A friend of mine recently posted a comment, "What are we ever going to do with you? I think your time across the 'pond' has been good for you." I really hadn't thought much about it, but I began blogging three years ago, shortly after moving to a new mission field in Wales. Coming here has forced me to rethink a lot of issues that I had filed away in the "Sorted" (for you Brits) or "Mysteries Solved" folder of my Reformed mind: especially things that would fit under the headings of ecclesiology (things related to the ekklesia or church), pneumatology (things related to the Holy Spirit), and missiology (things related to missions/evangelism). It has taken a culture shift to make me realize just how much I don't know! I'm one of those "early adopter" types: you know, the person who's willing to pay ten times the price when some new electronic gadget or software first becomes available to the markeplace. I paid $3,500 in 1984 for a 128K Macintosh computer package that included two floppy disk drives (400K capacity) and a dot matrix printer. No software except what came pre-installed. For those who might be interested, if you adjust that figure for inflation over the years, that would be today's equivalent of almost $7,000 in U.S. dollars! Gee, I could buy three MacBook Pro laptops for that price! Well, I was an early adopter of Calvinism in this present resurgence that can be traced back to a watershed event in the summer of 1983: the very first Founders Conference, held at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee. Don't take this the wrong way. A nicely-dressed pair of Calvinists didn't knock at my door in 1983 and ask me to join their movement. I had enrolled as a student at Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary the previous September, an amazing coincidence providence since a well-known Reformed professor of church history began his tenure at that seminary at exactly the same time; and I was scheduled predestined to take his course, "Introduction to Church History," in January 1983. Another Reformed professor—well, a "Christmas" Calvinist, you know, "No L, No L"—taught one of my first courses at MABTS on "The Deeper Life." He danced pretty close to the edge, considering the seminary president hated Calvinism, but he was extremely adept at using just the right code words without spilling the beans and getting into serious trouble. When you add these things together with my inexperience as a newly-installed pastor who desperately wanted to emulate John MacArthur's approach to teaching verse-by-verse and that my only library access was the one owned by this Arminian fundamentalist seminary that just "happened" to have acquired a defunct Presbyterian seminary's library (kept in the darkest corner of their facility, but necessary to acquire proper accreditation), you can see the pieces fitting together from miles away. I remember thinking to myself, "This is like being born again, all over again!" I had found the Pearl of Great Price, or so I thought, until my church history professor warned me that Calvinism came with a health warning. Not physical health. Not mental health, although I have reconsidered this one in a previous blog article. He told me about the "glass ceiling" that had been installed by the power brokers within the SBC—the deacon boards, the associational leaders, and others—to prevent Calvinists from taking over the denomination. He said, "If you continue to pursue this [referring to Reformed theology], you'll never pastor a First Baptist Church in a county seat town. You will be misunderstood, perhaps even hated, for teaching these things from the pulpit." He was right! I mean, the man spoke like a true prophet of God who could see the future of my ministry, but do you think that slowed me down one bit? Not on your life. If anything, it made me more determined to sell everything so that I could afford this precious pearl. Little did I realize how this would impact my life, but more about that in another segment.
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Anxiously awaiting the next segment.
Bill:
Your life segment stories always fascinate me. I’m looking forward to hearing more.
First of all, I lived in Memphis for six years. I know exactly where Rhode’s College is. We attended Calvary Church of the Nazarene near Bartlett. …and the world gets smaller.
Secondly, a couple years ago in my SBC back home I asked one of the elders if he was a Calvinist. He looked around, stooped down to get closer to my face (I’m 5 feet 1 inch tall), and whispered, “Yes, but I don’t make an issue of it.” I’m cracking up…sort of.
I’m not sure where you are going with this, but I have to say that I agree with your statement, “Being born again, all over again!”
Bill,
I want to begin by saying that I have benefited from your love for God and his Kingdom. Your zeal to make him known among the nations is a huge encouragement to me.
