The Reformed Baptists
Billy F
reformed baptist movement, it comes from the 'Fundamentalism File'
on the www.bju.edu web site.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Reformed Baptists
A Fundamentalism File Research Report
by Mark Sidwell
This report is intended to be a resource to help Fundamentalist
Christians in studying and evaluating religious leaders and movements.
It draws primarily upon materials housed in the Fundamentalism File in
the J. S. Mack Library on the campus of Bob Jones University.
Although every effort has been made to provide an impartial study of
the topic, this work will naturally reflect the interpretations and
viewpoint of its author. This report should not be taken as
representing an official statement of the position of Bob Jones
University. The University's theological position is well expressed by
its creed.
The staff of the Fundamentalism File would welcome any questions or
comments concerning the content of this report.
First Issued: 12/18/98
Last Revised:
The Reformed Baptists
Among the various Baptist groups in North America are what are called
the "Sovereign Grace Baptists" or, more commonly, the "Reformed
Baptists." As their name indicates, this group combines historic
Baptist beliefs with the tenets of Reformed theology. Yet even the
label group may imply too much, for the Reformed Baptists are a loose
alliance of like-minded Christians, not an organized body. [1] Indeed,
as will be seen, one segment of the movement has repudiated the label
Reformed; "Sovereign Grace Baptists" may be, in fact, a more apt
inclusive label. But the title "Reformed Baptist" still seems to be
more generally recognized. This diverse movement is best understood
only by generalizations rather than a list of hard distinctives. But
its influence is undeniable.
Calvinism and the Baptists
Reformed Baptists normally highlight the Calvinistic heritage of the
Baptists. English Baptists in the seventeenth century, the ancestors
of the large majority of American Baptists today, generally fell into
one of two groups. The General Baptists were Arminian in tendency,
their very name reflecting their belief in a general atonement, that
is, that Christ died for the sins of all humanity. The Particular
Baptists were Calvinistic, their name referring to their belief in
particular redemption, that is, that Christ died for the purpose of
redeeming His elect.
Both Arminian and Calvinistic tendencies have been present among the
Baptists throughout their history, with those of both persuasions
sometimes accusing the other side of not reflecting the true Baptist
heritage. The Reformed Baptists understandably stress the Calvinistic
aspect of Baptist history and often view themselves as preserving or
reestablishing the historic Baptist position. They note, for example,
that the framers of the earliest major Baptist confessions -- the
London Confession (1688) and the Philadelphia Confession (1772) --
modeled those confessions closely on the Reformed Westminster
Confession of Faith. [2]
Writers have spilled much ink on claims and counterclaims about the
role of Calvinism in Baptist history. [3] Neither side is likely to
establish its position as the truth, because both Calvinistic and
Arminian tendencies have been present throughout Baptist history. The
nineteenth century, for example, saw the growth in America of two
contrasting groups, the Arminian Free Will Baptists and the rigorously
Calvinistic Primitive Baptists. The Primitive Baptists eventually fell
into fatalistic forms of hyper-Calvinism. [4] Baptist seminaries,
especially in the South, preserved a more scholarly approach to
Calvinism. The modern "Reformed Baptist" movement, however, is of
twentieth-century vintage, a product primarily of the post-World War
II era.
Rise of the Reformed Baptist Movement
There are two sources to the Reformed Baptist stream in America; one
is distinctly American and the other, dominantly British.
Rolfe Barnard and the Ashland Conference
One factor in the growth of "sovereign grace" teaching among American
Baptists is the ministry of Rolfe P. Barnard (1904-69), who came to
Calvinistic views during his ministry as a Southern Baptist pastor,
evangelist, and military chaplain. When he began teaching at Piedmont
Bible College in the 1940s, Barnard began moving in Fundamentalist
circles. However, when Barnard expressed his Calvinistic beliefs at a
conference sponsored by The Sword of the Lord in Toccoa, Georgia, in
1950, John R. Rice denounced him, and many Fundamentalist churches
then closed their doors to him. Nonetheless, Barnard found other
churches receptive to his views. A series of successful special
meetings held by Barnard in Ashland, Kentucky, led to the founding in
1954 of the "Sovereign Grace Bible Conference" in Ashland. Located at
the 13th Street Baptist Church in that city under the direction of
Henry Mahan, a pastor influenced by Barnard, this annual conference
became a force for the Sovereign Grace movement among the Baptists.
