ERLC National Conference Discusses Biblical Solutions to Racism, Culture, Politics, Art

Russell Moore
Russell Moore, the president of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission. |

Speakers at the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) 3-day conference, sponsored by the Southern Baptist Convention, discussed issues ranging from the role of church in political discourse, American culture and racism to religious freedom.

The conference was held between August 25 and 27 in Nashville, Tennessee.

About 1,000 pastors and cultural leaders attended the event which focused on gospel and how it can be applied to public life.

Starting off the first day with the topic of racism, opening speaker Bryan Loritts said that downplaying the existence of different ethnicities in church is to overlook the theology of imago dei, which says that people are "fearfully and wonderfully made," including every aspect of them.

"Oh dear friend, let's go to war with evangelical passivity," Loritts continued. "Let's have Paul's redemptive impatience" by becoming "all things to all people (1 Corinthians 9)," he said.

Worship and arts pastor Mike Cosper drew attention to music, art and film in influencing the culture.

"They're telling stories that are telling about the good life and power, money, sex," Cosper said.

He added that the church has "an enormous opportunity... to tell the world that there is more to life than money, power, and sex. That message has always been at the heart of the church's message and witness."

Pastor-storyteller Steven Bush exhorted pastors to encourage artists in their congregations to use their talents for the cause of God.

He said that artists in the church need to create art not only "for the church" but "from the church."

He asked the churches to remember that "our identity is not in the art we create but in King Jesus who gives us the ability to create that art."

On the second day of the conference, ERLC president Russell Moore said that Christians must not be anguished by changes in American culture, because what is happening could be a part of God's plan to rescue.

"The shaking of American culture is no sign that God has given up on his church," he said. "The shaking of American culture could very well be a sign that God is rescuing his church from a captivity that we didn't even know we were in."

Speaking about the darkness in culture, Moore said, "If what we are conserving is not defined by the gospel, defined by a righteousness found in the lived life and the shed blood of the resurrected Jesus Christ ... than we have nothing worth conserving at all."

David French, National Review staff writer, started the third session by commenting on national politics.

"If this election isn't humble pie for conservatives, I don't know what is humble pie," French said. "We substituted a set of policies for just a dude, the dude, who he alone can change your life. How? No idea. No clue."

He attributed the current political climate to lethargy on the part of society. French said that conservative leaders much teach people to stand up for their beliefs.

"We need energy instead of lethargy," he added.

Kelvin Cochran, fire chief and former fire administrator, was fired from the department over his book which mentioned biblical marriage and sexuality. He testified during the conference that "there are worldly consequences for standing for biblical truth," but he said, "Kingdom consequences are always greater than the worldly consequences."

Moore said that it was important to educate people on religious freedom and its biblical foundation, and how it differs from control.

"Not everything that offends me is a violation of my religious freedom," he said. "I don't have a right not to be ridiculed on TV. I don't have any right to say that everyone has to agree with what I'm saying about the Bible. But there is a very genuine threat and we see all around us and heard some of that today ... people whose very freedom to live out their faith is being restricted."

Christianity Today executive editor Andy Crouch cautioned Christians to not be "on a quest for control" of the culture.

"You know someone is addicted to control; when their control begins to slip, they become violent," Crouch said. "What our culture has perceived of us Christians, is they see us losing control of culture and they see the rage with which we react to that loss of control."

He said that the tendency to control is what reveals the true motivations.