The Search for Truth Has Ended!

At the SBC Pastors' Conference prior to the 1979 meeting of the convention, Robison let fly with a sermon denouncing liberal seminary professors and denominational bureaucrats while rhetorically preparing the way for the election of Adrian Rogers as SBC president. Warning of the danger of sowing seeds of doubt about the authority of the Scriptures, Robison told his listeners: "My friend, I wouldn't tolerate a rattlesnake in my house. . . . I wouldn't tolerate a cancer in my body. I want you to know that anyone who'd cast doubt on the Word of God is worse than cancer and worse than snakes." He warned the pastors, "If you tolerate any form of liberalism, any form of skepticism of the Word of God, . . . if you belittle the importance of biblical, New Testament evangelism, you are the enemy of God." The Bible, he declared, was the "infallible, inerrant Word of God." That meant that there is "no geographical error, no historical error, no scientific error, no religious error, no doctrinal error to be found in the Word of God, because God would no be party to deception by propagating error." Defining academic freedom as the "search for Truth," Robison proclaimed that "the search for Truth has ended." Raising his Bible high above his head, Robison roared, "I hold Truth in my hand and it is the word of God the Bible."
While he acknowledged that some of the denominational leaders were "great men," he warned that others were

just like the government bureaucrats, they're ingrained and they're worse than cancer. Now listen to what I'm saying. You want to know what our leadership wants, that tries to turn their back on the truth? They want somebody to stand up at these meetings and put another coat of paint on the house. . . . The truth is, friend, that the house has a foundation that's eaten up with termites. Southern Baptists, therefore, should "pray to God to send somebody to root those little devils out." The applause was deafening.

Quoted From: Leonard, B. (1990) God's last and only hope: the fragmentation of the Southern Baptist Convention. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids, Michigan., page 118.

Sermon quotes from James Robison, sermon. SBC Pastors' Conference, Houston Texas, June 1979, audio cassette tape.

Back to New Reformation Home Page
Send comments to:

Steve Falkenberg

Steve.Falkenberg@eku.edu