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Friday, Feb. 8, 2002
Veteran missionaries who have been on the field for years "signed on" with the IMB under different requirements. They voluntarily expressed their theological beliefs but were not forced to sign a man-made creed. Their beliefs have not changed - the rules have!
A confession becomes a creed when others determine the beliefs one is forced to sign.
It has never been clearer that the fundamentalist leaders have changed the very nature of the Southern Baptist Convention. Our charter states that the "purpose of the Southern Baptist Convention is to elicit, combine, and direct the energies of Southern Baptists for the propagation of the gospel at home and abroad." Their highest priority is not missions. It is doctrinal conformity.
This is a determinative time for all authentic Baptists. We need the prayers of faithful Baptists everywhere to determine how we can be supportive to missionaries who represent our historic convictions.
We must not lose the very heart of the Gospel and the distinctive missions commitment of our heritage. We must find a way to be true to both. The IMB no longer provides that option.
R. Keith Parks
Richardson, Texas
(EDITOR'S NOTE-Parks is a former president of the IMB and the retired coordinator of Cooperative Baptist Fellowship's Global Missions program.)
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