Proclaim and Defend — Week 500

[Note: this week marks a milestone for Proclaim & Defend. It is our 500^th week of publication. Most weeks we put out an article each weekday, sometimes running just one short or sometime running one extra for the week. Our first week began February 29, 2012, a Wednesday, so our first week had a run of just three articles. To mark the occasion, I am working on a P&D focus for most of this week. We will start off with a look back through an adaptation of an article we published in the July/August issue of FrontLine. The article speaks to what Proclaim & Defend is all about. — Editor.]

In Acts 20.18-35 we find Paul’s farewell address to the Ephesian elders. These men knew him well, they had been co-labourers during three fruitful years of ministry. Many souls in Asia Minor had come to Christ, many churches had been planted, a thriving ministry made an impact on the pagan world such that the local idolaters had felt it in that most sensitive of all body parts, the pocketbook. “Now,” Paul says, “[you] shall see my face no more” (20.25). At this leave-taking, Paul gives these Christian workers final instructions, which apply far beyond their original context to modern ministry everywhere.

Paul’s instructions provide our mandate in just two imperatives, found in Acts 20.28 and 31. The first says:

Acts 20:28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.

And the second:

Acts 20:31 Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.

The first has this imperative: “take heed to yourselves” with the explanatory infinitive “to feed the church of God.” The second commands: “therefor watch, and remember…” Watch what? Remember what? Watch for the wolves that shall come from within and without (20.29-30) and remember how I did not cease “to warn everyone night and day with tears.”

At Proclaim & Defend, we take these imperatives to heart. We could sum up our mission at P&D as, “to proclaim and defend biblical Baptist fundamentals.” What do we mean by these terms?

Proclaim and Defend

The terms proclaim and defend may well be defined by appealing to Acts 20. Proclamation is feeding the church of God. Feeding the flock doesn’t merely mean “give them what they want to hear,” but it means “give them what they need.” Why must we give them what we need? “For,” Paul says, in the very next verse, “I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.” The flock needs food that will protect it from the wolves.

So when we say proclaim, we mean to edify, but we mean to edify with a purpose. We want spiritual strength to come from that feeding. We want those we feed to get their meat and vegetables. We aren’t really all that interested in providing strawberry shortcake.

Which brings us to defend. Paul told the Ephesian elders that his was a ministry of warning (20.31). He called them to that same ministry. He later told Timothy, “Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.” (2 Tim 4.2) That’s largely a ministry of warning. The ministry of warning focuses on two categories: 1) the grievous wolves that invade from without (20.29) and 2) the perverse self-glorifiers who arise from within, gathering crowds around them with subtle, twisted words (20.30).

Biblical Baptist Fundamentals (As Opposed to “Historic”)

Let me also take care to note what I mean by “biblical Baptist fundamentals.” We are aware that there are certain doctrines that are critical doctrines for Christianity. When we say fundamentals, we certainly mean those. You should also be aware that we at the FBFI are a Baptist fellowship. We are quite taken with that word and what it represents. We hold to those doctrines that represent Christian fundamentals as well as those peculiar distinctives that make us Baptist examples of Christianity. We think that by proclaiming and defending these truths, the saints will be edified and equipped to resist the wolves and charlatans and to be disciple-makers on their own hook, in their own local ministries.

Further, as to the term biblical. In my header above I distinguish it from “historic.” There is some merit to calling one’s self an “historic fundamentalist,” but there is also some weakness to the term. On the one hand, our forefathers in fundamentalism fought a good fight (with some blemishes) to leave the task to us. We identify with them to be sure. But when someone uses the term historic, you also have to ask “Which history do you mean?” Do you mean pre-1920s history? 1920s history? Post-1955 history? All of the above? Which history?

It is better, I think to emphasize biblical Baptist fundamentals. If there are doctrines or distinctives that are unbiblical, we should want nothing to do with them. If the issue is whether the doctrines or distinctives are biblical or not, it matters not whether they are exactly historical. While we may appreciate the energy and heritage of our forefathers, they may have erred at points. We don’t want to repeat their errors. (We would rather not make any errors of our own, either, but alas!) The key concerning our proclaiming and defending is this: is it biblical?

The ministry of Proclaim & Defend

There is no doubt that edification is a crying need today. Christianity, broadly speaking, speaks all too broadly with little depth and substance. When the scorching trials of affliction arise (Mt 13.6), we suspect that many will wither away. Every effort must be sure those who profess the faith possess the faith. Having done with that, we must ensure that the believers are given every possible opportunity to take in the Word of God, building them up in the love and fear of God so they may be able to withstand the attacks of the devil.

Fundamentally, edification should take place in the local church, and we strongly support strong Bible teaching and preaching ministry. More than that, however, we find ourselves in an age where inquiring Christians search in many places for material to build their lives and families. We live in an era where much material is available, but often one finds little that teaches the distinctive message of biblical Baptist fundamentalists.

Consequently, we at the FBFI publish a magazine full of helpful articles, FrontLine. The magazine goes back well over twenty years. You would do well to take it into your home. As each magazine comes out, I find something helpful for me or my ministry.

However, as you know, times are always changing. Most of us look online for resources all the time. Consequently, we started Proclaim & Defend in 2012, with the goal of using the blog format to provide articles that build up the saints, carefully teaching biblical truths and warning when false teachers appear and errors arise within the Christian world.

This week, marking our 500^th week of publication, we think we’ve made a good start. The next 500 weeks should prove … interesting.

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Don Johnson is the pastor of Grace Baptist Church of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada.

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(A longer form of this article appeared in FrontLine • July/August 2014. Click here to subscribe to the magazine.)