Liberty Baptist Seminary and "Building Bridges"

Liberty Baptist Seminary and “Building Bridges”
Press Release 12/18/2007
GOING BACK TO THE OLD SCHOOL WITH A NEW MISSION:LIBERTY SEMINARY RESTATES ITS BAPTIST HERITAGE AND NAME
In an era when denominational identification is anathema, the Liberty Theological Seminary has retrofitted its name to the Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary. The irony is the man who lead the seminary to take Baptist out of the name is also the one who lobbied to reinsert it, the President of the Seminary, Dr. Ergun Mehmet Caner. Last week, Chancellor Jerry Falwell Jr. agreed, and the announcement was made during the Seminary Christmas Banquet on Friday, December 14, 2007. The following is taken from Dr. Caner’s address:“When I became President of the seminary at Liberty University three years ago, I was compelled by Dr. Jerry Falwell to shake things up. With enrollment on the mountain approaching 10,000 resident students, the seminary was the smallest of the eight schools of the university. The name change served notice to the larger Christian community that we were willing to do anything for the sake of the mission, short of changing our doctrine. We did not change our doctrine one whit. In fact we redoubled our commitment to the vision of the Seminary’s founding in 1973- soul winning, church planting and cultural confrontation with the Gospel. Changing the name was just one small component in our overall strategy. It obviously worked. We have had three straight years of growth and have doubled our residential enrollment to over 400 in the seminary.“However, since 2004, much as changed, both here at Liberty University and in the Southern Baptist Convention. Too many schools have Baptist in their name but not in their doctrine. Some have drifted into liberalism and cultural relativism; still others remain orthodox, but have drifted toward non-Baptist reformed doctrine and cultural isolationism. For us, this was our line in the sand. We want to build bridges to a lost world without burning the bridges of our doctrinal heritage. We are putting Baptist back in our name, and taking back a term that has been misused.“We want to train students from across the evangelical spectrum, in the classic Baptistic stance of our Anabaptist tradition and Sandy Creek revivalistic heritage. These doctrines include:• The inerrancy of Scripture• General atonement• Free church polity and pastoral authority• Missions obsession• Imminent return of ChristIt just made sense, following the vision of our founder and the new chancellor, to proudly state that we are Baptist with a capital “B.” Since 1525, the word Baptist has meant something and it still does at Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary.”
Posted: December 19th, 2007

Insight for Today - Selfless Dedication

SELFLESS DEDICATION
by Charles R. Swindoll
Read Exodus 2:15—25

Moses, the Prince of Egypt, alias Prince Charming, watering animals? Why? Because Moses had just choked down the biggest wedge of humble pie you can imagine. By now, the man was ready to do anything. Isn't it interesting, though, that in this incident Moses was allowed to be a deliverer on an immensely smaller scale? Earlier, he had thought he was going to deliver a nation. He had grand dreams and mighty schemes. But this time God said, "You want a job as deliverer? Then stand up and do it, son. Start here. There are seven women here in Midian who need a champion at this moment."

Moses could have shrugged it off. He could have said, "Aw forget it. I'm out of the delivery business. Let someone else do the job." But he didn't. It was here Moses took his first steps in becoming a man of selfless dedication. The young women would later tell their father, "An Egyptian delivered us from the hand of the shepherds, and what is more, he even drew the water for us and watered the flock" (v 19).

That thought moves me. If you can't do the good you would, do the good you can. You may have had big-time plans in your life---major league dreams that haven't panned out. You were going to write a best-selling book, but the opportunities just haven't come along. Are you willing to write for your church newsletter?

Maybe you wanted to teach in seminary or Bible school, but the pressures of life forced you in a different direction. Are you willing to teach a fourth-grade Sunday school class? Are you up for leading a small group Bible study? Is it really the teaching that draws your heart, or is it the prestige that goes along with the position?

Failure, you see, teaches us a servant's attitude. And what does a servant do? He does "the next task." She does what is available and ready for her to do. Those without such an attitude resist getting their hands dirty. They never want to get involved in the messy part of working with people. They always want the polished part, the popular part. But the tough stuff behind the scenes? Well, give that to someone else.

God, however, will use our failures and setbacks to cultivate within us a servant's heart. That's step one. It's all part of the process.

Great-Grandma Polly’s Brownies

Great-Grandma Polly’s Brownies

6 TBSP Cocoa
2 sticks Margarine, softened
4 Eggs, beaten
1 cup Flour
2 cups Sugar
2 tsp Vanilla
Nuts, if desired

Mix all ingredients well
Bake in well greased 13 x 9 inch pan at 350 degrees for approximately 22 minutes.
Ice, if desired


Icing:

½ stick Margarine
2 TBSP Cocoa
2 TBSP Milk
1 tsp Vanilla
2 cups Powdered Sugar

Melt Margarine and Cocoa together.
Mix with Milk, Vanilla, and Powdered Sugar.
Pour on brownies while hot.

In Memory of Polly Henderson