One of the five speakers is not Southern Baptist, but all of them, of course, are Calvinists and members of The Gospel Coalitionwhich, by the way, excludes Southern Baptists like me by means of a doctrinal statement that is far more restrictive than The Baptist Faith and Message. Both highlight the need for aggressive and passionate evangelism. He presented his arguments, supported them logically, treated a number of passages in support of his stance, and answered common arguments against particular redemption. Though I was unable to attend the conference, except for a very brief time of greeting, it is my understanding that the conference was a wonderful event where solid, healthy discussion took place. . In an extensive and comprehensive treatment, he made a solid case for his view that Christ died for the sins of all humans, not merely for the sins of the elect. Further, if a Calvinist is a person who follows strictly the teaching of the sixteenth-century Reformer of Geneva, then in three important ways Baptists, Generals and Particulars alike, are not and never have been such. In it, Steve Lemke, provost and professor of Philosophy and Ethics at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary in New Orleans, Louisiana, provided extensive arguments against the Calvinist position. All things are predetermined by the good pleasure of God's will. . Both acknowledge the historical reality of Calvinism in the history of the SBC. Maybe we're just predestined to argue amongst ourselves. The movement lifts up a theological tradition embodied in former SBC presidents Adrian Rogers, Herschel Hobbs and E.Y. I regularly receive communications from churches who are struggling over this issue., (Page told Baptist Press News that he has chosen not to sign this current document.). As noted above, the signers of the document overlook the historical view in favor of one that is less than 50 years old. Those whom God has accepted in Christ, and sanctified by His Spirit, will never fall away from the state of grace, but shall persevere to the end. This article will focus on the first part, which essentially corresponds to each of the five points of traditional Calvinism: total depravity, unconditional election, limited atonement, irresistible grace, and perseverance of the saints. We deny that God imposes or withholds this atonement without respect to an act of the persons free will. . 2. Kenneth Keathley addressed "Perseverance and Assurance of the Saints" in Chapter 6. Calvinists once dominated Baptist church life in America. A conference on Calvinism recently was held at Ridgecrest in North Carolina, co-sponsored by Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and Founders Ministries. It acknowledges the Reformed understanding of God's natural knowledge (His knowledge of all of that which is true in the actual realm as well as that which is true of the all potential scenarios) and His free knowledge (His knowledge of everything in this particular world because He freely chose for it to be this way). Calvinists call this the doctrine of predestination the idea that a persons salvation already has been determined. 2 The total number of Southern Baptists in the U.S. - and their share of the population - is falling. Yarnell, director of the Center for Theological Research at SWBTS in Fort Worth, Texas, pointed out the distinctions between Classical Calvinism, Baptist Calvinism, and Hyper-Calvinism. Second, Calvinism is on the rise among recent seminary graduates. Please make sure all fields are filled out. Southern Baptists debate Calvinism. When seminarians are dealing with pastor search committees, he said, they need to be very honest about where they stand theologically in this and in every area. Unlike what you might see in run-of-the-mill SBC complementarianism, where womens subordination and male headship is affirmed only within the nuclear family unit and the local church, many Neo-Calvinist complementarians view womens subordination and male headship as something that applies to all spheres of human life.. Along with numerous journal articles and scholarly papers, Dr. Nettles is the author and editor of fifteen books. In this article, we will survey each book, particularly the emphases of the chapters that resulted from corresponding presentations at the respective conferences. Geisler said extreme Calvinists interpret the phrase in John 3:16 God so love the world to mean not every person but only those predestined to be saved. 2023 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved. Calvin was a paedobaptist; Baptists are credobaptists. Beginning in the mid-1990s, several Baptist state papers claimed that Calvinism is a threat to evangelism. These were "Particular Baptists," for they believed in a definite atonement . This requires Southern Baptists to be quite aware concerning the issues in Calvinism and non-Calvinism. . We deny that Christ died only for the sins of those who will be saved. At least they do not believe you can know that we are eternally secure., Let me explain, Geisler said. Ascol embraces one of the aspects of Calvinism that makes traditional Baptists deeply uncomfortable: the idea that Jesus died on the cross only for humans whom God had elected to save, and not for everyone. 