High court backs church in public benefits case
WASHINGTON (BP) — The U.S. Supreme Court struck a blow Monday (June 26) for the freedom of churches to participate in government programs with secular purposes. Seven of the high court’s nine justices agreed the state of Missouri violated a church’s right to exercise its faith freely by barring it from participating in a government-run, playground-resurfacing program. In its opinion, the court said excluding Trinity...
Crossover & Harvest America share timeless Gospel message
PHOENIX, Ariz. (BP)—The North American Mission Board’s (NAMB) Crossover Arizona and Greg Laurie’s Harvest America joined forces to host a three-day evangelistic outreach across Phoenix involving training, street evangelism and service projects before culminating in Harvest America’s Sunday night crusade. By the end of that evening, Harvest reported 2,904 salvation decisions at the event with another 494 indicating decisions online....
SBC denounces ‘alt-right white supremacy’
PHOENIX (BP)—Messengers to the 2017 Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting denounced “alt-right white supremacy” in a nearly unanimous vote Wednesday (June 14) after a tumultuous day of refusing to address the issue. It appeared maybe fewer than 10 messengers in the Phoenix Convention Center hall voted in the afternoon session against a resolution on “the anti-gospel of alt-right white supremacy.” The “alt-right,” a movement that...
Phoenix rising: Southern Baptists gather for 2017 SBC Annual Meeting in Arizona
PHOENIX, Ariz.—Southern Baptists from around the nation and world gathered in Phoenix, Ariz., June 13-14, for the annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC). More than 5,000 Messengers to the SBC meeting, as well as many guests, took part in times of fellowship, worship and prayer, heard Scripture readings and sermons, conducted business matters and more. /// PREACHING & PRAYER The theme for the 2017 SBC Meeting was...
How do I minister to someone who says they are homosexual or transgender?
I was set free from same-sex attraction in 1981. I began publicly sharing the story of my freedom in 1988. Since that time, I am often asked how to minister to people in the LGBTQ community. My best advice? What would Jesus do? In the most simple of terms, I would encourage all believers to do what was done for me. Jesus met me right where I was but loved me enough to not leave me there. Every believer can do that. And just in case...
‘Jesus is enough,’ Hall says in SBC Pastors’ Conference sermon
PHOENIX, Ariz.—Oklahoma pastor Shane Hall, who has been facing a protracted battle with stomach cancer, delivered a sermon on June 12 in front of thousands of Southern Baptists at the 2017 Pastors’ Conference in Phoenix, Arizona. Preaching out of Philippians 4, Hall boldly proclaimed, “Jesus is enough!” Throughout the Pastors’ Conference, which had the theme “Above Every Name,” 12 preachers each took portions of the book of...
