*On August 31st. the letter below was sent to CrossPolitic (CP). An acknowledgment of receipt or a response has not been received.

Open Letter to CrossPolitic:

Gentlemen,

The questions I have to ask myself, "why am I writing and what is my motivation?" The short answer, because, I have met all of you in person over three summer seasons while in the Moscow area and was familiar with Mr. Longshore by way of The Sword & the Trowel podcast. My wife and I have visited all three Moscow church locations many times, are regular listeners of various Kirker podcasts, and followed closely the arrest/persecution a year or two ago. We prayed for and honored you guys, even wished we were there to personally show that support. Just weeks ago, I defended my brothers and sisters of Christ Church when criticized by a neighboring city official.

And, we are a team - or so I thought. As believers, we are in a pitched battle against the forces of darkness...a battle I was called to enjoin 44 years ago when in my mid-twenties. A battle that requires all-hands-on-deck. A multi-generation battle, of which you are part of that "next" generation called to continue to kick down the gates of hell - not the doors of the Reformed Baptists.

So, what is the bottom line in my estimation regarding the CP program that dropped a couple of weeks ago? I want to point out two areas.

First: What should have happened. The volume of responses and pushback arrived within a short time from friends at large. Then men like Pastor Tom Ascol, Dr. James White, Jeff Wright, and, I suspect other men of character weighed in as well. Their advice and admonition should have been acted on. Ascol summed it up at the very beginning of his post: The Stink Brought to Us by CrossPolitic. "What they should have done once friends began to complain about the stink and collectively point to the source, was stop, remove their shoes, and start cleaning up the mess they made. That would have been both right and wise." Gentlemen, you have yet to follow this admonition or encouragement from Scripture (2 Corinthians 7:10-11). The closest to this came during an ancillary podcast when Mr. Farley offered an apology to Jeff Wright.

As Wright observed (not a direct quote), "you are bigger than you realize." The influence of Christ Church, CP and the work in Moscow, Idaho is perhaps more expansive than you realize. My point: What you say and does matter. The work in Moscow advances or is hindered by what you broadcast and the character and integrity of you men. Not to put words into Wright's mouth, but to his point, with "big" come responsibility.

A while back Voddie Baucham, when asked what advice he would give to the older saints, he responded that churches need mature men who have grown past "dumb." In other words, there are dumb young men in the church. Then there are those of us who have been in the trenches for decades longer than you, and have worked and struggled through the "dumbness" that often accompanies younger men's zeal.

When senior churchmen speak out, you should listen! Regarding this situation, you displayed, in a very public setting, that all four of you indeed have something to learn. This was evident by offering excuses of the kind you would never allow from your children, such as: We were just being "rowdy," and "if you don't like elbow throwing, go away!" And just as bad, blame shifting (the issue in question had nothing to do with one's "knickers"). Or,"well but, you just didn't understand what was said." Rather, you should have been willing to be taken to the woodshed. There actually may be a good reason your father is waiting for you there with switch in hand.

Even the more recent CP with Dr. White, it was difficult to discern that a response to any of the admonitions was forthcoming. Where was the grieving in a godly manner, contrition and humility? You blindsided friends. To some degree the "Big Eva" label still applies, when calls for accountability are met with "serrated edge" responses that have a hubris smell. Baucham's word comes to mind, "dumb."

The "right and wise" step should have occurred on the CP main program or a single written post by all the CP guys that began with a word of contrition, perhaps an apology, and continued with a focused, clear to the point acknowledgment of the lack of clarity, expressed with an understanding of the pushback; and that regarding such a high-level topic, greater care should have been exercised. Then, at a later date in a follow-up CP program, you could take another run at the subject in question with precision, addressing ambiguity, avoiding characterizations and including the participation of someone of the caliber of Ascol or White. Had you taken such steps in this regard, the house fire you started (the very house you live in, by the way), would have been nothing more than a false alarm. Gentlemen, this is maturity - if admonitions were heeded and Biblical guidance followed, CP's credibility needle would have immediately pegged to the positive side of the scale. This is the path of grace and forgiveness. Having failed in this, you have denied your offended brothers the opportunity to exercise their duty towards you.

Consider these words, "To receive discipline that leads to insight, Righteousness, justice, and equity ... Let the wise man hear and increase in learning, And a man of understanding will acquire guidance" (Proverbs 1:3, 5).

To restate my comment posted on YouTube: "Wow! Gentlemen of CrossPolitic, this is profoundly disappointing! Your credibility took a big hit ... you own it, the damage is done. However, it can be fixed. the ball is your court." In short, the ball is still with you and I am waiting to see what your next play is.

Second: I will try to keep this shorter. Genesis 1:1a: "In the beginning God." John 1:1a: "In the beginning was the Word." 2 Peter 1:2-3: "Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him." To go directly to my point and as others have stated, what is required is at least a "modicum of actual biblical exposition." Question: What can every error inside the church be traced to? Answer: Distrust and disobedience regarding God and His Word. Any analysis of the world we live in must begin and end with what God says. The centrality of the Word of God must always be evident.

In every CP video I listened to or post read these past weeks, many assertions were made in the absence of any meaningful reference to God's Word. Countless people have gone down the dark hole of human reasoning into error for this very reason. Put another way, it does not matter how logical or reasonable or wise your conversation or argument seem to you, if Scripture is absent, then what is left is vapor. Proverbs 10:19 warning must be heeded. When an assertion is made, it must have the Bible as the foundation. This is what Proverbs 4:20 plainly instructs. This warning and instruction should always be kept in mind and never taken lightly. "My message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God" (1 Corinthians 2:4-5). Gentlemen, "We Have A Book." And that Book must be used. Let us then follow Paul's example, "For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified" (1 Corinthians 2:2).

There may be a number of issues Reformed Baptists and Presbyterians disagree on; however, the necessity and centrality of God's Word, and integrity and humility in ministry are not among them.

Let me conclude with the words of a truly wise man, "The fear of Yahweh is the beginning of knowledge; Ignorant fools despise wisdom and discipline" (Proverbs 1:7).

You are in my prayers.

Your brother,

Timothy Butler