Year 2008 Resolutions:

Resolution on the Primacy of Preaching

Resolution on Preaching and Politics

The Compelling Call for Leadership

Resolution on the Divine Institution of Marriage

Resolution on the Primacy of Preaching

Whereas, the ministry of preaching, i.e. the proclamation of the Word, has been diminished over recent years, in favor of other forms of communication that tend more towards entertainment than instruction, and

Whereas, the time spent in the preaching and/or teaching of the Word of God has decreased in the average worship service, even in Bible-believing local churches, and

Whereas, the content of preaching has retreated from the proclamation of the whole counsel of God and clear presentations of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and

Whereas, there has been a growing demand for multiple-step programs and formulated problem-solving to be taught in local churches, together with the development of counseling ministries, apart from the preaching and teaching ministries where the good counsel of God's Word may be provided for all to hear, and

Whereas, Scripture establishes the priority of preaching the Word in the local Church, at all times, because faith comes by the hearing of God's Word (Romans 10:17) and,

Whereas, the Apostle Paul, admonishes those who are pastors, elders and bishops to preach the Word (II Timothy 4:2), under all circumstances and at all times because it is profitable unto all the needs of those who hear it (II Timothy 3:16, 17), and

Whereas, it is the duty of preachers to be well-prepared to preach the whole counsel of God (Acts 20:27) and to rightly divide the Word of Truth (11 Timothy 2:15) before their hearers;

Be It Therefore Resolved, that we, the members of the Independent Baptist Fellowship of North America, meeting in Shipshewana, Indiana, on June 17-19, 2008, do hereby agree that we will devote ourselves to establishing and maintaining the preaching (proclamation) of the Word of God, not allowing any other worship activity, as valuable and worthy as it may be, to eclipse the preaching and teaching of the Word, whereby we follow the example of reading, explaining (Nehemiah 8:8) and applying God's Word, lest preaching become a mere intellectual exercise without bearing fruit in the lives of the hearers;

That we resolve ourselves to give sufficient time to the study of the Word and preparation of our preaching so that we come before the people with God's Word and not the words of a man, and that we pray earnestly that we may preach it in the power of the Holy Spirit and not in the weakness of the flesh;

That we are determined to please the Lord by "feeding the flock of God" rather than please the people by tickling the ears with "smooth things" (Isaiah 30:10) that fail to produce salvation and sanctification;

That we emphasize biblical doctrine in our preaching, so that our people not only know what they believe, but also why they must believe it,

Finally, that we guard our pulpits from those who would scatter the flock with unsound teachings that elevate the wisdom of men to equal authority with the wisdom of God's Word.

Resolution on Preaching and Politics

Whereas, there are many subjects in the public square that are addressed in Scripture, and

Whereas, there arc threats and efforts made to intimidate and prevent Bible preachers from addressing the issues of righteousness and sin in our society, according to the Word of God, and

Whereas, we support the Bill of Rights which guarantees us the freedom of speech, the freedom from a state church and the liberty to worship God according to the dictates of our conscience and not according to the mandates of government or courts,

Be it therefore resolved, that we, the members of the Independent Baptist Fellowship of North America, meeting in Shipshewana, Indiana, on June 17-19, 2008, do hereby resolve that we will continue to fearlessly preach against the sins of our society, such as hedonism, homosexuality, abortion and promiscuity, and will continue to uphold such biblical principles as holiness, purity, the sanctity of marriage, the sanctity of life and the biblical model of a family; and

That we will publicly oppose from the Scriptures all attacks against our religious liberties, guaranteed to us by our founding fathers, and exercise those liberties fully in church ministries and in fulfillment of the Great Commission; and

That while we would not endorse any political party or candidate for public office, we reserve the right to exercise our liberty to scrutinize both the persons and their platforms in the light of Scripture, preach what God says in His Word about their positions and platforms and support the principles and candidates that best serve the spiritual welfare of our nation; and

That it is our duty as pastors to exercise the liberty of the pulpit to uphold the testimony of the Church by going on record publicly in support of righteousness and in condemnation of evil; and

That we likewise admonish those who misuse the privilege of the pulpit and abuse thereby their people, by exercising authority for personal gain or political purposes and not the spiritual welfare of God's people; and

That we further urge our people to devote themselves to much prayer for the future of our nation and implore God's mercies that He would give us the leadership in government that we need, rather than the leadership our nation deserves.

