NASHVILLE, Tenn., Nov. 12, 2014The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention received a financial gift of $250,000 from The Southern Baptists of Texas Convention for the purpose of training SBC churches across the nation for gospel-focused ministry to those who have same-sex attractions, as well as strengthen biblical marriages in their churches.
The ERLC is committed to equipping Baptist churches to stand up for the whole gospel in changing times, said ERLC President Russell Moore. This means upholding the sexual ethic given to us by our Lord and it means ministering to people caught in the whirl of a culture that seeks to redefine the meanings of marriage and sexuality.
Same-sex marriage is now legal in 32 states and the District of Columbia and the U.S. Supreme Court is likely to vote on nationalizing same-sex marriage as early as 2015. The ERLC recently concluded a three-day conference on The Gospel, Homosexuality, and the Future of Marriage where more than 40 speakers addressed conference attendees on how to apply the gospel to marriage issues with convictional kindness in their communities, families and churches.
Through the financial gift provided, the ERLC plans to execute strategies to raise awareness of the issues by providing training opportunities and creating resources to equip pastors and leaders ministering in these areas.
“There is no more timely social issue than the challenge to biblical marriage posed by our culture’s support of other models of family, said Jim Richards, Executive Director of Southern Baptists of Texas Convention. The SBTC is pleased to be able to assist Dr. Moore and his staff as they train our church leaders toward stronger marriages and gospel ministry among our neighbors who feel same-sex attraction. We pray for the Lord’s wisdom as we together seek to serve our churches in the face of new challenges.”
The Southern Baptist Convention is Americas largest Protestant denomination with more than 15.8 million members in over 46,000 churches nationwide. The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission is the SBCs ethics, religious liberty and public policy agency with offices in Nashville, Tenn., and Washington, D.C.
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