The Southern Baptist Convention appears to be on the verge of collapse, highly influenced by liberalism and secular leftist ideologies. Internal murmurs indicate a denomination increasingly infected by the toxic ideology of wokeness. Southern Baptist pastors—like Dwight McKissic—have made public their support for the legal right of women to have abortions and the spiritual vigor of this denomination is clearly waning. Its integrity has been morally and theologically compromised by an alluring but destructive social justice narrative.

But don’t worry, your leaders have a plan to fix it. In a recent update from the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), in collaboration with Lifeway Research, the denomination launched an online survey, seeking opinions from its congregations. The update states, “We believe it’s crucial to hear from you and your fellow church members to gain insights into the diverse opinions surrounding the Cooperative Program.”

But here’s the concern, when did the voices of fallible humans become more “crucial” than the voice of our infallible, inerrant Scripture?

One of the questions in the survey reads, “Our church is concerned that liberal ideologies are influencing too much of the direction of the SBC entities funded by the Cooperative Program.” Another states, “Our church is concerned that right-wing ideologies are influencing too much of the direction of the SBC entities funded by the Cooperative Program.” The framing of these questions suggests a subtle bias: while “liberal ideologies” are neutrally mentioned, the term “right-wing ideologies” carries with it a specific political connotation often used pejoratively in left-leaning discourses.

Additionally, another question posits, “The doctrine or practices of other Southern Baptist churches is making our church question whether we should continue to be affiliated with the SBC.” With the space to answer on a scale of “Strongly Agree” to “Strongly Disagree,” these questions seem designed not just to gauge, but to subtly steer respondents. The phrasing of these questions hint at a gravitating pull towards human consensus over biblical guidance and, possibly [gasp] using the power of suggestion to move respondents toward the left.

It’s hard not to wonder if the current leadership, including SBC president Bart Barber and Cooperation Group Chairman Jared Wellman who put out the survey, are more interested in appeasing a multitude of voices rather than strictly looking to Scripture for guidance. As the church’s decision-making process becomes influenced by popular sentiment, it becomes swayed by cultural trends and political correctness rather than biblical morality—holiness and righteousness according to God’s standard.

Of course, surveys can be useful tools. But when such tools dictate the path of an entire denomination—as the update from Wellman clearly suggests it is—we have to question the motivations and outcomes. Are we, as a church body, seeking the approval of man and the comfort of majority agreement? If the survey were for informational purposes only, that would be one thing. But it’s hard to see this any other way.