“Friendship is genuine only when you bind fast together people who cleave to you through the charity poured abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who is given to us.” Augustine
Earlier this month I took some time to watch the livestream of the Southern Baptist Convention in Nashville, Tennessee. Like many other conservative Baptists, I was especially interested in seeing how the Resolutions Committee and Convention as a whole was going to deal with the contentious issue of Critical Race Theory. On the stage presenting resolutions and reports were various Southern Baptist luminaries, specifically James Merritt, Ronnie Floyd, and JD Greear. I realized something as I watched the proceedings play out: I had no feeling of koinonia for these men.
The Greek term κοινωνία appears in the Bible 20 times. In English Bibles it is typically translated as “fellowship”. Having been transliterated to koinonia, it has entered in the English lexicon and taken on a specifically Christian meaning. Koinonia refers to the special fellowship Christians have with one another through their mutual communion with God. Christians can have some sort of fellowship with non-Christian friends, co-workers, and teammates. However, Christians can only have koinonia with fellow believers. I have no such feeling for those who led the Southern Baptist Convention in June 2021.
According to testimony provided to Pulpit & Pen, James Merritt physically battered a Cross Pointe staffer when that man challenged James over the behavior and unbiblical doctrine of James’ son and fellow Cross Pointe staffer, Jonathan Merritt. Ronnie Floyd is, in short, a plastic false prophet who likes to be photographed while he prays. JD Greear is simply the worst SBC President since before 1979 (and that includes Merritt and Floyd). These are the front men of the SBC. So what’s that say about the men in the back? It says to me that I shouldn’t care much about the resolutions passed at the Southern Baptist Convention. Frankly, neither should you. I honestly don’t believe that Merritt, Floyd, and Greear are even saved. Ultimately that’s up to God, not me, and only He knows. I can only go with the evidence at hand. I truly believe I am indwelt by the Holy Spirit…and I have no koinonia with many of today’s SBC leaders.
Do you?
*Please note that the preceding is my personal opinion. It is not necessarily the opinion of any entity by which I am employed, any church at which I am a member, any church which I attend, or the educational institution at which I am enrolled. Any copyrighted material displayed or referenced is done under the doctrine of fair use.
