Freemasons

Dr. Couch, I am a 65 year old Southern Baptist and I am so disappointed with my church that I don't know what to do. My pastor is terribly boring, and all of the church leaders are Masons. I don't want to attend church because of how far it has drifted. And, what about the Freemasons? ANSWER:  The Masons are not Christian. At certain levels in the Masons one does not have to be a Christian. Any "religion" will do because they want to be known as "religious" or "spiritual." And they are not. My father was a Mason for years and was unsaved. When he accepted the Lord, at 65, he dropped his Mason connections and did not want to have a Masonic funeral. I don't know why but many Southern Baptists are Masons. I guess no one teaches against it in the Southern Baptist circles.    The problem with churches today is that few in the leadership know what the purpose of "church" is. The purpose is to teach the Word of God so that the people may grow up, mature in Christ. Most pastors are ill equipped and are not trained to teach the Scriptures. They think they are but their education is woefully lacking. Most SB think their denomination is the cat's meow but this is not so. I taught for several years in one of the top Southern Baptist Universities. The Bible faculty was so inadequate they asked my wife, who was taking a Bible course, to explain the book of Revelation because the teacher, who had a doctorate in a SB school said, "I just don't know anything about that book!"    If you can find a true Bible teaching church you need to change. But unfortunately, you probably will not because they are shrinking in numbers all across America.    Thanks for asking.    Dr. Mal Couch (Mar., 10)