2023 Baptist News Global. Site by Mere. The research portrays what many have imagined to be true. Lawless addressed and refuted four stereotypes of non-Calvinists, that they: are more concerned about numbers than theology; use faulty approaches to evangelism and are unconcerned about regenerate church membership; and. Calvinists in the Southern Baptist Convention make up a small minority but are steadily growing, particularly among younger Baptists, a recent study showed. A Statement of the Traditional Southern Baptist Understanding of Gods Plan of Salvation, hosted two different conferences to address the issue, The Life and Faith Field Guide for Parents. Dr. Steve W. Lemke's prcis of the two streams of soteriology (doctrine of salvation) meandering through our Southern Baptist history is enlightening: To oversimplify a bit, Southern Baptists have two theological tributaries flowing into our mainstream - the Arminian-leaning General Baptists and the Calvinist-leaning Particular Baptists. . Recent post: Is Alcoholedu Anonymous? Prior to the reduction of evangelism to the proclamation of a divine provision reified in an anthropocentric transaction, Baptists did evangelism faithfully and with Gods blessings giving fitting attention to doctrines of divine sovereignty and eternal purpose as well as biblical teachings on human responsibility and response. New Calvinists are more Calvinist than Calvin was, Christian apologist Norman Geisler said June 7 at the inaugural meeting of a group formed to balance various Southern Baptist fellowships that gather under the umbrella known as "young, restless and reformed." Each conference resulted in a book that committed the primary addresses to text and presented them in chapter form. Soteriology the study of the doctrine of salvation, how the Triune God ends the separation people have from God due to sin by reconciling them with Gods self. Arminianism: To the Arminian, God is sovereign, but has limited his control in correspondence with man's freedom and response. . God, as an expression of His sovereignty, endows each person with actual free will (the ability to choose between two options), which must be exercised in accepting or rejecting Gods gracious call to salvation by the Holy Spirit through the Gospel. Arminianism a set of doctrines, first elucidated by Jacob Arminius but based on exegesis of scripture, that concludes that unaided by the Holy Spirit, no person is able to respond to Gods will, yet salvation is conditioned on a persons willingness to freely place their faith in Christ. It is there, according to Molinists, that God considers the free choices of man and melds them without contradiction to His sovereign plan.2, Greg Welty, assistant professor of philosophy at SWBTS, offered the traditional Reformed explanation for election, that God's election is not based upon an individual's deeds or their foreseen faith. He then pointed to reasons for rejoicing, as well as causes for concern, regarding how Calvinists have addressed essential Baptist beliefs regarding Jesus Christ, the Bible, the Gospel, the Church, and the Christian life. The document makes erroneous claims about the traditional Baptist view of soteriology. While conservative Southern Baptist Calvinists and non-Calvinists agree that the person that comes to faith in Jesus Christ and his saving work is secure in salvation and the certain heir of eternal life, Calvinists see this as the result of God's saving purpose from eternity and his effectual operations in time so that their immutable security . Although interest in Calvinism has been growing within the SBC for almost 30 years, the issue has become more divisive within the denomination over the past decade. Because each Southern Baptist congregation is autonomous, local congregations hire and fire pastors. Calvinists call it perseverance of the saints.. In March 2009, noting the resurgence of Calvinism in the United States, Time listed several Baptists among current Calvinist leaders. Now, there are signs a new theological tussle may . It sets forth the decisionistic evangelical cultural orthodoxy gradually developed from Finney to Graham and baptizes it as traditional Baptist soteriology. It excludes boasting and promotes humility. To date, over 350 Southern Baptists serving as denominational leaders, pastors, evangelists, church staff members, Baptist seminary and college personnel, and lay leaders have also added their names to the statement. . Prior to that, he taught at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary. Copyright 2023 The Gospel Coalition, INC. All Rights Reserved. His model is based on four primary points: the essential basis for assurance is the objective work of Christ; assurance is the essence of saving faith (that a certain knowledge of salvation is simultaneous with being saved); saving faith perseveres or remains until the day when it gives way to sight; and. If evangelism includes recognition and warning about the deceitfulness and hardness of the human heart, and affirmations that only by divine prerogative and power will anyone believe, as it seemed to be in the preaching of Jesus and Paul, then these prominent ideas resident within Calvinism are not mere irrelevant superfluities. . See pages 13-24 for extensive charts and statistics given in support of the points. Temperate Foreknowledge: Gods sovereign omniscience does not mean he causes human decisions about Jesus. We deny that there is an effectual call for certain people that is different from a general call to any person who hears and understands the Gospel. Believers may fall into sin through neglect and temptation, whereby they grieve the Spirit, impair their graces and comforts, and bring reproach on the cause of Christ and temporal judgments on themselves; yet they shall be kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation. But then it posits a third realm of knowledge, described as "middle knowledge." He presented the findings from surveys by LifeWay Christian Resources and the North American Mission Board. In the second half of his chapter, he addressed effectual calling (avoiding the common Calvinist term "irresistible grace"), defending the view that if God issues an "inner" call (as opposed to an external call that every person receives) it "always produces repentance and faith, and therefore secures salvation. . Eric Hankins, a pastor from Oxford, Miss., and member of the committee, said the report will change at least one important process in Southern Baptist life: the selection of pastors. [T]his document would more accurately be called A Statement of Modern Southern Baptist Understanding of Gods Plan of Salvation. The understanding of salvation that was prevalent throughout the convention at its inception and for many decades