General Baptists and the Ancient Rite of Confirmation: An Early Form of Baptist Catholicity? (Part 2)
The first part of this essay explored the defense of the laying on of hands from antiquity. The second part will look at the defense from Scripture, since neither Benjamin Keach, nor Thomas Grantham, nor John Griffith was satisfied with establishing the doctrine solely upon historical grounds. Keach explained that he “would build not upon Men or Tradition, but on the Word of God”—a sentiment which Grantham and Griffith also shared.[1]...
General Baptists and the Ancient Rite of Confirmation: An Early Form of Baptist Catholicity?
There has been a renewed interest in recent years among evangelical Baptists in theological retrieval and renewal. I am particularly thankful for the efforts of Baptist theologians such as Luke Stamps and Matthew Emerson (at the Center for Baptist Renewal), J. Matthew Pinson, and Michael A. G. Haykin who follow in the footsteps of men such as Timothy George by calling Baptists to retrieve from the great Christian tradition with the...
Getting Introspective about “The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill”
For the past couple of months, like thousands of others, I have been engrossed in Christianity Today’s podcast “The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill,” hosted by Mike Cosper. The podcast, which is still ongoing, covers the origin, rise, and demise of Mars Hill Church in Seattle, Washington, along with the fall from grace of its founding pastor, Mark Driscoll. So far, I have found myself laughing (often uncomfortably) at some of the...
The Sufficiency of Scripture and Christian Worship
Ask any conservative Protestant evangelical minister if they believe in the sufficiency of Scripture and they will almost certainly answer “yes.” Affirming the sufficiency of Scripture for conservative Protestant evangelicals is almost akin to affirming the inerrancy of the Bible. But I have noticed with friends and colleagues in recent years that we are seemingly talking past one another when we discuss the sufficiency of Scripture...
Scripture Consequences
Maybe you’ve had a Jehovah’s Witness show up at your door and, during the course of conversation, they’ve informed you that the word Trinity does not appear in the Bible. Hopefully this revelation, while technically true, did not shake the foundations of your faith. Of course, their ultimate goal is to convince you that the doctrine of the Trinity isn’t a biblical concept at all. The word Trinity, after all, does not appear in the...
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