You have also been an encouragement to me in a more personal way. Before you went to Wales, I spoke to you once or twice on the telephone. I was just coming out of a fairly narrow and insular form of Reformed church life. I was a REFORMED BAPTIST!!!!!!!!!!! (if you get my meaning). When I spoke to you, I was interested in starting a REFORMED BAPTIST!!!!!!!!! church in the town I had just moved to. After our conversation, I became an active member of a church that allows both paedobaptists and credobaptists to hold full membership and office in the church. This church subsequently hired me as a pastor, and now I am also leading our church’s efforts to train young men for pastoral ministry.
Being in this church has been a breath of fresh air. Since we allow for disagreement on secondary things (baptism, eschatology, charismatic gifts, etc.), we are forced to be very clear on the main things (God’s authority, the centrality of the gospel, the authority of Scripture, etc.).
This is why I bring all of this up: It would be easy for me to despise my past. I was saved in an Arminian Baptist church, became a flaming Calvinist, then a full-bore REFORMED BAPTIST!!!!!!!! I could look back on each stage of my development and despise each one. But I know that the man I am today is the direct result of the path that God led me through. If I despise where I came from, I will inevitably despise where I am now.
I want to encourage you as you continue to develop. It seems that there may be a long line of babies in puddles of bath water lying behind you. Please, keep the baby! I completely agree that the insularity and narrowness and uptightness of the REFORMED BAPTIST!!!!!!! world is wrong. But part of what makes it wrong is its intense reactionism. The Reformed world that I know is the product of men swinging radically from one extreme to another. Was I a Dispensationalist before? Then now, I will preach the Ten Commandments–especially the SABBATH–as if there was nothing else in the Bible. Was I an Arminian? Then now, I will make sure that if any Arminian would possibly walk through the door of my church, he will immediately be uncomfortable. Every sermon will expound at least one of the Five Points of Calvinism.
This is reactionism. The danger for you and me is to react against reactionism! We can do the very same thing we did as younger men. Back then, we became flaming Calvinists; now we can become flaming Anti-Calvinists. Either way, we mess up, since we throw out the baby with the bath water.
I hope this makes since, brother. Let’s continue to grow. Let’s keep on questioning our assumptions. But we can’t throw out things that are clearly biblical like pastoral authority and the sovereign grace of God. Don’t worry–I’m not at all accusing you of that. But just be careful: the misuse of something (like pastoral authority) does not negate its proper use. Hammers can be used to kill or to build.
Even though we have never met, I wish we could get together. My brother is on his way to Dublin as a missionary. Maybe I will hop over to visit you when I am there visiting him.
With affection,
Stephen Baker
Stephen,
I appreciate your willingness to speak to me as a concerned brother. Many would be unwilling to invest the time and effort, and there is a certain element of risk involved in doing so. I’m really glad to hear about how things have worked out for your good and God’s glory in Bloomington.
Unless you’re referring to something else I have already posted on this blog (if so, then perhaps I can sympathize), I only take serious exception to ONE of your statements, where you said, “It seems that there may be a long line of babies in puddles of bath water lying behind you.” A long line of puddles? Sure, who doesn’t have them? But I don’t recall throwing any babies away, at least not from my perspective. I’ve sacrificed a few sacred cows and put ‘em on the grill, but I cherish the core truths that God has shown me every step of the way.
Maybe you’re worried about what I might say next. Now that would be understandable, because a title like, “Is there life after Calvinism?” is a bit provocative and . . . well . . . foreboding to those of us with a vested interest in the glorious doctrines of grace. I’m as committed to Scripture today as I’ve ever been, but I will admit to growing weary of many things being done under the banner of truth, including what you may be referring to as “pastoral authority.” I’m not totally sure what you mean by that phrase—forgive me for assuming the worst—but if it runs counter to the words of Jesus in Matthew 20:25-28 then I’m ready for a barbeque. Even in less-strict Reformed Baptist circles, pastoral authority can often morph into an ungodly authoritarianism that wreaks havoc in the lives of believers and does so under the guise of biblical oversight.
