In fact, leaders within the CBF are now saying that the emerging/emergent movement is a great fit for the CBF—and the CBF is currently building relationships with the emergent movement. CBF is now developing four web pages on teir website devoted to the emerging/emergent movement.

One CBF leader, a church planter from Atlanta named Jake Meyers, has noted the best way to describe the emerging church movement is “beer, candles, and theologian Soren Kierkegaard.” (Translated that means: Beer; ancient and mystical rituals; and an openness to theological liberalism.
Interestingly, this CBF leader (Jake Meyers) serves on the coordinating group of Emergent Village, the far-left wing of the emerging church movement where Brian McLaren serves as chairman of the board. According to Emergent Village, they have everything from a Texas Baptists pastor to a New England lesbian Episcopal priest.

Serving on the board of Emergent Village is Chris Seay, an emerging church planter from Houston, Texas who was one of the featured speakers at the Younger Leaders Summit in Nashville, hosted by Lifeway’s Jimmy Draper in 2005 and by 2006 was led by NAMB’s Ed Stetzer.

And while I am certainly perplexed as to why a board member of Emergent Village was a featured speaker at our Younger Leaders Summit, I am equally concerned about the particular group of younger leaders we seem to be pursuing for leadership positions in the SBC.

For withing this group of young SBC leaders, are: those who strongly oppose the SBC’s long standing position on alcohol; and those who now want us to move toward embracing the charismatic practice of speaking in tongues; and those who are now telling us that CBF really wasn’t much of a problem; and those who are now calling for a “revolution” to move the SBC back to what they call the “center.”

Dr. Mohler has stated that: “The Emergent movement represents a significant challenge to biblical Christianity.”

And he’s absolutely right, but the greater immediate challenge may be to convince certain SBC leaders to stop lending the credibility of the SBC and its institutions to a movement that is dripping with error.

The seriousness of the emerging/emergent movement and the degree to which it has infiltrated the SBC warrants a full and thorough investigation. And I would argue that the investigation needs to start at the North American Mission Board, and most specifically in the area of church planting.

As we refer this motion to Lifeway, I would ask that the Executive Committee express our deep and serious concern about the emerging/emergent movement and request that Lifeway honor this request for a full and thorough investigation.