Thread: Recently, who we are as B21 has been compared to the Conservative Baptist Network. We want to give some clarity as to who we are, why we started Baptist21, and some possible differences between us.

We started B21 w/ a desire to see friends remain SBC, work w/in the SBC, & to encourage others to join. We desired to be a winsome & unifying voice w/in the SBC & to do that around honest discussion. We have not always done this perfectly & we have learned much over the years.

Given the diversity (50,000 churches), this is no easy task. This is why it is important to welcome other voices. We believe the SBC, with all of her flaws, is still the best Network of churches to lock arms with because of our shared doctrine, purpose, and cooperation model.

Thus far, B21 has not been a formalized Network (this may not always be the case) but our informal work has been accomplished within the SBC and her entities, not outside (like CBN's partnership with Mid-America).

Do we agree with everything each SBC Professor affirms? No, yet we still believe we work better together w/o calling each other names, especially since they all wholeheartedly affirm the BFM2000.

Do we agree with everything each SBC Pastor affirms? No! Yet we still believe we work better together and can sharpen one another through honest debate & discussion under the BFM2000 without calling each other names!

B21 desires for the SBC to be a place where we can have honest discussion & disagreement but to do so as family! Where people can disagree on whether Mike Pence should address the Convention without labeling one side "compromisers of the gospel" or the other "liberals."

Where people can disagree on aspects of woke theology and systemic racism without calling one side "racist" or the other "liberals."

Associating is very Baptist & we welcome it. However, it’s foundational purpose should be to preserve unity around the BFM for mission. This is why we had concerns about the CBN in Feb. Nothing has changed & there is more evidence of concern (see links at the end).

We know there are faithful brothers & sisters in CBN & we hope they will be a honorable, unifying voice in the light that sharpens us around the BFM2000 so that years from now there will be faithful baptist churches making Christ known, or you might say so there is a B22!

Links to our blog:  https://baptist21.com/sbc/2020/the-conservative-baptist-network-3-observations/ ( @PastorAdamGBC Blog):  https://sbcvoices.com/more-executive-committee-transparency-please/ ( @tpatterson statement)  https://www.bscm.org/cbn-statement  & ( @JaredCWellman Thread):  https://twitter.com/JaredcWellman/status/1273603116500496384?s=20