Monday Night Live with Dr. David Dockery!

35 thoughts on “Monday Night Live with Dr. David Dockery!”

1. Will you show your support for Tom Ascol’s resolution on integrity in church membership at the convention in San Antonio?

   Brad Hughes
   Blakely, GA

2. Dr. Dockery:

   I don’t have a question, just a quick word of encouragement and thanksgiving for all that you do to promote the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and peace within the SBC. Carl and I are honored to be future “Union Parents!”

   Soli Deo Gloria,
   Elizabeth

3. Elizabeth,

   Thank you for your kind word of encouragement. We are thankful for supportive parents like you at Union University. We are looking forward to having Emily join 3200 other fine students on our campus. We trust that God will continue to bless the work of our hands as we seek to reclaim the Christian intellectual tradition, engage the culture, and advance the Gospel through Christ-centered higher education.

   Faithfully,
   DSD

4. Dr. Dockery,

   Last year my son ran for a US House seat in our congressional district in Georgia. All of my life I have understood that the church and the state should be kept separate. To what extent, if any, should someone active in ministry with an MDiv degree be involved in secular politics in your opinion?

5. Brad,

   How are you doing? I trust all is well in Georgia. I appreciate your question. I would want to support any resolution that helps solidify historic Baptist distinctivies, especially one like regenerate church membership. The issue that you have raised is one that would have to be dealt with at a local church level, along with the help of associational leadership. Though the resolution would be non-binding on the churches, it would be a reminder for all of us to think clearly and to think afresh about the importance of regenerate church membership.

   Blessings,
   DSD

6. Dr. Dockery, Union has always been explicit that it is a community committed to fostering both Southern Baptist identity and a more broadly evangelical vision for the Kingdom of God.

   My question is, would you advise aspiring Southern Baptist pastors/academics to concentrate on seeking careers in our own denominational insitutions or other communities of like minds. As a follow-up question: “Would one’s ministerial goals have an effect on what kind of colleges/seminaries/graduate schools that student should apply for?”

   And thank you very much for taking this opportunity to dialogue with us!

7. Dr. Dockery:

   Thank you for your time. I am a student at Southern. I don’t believe this was specifically addressed in the interview, but I believe it highly relates to the state of the church both in the SBC and Christendom. Simply, what are your thoughts on family worship? How have you incorporated it in your family? How do you promote it at Union? In your church? What is its importance? Any words of encouragement to those who struggle with it? Any suggestions for practicing it? Etc.

   And if I may add I would like to know your top 5-10 most influential books. Thank you.

   Will Turner
   946 Kirkwood Drive
   Clarksville, IN 47129

8. Dr. D-

   Thanks so much for your answer and things are going really well. I certainly believe this is a serious issue in the local church where we sometimes have three times the members on roll to those that actually attend. Many mega church pastors boast large numbers of baptisms, but have little increase in attendance. This is one issue that does concern me. I am afraid that young ministers can be given the impression that baptizing large numbers is the key to success in the local church. Thanks again for your time and for making yourself available to us like this. We really have needed this. See you at the conference.

   Brad

9. Dr. Dockery,
   What do you see to be the 3 or 4 most pressing challenges facing Baptist higher education in the next few years? Thanks for your reply

10. Sue,

    Your son, Brad, is a jewel. I think that Christians can have great impact serving in public office. I believe that believers are called to think Christianly about the world and to engage the culture. Baptists have been at the forefront of thinking about the separation of church and state, and we should continue to do so. But the first amendment issue of church and state should not be confused with the inluence of religion or morality in politics. Many of the issues of our day, which politicians must address, such as stem cell research, abortion, traditional understandings of marriage, and other matters are moral issues. We need people who can think clearly, critically, and Christianly about these issues in key positions of leadership in public office. Let me suggest that you take a look at a recently published biography by Kevin Belmonte on William Wilberforce (I think the title is Hero for Humanity). Wilberforce is a great example of a believer who invested his life in the public sector. Obviously, this is a complex issue that can’t be fully addressed in a brief response like this one, but I hope that this is somewhat helpful for you.

    faithfully,
    DSD

11. Dr. Dockery,

    Thank you for all your time put into the interview with Timothy and tonight’s open forum. I also appreciate your commitment to maintain at the same time Baptist distinctives and academic excellence. Further, I’m thankful for the opportunity for significant dialogue about significant issues that I believe will be the result of the upcoming Baptist Identity Conference which your University is sponsoring.

