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Baptist Have Always Been Calvinists? by Peter Lumpkins

Recently, I contested Dr. Al Mohler's confidence that it was well into the twentieth century before any knowledgable person could dispute the theo-historical assertion that Baptists were anything but Calvinists. To be precise, Mohler is claimed to have said >>> Even the opponents of Calvinism must admit, if historically informed, that Calvinism is the theological tradition into which the Baptist movement was born. The same is true of the Southern Baptist Convention. The most influential churches, leaders, confessions of faith and theologians of the founding era were Calvinists—it was not... Read more →

Saturday Sunrise at Destin, Florida November 26, 2011

Al Mohler, Calvinism, and Baptist origins by Peter Lumpkins

I received my copy of Ministry By His Grace And For His Glory: Essays in Honor of Thomas J. Nettles1 only a few days ago and have made half the journey through the first reading. I do not plan to review the entire volume since a volume of this nature defies brevity. With over 20 different contributors writing independently of one another, one is left with either a mammoth task to accomplish or a shotgun blast so broad, it gives justice to no single author or idea. In my view,... Read more →

Who is the greatest saint in the world?

Would you know who is the greatest saint in the world! It is not he who prays most or fasts most; it is not he who gives most alms, or is more eminent for temperance, chastity, or justice; but it is he who is always thankful to God who wills everything that God willeth, who receives everything as an instance of God's goodness, and has a heart ready to praise God for it William Law, Serious Call Read more →

Funny for the Weekend by Peter Lumpkins

Here's an oldie but definitely a goodie. It still brings a good giggle. Enjoy. With that, I am... Peter Read more →

Monday Morning Adrenaline Rush! by Peter Lumpkins

Begin the work week with a cool cat, adrenaline rush... >>> With that, I am... Peter Read more →

The GBC Insider is now defunct by Peter Lumpkins

The GBC Insider, an anonymous blog purporting to offer "inside" info pertinent for Georgia Baptists is now belly-up. It's latest post offers its rationale From the outset the GBC Insider has never intended to maintain a lasting presence in its current form...Now it is time for this conversation to move from the shadows into the light... . this will be our last post on the Insider. The content will remain available online until the end of this year. The time has now come for action more than words. Georgia Baptists... Read more →

Mike Licona and Liberty University: setting the record straight by Peter Lumpkins

In a footnote (#5) on this piece I published November 10th, 2011, I wrote, "departing from the North American Mission Board [NAMB] as head of apologetics, Dr. Licona now teaches at Liberty University, a paradoxical maneuver for LU in itself" (italics added). Reliable sources have corrected a misleading statement I made which could imply that Dr. Licona left the North American Mission Board only to be hired by Liberty University. Such a conclusion would be false >>> In a full trustee board meeting, LU apparently made it clear that Dr.... Read more →

A grassroots Southern Baptist "gets it" on the undeniable Calvinist agenda within the Southern Baptist Convention by Peter Lumpkins

After a full five years of blogging, including 900 & a quarter K page views and 15K+ comments, I thought it'd be nice to hear from reader and frequent commenter on SBC Tomorrow, "Mary" >>> Mary is a longtime Southern Baptist but she doesn't live in Birmingham, nor any city in the south. And, those who have challenged Mary's contributions on threads at SBC Tomorrow know by experience she's hardly the ordinary 'housewife' stereotype far too many new generation Baptists overlay onto traditional Southern Baptist females. Instead, Mary is a... Read more →

Did the Daviess-McLean Baptist Association get a fair hearing? by Peter Lumpkins

News stories from the Western Recorder, Associated Baptist Press, and Baptist Press recently reported that the Daviess-McLean Baptist Association (DMBA) in Kentucky denied membership to Pleasant Valley Community Church (PVCC) at least in part, apparently because of the strong Calvinism affirmed by PVCC. Baptist bloggers and denominational leaders quickly voiced their views about the association’s decision. Below are not only my own thoughts on the decision, but also on the way the decision was framed by some of the respondents >>> The news journals gave little to no real help... Read more →

Are Judgement House Ministries a Viable Means of Evangelism? A Response to Russell Moore by Norman Miller

An official at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Russ Moore reprised on Oct. 28, 2011 a 2008 Baptist Press editorial wherein he decries his perceived deficiencies of Judgement House ministries. Below is his editorial, and then my response to it. Norm Miller FIRST-PERSON: 7 reasons Halloween judgment houses often miss the mark Russell D. Moore Posted on Oct 28, 2011 LOUISVILLE, Ky. (BP -- 1. They're not scary enough. To speak of hell, Jesus used the imagery of a garbage dump overrun with worms, a place where babies were once scarified... Read more →

Al Mohler says New Calvinism remains the only, viable theological option by Peter Lumpkins

Below is a clip lifted from a video on The Gospel Coalition site. The interview is a short discussion between Kevin DeYoung, Ligon Duncan, and Al Mohler. The full video is entitled "DeYoung, Duncan, Mohler: What's New About the New Calvinism." At one point in responding to something DeYoung said, Dr. Mohler's words well illustrate the fundamental problem in the Southern Baptist Convention over Calvinism. According to Mohler, no convictional, thinking evangelical who wants to embrace the apostolic faith will come to any other conclusion than "The Reformed." There exists... Read more →

J.P. Holding on Al Mohler: are apologists doomed to irrelevant frivolity? by Peter Lumpkins

I like J. P. Holding. He writes some interesting pieces, pieces sparkling with special insights into contextual antiquity and Scripture (Holding's latest book defends the resurrection). I've personally benefited from a couple of books he recommended to me (resulting from an email enquiry to him sometime ago). His literary wit is matched only by Bob L. Ross who humorously gives many Calvinist brothers "what for" when they challenge him on his dissent from the "new" Calvinism (Ross himself is a Sovereign Grace Calvinist). Oops! Pardon me. Back to Holding >>>... Read more →