Free Church Press announces a new and exclusive teaching series on biblical, theological, ethical, and ecclesial themes significant for Southern Baptists. The series will target people in the pew rather than those who have a theological background. While we believe all church leaders--including pastors and other staff leaders--will benefit from the series, the goal is to educate the millions of Southern Baptists who neither have theological or biblical degrees nor desire to wade through long, technical works to gain a reasonable grip on the essence of a particular subject. Thus, "lay" leaders1 and other church members will especially benefit from this series.
What is more, I am personally excited to announce the first contributor to this exclusive series by Free Church Press:
Born Guilty? A Southern Baptist View of Original Sin
by
Adam Harwood, Ph.D.
Dr. Harwood is presently Assistant Professor of Christian Studies, Truett-McConnell College in Cleveland, Georgia. He holds a B.A. from the University of Central Oklahoma and a M.Div. and Ph.D. Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Dr. Harwood also authored The Spiritual Condition of Infants: A Biblical-Historical Survey and Systematic Proposal (Wipf & Stock Publishers (March 15, 2011).
In Born Guilty?, Dr. Harwood explains the difference between "imputed sinful guilt" and "inherited sinful nature" and its significance for Southern Baptists.
I believe this volume will assist all Southern Baptists in understanding better not only our theological heritage but also in gaining a thoroughly biblical view of universal, sinful human depravity.
And, the volume will be priced so that churches can afford to order several copies for their church libraries, leaders, and even study groups!
Available at The 2013 John 3:16 Conference.
1no, I do not like "lay" as a descriptor as in "lay leaders." However, I know of few terms, if any, to accurately communicate the distinction between those who are considered leaders biblically identified (i.e. pastor and deacon) and those who are not
Can't wait to get my copy in Atlanta!
Les Puryear
Posted by: Leslie Puryear | 2013.03.03 at 09:14 PM
Hey, Les. Thanks. Adam has done Southern Baptists a great service by making his biblical research available to grassroots folks.
Posted by: peter lumpkins | 2013.03.03 at 09:45 PM
It's been said that theology is too important to be left to theologians. This Free Church Press series is intended to engage Southern Baptists "in the pew," who are biblically astute but largely unaware of these theological conversations within the SBC. I am honored that my essay will launch the series.
Adam
Posted by: Adam Harwood | 2013.03.04 at 11:09 AM
As a long-time Bible teacher in Southern Baptist ranks of the "traditional" persuasion, I applaud the development of this series. Theological topics have not been sufficiently covered in Sunday School literature and other training materials over the years. This appears to be an excellent tool in the making which will engage majority Southern Baptists who have been largely uninformed (or misinformed) regarding the current issues at hand in our denomination. Thank you Dr. Harwood for your involvement with this. My prayer is that this volume and others which may be in the works will reach the pews soon.
P.S. I would dearly love to see a layman's version of Anabaptist history, belief and practice also produced. As time goes on, I find myself identifying with the Anabaptists more than those "other" 16th century reformers. Truth is unkillable!
Posted by: Max | 2013.03.04 at 02:35 PM
Peter,
A great writer for the topic, I look foward to Dr. Harwood's book!
Posted by: Ron F. Hale | 2013.03.04 at 08:22 PM
Well, this is really awesome. I would love to see a place to direct people on the web for these coming resources. Gee, I don't ask much, do I?
"P.S. I would dearly love to see a layman's version of Anabaptist history, belief and practice also produced"
Me too, Max! I started researching at leisure about 8 years ago. One of the problems is that the victors write the official history and these folks were on the run. It was hard to find printers who would dare take on their works. (You find printers listed as martyrs) I would recommend Martyrs Mirror for some of it. You will weep. There are so many events of martyrdom listed with no names because no one cared about who they were. No documented history. They might be listed as "cobbler" or "miller", It weighs about 10-lbs.
I can remember reading something that said just within the last 50 years some of their writings have been discovered in crevices behind walls in old stone homes in the rural areas of the Czeck republic.
Posted by: Lydia | 2013.03.04 at 09:19 PM
Lydia,
We need more of their writings, history , and personal stories translated into the English language. There is a big need for German translation into English.
I'm glad you are a student of the movement!
Posted by: Ron F. Hale | 2013.03.04 at 11:59 PM
Lydia - Thanks for referring me to the book Martyrs Mirror. I just glanced through an on-line version of it. Jesus wept.
Posted by: Max | 2013.03.05 at 01:05 PM