ST. CHARLES – The 2022 Missouri Baptist Pastors’ Conference here, Oct. 24, encouraged church leaders to uphold and remain faithful to the “faith once delivered.”
Scott Lee, pastor of Rockport Baptist in Arnold addressed the topic of doctrine of the Scriptures.
“We are to be people of the book,” Lee said.
“You, pastors, are key to maintaining a high view of Scripture so your people can have a high view of Scripture. We pastors are called to be stewards of God’s Word for the people.”
Lee challenged pastors to “feed their own soul daily and not just use the Bible as a ministry resource.”
ST. CHARLES – Athena Sholar, the first lady of Main Street Baptist Church of Lexington, Ky., speaks during the women’s luncheon at the Missouri Pastors’ Conference. (Pathway photos by Bob Greenlee)
Lee reminded pastors to be like the prophets, in that they were saying God’s words.
“The prophets did not give us their opinions, but the Word of God. And look at what Jesus felt about the Scriptures. It should be sola scriptura, meaning by Scripture alone, and not … ministry without the Scripture.”
Lee suggested coming up with a new understanding of a Bible passage is to “dance into heresy. Proclaim God’s Word with confidence. It is the power to build the church.”
Victor Sholar, pastor of Main Street Baptist in Lexington, Kentucky, encouraged ministers to remember the sufficiency in Christ.
Sholar told how a sign that read, “We Preach Christ Crucified,” was overcome with ivy until, gradually, the ivy blocked “crucified,” and then “Christ.”
“The greatest theme in the bible is Jesus Christ and him crucified. The preacher should not seek to impress with his words but on Christ. God uses the foolishness of preaching to bring people to be saved,” Sholar said.
He noted the apostle Paul didn’t rely on his own abilities in the flesh, but what God alone can do.
Sholar reminded pastors a Christ-centered preacher shouldn’t preach to please a congregation, because of the time pastors will stand before the Lord to give an account of themselves. Likewise, Scholar said a man can credit himself and Christ at the same time.
He compared the sinners to a milk shake, preachers to the straw, with God putting his mouth to preachers to draw the sinners to him.
Jim Hamilton, professor of biblical theology at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and pastor at Kenwood Baptist in Louisville, Ky., spoke on justification by faith alone, beginning with a story of a Catholic acquaintance who said it didn’t matter what the bible said, as the church would tell her what to believe.
In contrast, he quoted from the the first four verses of Hebrews 2. He told the pastors that verse three asks how people will escape if salvation is neglected.
“There’s no escape without Jesus,” Hamilton said.
“Justification by faith is like an entrance requirement so we can dwell in God’s cosmic joy and rest,” he said.
ST. CHARLES – Pastor’s Conference officers for 2023 are (from left): Vice President Andrew Green, First Baptist, Marble Hill; President Matt Bartig, North Road Community Church, Moscow Mills/Harvester; and Treasurer Robert Strong, Freshwater Church, Jefferson City.
David Sullivan, pastor of Muldraugh (Ky.) Baptist, spoke on the glory of the local church.
Sullivan said Paul’s motives for not visiting Corinth earlier were to spare them pain of him speaking harshly in person.
“The temptation is in tough times to rail against the church. This goes against our call as shepherds.”
“The local church is a conduit of grace. It is worth being wounded for and giving our lives for,” Sullivan said.
“God didn’t call us as celebrities with a platform, but as shepherds to have selflessness.”
Quoting from the first few verses of 1 Peter 5, Sullivan said the text shows pastors should genuinely care about God’s people, desire to produce joy, find joy in God’s call, and have the ability to say the hard things out of love for God’s people
“It’s not loving to let people ruin themselves as we sit by,” Sullivan said.
Pastor’s Conference officers for 2023 are President Matt Bartig, North Road Community Church, Moscow Mills/Harvester; Vice President Andrew Green, First Baptist, Marble Hill; Treasurer Robert Strong, Freshwater Church, Jefferson City.