afterward was nothing less than historic, evangelical Calvinism. Nearly 30 percent of recent SBC seminary graduates now serving as church pastors indicate they are Calvinists, according to Ed Stetzer, director of LifeWay Research. In other business, the SBC meeting is expected to: By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you're agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. We deny that grace negates the necessity of a free response of faith or that it cannot be resisted. . I have tried to track the historical development of the non-Calvinist position. The following is a suggested statement of what Southern Baptists believe about the doctrine of salvation. Semi-Pelagians such as Philip Limborch and (at least in some of his writings) Charles Finney affirmed the necessity of the gospel and the Holy Spirits enlightening work through it for salvation. . Denounce the recent decision by the Boys Scouts of America to permit openly gay members. . In fact, former SBC President Paige Patterson made perhaps the most practical of all suggestions in this regard. Regular Baptists are "a moderately Calvinistic Baptist sect that is found chiefly in the southern U.S., represents the original English Baptists before the division into Particular and General Baptists, and observes closed communion and foot washing", according to Merriam Webster. Lewis called "the eternal now" of God the fact that God is not confined to time as we are, but rather views all things past, present, and future (from a human perspective) as existing in the present for Him. It is obvious that we all cannot be right, Ascol wrote on his blog. However, I have made it clear that I would be fair to those who are Calvinists in appointments in our convention. Most SBC churches have stiff-armed Calvinism and are likely to continue the resistance. It was hosted by First Baptist Church, Woodstock, Georgia, with about 1,000 attendees at the two-day conference. . . Calvinism, which is traditionally the domain of Reformed churches like Presbyterians, differs from traditional Baptist theology in key aspects, particularly on the question of salvation. Included in the findings: about 10 percent of Southern Baptist leaders identify themselves as five-point Calvinists, while about 30 percent of recent seminary graduates identify themselves as such; congregations led by Calvinists tend to show smaller attendance and baptize fewer people each year, but their baptism rate (the ratio of membership to the number of people baptized) is virtually identical to that of non-Calvinists; the priority of church planting is virtually the same between Calvinists and non-Calvinists.1. . Officially launched last July, it grew out of A Statement of the Traditional Southern Baptist Understanding of Gods Plan of Salvation, signed by more than 900 individuals and drafted by Eric Hankins, pastor of First Baptist Church in Oxford, Miss. increasing the focus on glorifying God. Spontaneous Regeneration: Any who repent and believe are regenerated at that point,not before or apart from it.. Many of the documents critics dispute the 1925 date since the documents position is based on a revision to Article III made in 1963. You dont know holy life right up until death, so one cant be sure he is saved until he dies. In so doing, he covered several key passages in support of his stance. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. . Hankins said the committee did not address gender roles and Calvinism because it was not within the committees portfolio. The second section, "Calvinism, The Historical Record," offers two perspectives on the role Calvinists have played in the history of the SBC. The "John 3:16 Conference" resulted in the book Whosoever Will: A Biblical-Theological Critique of Five-Point Calvinism, edited by David L. Allen and Steve W. Lemke, published in 2010. New Calvinists are more Calvinist than Calvin was, Christian apologist Norman Geisler said June 7 at the inaugural meeting of a group formed to balance various Southern Baptist fellowships that gather under the umbrella known as young, restless and reformed.. Emily McGowin, a doctoral candidate at the University of Dayton and former Southern Baptist, said that Calvinism has the potential to rework how Baptists view womens roles even beyond what the Baptist Faith & Message says. . . We deny that the decision of faith is an act of God rather than a response of the person. If present trends continue, Calvinism will continue to grow as an influence in our convention. Basing the claim on what the majority view is not an adequate foundation for settling the issue. In the fourth section, "Calvinism, The Atonement," David Nelson and Sam Waldron tackled the thorny issue of what Calvinists often refer to as "limited atonement." It should be noted that most of the critics would likely agree that the documents endorsement of semi-Pelagianism is due to sloppiness on the part of the drafters rather than endorsement of heresy by the endorsers. True Freedom: God gives to each person actual free will to accept or reject his call to salvation. The book closed with Danny Akin, president of SEBTS, and Tom Ascol, senior pastor of Grace Bible Church in Cape Coral, Florida, and executive director of Founders Ministries, identifying essential components around which Southern Baptist Calvinists and non-Calvinists can and should unite for the sake of the cause of Christ. I find it interesting to note that, at least according to Dr. Naugle, all Southern Baptists are Calvinists to some degree. Tom Ascol, a Florida pastor and executive director of Founders Ministries, a pro-Calvinist organization, called the report a positive step. Surveys by LifeWay Christian Resources and the North American Mission Board found that about 10 percent of Southern Baptist leaders identify themselves as five-point Calvinists, while about 30 percent of recent seminary graduates identify themselves as such. . Pointing out that Calvin himself rejected such a view, he made a case