believed in him to be baptized.

Jared Wilson, director of Content Strategy for Midwestern Seminary, managing editor of the “For the Church” website, examined the topic, “Why Discipleship Matters.”Wilson noted that there is a discipleship deficit in our churches, but it doesn’t stem from a lack of passion. Rather, it comes from a lack of understanding what discipleship really is.

Jason Allen, during the event’s final presentation, explained, “Why Church Membership Matters.” In doing so, he expressed a desire to give those in attendance an urgency toward maintaining a regenerate, meaningful church membership.

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Matthew Barrett (PhD, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) is Associate Professor of Christian Theology at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, as well as the founder and executive editor of Credo Magazine. He is the author of several books, including Salvation by Grace (P&R, 2013), Owen on the Christian Life (Crossway, 2015), God’s Word Alone: The Authority of Scripture (Zondervan, 2016), and Reformation Theology: A Systematic Summary (Crossway, 2017). Currently he is the series editor of The 5 Solas Series with Zondervan. You can read more at MatthewMBarrett.com.