Cowboys and Southern Baptist

My grandfather lives in Oklahoma and is one of the last of a dying breed. He is a true cowboy. At age 80, he is still more at ease on a horse than in a car. And there is no shoe NIKE can make that will fit his feet as good as a pair of Tony Lama's. He treasures the simple pleasures of seeing the sun rise and set, of watching the lope of a horse, of enjoying the excitemenent of his great-grandchildren when they catch a fish. And, he is a fountain of cowboy logic.

Were the young cowboys wise, they would sit at his feet and learn from him, rather than assume their new way of cowboying is better. Just visiting with him, just listening, would save them lessons otherwise learned in the school of hard knocks. And yet, no one is knocking on his door. They watch DVD’s…they seek information from the Internet and they assume they know best.

This cavalier attitude is not just limited to young cowboys…It is also evident in many young Southern Baptist. There appears to be an attitude that the older generation is blinded by their cultural/familial raising. Thus, they deny Sola Scriptura by placing an equal value on their traditional mores. Further, there is an implication that they are less than honest if they don’t repeat in public what is said in private.

They are given token respect but their wisdom is ignored by many. There appears to be a partial attitude of gratitude for what they have done, but a complete position of omission for their current counsel. With all the on-line data, Bible tools, and sharing of knowledge, the idea of simply listening to their wisdom and counsel is tragically lost.


At the SBC, after the alcohol resolution vote I heard a moderationist’s celebratory comments. His celebration was obviously not in how the convention voted, but the fact that this was the first convention that ever debated alcohol from the floor. A step forward in his opinion.

Later, a friend with connections to the executive committee informed me that the average age of the messengers to the SBC this year was the lowest it has ever been.

As I thought about the moderationist’s comment and my friend’s information I wondered if there was a correlation. Is it possible that the debate over alcohol is correlated to the young age of messengers? I certainly see a correlation in God’s inerrant Word between age and wisdom, which would imply: as age is reduced, so is wisdom.

Perhaps the older Southern Baptists who passed so many resolutions against alcohol were wise. Perhaps the generation that says some things said in private should remain private is wise. Perhaps the Bible should be heard by young open ears when it says “Wisdom is with aged men, and with the length of days, understanding. With him are wisdom and strength, He has counsel and understanding” – Job 12:12-13

In honor of the “older” generation of Southern Baptist I would like to share some things I have learned from them.

1. Let Scripture and Scripture Alone be your Authority. As a 19 year-old youth, one of the first phrases I learned from Dr. Patterson was Sola Scriptura. I remember vividly his counsel to submit my traditional values, my personal desires, my feelings, my cognitive abilities, my senses, and even the promptings of the Spirit to God’s Word. No other lesson has served me so well.

2. Let God and God Alone be your judge. This was a lesson learned from the lives of Paul Pressler and Paige Patterson (two men I have had the privilege of calling friends and counselors). Their wisdom of doing what was right in God’s eyes no matter what anyone thinks, impacted my life powerfully.

3. Let Christ and Christ Alone by your passion. The command to love the Lord my God with all my heart, soul and mind has been impregnated in my mind by the lives of our “older generation” who long for “Beulah land.” No earthly pleasures, possessions, power, or popularity can compare to Christ. I long to hear, “well done…”

May we not be so quick to assume error by the wiser generation.
BR