YELLVILLE, AR – Members of a local Reformed Baptist church, though relentlessly pitched the entry-level basics of biblical Christianity, are utterly convinced that they are feasting on the deeper, meatier truths of the Christian life and worldview.
“We’re all about God’s sovereign grace and the gospel,” said Little Hope Baptist Pastor Bob Hutchins. “Grace, grace, grace…gospel, gospel, gospel.”
“Just don’t ask us what that actually means in any detail where the rubber meets the road in life, ’cause we have no idea.”
“And to be perfectly honest, we don’t want one.”
Little Hope church members unanimously praised Pastor Bob’s promotion of spiritual depth through avoiding the pesky details of what Christ may or may not have actually commanded in His Word on the subjects of economics, business, law, civil government and children’s education.
“I’ve never heard the gospel more powerfully or beautifully preached than it has been here at Little Hope,” praised longtime member Jason Burns. “Every Sunday we’re given more and more of the deep, meaty truth of God’s sovereignty and love for His people as we hear the Word of God preached verse by verse.”
“Of course when it comes to actually applying that Word to life in detail in the way we run businesses, understand law, approach civil government or educate our children, we like to keep it vague.”
“Grace, grace, grace…gospel, gospel, gospel.”
Pastor Hutchins takes great pride in maintaining a “hedge of protection” around his flock, keeping them from worrying about what Christ may have commanded in detail on any given uncomfortable subject while promoting the idea that by just dwelling more and more on God’s grace and sovereignty in general, people are somehow diving deep into the Nature of Jesus as revealed in His Word.
Scores of books on the sovereignty of God and the beauty of the gospel in a broad, general sense permeate Little Hope’s little library, with nothing to be found on defining the gospel in detail or applying it in detail to specific areas of life and culture.
And that’s just the way Pastor Hutchins and his people like it.
“Oh sure, we know that murder is bad, adultery is wrong, lying is a sin, and yada, yada, yada,” elaborated Hutchins. “But when it comes to tackling things like economics, education, business, law or civil government according to Scripture in any kind of detail, we just stay out of it. When you go and get into those kinds of details, you end up hurting people’s feelings, and we can’t have that.”
“Grace, grace, grace…gospel, gospel, gospel.”
“There’s no good reason to get any deeper than that.”
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