historically, exegetically, logically, and practically against limited atonement. This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. Surveys by LifeWay Christian Resources and the North American Mission Board found that about 10 percent of Southern Baptist leaders identify themselves as five-point Calvinists, while about 30 percent of recent seminary graduates identify themselves as such. In other words, according to some leading neo-Calvinists, men are called to lead in every sphere of life, including business and politics, and women are called to submit. More significant is the removal in 1963 of the idea that people are because of their inherited sinful nature under condemnation (1925), though such culpability is acknowledged to be the case after they become transgressors. This significant change cuts in half the authors claim in the Preamble that their view of soteriology has been held by Southern Baptists for almost a century.. Tom Nettles, professor of historical theology at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, addressed the doctrinal importance of Calvinism among Baptists over the course of history. And they need to delete the sentence that denies the incapacitation of free will due to Adams sin. According to the report, congregations are free to choose Calvinist or non-Calvinist pastors, but both the candidate and the congregation must be honest about their beliefs. This conference came on the heels of a major research study which was released almost simultaneously by LifeWay Research. On the basis of Scripture (Romans 3:23), Southern Baptists have consistently affirmed that all humans are sinners by nature and by choice, but have generally rejected extreme views of post-Dort Calvinists that man is incapable of moral action and that God is ultimately responsible for human sin. Thats what we call the doctrine of eternal security. While some Calvinist traditions allow for women clergy and stress gender equality, a growing number of new Calvinists argue that, as part of Gods blueprint for humankind, men and women have different roles in the family, church, and society. . Two weeks ago a group of current and former Southern Baptist leaders signed and posted a statement which attempts to draw a clear line between Calvinism and what they call the traditional Southern Baptist of soteriology. A sampling of the language will give the tenor of the non-Calvinist position. . UPDATE: In a question below, I raise the concern some critics have about the document being semi-Pelagian. . Geisler said todays Calvinists do not believe the one point of Calvinism on which virtually every traditional Southern Baptist agrees eternal security of the believer, commonly expressed as once saved, always saved., This is a surprise, he said. . As the preamble of the statement admits, While some earlier Baptist confessions were shaped by Calvinism, the clear trajectory of the [Baptist Faith and Message] since 1925 is away from Calvinism. Changing that line to acknowledge the role of prevenient grace would, I believe, shift the document from a presumablyunintentionally semi-Pelagian view to one more in line with standard orthodox Arminianism. Nelson is senior vice president of academic administration and professor of theology at SEBTS in Wake Forest, North Carolina. David Dockery, president of Union University in Jackson, Tennessee, demonstrated in his chapter that the history of the SBC is filled with key leaders who embraced Calvinism. Therefore, while we are inclined to view the events of salvation on a timeline, God's calling in eternity past and a person's response in the present all take place in His eternal now.5. Read our republishing, terms of use and privacy policies here. The Charleston Association affirmed, Although God knoweth whatsoever may or can come to pass upon all supposed conditions; yet hath he not decreed anything because he foresaw it as future, or as that which would come to pass upon such conditions, but has decreed in himself, from all eternity, but the most wise and holy counsel of his own will, freely and unchangeably, all things whatsoever comes to pass., While conservative Southern Baptist Calvinists and non-Calvinists agree that the person that comes to faith in Jesus Christ and his saving work is secure in salvation and the certain heir of eternal life, Calvinists see this as the result of Gods saving purpose from eternity and his effectual operations in time so that their immutable security is thoroughly consistent with the manner of salvation from the beginning; non-Calvinists assert a denial of even the possibility of apostasy counter to their prior denial that saving grace cannot be resisted. If Gods preserving grace is a major aspect of saving grace why is it that it cannot be resisted while their understanding of human freedom remains intact. [4] It is no surprise, then, to see them continuing in Calvin's doctrine of the love of God. The first, in 2007, was entitled "Building Bridges Conference: Southern Baptists and Calvinism," and was sponsored by Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary (SEBTS) and Founders Ministries and hosted at Ridgecrest Conference Center by LifeWay Christian Resources. As long as Calvinists maintain a strong faculty presence at Southern Baptist seminaries, this pattern is likely to continue despite the delivering of irenic convention committee reports. Both books reflect strong convictions that correspond to a deep commitment to the Person and Work of Jesus Christ as well as a high regard and profound respect for God's Word. Among his books are By His Grace and For His Glory; Baptists and the Bible, James Petigru Boyce: A Southern Baptist Statesman, and Living by Revealed Truth: The Life and Pastoral Theology of Charles H. Spurgeon. This statement, reaching back to the original BF&M in 1925 and to the New Hampshire Confession of Faith upon which it was based, accomplishes a significant feat; it accommodates the soteriological convictions of both Calvinists and non-Calvinists within the SBC family.