Earlier this week I made a post where I had laid out my frustration with the SBC (national organization) and how much some of the goings-on bothered me, especially in light of the faithfulness of so many people who actually fund them. My intent walking in that morning was that it would be my last morning there, not because of anyone there or concerns with that congregation, but because of the national organization.

Our pastor was on a much needed vacation so that morning we had a message from a man that had previously been on staff. I had always enjoyed his teaching. He took 2 Samuel 2:12-28 and talked about conflict. It was a sermon I needed to hear.

Some of the points made that I needed to hear:

• All parties involved in a conflict are sinners and we need to remember that even when on the right side of a conflict, we bring our sinfulness into the conflict.
• Both sides, like Abner and Joab, can think what they are doing is right.
• At some point, we should stop pursuing the conflict.
• You should still be experiencing the fruit of the spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) in the midst of conflict.

It was the last point that really got my attention. I’ve been conflicted about all of this and had definitely not experienced fruit of the spirit in regards to this for a while. I spent this week meditating on this passage. I decided not to leave like I intended. I won’t leave the people I love, and that have loved me and my family for so many years, wondering what happened.

I will end up leaving if things don’t change. But I will leave in peace and sadness, not frustration. And when I do, I will stop pursuing the conflict. My intent had been to sit outside of anything related to the SBC and do everything I can to expose it. Instead, I think when the day comes I want to shake my head and never think about it again (if possible).

The events in Anaheim in the middle of next month will probably be a pretty good indication of what direction the SBC is going to take. We can see then if looks like they will continue to take money from widows, and use it to teach seminary students that those same widows faithfulness and orthodoxy is a “rotting corpse of white supremacy.”