The Compelling Call for Leadership

Whereas leadership is defined by our modern society as "implementing
the desires of focus groups," and

Whereas such a worldly, political view of leadership is the basis of many modern trends in Christianity, such as those used by Bill Hybels and Rick Warren, and

Whereas the idea of pleasing men runs contrary to the biblical model of leadership, which is to please God alone, and

Whereas men of character in positions of leadership in the past may not have been popular, nevertheless they were blessed of God and used to change the course of nations and history. Men such as Dr. Robert T. Ketcham, a long time leader of Fundamental Baptists, used to take great joy in clarifying his understanding of "leadership." Dr. Ketcham never felt it was his role to organize and fashion a large organization of pastors and people to settle every petty difference of opinion among them in order to establish unity and harmony. Instead, it was his opinion that the responsibility of leadership was, as he put it, to "ride point," so that others knew where he stood; they then could align themselves with him. His was not a forced unity but one where, as a leader, he illuminated biblical truth and clearly pointed out error so that men who believed and had an affinity for truth were drawn to it.

It is this type of leadership that is so sorely needed among us today. Fundamental Christianity is too often characterized in our post-modern world with unnecessary division, personal ambition, a confused apathy, and a general lack of faith in attempting great things for God. It is only as we exemplify biblical Christianity and a warm revival spirit in our lives that we are able to effectively lead others. This kind of leadership is indispensable.

It is this kind of leadership that we in the Independent Baptist Fellowship of North America must aspire to attain. God has given us great examples of godly leadership in the Scriptures.

Therefore, be it resolved, that we, the members of the Independent Baptist Fellowship of North America, meeting in Shipshewana, Indiana, on June 17-19, 2008, do hereby dedicate ourselves and challenge one another to stand "in the evil day, and having done all, to stand" (Ephesians 6:13), and

Furthermore, we call on pastors and deacons to make leadership decisions that are based on the Word and will of God rather than the will of men, and

Lastly we call on our older leaders to challenge the younger leaders to
stand for godly principles of leadership.

Resolution on the Divine Institution of Marriage

Whereas, at the time of creation, God Himself established the institution of marriage and defined marriage as the union between one man and one woman for life (Genesis 2:23, 24), and

Whereas, Christ also honored the institution of marriage and reaffirmed its definition by quoting from Genesis 2 (Mark 10:1-12), and

Whereas, the New Testament epistles are consistent in their support of the importance of the institution of marriage and in reaffirming the definition of one man and one woman for life (Romans 7:1-6; 1 Corinthians 7:1-16; Ephesians 5:22-33; 1 Peter 3:1-7), and

Whereas, there have been and continue to be many attempts, both on the federal and state levels, to undermine the divine institution of marriage and to overthrow the biblical definition through legislation concerning divorce, remarriage, co-habitation and homosexual unions;

Be it therefore resolved, that we, the members of the Independent Baptist Fellowship of North America, meeting June 17-19, 2008, in Shipshewana, Indiana, commit ourselves to uphold and faithfully proclaim the sanctity of marriage and to consistently reaffirm that marriage is a privilege, not a right, instituted by God and not subject to the whims of man;

Be it further resolved, that we declare that man has no right to change that which God has instituted or to alter the Bible's definition of marriage;

Be it further resolved, that we will oppose and firmly stand against any legislation or decisions by the courts which seek to expand the definition of marriage beyond one man and one woman united for life and that we strongly support all legislation that will defend the sanctity of the divine institution of marriage and its biblical definition wherever necessary, lest the decision be made for us by activist judges.

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Last modified: June 21, 2007