Part 5 of What You Need to Know About Parachurch Organizations
God expects us to be good stewards of what he's given us (Luke 12:42-44). If we give time and money to organizations outside the church, we need to be sure they share the same beliefs and doctrines that we do. Otherwise, we may be spending time and treasure in furthering causes we don't believe in. There are some things we can do, as Fundamental Christians, to insure our support of a parachurch is justified:
The organization should have a statement of belief and / or doctrine. Most will make theirs available on their website; if they don't. ask that it be sent to you by mail. If they don't have one at all, don't support them. Just because the organization wears the name "Christian" doesn't mean the label fits. The world is full of cons and scams. If there is a statement of belief, see if it conforms with yours. If there are, in your judgment, significant differences, check with your pastor, or make a decision on your own if you're confident in doing so.
Do some research. Friends are a good source of information if they're already supporting the organization, or, for some reason, decided not to. Always check with your pastor, just as you should for any questions about doctrine. If you're still not satisfied, or even if you are, enter the organization's name in a search engine on the Internet, with some term like "problems" or "complaints". Not all complaints have any real basis, so short of a real pattern of abuse or malfeasance, give the organization the benefit of a doubt if you find problems. Allegations like fraud should certainly be investigated further.
Ask yourself this question: Will the time and money I will be giving to this organization reduce the time and money I give to support my local church? If the answer is "Yes", you shouldn't pursue the matter without some very specific guidance from the Lord. Our first obligation is always to our local church body.
Type in "Fundamental Baptist ministries", or "KJV only ministries" into a search engine query, and you'll get back hundreds of results. If you feel led to give an offering, or ongoing support, to a ministry, or otherwise become involved, there are places on the Web that have already done a lot of the research for you.
Here is a very partial list taken from the Wholesome Words Directory:
Colleges: Many of these are ministries of local churches, so they are technically not parachurch organizations, except to the extent of any organizational autonomy they may have.
AMBASSADOR BAPTIST COLLEGE
Lattimore, NC
E-mail: info@ambassadors.edu
Web site: http://www.ambassadors.edu/
BAPTIST BIBLE TRANSLATORS INSTITUTE (B.B.T.I.)
Bowie, TX
E-mail: info@baptisttranslators.com
Web site: http://www.baptisttranslators.com/
CROWN COLLEGE
Powell, TN
E-mail: admissions@thecrowncollege.com
Web site: www.thecrowncollege.com/
EMMANUEL BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY
Newington, CT
E-mail: seminary@emmanuel-newington.org
Web site: www.emmanuel-newington.org/seminary/index.php
FAIRHAVEN BAPTIST COLLEGE
Chesterton, IN
E-mail: Admissions@fairhavenbaptist.org
Web site: http://www.fairhavenbaptistcollege.org/
FAITHWAY BAPTIST COLLEGE OF CANADA
Ajax, Ontario
E-mail: college@faithway.org
Web site: www.college.faithway.org/
GOLDEN STATE BAPTIST COLLEGE
Santa Clara, CA
E-mail: info@gsbc.edu
Web site: http://www.gsbc.edu/
GREAT PLAINS BAPTIST DIVINITY SCHOOL AND COLLEGE
Sioux Falls, SD
Phone: 605-339-2038
Fax: 605-339-3738
GREAT PLAINS BAPTIST DIVINITY SCHOOL AND COLLEGE
Sioux Falls, SD
Phone: 605-339-2038
Fax: 605-339-3738
LANDMARK BAPTIST COLLEGE
Phone: 863-422-1849
Web site: www.landmarkbaptistcollege.com/
MARYLAND BAPTIST BIBLE COLLEGE AND THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY
Elkton, MD
E-mail: mbbc@dol.net
Web site: http://www.mbcmin.org/mbbc/index.htm
MASSILLON BAPTIST COLLEGE
Massillon, OH
E-mail: mbcoffice@mbcaf.org
Web site: http://www.mbcaf.org/
PENSACOLA CHRISTIAN COLLEGE
Pensacola, FL
E-mail: info@PCCinfo.com
Web site: http://www.pcci.edu/
*PCC is not related to a specific church, the only one on this list.
SHAWNEE BAPTIST COLLEGE
Louisville, KY
E-mail: college@shawneebaptist.org
Web site: www.shawneebaptistcollege.org/
WEST COAST BAPTIST COLLEGE
Lancaster, CA 93535
E-mail: info@westcoastbaptist.edu
Web site: http://www.westcoastbaptist.edu/
Other Ministries:
Baptist Missions to Forgotten People - www.bmfp.org
Fundamental Baptist Worldwide Mission www.fbwwm.org/
Worldwide New Testament Baptist Missions - www.wwntbm.com/
Baptist International Missions, Inc. www.wwntbm.com/
Baptist Church Planting Ministry - www.bcpm.org/
The Bible for Today - www.biblefortoday.org/
Fundamental Evangelistic Organization - www.feasite.org
Hephzibah House - www.hephzibahhouse.org
King's Kids International Baptist Mission - www.kingskidsclubs.org/
The People's Gospel Hour www.tpgh.org
The Sword of the Lord - www.swordofthelord.com
Way of Life Literature - www.wayoflife.org
This list does not reflect an endorsement by the author or by Online Christian Stores of any of the organizations. It is presented as a service to our readers, with the expectation that they will perform their own research. By the same token, just because a ministry is not listed here does not at all imply they are not worthy of consideration. In the near future, I will be presenting an extended series of ministry spotlights for many of the ministries listed here, and for many others.
Coming next: Spiritual warfare, including a scriptural look at demon possession, ghosts, cults, and occult practices.