45. Fault Lines

Fault Lines: The Social Justice Movement and Evangelicalism's Looming Catastrophe. Voddie T. Baucham Jr. 2021. [April] 270 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: 1989 was a banner year. Not because the World Wide Web was invented, the Berlin Wall came down, Nintendo came out with the Gameboy, and I met and married the woman of my dreams. Those were all big, but four other things happened in 1989 that were at least as big—things that shaped the current war being waged in our midst. Harvard Law professor Derrick Bell and some colleagues held a conference in Wisconsin, where Critical Race Theory was officially born.

Chances are you already have an opinion about this book before you've even picked it up. The book certainly can be seen as controversial by some. The topic is as current, relevant, and hot-topic as you can possibly get. The book is about Critical Race Theory, Intersectionality, Social Justice, and Black Lives Matter (the organization).  

The book goes above and beyond when it comes to presenting and explaining terms, unpacking definitions and philosophies, following through with the logical outflow of those ideas and views, asking (and answering) hard questions, and providing a history of the ideas that form this 'new' worldview. Perhaps readers may disagree with his conclusions here and there, but it's hard to disagree with his presentation when he is quoting generously from the opposition. He is using their terms, their vocabulary, their definitions, their own words to present the key ideas that form the worldview being discussed, dissected, analyzed, unpacked, critiqued. 

Baucham specifically focuses on how CRT is effecting and impacting the evangelical church. It isn't just society and culture and the world at large being effected by this worldview. It is effecting the church--the local church, the body of churches within denominations, official doctrines within specific denominations,  Christian organizations that carry a lot of weight and influence (aka Big Eva). He is essentially--to sum it up quite briefly--saying you can't hold onto the gospel as presented in the Word of God while also holding onto CRT (or Social Justice or BLM). You can't have your cake and eat it too. Because the two are at odds. The two being "at odds" is an understatement. The two are at war. 

What is being attacked are some of the essential doctrines of the church--doctrines clung to since the Reformation. Like the doctrine that the BIBLE IS SUFFICIENT. The Bible does not need help from social sciences, from philosophy, from science, from ethnic experience to be interpreted, rightly divided, understood, comprehended. One does not need to read the Bible with the lens of Critical Race Theory in order to be properly read, understood, interpreted, taught, proclaimed. One does not need to read the Bible with the lens of feminism. Whatever lens the modern world--the modern culture--is throwing at the church saying ASSIMILATE TO OUR WORLDVIEW OR ELSE BE DEEMED BACKWARD, ON THE WRONG SIDE OF HISTORY, SMALL-MINDED, BIGOTED, HATEFUL--the church should reject. The church does not need to watch the news to make sense of Scripture. The church should be grounded and rooted in the Word of God. No matter the currents of the world philosophies or world views, the church should be built on a strong, solid, unchanging foundation.

The book is part memoir--he shares his experiences--part sociology--he does have a degree in sociology and has experience teaching sociology--and part theology--he has pastored churches for decades.  

• Thought Line
• Introduction
• Chapter One: A Black Man
• Chapter Two: A Black Christian
• Chapter Three: Seeking True Justice
• Chapter Four: A New Religion
• Chapter Five: A New Priesthood
• Chapter Six: A New Canon
• Chapter Seven: The Ground Is Moving
• Chapter Eight: The Damage
• Chapter Nine: Aftershock
• Chapter Ten: Restoration and Mitigation
• Chapter Eleven: Solid Ground
• Appendix A: The Dallas Statement on Social Justice and the Gospel 
• Appendix B: Original Resolution on Critical Race Theory and Intersectionality
• Appendix C: SBC Resolution 9 on Critical Race Theory and Intersectionality

Quotes: 

