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James Petigru Boyce

James P. Boyce, Southern’s first president, was born on January 11, 1827 at Charleston, South Carolina. Boyce matriculated at Brown University in 1845. He quickly became a respected student and popular peer. Soon after entering Brown, Boyce professed his faith in Christ. Soon after his conversion, he fell in love at a friend’s wedding. Just two days after meeting Lizzie Ficklen, Boyce asked her to marry him. Taken aback, Lizzie rebuffed her suitor, but only for a time. The two wed in December 1848 and together raised two daughters. Boyce served as editor of the Southern Baptist after graduation. In 1849 he entered Princeton Theological Seminary, where he completed the three-year course in just two years. He then served as pastor of the First Baptist Church of Columbia, South Carolina until 1855, when he received an offer from South Carolina’s Furman University to join its faculty. He accepted and became a professor of theology in 1855. Though Boyce enjoyed teaching at Furman, he wanted to begin a Baptist seminary for southerners. He presented the initial educational philosophy for a theological school in his famous 1856 inaugural address on “Three Changes in Theological Education.” With the help of fellow Southern Baptists, Boyce brought his vision to life. Southern Seminary opened in Greenville in 1859. For almost thirty years, Boyce served as Southern’s de facto president, although his official title was chairman of the faculty. He did not take the title of president until 1888, a year before his passing. Throughout his career, Boyce proved himself a skilled fundraiser and administrator, equally able to produce a financial miracle and quell a fractious moment. In the midst of continual hardship, Boyce devoted his time and his finances to Southern, all while he taught classes, led a Sunday School class at Broadway Baptist Church, and served as president of the Southern Baptist Convention for seven consecutive terms from 1872 to 1879, and in 1888. He also found time to write a catechism and a book, Abstract of Systematic Theology. The book was used in systematic theology classes for many years. Boyce’s talent as an executive fostered much competition for his abilities. In 1868, the South Carolina Railway Company sought Boyce for its presidency, a position that promised a ten thousand dollar salary. Though this offer was extraordinarily attractive, Boyce declined it. Numerous colleges and universities also sought Boyce’s administrative gifts. In 1874, Boyce’s alma mater, Brown University, requested that he become its president, but he refused. He was thoroughly convinced that nothing he could do was more crucial to the gospel than his devoted service to the seminary. He had set his hand to the plow. Until death, he would not turn from his life’s work. Boyce labored long in Louisville until illness drove him to seek recovery in Europe in 1888. Though his heart lifted in a visit to Charles Spurgeon, his health did not improve. Southern’s first president passed away on December 28, 1888. His legacy lives on to this day through the seminary he devoted his life to establishing and preserving. Sources: John A. Broadus, Memoir of James P. Boyce, Nashville, TN: Sunday School Board, 1927. William Mueller, A History of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Nashville, TN: Broadman, 1959.

ready to commit, slow to compare - a recipe for real community

Months ago a young couple visited our church, and we had them over to our home for lunch. As we ate and conversed over meatloaf and mashed potatoes, the young woman peppered me with questions. “So what is community like at your church?” “How many people are in discipleship relationships?” In between questions, she gave us a glowing review of the church they had been a part of in another state. I felt expectations rise as she shared about her close relationship with the pastor’s wife, who happened to live in the apartment above them, and how she popped in on their family at all different times of day. I was beginning to feel like a job description was being offered to me, and our church was being evaluated as to whether we fit the bill. I’m thankful this couple had such a wonderful experience at their former church, but I couldn’t help but wonder how helpful it was to measure everything against their previous experience. Yes, we learn from our past and are blessed when we have great models, but is it helpful to compare communities of faith and assume that one is the ideal model and all others should strive to look the same? “Relationships deepen and grow only when we’re willing to commit time and energy to fostering them.” The conversation about what church community should look like caused me to reflect on different issues I’ve noticed emerging around this important debate. Community Without Commitment Despite all the hype about the importance of community in the body of Christ, there can be a tendency to want all the feelings of community without a firm commitment to a local body of believers. Relationships deepen and grow only when we’re willing to commit time and energy to fostering them (Hebrews 10:24–25). Committing to a Bible study or small group or discipleship relationship often provides the setting to establish community. But if you always have a list of reasons why you don’t have the time, how will the body of Christ you belong to know how to minister to your needs? If having babies or being tired or working late keeps you from faithfully serving your church or being served through a ministry of the church, you’re likely not going to feel well-connected. How will we know how to pray for each other when there isn’t a regular time to meet in a smaller setting and share our joys and burdens of life? If your travel plans or children’s sports schedules consistently have you missing corporate times of worship, you’ll be deprived of not just hearing the word proclaimed, but the interactions that happen in the pews before and after the service. We will never experience true community without a firm, sacrificial commitment to a local body of believers. Community Without Accountability True community also means being transparent enough with your own struggles so that others in the body know how to pray for you (James 5:16). Not everyone in your church needs to know your darkest moments of despair, but do a select few know your battles? Are others free to ask you how you’re faring in your war with pornography, binge eating, or gossip? Or do you meet them with a high wall of defense when they try to speak truth into your life? “We will never experience true community without a firm, sacrificial commitment to a local body of believers. ” When another member in the body has the courage to confront our inconsistency or hold us accountable in a struggle we’re facing, we should ask God to give us grace to receive their words with humility and meekness. Our own pride can tempt us to surround ourselves with people who will affirm our words and actions, instead of challenge us when we turn down the wrong path. There is a temptation to shut people out who are speaking truth into our life by avoiding communication with them: unfriending them on Facebook, turning the other way when you see them at church, or conveniently never finding the time to meet them for coffee. But we’re missing out on what could be a primary means of sanctification in our lives when we refuse to be held accountable by our community of faith. No Perfect Community So, in your search for the church with the perfect community, be willing to accept that community will look different from church to church. Maybe your community was established by a strong relationship with the pastor’s wife at your former church, but be willing to see that your close relationships at your new church could come through an unexpected way: a single woman longing for companionship or perhaps a gray-haired grandma willing to meet you for coffee each week. Instead of sitting on the sidelines comparing and critiquing what your church does or doesn’t have, commit to a ministry of the church to both serve in and be served. Find a smaller group within the body to share life with, study Scripture with, and pray for one another with. And keep the commitments you make. If you sign up for a Bible study that lasts twelve weeks, do your best to commit for the long haul. If you’re feeling disconnected from others within your church, evaluate your own level of involvement. True community is established through faithfulness, commitment, and a humility to both share your struggles and receive counsel. You honor God when you commit to the saints and sinners he has placed in your church family. We Need Each Other “One day we’ll see Jesus together, but we’ll only make it if we push each other to cling to him today.” We might not ever find the perfect community this side of heaven, but our church families are essential for our walk with Jesus. Like Hebrews says, the state of our very souls depends on our community of faith: Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. (Hebrews 3:12–13) We need community. We need our brothers and sisters in Christ. However imperfect our church may be, we need our family to point us to the gospel. One day we’ll see Jesus together, but we’ll only make it if we push each other to cling to him today.