    Thanks for all these contributions and much more.
    Steve

12. Adam,

    I appreciate your questions. I hope your studies are going well. Thanks for your kind affirmation. My advice would be study for a lifetime of ministry and be open to God’s leading in your life along the way. My hope is that you and others like you would seek to serve faithfully in Baptist life in coming days. If doors open elsewhere, you will have to be sensitive to the prompting of God’s Spirit in your life. I would say that if you want to serve in Baptist life that it is important (though not absolutely necessary) to prepare at a Baptist institutution. It will solidify your understanding of Baptist distinctives, beliefs, polity, and tradition. Having said that, I think that it is important to relate broadly to other evangelicals where possible. The mutual interaction is edifying personally and good for the work we share together in God’s kingdom.

    faithfully,
    DSD

13. Steve,

    Thanks so much for your kind comments. Blessings to you.

    DSD

14. Dr. Dockery,
    As an early church history fan, I really enjoyed reading your book titled ‘Biblical Interpretation Then and Now: Contemporary Hermeneutics in the Light of the Early Church”.
    What do you think the most important lesson that we as Southern Baptists can learn from the way Jesus, the Apostles, and the Fathers read the Bible?

15. Dad,
    Thanks for taking time to interview with my friend and brother in Christ. He has told me how much he appreciates it. I do have a question, and I hope it is in line with all things SBC… When we were young boys (Jon,Tim and I) and used to dress up in our Alabama football uniforms, did you really think one of us would ever play for the Crimson Tide? If so, what was your theological basis? You can be honest, I can take it.
    Benjamin

16. What are your thoughts on Lifeway and its seeming support (by selling mass volumes) of Emergent Leaders such as Brian McLaren and Donald Miller as well as false teachers such as Joel Osteen and T.D. Jakes. A few months back I went into my local Lifeway looking for a book by Mark Dever (any book would have done) and they did not have ONE! No book by a leading SBC pastor, but plenty by those that I have already mentioned. Should this be a concern for us? Why or why not?

    Yours in Christ,

    Scott Welch
    Charlotte, NC

17. Will,

    Thank you for your comments and questions. Let me try to answer the books question first. I have a few thousand volumes in my personal library. It is hard to name the 5 or so that have been most influential for me, but let me try. Besides the Bible, I would list:

    1. Knowing God, by J. I. Packer
    2. The Knowledge of the Holy, by A. W. Tozer
    3. Christian Theology, by Millard J. Erickson
    4. Theology of the New Testament, by George E. Ladd
    5. God, Revelation, and Authority, by Carl F. H. Henry (particularly volume 4)
    6. Paul, Apostle of the Heart Set Free, by F. F. Bruce
    7. Mere Christianity, by C. S. Lewis
    8. The God Who is There, by Francis Schaeffer
    9. The Confessions, Augustine
    10. The Bible Doctrine of Inspiration, by Basil Manly, Jr.

    and many more, but I will stop there for the sake of time.

    Now to your question. Family worship is very important. Our family, like most other families, struggled to find time to do worship together in a consistent way. It was easier when our children were young. We read the Bible, prayed and sang together almost every evening, but as the guys got bigger and their schedules more complex and active, we encouraged everyone to have personal times of worship. We still practiced family worship, using the Bible, hymnals, and the Book of Common Prayer. I would encourage you to use whatever tools at your disposal to help in this important matter. Thanks for your question. Worship as congregations and individuals is where most of us place our emphasis. I appreciate your concern for family worship.

    faithfully,
    DSD

18. Ken,

    The top issues facing Baptist higher education seem to be ever-shifting in terms of philosophy, methodology, and delivery system possibilities. Obviously technology, the rise of for-profit institutions, the interface between traditional education and the rest of society in terms of internships, classroom consulting, service learning, etc. will cause us to rethink traditional classroom boundaries.

    Special interest groups can be expected to offer pressure for us to conform on issues that will compromise our mission. We must anticipate that issues of sexuality in particular could impact and challenge funding and accreditation concerns. The right to hire will likely be the most important legal issue that Baptist universities face in the near future. In all of these things we must work hard to stay mission focused, Christ-centered, and church connected.

    These and other issues make the challenge of providing Baptist hgher education, grounded in Christian worldview thinking, more chanllenging than ever before.

    Blessings to you, Ken.

    DSD

19. Dr. Dockery,
    First, let me say that as a Union alumni, I am always excited to hear of the many great things happening at Union and the influence the school is having on those making up TBC and SBC churches.

