(Shery’s daughter here.) I think you may be missing the point of what Mr. Moore is talking about and who he is addressing. I’m not a Baptist, so I don’t really know what the SBC’s position is on Israel. But Mr. Moore is not addressing the issues of Israel or the overall end times. He is speaking to the SBC about where they have been as a church in our culture in America. Here he is simply addressing American Christians in light of the concern in America and among American Christians as to what is happening in the U.S. and the decline of what has been considered to be a “Christian Nation”. As a nation, we are not really considered a Christian nation any more, and many American Christians feel we are losing our voice in America. He is addressing this issue and how American Christians should see this as an opportunity to see how we need to change our focus and get it back on Christ - be real about our own sins and the sins of our churches - get real with God about ourselves and about having a real relationship with Him. As a nation, we prided ourselves on being “Christian” - but this included a lot of people who called themselves Christians simply because they were Americans, even though many weren’t actually real Christians. Now people are not doing that any more. Non-believers are admitting that they aren’t Christians. This is what he’s talking about. And he says that this is the chance for real Christians to be true salt and light. We’re supposed to be different from our culture. This is the chance for churches in America to take inventory of themselves and see if they really are in the faith too. It’s a time for churches to really examine themselves before God - for Christians to see if they really are Christians. And if they are, to be unafraid to make that claim, even if it costs them everything.
I agree with what you are saying. I actually cannot argue with what Mr. Moore says here. I am a believer in Christ the Messiah. My problem is with Russell Moore.
If you read about the man and his history, you may begin to see that he has an agenda, and that is to politically liberalize Southern Baptists. He is an adherent of a social justice type gospel which is used in modern Christian circles to dilute the message of the Gospel. He has a history that is out there and the SBC, in response to some white guilt, placed him as a public voice in order to increase their membership. That is my opinion.
Here is a link to an interview he did with the Washington Post:
http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2013-07-18/local/40643396_1_trayvon-martin-religious-liberty-chaplains