JEFFERSON CITY – Christians are citizens of two realms – the earthly and the spiritual.
They have rights and responsibilities in both spheres and Christians in America have no greater responsibility than to vote their convictions based on the Bible, said Pathway Editor Don Hinkle while announcing that all is ready for the March 29 Missouri Baptist Convention Worldview Conference scheduled for Memorial Baptist Church here.
“The theme of this year’s conference, ‘A Christian Citizen’s Responsibilities in Election Year 2012’ points us to the inescapable truth that Bible-believing Christians can no longer afford to be missing-in-action on the public policy battlefield,” Hinkle said. “Participation ultimately becomes a matter of obedience to our Lord Jesus who commands us to be ‘salt and light.’ Scripture directs us to be good citizens and for freedom-loving Americans in a democratic republic, one of the ways we can best do that is to be actively engaged in the public policy arena by voting, educating and even running for public office. Our distinguished speakers will tackle these matters from a variety of perspectives.”
Among the speakers scheduled:
Robert Bergen, professor of Old Testament, Hannibal-LaGrange University, who will open the conference with an exposition of 2 Chronicles 7:14.
Barrett Duke, vice president for public policy for the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention in Washington, D.C., who will offer two addresses on the responsibilities of a Christian citizen.
Michael Whitehead, a Kansas City attorney with the Alliance Defense Fund and a member of Abundant Life Baptist Church, Lee’s Summit, will brief attendees on the Christian churches’ rights with regard to political activity.
John Yeats, MBC executive director and the former vice president for public policy for the Louisiana Baptist Convention, will address politics from a Christian worldview perspective.
There will be time for questions and answers from each speaker and the conference, which begins at 8:30 a.m., will conclude at 4 p.m., with a panel discussion involving all the guest speakers.
The conference, sponsored by the Missouri Baptist Convention’s Christian Life Commission and The Pathway, is free and open to the public.