    Regarding my question, in John Piper’s The Supremacy of God in Preaching, he mentions how one of his seminary professors advised him to choose one great theologican and “apply [himself] throughout life to understanding and mastering his thought.” I was wondering what theologian(s) you would suggest for future pastors/theologians to thoroughly sink our theological teeth into?

    Blessings,
    Joseph Gould
    Louisville, KY

20. Dr. Dockery,

    Do you agree with the notion of a current clash of ideologies within the Southern Baptist Convention? If so, what are they and how have they developed over the last several years? Also, for those desiring reform in denominational cooperation, what are appropriate measures to take and how might our convention implement a process of accountability for denominational servants?

    Thank you for making yourself available last week through the interview and tonight’s forum. God bless.

    Josh Chavers
    Louisville, KY

21. Dr. Dockery,

    Do you believe there is really an issue with hyper-Calvinism in the SBC? If so, would you be willing to tell us who in the convention is actually a hyper-Calvinist? Thank you.

22. Jeremy,

    Thank you for your comment about Biblical Interpretation Then and Now (Baker, 1992). I am grateful that you found the book helpful. It represents several years of focused research throughout the 1980s. I think the one thing that is consistent about the way that Jesus, the Apostles, and the Church Fathers read the Scriptures is that they read it Christologically. While the moral emphasis of the 2nd Century differed from the allegorical reading of the Alexandrians in the 3rd Century, which differed from the more historically and textually focused reading of the Antiochenes in the 4th, all found common ground in seeking to read the Bible Christologically, canonically, and coherently. We would do well to do the same today. It would enrich our pulpits and strengthen churches. Moreover, I am convinced it would help provide a framework for Believers to think and live Christianly in all aspects of life.

    Hope that helps. Thanks again for your kind comment about the book.

    faithfully,
    DSD

23. Thank you for your thoughtful answer.

24. Ben,

    Roll Tide!! Thanks for your question. I don’t think I ever dreamed that any of you would ever play for the Tide (it wasn’t in the gene pool). It was a way for our family to have fun together. While Will’s questions earlier about family worship is far more important than finding some shared cultural identity, nevertheless having a team that we could pull for, and pull for together, was an aspect of a theology of family–where we could laugh, cry, and have fun together.

    I love you–and am so very thankful for you.

    Dad

25. Scott,

    Thank you for your question. These are matters over which I have little influence. I would be happy if the LifeWay stores would stock and sell my books :). Seriously, I think that Dr. Rainer will seek to address these matters in time. LifeWay is a business and a ministry, so they at times seem to live in two competing worlds. I think that each LifeWay store manager has a major “say” in what is stocked in that store, so I would encourage you to voice your concerns first to the store manager. Then you could address the book store division of LifeWay, and then Dr. Rainer. It was a happy day in Southern Baptist life when Thom Rainer was elected president of LifeWay. I am excited about the changes that have already been implemented in research, in curriculum, and in academic books. Look for more good things to come.

    Ever hopeful,
    DSD

26. Ben,

    You didn’t wear this shirt on gameday, did you?

    http://www.bamafever.com/cw2/Assets/product_thumb/HighPlaceF&BAway%5B1%5D.JPG

27. Joseph,

    It is always good to hear from a fellow Unionite. I think it is helpful to read widely and learn from several theologians. That way your thinking will be challenged and you will be forced to go back again and again to Scripture to form your foundational convictions. That being said, as I respond to your questions I am looking at pictures that hang on my wall: Luther, Calvin, Wesley, Edwards, Whitefield, Boyce, Broadus, Manly, Robertson, Mullins, Carroll, Conner, Henry, Erickson, and Garrett, among others. All of these have shaped my thinking. I suppose that Carl Henry stands at the front of the line for me among all of these. Thus, Henry often serves as a window for me as I read other important thinkers.

    faithfully,
    DSD

28. Hello Dr. Dockery:

    Thank you so much for your contributions, to date, to the kingdom of our Christ. May they continue.

    I was not raised in the Southern Baptist tradition, but I am now happily attending, and fully committed to the kingdom principles and truths communicated at one of the Southern Baptist Convention’s seminaries. I also have the opportunity to interact with many others from other traditions who, too, are desirous of the preparation for vocational ministry that they can receive at (some) Southern Baptist institutions. Acknowledging that the SBC is not monolithic, would you comment (as broadly or specifically as you see fit) on the role of the SBC among evangelicalism at large?

