The decision this past March of the Richmond Baptist Association to continue in Christian fellowship and partnership with Ginter Park Baptist Church was a crowning moment for me in the life of Baptist churches. We agreed to disagree, but to continue working together for common causes of Christ and his teachings — the Jesus teachings of feeding the hungry, providing clothing to those that need it, supporting children in the Richmond Public Schools with backpacks, school supplies and opportunities to attend Camp Alkulana during the summer.
All this is possible because we, RBA churches, come together to provide money to staff our centers and camp with God-loving leaders. These leaders help coordinate church volunteers and help network with other public assistance agencies to provide resources that we cannot provide at our local churches alone, but together we can at the RBA centers. Our leaders and our centers are quite possibly the only local resource needy people know and turn to for assistance. Thanks be to God — that, together, we can provide this much needed ministry.
This fellowship of working together reminds me of scenes of Baptist disaster relief agencies after Hurricane Sandy working side by side and hand in hand with those from other Christian traditions, and others from multiple faith traditions and non-faith traditions — together, ALL, providing food, shelter and clothing and other resources in a time of great need.
These scenes are a better public witness to the love of God from the people of God than anything else we do in the life of the church. This is a living example of putting hands and feet to our calling as believers and followers of Jesus.
I am also reminded of the chainsaw brigades that volunteer their time and resources to help remove debris and fallen trees after severe storms pass though our region. After a storm when a tree is sitting on your house or you need a clear path cut to leave or return to your home, does one really care who cuts the tree down and hauls it away? Does it matter if we end up helping people that believe differently from us? Or should we only partner with and do unto others that believe only as we do? For the love of God, I hope not. If we did, a lot of good works would not get done in our world.
Why do we do anything to help others? Because that IS what Jesus would have us do. When I help my neighbor near or far I do not ask them before help is offered or given if they support my interpretation of Scripture or if they agree with my socio-political ideologies, if they hold true to a belief that matches mine or even if they believe in God. Why? Because, it matters not that the person that receives care, concern and love from me is on “my side” and or is up-to-date on the latest and greatest moral and social debate of our time.
I do not care if they interpret Scripture the same as I do. All that matters to me is that they receive the much needed assistance that I know I cannot always provide on my own, but I can and will when I partner with others. The same holds true for those that I choose to partner with in ministry. Together combining our time, talents and resources, as individual Baptists, Richmond Baptists, Virginia Baptists and Baptists around the world, we are making a difference together — and that is a higher calling than making sure we all agree on what it means to be Christian. Again, for me, this is the higher calling as followers of Jesus.
I have worked and want to continue working side by side and in partnership with individuals and churches that differ from me and my church and support one another as followers of Jesus. Learning from each other, thinking differently about Scripture and having dialogue is a healthy part of spiritual growth as a Christian. That is what the vote in March meant to me.
I do not stand in judgment of those that believe differently from me. To do so would be arrogant and arrogance is not a healthy spiritual gift. Why can’t we continue to work together even when we disagree about certain issues? I am not asking a rhetorical question. This is a real question that we have to ask ourselves individually and collectively as church families. Can we work with those that differ from us — in the name of Jesus? Can we? Yes. Will we? We will see. We each have to answer that question for ourselves. My answer is yes. What is yours?
Raymond Cady, Ginter Park Baptist Church, Richmond