I have a long story to share, Stephen, in hopes that someone might be helped or encouraged to see that they’re not crazy to question some of the things done within our ranks. No one has asked me to do it, but somehow I feel compelled to do so. Please feel free to interact, comment, and even rebuke me if I get off track. I need others to hold me accountable, so don’t hesitate at all.
Blessings,
Bill Lollar
Bill,
Thanks for your thoughtful response.
Please forgive my uncharitable statement about a long line of babies in pools an bathwater. Maybe I am thinking more of myself! When I embraced Calvinism, I certainly did it in a reactionary way. I suspect you did, too, based on what you said about your own experience in seminary. My caution to all of us is to be careful about doing the same thing in reverse. Again, please forgive me for being too strong in my way of putting it.
Believe me–we share a taste for Sacred Cow BBQ. I have been kicked out of a church for it, and I don’t regret it for a minute. I know what it is to be “radioactive”–to be labeled as “dangerous” and “extreme” and “not one of us,” mainly because I refused to preach the Five Points in every sermon. I am in complete sympathy with you about bad things that are done in the name of truth.
I do have concerns about pastoral authority. Again, I have intimate and personal history with the abuse of pastoral authority. I know the stories and have seen the rubble left behind by certain men and their followers. But we still have to deal with God’s commands to pastors in the New Testament, like Titus 2:12, “These things speak and exhort and reprove with all authority. Let no one disregard you.” Of course, there are more. There are also many commands to churches to submit to and follow their leaders. My fear is that we may react to the misuse of a good thing by denying it has ANY use.
Yes, of course Matthew 20:25-28 is in Scripture. But we know that it cannot be understood in a way that contradicts other passages of Scripture.
We live in a day that despises authority. Our cultures hate the authority of the government, the authority of the home, and the authority of the church. Postmodernism IS the hatred of authority and the subsequent hatred of the distinctions that are assumed in a world that has authority structures. Isn’t it a little strange, then, that many Christians today have “discovered” in Scripture previously unknown teaching that allows them to despise authority? Isn’t this exactly what has happened with evangelical egalitarianism and feminism, for example? For 2000 years of church history, we have always understood that the word “head” means authority, but now (wonder of wonders!) we realize that it means no such thing! Is it an accident that when the world becomes extremely intense and open about its hatred of authority, the church suddenly finds that authority is no big deal? That since authoritarianISM exists, therefore all authority is to be downplayed? That since abusive husbands exist, wives should not be taught to submit to their husbands? That since abusive pastors exist, the office itself is discarded?
Peter gives a sobering word to our generation: “The Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment, and especially those who indulge the flesh in its corrupt desires and despise authority” (2 Peter 2:9-10). Sexual perversion and despising authority–do these things sound familiar to us? They are the sins of our time. We cannot bend in these areas. Faithfulness does not ignore the places along the wall where the battles are most intense. Faithfulness runs to the breach in the wall and stands.
Sorry for the many words. I just want us to be biblical. Sometimes being biblical will force us to roast the Sacred Cow. Sometimes being biblical will force us to be boringly normal in comparison with past generations.
I hope that God will give us grace to figure out when to get out the charcoal and when to continue in “tradition” and “normalcy.”
Thanks for hearing me out, brother.
Warmly,
Stephen Baker
Authoritarian or authoritative. The first is sick. The second is healthy. Making some one a calvinist is not the goal. I hold to sovereign grace, but just because I hold that does not make me a better Christian. It is the essence of the principles which must lodge in my heart in a warming way that melts my pride and arrogance. The theology of sovereign grace as derived from the Bible is the theology of the Great Awakenings and of the Great Century of Missions. Since it is coming back into vogue, I think it is the ground swells which precede the tsunami, the hurricane of a great Noachin super flood of grace which covers the whole earth as the waters cover the sea. Such at least is my prayer. I also pray, “God don’t let people get it wrong. Don’t let misrepresentations of it rule the day as they did after those awakenings of long ago.” God has promised, Ask and you shall receive, seek and you shall find, knock and it shall be opened to you. I have been asking, seeking, and knocking for 35+ years. Surely, the time for the answer draws nigh.
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