[5]
British Influence
Paralleling the Sovereign Grace movement born in Ashland was the
import of revival of Calvinism. Although British Baptist (and
Calvinist) C. H. Spurgeon (1834-92) serves as an inspiration to this
movement, the real forerunner was probably A. W. Pink (1886-1952).
Born in Britain, he became a Baptist minister and served churches in
Britain, the United States, and Australia. Pink began originally as an
adherent of American Fundamentalism, but through reading various
Reformed and Puritan writers he became a convinced Calvinist. Pink
became a prolific writer, noted for works such as The Sovereignty of
God and The Life of Elijah and for his periodical Studies in the
Scripture. [6]
Pink was little known in his own time, but his works were rediscovered
during the revival of interest in Puritan studies sparked by British
Bible expositor D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) in the 1940s, 1950s,
and 1960s. Finding his own study enriched by reading the Puritans,
Lloyd-Jones aroused fresh interest in Puritan writings. His own
preaching at Westminster Chapel in London and the publication of his
sermons were partly responsible for this surge of interest. In
addition, he sponsored annual conferences in Puritan studies that grew
steadily in popularity and attendance, and he strongly supported
efforts such as those of the Banner of Truth Trust in Britain to
republish Puritan works. [7]
Lloyd-Jones was himself a Congregationalist, but he found a ready
audience among many Baptists. British Baptists were obviously most
likely to be influenced by him, [8] but American Baptists also
acknowledged his impact. Ron McKinney, one of the participants in the
Reformed Baptist movement in America, said in 1982 that he credited
Lloyd-Jones's preaching, along with the publishing efforts he
inspired, with encouraging this "resurgence" of Calvinism. [9]
The Carlisle Conference
The effects of this Puritan revival were eventually felt in America.
The starting point for this movement in America was a meeting in 1966
in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, sponsored by the Grace Baptist Church of
Pine Bluff, Arkansas. This meeting evolved into an annual conference,
soon joined by other conferences dedicated to Reformed teachings
crossed with Baptist distinctives. Several churches in the
Pennsylvania and New Jersey area that were associated with this
meeting formed the Reformed Baptist Association. The leading
representatives of this group were Walter Chantry of the Grace Baptist
Church in Carlisle and Albert N. Martin of the Trinity Baptist Church
in Essex Fells, New Jersey. [10] Chantry became the literary spokesman
for this group, notably through his controversial book Today's Gospel:
Authentic or Synthetic? which excoriated the "easy-believism" of
modern evangelicalism and called for a return to a Calvinistic stress
on the preaching of the law in order to bring conviction and
repentance. [11] Martin provided an eloquent voice to the movement
through his persuasive preaching in churches and Bible conferences.
Around these two groups -- Barnard's Ashland conference and the
Carlisle conference representing Lloyd-Jones's influence -- grew an
array of institutions dedicated to Reformed Baptist ideals. A voice of
the movement, more closely tied to the Ashland group, was the
periodical Baptist Reformation Review founded in 1972 and edited first
by Norbert Ward, a layman who worked as a sound engineer for CBS
Records, and then by John Zens, who later changed its name to
Searching Together. [12] Another influential periodical was Sword and
Trowel(named for a British periodical published by C. H. Spurgeon and
his successors) published by Ron McKinney.
Chantry's group organized the Reformed Baptist Missionary Society to
provide a missionary outreach for the movement. Martin, seeing the
need for ministerial training from the Reformed Baptist perspective,
founded the Trinity Ministerial Academy in 1977, a ministerial
training institution that did not grant degrees and sought to
concentrate on education geared exclusively to preparation for the
ministry. [13] Discount book distributors, such as Martin's Trinity
Book Service and the Cumberland Valley Bible Book Service, began to
offer Reformed titles at only a little above cost to facilitate the
spread of Reformed ideas. An international rallying point was
established in 1991 when British Baptist Erroll Hulse, publisher of
Reformation Today, led in the formation of the International
Fellowship of Reformed Baptists. [14] A further step was the formation
of the Association of Reformed Baptist Churches in 1997 with its
headquarters in Lafayette, New Jersey; this association united a
British twenty-four churches in fourteen states. [15] All of these
persons, conferences, and agencies combined to form a loose network
for Reformed Baptists in America.
Reformed Baptist Distinctives
Doctrinally, Reformed Baptists are almost uniformly Calvinistic in
soteriology, adhering to the traditional "five points" of Calvinism.
But within this overall Calvinistic belief, there is a diversity of
opinion on lesser points. Often, these differences result from a
tension between what is traditionally viewed as Reformed teaching and
what is traditionally thought of as Baptist teaching. These
differences have in fact created splits in the movement.
Polity is an example of such a tension. Some hold to the idea of a
plurality of elders leading the church, with the pastor serving as the
teaching elder. Deacons, in this system, are usually a rank of church
officer below the elders. Other Calvinistic Baptists, following the
pattern generally observed among American Baptists, tend more toward a
church leadership consisting of a pastor and deacons. A few have moved
to a loose, informal structure resembling that of the Quakers or one
of the Anabaptist groups. [16]
Eschatology represents a point of tension between traditional Reformed
thought and modern American evangelical views of prophecy. Many
Reformed Baptists are staunchly amillennial, considering that view
more consistent with the Reformed system. Other Calvinistic Baptists,
however, particularly those influenced by dispensationalism, hold to a
premillennial view, although sometimes without dispensationalist
characteristics such as the distinction between Israel and the church.
Baptist particularism is another issue. Baptists have historically
been slower to join in inter-denominational efforts than other groups
have been. In the early 1800s, for example, the Baptists formed a
separate mission agency rather than work in cooperation with the
American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions. Likewise,
Landmarkism, a system holding to the scriptural superiority of Baptist
teachings, has influenced many Baptists to view with suspicion
cooperation across denominational lines. Among some Reformed Baptists,
these tendencies remain strong. Among others, however, especially
those influenced by the British revival of Puritanism, there is more
stress on cooperation with other Calvinists, regardless of whether
they are Baptists. [18]
Perhaps the major point rending the Reformed Baptist movement is the
relationship of law and gospel, usually relating to the applicability
of the Old Testament to Christians. Walter Chantry wrote God's
Righteous Kingdom (1980) to argue for the applicability of the moral
law but not the civil and ceremonial law of Israel. [19] In this
Chantry represents the approach of Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Banner of
Truth, and related groups in stressing Puritan piety. Directly
opposing him was the Christian Reconstruction movement that stressed
the Puritan political vision. [20]
A third option, however, repudiated the Puritan approach almost
entirely. Led by John Zens in the early 1980s, some came to reject the
term Reformed. Although remaining Calvinistic in soteriology, they
embraced an Anabaptist view of the church. They rejected the
traditional Reformed view of the transformation of culture and argued
that the church should be a simple, egalitarian, spiritual body.
Preferring the term Particular Baptist now, [21] the advocates of this
view sometimes sounded much like traditional Baptists and sometimes
like Mennonites who held to the five points of Calvinism. [22] They
sometimes referred to their position as "new covenant theology" in
contrast to Reformed covenant theology and dispensationalism. [23]
Despite these differences, however, the Reformed Baptists hold enough
in common to distinguish them from other Baptist groups. This
distinctiveness is evident in some of the modern controversies arising
over Calvinism among the Baptists.
Calvinism and Controversy
The revival of Calvinism in America caused some turmoil in Baptist
circles, not all of which was necessarily directly related to the
Reformed Baptist movement described above (although there were usually
some links). The debates reached such a pitch that Fundamentalist
George Dollar felt constrained to warn against "crusading Calvinism"
in the 1970s. [24]
The GARBC Controversy
Part of the impetus for Dollar's warning came from a conflict within
the General Association of Regular Baptist Churches over Calvinistic
teaching. The GARBC in the mid-1970s went through a process of
clarifying its Articles of Faith to take into account issues that had
arisen since their original adoption in 1932. All of the articles were
accepted -- except one on election.
The election article was written by Ernest Pickering, at that time
president of Baptist Bible College in Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania. He
did so at the request of David Nettleton, the president of Faith
Baptist Bible College in Ankeny, Iowa, and a leading spokesman for
those who wished to clarify the election article. Pickering warned
Nettleton that he did not think anyone could write such an article in
a manner that would be acceptable to the entire association, but he
agreed to try. The disagreement over the article, as Pickering had
cautioned, was strong and the GARBC eventually tabled it at a meeting
at Winona Lake, Indiana, in 1975. A substitute motion -- asking for a
vote on the article as a "testimony" rather than a binding resolution
-- was turned aside in favor of a motion to drop the whole question.
[25]
The Continental Baptists
It is unclear whether the Ashland and Carlisle groups had direct
influence on this discussion, save as all are expressions of a revived
interest in Calvinism. One of those involved in the GARBC dispute,
Kenneth Good, wrote a book titled Are Baptists Calvinists? to which he
answered yes. Later, however, he wrote a sequel, Are Baptists
Reformed? to which he answered no. Even Good, however, was fully
cognizant of the contribution of the overtly Reformed groups. How
those groups were blending and changing is seen in the formation of
the Continental Baptist Churches.
The Continental Baptists were an outgrowth of three "Councils on
Baptist Theology" that met in Dallas (1980-82). Sponsored by Ron
McKinney, editor of The Sword and Trowel, these conferences followed
lines similar to those being suggested by John Zens, stressing the
Baptist/ Anabaptist heritage against the overtly Reformed. When
announcement of the formation of the Continental Baptists was made,
participants said that they were motivated not only by the stirrings
of Calvinism in the Southern Baptist Convention and the GARBC but also
by the GARBC's apparent stand against Calvinism in the 1970s. [26]
Their outlook made them more sympathetic to dispensationalist thought,
being Calvinistic primarily in soteriology, and perhaps smoothed the
way for some Baptists in Fundamentalist circles (with their history of
dispensationalist belief) to make the transition to an overtly
Calvinistic position.
Yet the group was not able to claim great success. The Continental
Baptists had only about twenty churches in the late 1980s. [27]
Furthermore, they were afflicted early in their history by a split.
The Great Lakes Association of Baptist Churches left the Continental
Baptists out of fears that the group did not properly safeguard the
autonomy of the local church. [28]
The Founders Conference
Although the Continental Baptists drew some support from Southern
Baptists, an even larger and more influential Reformed movement within
the SBC has been the Founders Conference. This group, by its
prominence if nothing else, has influenced other Baptists of
Calvinistic/Reformed bent. The idea was born at a meeting in a motel
in Euless, Texas, in 1982. Seven Southern Baptists with Calvinistic
leanings formulated the idea of a conference to promote their views
within the convention. The following year, the first Founders
Conference was held, with participants including Jimmy A. Millikin,
Thomas J. Nettles, Richard Belcher, Ernest Reisinger, and Thomas
Ascol. As the name implies, this group asserted that in advocating a
Reformed Baptist viewpoint they were returning to the position of the
founders of the Southern Baptist Convention. [29] Much of the
literature emerging from this movement is dedicated to defending this
idea of recovering the "lost" theology of the fathers of the SBC. [30]
The Founders Conference saw its influence grow not only through the
appeal of its concepts to many Southern Baptists but also because of
the influential positions that many of its adherents gained within the
SBC. Prominent leaders in the movement have included R. Albert Mohler,
president of Southern Baptist Seminary; Thomas Nettles, professor of
church history at that school; and Timothy George of Beeson Divinity
School. Acceptance of the group's agenda has been by no means
complete. In addition to the resistance of some Baptists to Calvinism,
the Calvinistic resurgence has coincided with (and many times
supported) the "conservative take-over" of the Southern Baptist
Convention. The result has sometimes been acrimonious dispute. [31]
Reformed Baptists and Fundamentalism
The Reformed Baptists and their offshoots are such a diverse group
that it is impossible to make across-the-board generalizations about
their relationship to Fundamentalism. Some Reformed Baptist churches
consider themselves to be both Reformed and Fundamentalist. They work
with non-Calvinistic Fundamentalist groups and send students from
their churches to Fundamentalist schools. Furthermore, the staunch
conservatism associated with orthodox Reformed theology often leads
Reformed Baptists to take stands on theological issues that are
similar to the Fundamentalist stance on many issues, such as
opposition to the Charismatic movement. [32]
Views vary, however, among Reformed Baptists concerning the
Fundamentalist hallmark of ecclesiastical separation. Mark McCulley is
critical of Fundamentalism on many points but expresses appreciation
for some aspects of its teaching on separation. He asks Calvinistic
Baptists critical of Fundamentalism whether they think their movement
should have "no doctrine of separation?" He states, "Particular
Baptists need to be more 'thankful' for their 'Fundamentalistic'
heritage. They need to learn and practice Scriptural separation
today." [33]
Other spokesmen have expressed displeasure with Fundamentalist
separatism. Walter Chantry chides Reformed Baptists for lacking
concern for Christian unity. "We are heirs of the Reformed and
Fundamentalist struggle against liberalism early in this century," he
says, a fact that "has left us with a disposition to separate from
anyone who differs with us on any matters of conscience." Chantry
says, "We will associate only with those who agree with the vast
majority of our convictions." He calls it "arrogant" to assume "that
our little group has got it just right, or at least far more so than
all other Christians on the face of this earth from whom we separate."
For Chantry, "It is to be feared that we have become accustomed to
separating and starting anew until we are hopelessly splintered and
isolated." Reformed Baptists, he argues, should confess their sins of
"always beginning again" and "preferring tidy isolation." He
concludes, "Reformed Baptists do have something to contribute to the
world-wide church if only they could unite with one another." [34]
However they view separation, Reformed Baptists, when they address
Fundamentalists, tend to offer reasons for dividing more than uniting.
The commitment to Calvinism usually leads them to establish
Calvinistic teaching as the test of Christian fellowship. They
criticize Fundamentalism for its toleration of Arminianism. [35]
Furthermore, their staunch affirmation of Reformed teaching colors
their attitude toward those who do not hold to Calvinism. They often
seem to judge non-Calvinists as harshly as they would a cult or
heresy. [36]
Conclusion
In summary, the label Reformed Baptist encompasses a variety of views.
The Reformed Baptists are united in their adherence to Calvinistic
theology, although they differ in their views of the details of that
theology. They are clearly within the pale of orthodox Protestantism
and espouse a complete rejection of liberalism. However, among the
matters they disagree about is the question of ecclesiastical
separation. On that matter, Reformed Baptists must be evaluated on a
case-by-case basis, for no consensus exists either for or against the
separatist position.
Notes
[1] For general, brief introductions to the Reformed Baptists, see H.
Leon McBeth, The Baptist Heritage (Nashville: Broadman, 1987), pp.
770-76; J. Gordon Melton, Encyclopedia of American Religions, 6th ed.
(Detroit: Gale, 1999), pp. 490; T. J. Nettles, "Reformed Baptists," in
Dictionary of Baptists in America, ed. Bill J. Leonard (Downers Grove,
II1.: InterVarsity Press, 1994), p. 233; Mark McCulley, Studies in
History and Ethics (Malin, Ore.: Searching Together, 1983), pp. 2126;
Frank Mead and Samuel Hill, Handbook of Denominations, 10th ed.
(Nashville: Abingdon, 1995), p. 74; and David Scott, "A Survey of
Particular Baptists: Their Origins, Doctrines, Dissension and
Revival," Baptist Reformation Review, Spring 1974, pp. 23-24.
[2] The development of the London Confession is discussed in R. Philip
Roberts, "The 1677/89 London Baptist Confession of Faith: A
Soteriological Study," Baptist History and Heritage, 31, no. 4 (1996):
57-67.
[3] A good example of such discussions is found in the Summer 1997
issue of The Founders Journal, a periodical dedicated to promoting
Calvinism among Southern Baptists. William Estep, a well-known Baptist
historian opposed to Calvinistic tendencies, condemns that theology in
"Doctrines Lead to 'Dunghill' Prof Warns" (pp. 6-9). Replying to Estep
in that issue were Tom Ascol, "Do Doctrines Really Lead to Dunghill?"
(pp. 1-5); R. Albert Mohler, "The Reformation of Doctrine and the
Renewal of the Church: A Response to Dr. William R. Estep" (pp.
10-13); and Roger Nicole, "An Open Letter to Dr. William R. Estep"
(pp. 14-16). Note also the following companion articles in Baptist
History and Heritage 31, no. 4 (1996): Thomas J. Nettles, "Southern
Baptist Identity: Influenced by Calvinism," pp. 17-26; W. Wiley
Richard, "Southern Baptist Identity: Moving Away from Calvinism," pp.
27-35. For a discussion outside the Southern Baptist context, see
Kenneth H. Good, Are Baptists Calvinists? (Oberlin, Ohio: Regular
Baptist Heritage Fellowship, 1975). One of the most exhaustive
treatments, although from the Calvinistic viewpoint, is Thomas J.
Nettles, By His Grace and for His Glory: A Historical, Theological,
and Practical Study of the Doctrines of Grace in Baptist Life (Grand
Rapids: Baker, 1986).
[4] It is interesting to note that Norbert Ward, one of the leaders of
the Reformed Baptist resurgence, was from a Primitive Baptist
background but modified his stance because, as one observer put it, he
thought that system "could not speak to the modern world" (McBeth, p.
773). For a modern Reformed Baptist view of the Primitive Baptists,
see Scott, pp. 18-23.
[5] On Barnard and the Ashland group, see John Thornbury, "Evangelist
Rolfe Barnard, 1904-1969," Reformation Today, September-October 1978,
pp. 2-13 (also published as the introduction to Sermons of Evangelist
Rolfe Barnard, comp. Eulala Bullock [Greenville, S.C.: n.p.], 1982);
John Thornbury, "The Bible Conference in Ashland," Banner of Truth,
September 1968, pp. 11-13; and Amy Greene, "Sovereign Grace Baptists'
Roots Are in Calvinistic Resurgence of '50s," Baptists Today, 18
October 1991, p. 3. There seems to be some dispute about the exact
time and place of Barnard's break with Rice; Thornbury puts it in "the
late forties" at Greenville, Mississippi ("Evangelist Rolfe Barnard,"
p. 11) and Nettles at Toccoa "Falls," Georgia in 1949 ("Reformed
Baptists," p. 233). However, Barnard is listed as a speaker at a Sword
conference in Toccoa, Georgia, in 1950 (advertisement, Sword of the
Lord, 30 June 1950, p. 3; "Editor's Notes," Sword of the Lord, 28 July
1950, p. 5), and this is likely the occasion of the clash.
[6] See Iain H. Murray, Arthur W. Pink: His Life and Thought
(Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1981), and Letters of A. W. Pink
(Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1978).
[7] See Iain Murray, David Martyn Lloyd-Jones: The Fight of Faith,
1939-1981 (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1990); Iain Murray, "The Story
of the Banner of Truth Trust," Banner of Truth, November 1993, pp.
15-23; and the introduction to The Puritans: Their Origins and
Successors, by D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth,
1987).
[8] See, e.g., Wayne A. Detzler, "Britons Wed Baptist Ecclesiology
with Reformed Theology," Christianity Today, 4 April 1980, pp. 50, 52,
which describes the profound impact Lloyd-Jones was having on British
Reformed Baptists at the end of his career.
[9] "Calvinistic Baptists Ready to Organize," The Presbyterian
Journal, 28 July 1982, p. 4.
[10] Melton, p. 490; McBeth, pp. 771-72.
[11] Walter Chantry, Today's Gospel: Authentic or Synthetic?
(Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1970).
[12] On the history of the Baptist Reformation Review, see McCulley,
pp. 27-34. For a sketch of Zens's career, see Norbert Ward,
"Editorial," Baptist Reformation Review, Winter 1977, p. 1.
[13] See "Trinity Ministerial Academy Prospectus," Baptist Reformation
Review, Winter 1977, pp. 4-14. A later example of Reformed Baptist
endeavors in education was the formation of the Institute of Reformed
Baptist Studies in connection with Westminster Theological Seminary in
California in 1998. See "The Institute of Reformed Baptist Studies,"
Banner of Truth, June 1998, p. 10.
[14] "Invitation to Unity for Reformed Baptists," Founders Journal,
Summer 1991, p. 28.
[15] See Melton, p. 479.
[16] Scott, p. 24; see also Kenneth Good, Are Baptists Reformed?
(Lorain, Ohio: Regular Baptist Heritage Fellowship, 1986), pp.
290-301; several articles in the Summer 1978 issue of Baptist
Reformation Review; and John Zens, "Food for Thought On: Building Up
the Body--One Man or One Another?" Baptist Reformation Review, Second
Quarter, 1981, pp. 10-33.
[17] Kenneth Good discusses the disputes over eschatology in
connection with Spurgeon's views (Are Baptists Reformed? pp. 32-34).
He also sees no basic contradiction between dispensationalism and
Calvinistic thought, considering dispensationalist discontinuity
between Israel and the church to be a historic Baptist emphasis (pp.
278-79).
[18] Kenneth Good represents the tendency among some Calvinistic
Baptists to reaffirm Baptist particularism as well as the historical
perpetuity of their beliefs, albeit on a theological rather than a
historical basis. See Are Baptists Reformed? pp. 21214, 323-33. Good
says that many Reformed Baptists are "better classified as 'Immersed
Presbyterians' than 'Baptists"' (p. 10).
[19] Walter Chantry, God's Righteous Kingdom (Edinburgh: Banner of
Truth, 1980).
[20] See Kevin Craig's review of Chantry in Baptist Reformation
Review, First Quarter, 1981, pp. 32-38.
[21] Cf. Good, Are Baptists Reformed? pp. 51-52, 75.
[22] The development of Zens's views is traced in McCulley, pp. 29-33.
McCulley cites several articles by Zens tracing the change in views;
note especially "Is There a Covenant of Grace?" Baptist Reformation
Review, Autumn 1977, pp. 43-52. See also John Zens, "A Review Article
of God's Righteous Kingdom," Baptist Reformation Review, First
Quarter, 1981, pp. 19-31. These issues are also discussed in Good, Are
Baptists Reformed? pp. 60-62, 268-74.
[23]See Fred Zaspei, New Covenant Theology and the Mosaic Law
(Pottsville, Pa.: Word of Life Baptist Church, 1994); and Fred Zaspel,
The Continuing Relevance of Divine Law (Hatfield, Pa.:
Interdisciplinary Biblical Research Institute, 1991). It is not clear,
however, whether this author considers himself part of the Reformed
Baptist movement.
[24] George Dollar, The Fight for Fundamentalism (Sarasota, Fla.:
George W. Dollar, 1983), pp. 99-104. For discussion of a dispute over
Calvinism within another Fundamentalist organization, see Daniel L.
Turner, Standing Without Apology: The History of Bob Jones University
(Greenville, S.C.: Bob Jones University Press, 1997), pp. 240-42.
[25] For an overview of this controversy, see Paul N. Tessell, Quest
for Faithfulness (Schaumburg, I11.: Regular Baptist Press, 1991), pp.
284-91. For the Calvinistic side, see David Nettleton, Chosen to
Salvation: Select Thoughts on the Doctrine of Election (Schaumburg,
Ill.: Regular Baptist Press, 1983), pp. 147-57; and Reinbert Byrd
Carter, "Calvinistic Baptist Confessions Are a Landmark," Keystone
Baptist, September/October 1991, pp. 1-2. For the anti-Calvinist side,
see Robert L. Sumner, "GARBC Revives Calvinism Issue!" The Biblical
Evangelist, 8 June 1984, pp. 1, 6-12. See also Myron J. Houghton,
"Divine Sovereignty and the GARBC," Faith Pulpit, September 1992, for
an attempt to mediate the dispute.
[26] See "Calvinistic Baptists Ready to Organize," p. 4; McBeth, pp.
772-73; McCulley, pp. 24-25; and Good, Are Baptists Reformed? pp.
61-62.
[27] McBeth, p. 773. The differences between the Continental Baptists
and more overtly Reformed groups are noted in "Reformed Southern
Baptists Lay Groundwork in Memphis," The Presbyterian Journal, 24
August 1983, p. 6; and Good, Are Baptists Reformed? pp. 61-62.
[28] See Good, Are Baptists Reformed? pp. 64-65, 314-15.
[29] On the history and nature of the Founders Conference, see Thomas
K. Ascol, "An Attempt at SelfIdentification," Founders Journal, Spring
1992, pp. 14; Thomas Ascol, "Different Name, Same Purpose," Founders
Journal, Winter 1998, pp. 1-3; and "Reformed Southern Baptists Lay
Groundwork in Memphis," pp. 5-6.
[30] See the articles by Tom Nettles, Timothy George, R. Albert
Mohler, and Ernest C. Reisinger in Founders Journal, Winter/Spring
1995; Nettles, By His Grace and for His Glory; and Robert B. Selph,
Southern Baptists and the Doctrine of Election (Harrisonburg, Va.:
Sprinkle, 1988).
[31] An overview of the dispute is found in Pamela H. Long, "Southern
Baptists Debating Calvinism's Influence," Baptists Today, 20 November
1997, p. 4. See also the materials cited in note 3 from William Estep
and the responses to Estep for an example of the sometimes heated
level at which the dispute is conducted.
[32] See, for example, Walter Chantry, Signs of the Apostles:
Observations on Pentecostalism Old and New (Edinburgh: Banner of
Truth, 1973).
[33] McCulley, pp. 41, 43.
[34] Walter J. Chantry, "Are We Obsessed with Separatism?" The Gospel
Witness, 22 March 1990, p. 11.
[35] See Good, Are Baptists Reformed? pp. 42-43, 55-59.
[36] See John Zens, "An Analysis of George W. Dollar's A History of
Fundamentalism in America," Baptist Reformation Review, Autumn 1974,
pp. 36-47. Although some of his disagreements seem to be with Dollar's
presentation and personal interpretations, Zens does highlight the
differences that some Reformed Baptists perceive between themselves
and Fundamentalism. See also David M. Surpless, "My Dear
Fundamentalist," Baptist Reformation Review, Summer 1977, pp. 31-39.
Content by Dr. Mark Sidwell
HTML by Bryan S. Tyson
Vernon O
Billy F <nop...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:7pilko$4on$1...@bgtnsc03.worldnet.att.net...
> A highly interesting, generally very well-done historical essay on the
> reformed baptist movement, it comes from the 'Fundamentalism File'
> on the www.bju.edu web site.
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>
> The Reformed Baptists
>
A reformed Baptist is one who tapers back on pot luck meals (The official
Lord's Supper of the Baptist Church). He can lose 30 pounds in a month.
Billy F
> > A highly interesting, generally very well-done historical essay on the
> > reformed baptist movement, it comes from the 'Fundamentalism File'
> > on the www.bju.edu web site.
> > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> >
> > The Reformed Baptists
> >
>
>
> Lord's Supper of the Baptist Church). He can lose 30 pounds in a month.
>
>
LOL =)
Bigcat
Are they levened or unlevened?
Pretzels have a twist, to go along with twisted scriptures...
Vernon O wrote:
>
> Billy F <nop...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
> news:7pilko$4on$1...@bgtnsc03.worldnet.att.net...
> > A highly interesting, generally very well-done historical essay on the
> > reformed baptist movement, it comes from the 'Fundamentalism File'
> > on the www.bju.edu web site.
> > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> >
> > The Reformed Baptists
> >
>
Saint Lyons
A highly interesting, generally very well-done historical essay on the
reformed baptist movement, it comes from the 'Fundamentalism File'
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The voice of God
mailto:nop...@hotmail.com
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