    Grace to you,
    Toby Jennings
    Louisville, Kentucky

29. Josh,

    Your question is very complex. I have attempted to address some of these matters in a recent booklet called “One Gospel: Toward a Southern Baptist Consensus.” I also addressed these matters in a chapel message last semester. I will be happy to send you a booklet and/or a CD if you wish. The question, otherwise, is too complicated to address in the short amount of time I have this evening. One of the reasons for Union sponsoring the Baptist Identity Conference on our campus on Feb 15-17 is so that these kinds of questions can be discussed. I don’t think I would use the term “clash of ideologies,” but I do think we have diverse sectors across the convention with differing emphases. I think we must regroup around a renewed “center” and then find ways to worship, work, and serve together. I personally think that the ultimate danger to the gospel or to Baptist identity lies not in the nuances of our differences, but in the rising tides of liberalism, postmodernism, and neo-paganism that threaten to swamp the Gospel in cultural accomodation.

    Thanks for your question. May God help us as Baptists to seek renewal by God’s Spirit in our worship, in our outreach and discipleship, in our theology, and in our shared efforts of education and benevolence.

    faithfully,
    DSD

30. James,

    I don’t know that I can point to a hyper-Calvinist in Southern Baptist life, but I hardly know everyone :). I think that Charles Spurgeon was concerned about hyper-Calvinism in his day (so the book by Iain Murray). Many would say that John Gill was a hyper-Calvinist. Andrew Fuller was alert to such concerns in his day. While I do not think we need to be invovled in any kind of “witch hunt,” we, likewise, need to recognize that the danger of hyper-Calvinism exists, just like various other threats to the Gospel, including inclusivism, Pelagianism, and varied forms of universalism.

    I appreciate your question.

    Blessings,
    DSD

31. Dr. Dockery,
    I am a youth pastor in tuscaloosa. I have heard a rumor that you have some family here. Is that true?

32. Toby,

    Your question is a good one. I believe that even though Southern Baptists are the largest evangelical denomination in this county, we are often the most misunderstood denomination in America. The SBC has tended to exist separately from the rest of American Christianity because of its sectionalism, its inability to separate itself from Southern culture, its parochialism, and its self-sufficiency. I am grateful that these things are beginning to show signs of change.

    I am hopeful that the influence of Southern Baptists among the broader evangelical world will continue to expand. Many evangelicals who greatly appreciate our biblical convictions and zeal for missions and evangelism are often confused by what seems to be ongoing controversy in Baptist life.

    We have a kingdom responsibility to work hard to build alliances with other evangelicals when and where we can for the sake of the Gospel. In many ways, as goes the Southern Baptist Convention, so goes the rest of evangelicalism.

    About 50 years ago, there was a famous quote uttered at one of the annual conventions, which said that Southern Baptists are “God’s last and only hope.” Certainly I would not go that far. That kind of triumphalistic spirit does no one any good. Nevertheless the opportunities that Southern Baptists have for good in terms of missions, publishing, and theological education are unmatched by any other denomination in this country. God has been gracious to Southern Baptists. We must be ever thankful and at the same time pray that we can be faithful stewards of what has been given to us.

    I don’t know if I have answered your question appropriately, but I trust that my response has been helpful in some way. Let us all pray that God’s hand of blessing and guidance would continue to rest upon the SBC and that we could have a positive influence on the rest of the evangelical world, while learning from and working with others as opportunities arise.

    Blessings,
    DSD

33. Jeremy,

    Yes sir, I was born in Tuscaloosa, AL. My father still lives there. My mother passed away about 8 years ago. I have numerous uncles, aunts, and cousins who still live in Tuscaloosa.

    DSD

34. My final comment:

    I want to thank Timmy Brister for this opportunity. He has been incredibly gracious to me and I am most grateful to God for him.

    I have learned a little more about the “blogosphere” in recent days. I pray that God can use what is often seen as a sphere for the expression of dissent as a tool for good and renewal in the churches, and in Baptist life-at-large, as well as the broader evangelical world.

    The forum is a good one to discuss important issues. I trust that it can be a positive forum for the building up of others. I have grown in my appreciation for such opportunities.

    I appreciate the questions and the many kind comments that have been expressed tonight and over the past week. I especially want to thank so many of you for your words of support for our work at Union Univeristy. We hope to see many of you at the Baptist Identity Conference on Feb 15-17.

    May God’s grace, blessing, and enablement be yours in coming days.

    faithfully,
    DSD

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