• It is not a stretch to say we are seeing seismic shifts in the evangelical landscape.
• Growing ethnic tension is a problem—but it is not the main problem. While troubling, it is no match for the truth of the Gospel and the unity it creates among those who embrace it. In fact, such tensions represent an opportunity for Christ’s followers to demonstrate the truth of Paul’s words:
• For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. (Ephesians 2:13–16)
• Ethnic tensions are only a problem for Christians who forget this truth or subordinate it to a competing ideology (whether that be on the left or the right). When that happens, a fault line appears: those on one side “press the text” of the Bible, while those on the other see that approach as short-sighted and insensitive. The problem is not ethnic tension, but the fundamental assumptions that drive our assessment of and subsequent approaches to it.
• Perhaps the most troubling aspect of the current struggle is that it mischaracterizes Christians that way too. On one side are “compassionate” Christians who are “concerned about justice.” On the other are “insensitive” Christians who are “not concerned about justice.” This is wrong.
• I have pursued justice my entire Christian life. Yet I am about as “anti–social justice” as they come—not because I have abandoned my obligation to “strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14), but because I believe the current concept of social justice is incompatible with biblical Christianity.
• This is the main fault line at the root of the current debate—the epicenter of the Big One that, when it finally shifts with all its force, threatens to split evangelicalism right down the middle. Our problem is a lack of clarity and charity in our debate over the place, priority, practice, and definition of justice.
• God clearly condemns injustice. He is also clear in His condemnation of falsehood and lies. The most succinct statement of this is found in the Decalogue.
• Falsehood and lies are reprehensible because they not only harm those to and/or about whom they are told, but they also blaspheme the very character and nature of the God Who is truth (John 14:6), whose very Word is truth (Psalm 119:43, 160; John 17:17), and whose very essence is that of “the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change” (James 1:17). Moreover, God is clear about His attitude toward falsehood and its implications:
• There are six things that the LORD hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers. (Proverbs 6:16–19)
• There are falsehoods in the current cultural moment that tick every one of these boxes. As such, these falsehoods must be confronted.
• Beyond confronting falsehoods in general, our pursuit of justice must also be characterized by a pursuit of truth. Much has been said recently about seeking justice, and I could not agree more. However, we must be certain that we pursue justice on God’s terms. For instance, we must bear in mind that “A single witness shall not suffice against a person for any crime or for any wrong in connection with any offense that he has committed. Only on the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses shall a charge be established” (Deuteronomy 19:15, cf. Matthew 18:16; 2 Corinthians 13:1; 1 Timothy 5:19; Hebrews 10:28). This is critical in our quest to adhere to the Lord’s admonition that “You shall do no injustice in court. You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your neighbor” (Leviticus 19:15). How much of our current debate about justice is rooted in these principles?
• At the epicenter of the coming evangelical catastrophe is a new religion—or, more specifically, a new cult. While some may consider the term “cult” unnecessarily offensive, it happens to be the most accurate term available to describe the current state of affairs. 
• In no area does God require me to walk in a level of righteousness for which the Scriptures do not equip me—including any and all aspects of justice.
• “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire” (2 Peter 1:3–4). What could possibly be beyond the scope of “all things that pertain to life and godliness”?
• The general theme of the current CSJ movement within evangelicalism is a covert attack on the sufficiency of Scripture. People are not coming right out and saying that the Bible is not enough. Instead, high-profile pastors get up and speak about the ways in which modern sociology texts have done for them what the revelation of Scripture has been unable to do.
• At least three realities should give us pause when men who have been studying and teaching the Bible for many decades proclaim that they have come to some life-altering revelation that has not been derived from Scripture.
• First, the Bible is the Word of God. Paul says, “All Scripture is breathed out by God.” In other words, the Bible is not merely the words and speculations of men. Nor is it dependent upon the words or ideas of men for its authority. Unlike the texts in the new antiracist canon, the Bible carries the authority of God Himself.
• Second, the Bible is “profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:17). In other words, since race is undoubtably a “righteousness” issue, the Bible is profitable for teaching those who are ignorant about race, rebuking those who are in sin concerning race, correcting those who are in error about race, and training everyone who is pursuing righteousness in regard to race. To put a finer point on it, there is not a book in the world that is better suited to address men on the issue of race than the Bible. That is not to say that there is no help to be found in other books. It is, however, to say that they are not essential.
• Third, the Bible is sufficient. The Bible is the only canon through and by which “the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:17). This includes the work of race relations of any and every kind. It is the Bible—not sociology, psychology, or political science—that offers sufficient answers not only on race, but on every ethical issue man has faced, or will ever face.
• As we saw earlier, the term “antiracist” is loaded. It has a very specific meaning—part of which includes the idea of works-based righteousness. White people are not called to look to God for forgiveness. They are not told that Christ’s blood is sufficient. No, they are told that they must do the unending work of antiracism. And this work must be done regardless of their own actions since the issue at hand is a matter of communal, generational guilt based on ethnicity.
• We are right to pursue justice, peace, and unity (Micah 6:8; Romans 12:18; John 17:20–21). That is not the fault line. 
• If we are to survive this catastrophe, we must understand it. We must understand what the fault lines are. We must also know where they lie.
• Racism is real. Injustice is real. No matter how many times I say those things, I still will be accused of turning a blind eye to them—not because I deny them, but because I deny the CRT/I view that they are “normal” and at the basis of everything.
• I wrote this book because I love God more than life, the truth more than others’ opinion of me, and the Bride of Christ more than my platform. My heart is broken as I watch movements and ideologies against which I have fought and warned for decades become entrenched at the highest and most respected levels of evangelicalism. I want this book to be a clarion call. I want to unmask the ideology of Critical Theory, Critical Race Theory, and Intersectionality in hopes that those who have imbibed it can have the blinders removed from their eyes, and those who have bowed in the face of it can stand up, take courage, and “contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3).
• I am not a social justice warrior, but I believe God meant it when He said, “Learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow’s cause” (Isaiah 1:17). But I don’t believe He called me to use the government as a proxy. God calls His people to be His hands and feet in this regard. Believing this transformed my life and that of my family to the tune of adopting seven newborns in nine years as an expression of our pro-life commitment.

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible