Report from Pastors' Fraternal

I had the privilege of attending the Southeastern Fraternal of Reformed Baptist Pastors on Monday and Tuesday of this week in Mebane, NC. It provided a good time of fellowship, prayer, and networking among ministers and ample time to listen to preaching and teaching.

The speakers, topics, and summary:

Monday evening: Alan Dunn of Grace Covenant Baptist Church in Flemington, NJ presented an extended exposition of the book of Habakkuk. He drew parallels between Habakkuk’s word to Israel in uncertain times and how this word is relevant in our own times.

Tuesday morning (first session): Bob Selph of Grace Baptist Church in Taylors, SC preached a message centered on missions from Philippians 2:1-30. He referred to three men: Paul (a pioneer in gospel work); Timothy (a pastor who moved between churches); and Epaphroditus (a messenger of a church who travels to encourage missionaries). They did what they did because of a fourth man: Christ (see Phil 2:5-8).

Tuesday morning (second session): Robert Gonzales of the Reformed Baptist Theological Seminary offered a summary of his book Where Sin Abounds: The Spread of Sin and the Curse in Genesis with Special Focus on the Patriarchal Narratives (Wipf and Stock, 2010). His thesis is that the motif of sin is not limited to Genesis 1-11 but extends throughout the patriarchal narrative (Genesis 12-50).

Tuesday evening: Alan Dunn returned to Habbakkuk and traced various theological themes. He ended with focus on Habakkuk 3 noting that the prophet encourages the singing of praise to God and resting in his sovereignty even in uncertain times.

JTR