Snippet: "Who cannot now see the rot...?"

Snip·pet | ˈsnipit | noun a small piece or brief extract.

Here’s one from Russell Moore, former president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, in an article titled, “This Is the Southern Baptist Apocalypse: The abuse investigation has uncovered more evil than even I imagined”:

“Who cannot now see the rot in a culture that mobilizes to exile churches that call a woman on staff a ‘pastor’ or that invite a woman to speak from the pulpit on Mother’s Day, but dismisses rape and molestation as ‘distractions’ and efforts to address them as violations of cherished church autonomy? In sectors of today’s SBC, women wearing leggings is a social media crisis; dealing with rape in the church is a distraction.”

There’s so much that can and needs to be said about the independent report on sexual abuse and coverups in the Southern Baptist Convention. I’ll link to several articles below.

But my focus here is on one of the findings and the comment by Moore in his article.

My focus is on the misunderstanding and regular misuse of the “the gospel” by so many Christians. I hope we’re at least a little closer to eliminating this misunderstanding and misuse from our thoughts and from our vocabulary.

It comes in many forms, but two of the most frequent misuses are “stick to the gospel” and “don’t get distracted from the gospel.”

The misunderstanding stems from narrowing “the gospel” to evangelism and the message of salvation in Christ. Although that part of the gospel is prominent and central, it’s not the whole story. In Scripture, the gospel also encompasses the whole story of the Bible culminating in the new creation of heaven and earth.

By now, certainly, most people can see its misuse as a means of avoiding or obscuring anything that we don’t want to talk about because it might lead to needed but unwelcome change or because it might challenge precious unbiblical ideas and actions of those who claim to be upholding the gospel.

For example, Esau McCaulley often points out that the “stick to the gospel” mantra that tries to muzzle people who talk about justice or racism is never applied to issues like marriage or abortion.

Seeking to protect people from sexual abuse, addressing racism, reducing the number of abortions or school shootings, feeding the poor…it’s all part of the gospel. None of those things encompass the entire gospel any more than the message of salvation does, but they are important gospel issues and actions.

So, the next time someone wants to shut down an important discussion with “stick to the gospel.” I might be tempted to say, “Please, shut up, I can’t take it anymore!” But I’m going to try to kindly and lovingly say something like, “Help me understand why talking about (blank) is a distraction but speaking to issues of parenting or marriage or vocation or mental health in the course of teaching the Bible is not.”

Articles and a podcast I’ve found helpful on the SBC sexual abuse study:

  • “When Churches Become Mafias: The recent SBC abuse report shows that churches often prioritize tribal unity and safety over “divisive” truth” by Russell Moore in Christianity Today.

  • “Rachael Denhollander Calls for a Southern Baptist Reckoning on Abuse” on The Russell Moore Show podcast.

  • “How two Texas newspapers broke open the Southern Baptist sex scandal: A 2019 investigation by the Houston Chronicle and San Antonio Express-News prompted this week’s massive disclosure about church leaders implicated in sex abuse cases” by Elahe Izadi in the Washington Post.

  • Southern Baptists Refused to Act on Abuse, Despite Secret List of Pastors Investigation: SBC Executive Committee staff saw advocates’ cries for help as a distraction from evangelism and a legal liability, stonewalling their reports and resisting calls for reform” by Kate Shellnutt in Christianity Today.