Calvinism

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It does not appear that Christ took any particular text when he preached the sermon on the mount; but he proceeded at once to say—Blessed is this class, and that class, and the other class of persons. But shortly after this, he went into a synagogue, and they gave him the book of the prophet Esaias, and he opened it and read the first two verses of this chapter:—“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord hath…

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John Hazelton^[1] (1822-1888) was a high-calvinist and strict-communion Baptist pastor^[2], whose 35 year ministry with the church meeting at Chadwell Street, London, resulted in a congregation that became one of the leading Strict Baptist (SB) churches during the first fifty years of the 20th century. Like most SB’s, Hazelton stood aloof from the ministry of Charles Spurgeon. In many respects, Spurgeon may be regarded as the father of the Reformed Baptist movement—he espoused many of the features…

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AN ORDER OF SERVICE FOR DIVINE WORSHIP; DESIGNED FOR PRIVATE DEVOTIONS, FAMILY GATHERINGS AND CHURCH MEETINGS.

Sermon—“Free Will Or Free Grace”

For the full order of service, including hymns and reading, please follow this link…

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AN ORDER OF SERVICE FOR DIVINE WORSHIP; DESIGNED FOR PRIVATE DEVOTIONS, FAMILY GATHERINGS AND CHURCH MEETINGS.

Sermon—“Bible Covenants”

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Some of the points covered in this sermon:
• A review of the definition and purpose of a covenant
• Showing the difference between Dispensationalism, Reformed Theology and Hyper-calvinism as it relates to the covenants
• Showing the major differences between Dispensationalism and Covenant Theology, as it relates to the covenants
• Showing the difference between Moderate-calvinism and High-calvinism as it relates to the covenants
• Asserting the correct view of Hyper-calvinism as it relates to the covenants
• Showing the clear and definitive responsibilities of the unregenerate and the regenerate, depending on the covenant under which they are subject (either the covenant of works or the covenant of grace)

For the full order of service, including hymns and reading, please follow this link…

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About sixteen years ago, I heard a young man from Hoxton (Association Baptist) Academy make the following remarks: “I now offer you Christ, and Christ stands with open arms ready to receive you. Yea, he begs, and prays, and beseeches you all to come unto him and have life; and yet some of you will not come. Nay, it is as if God the Father came and…

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Q. 1. Who is the only self-existent Being?

A. God is the only self-existent Being.

(Ex 3:14; Ps 90:2; Is 45:5, 22; Jn 8:58)

Q. 2. Ought everyone to believe that there is a God?

A. Everyone ought to believe that there is a God, and it is their great sin and folly who do not.

(Ps 9:17; Ecc 12:13; Mk 16:16; Jn 8:24 & 16:8-9; 2 Thess 2:11-12)

Q. 3. How may we know that there is a God?

A. The works of creation and providence plainly declare that there is a God, but His Word and Spirit only do it effectually to the salvation of His people.

(Job 38 & 39; Ps 19; Jn 16:8-14 & 17:8; 1 Cor 2:10)

Q. 4. What is the Word of God?

A. The Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament are the…

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These are notes of a sermon preached on Sunday 1 October 2017. They have not been proofread. This is the last part of a short series of sermons on the Bible compared to a plough. The subject of this sermon is the principle of the Gospel Law explained by the Apostle Paul.

A minister of the gospel should accommodate himself to the customs and conventions of those to whom he is sent. Even as an ambassador must be diplomatic in his relations with a foreign country, so the ambassador for Christ must with tactfulness and sensitivity preach the Word of God to sinners. As described by the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 9:19-23, this was how he conducted his preaching ministry…

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Notes of a Sermon preached on 11 April 1843

“I give unto my sheep eternal life, and they shall never perish.”—John 10:28

The Holy Ghost, in the canon of Scripture, has borrowed a variety of metaphors from natural things to show us what Christ is to his people, and what his people are to him. Here he calls them “sheep,” and himself the “Shepherd.”

Jesus has received his sheep from his Father’s hand as his portion, as the lot of his inheritance. He knows his sheep intimately and perfectly. When they are wandering on the mountains of the Adam fall, the shepherd has his eye upon them, and he seeks them out, and calls…

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Two sermons preached at Gower Street Chapel, London on 14 and 21 November 1841

[On Sunday, 14 November 1841, Pastor Kershaw spoke on the subject of justification. His text was Job 25:4. Although he intended to cover his three headings in a single sermon, he took up only the first heading on Sunday 14 November, then completed the final two headings on Sunday 21 November. The two sermons are combined in the manuscript that follows.]

“How then can man be justified with God?”—Job 25:4

The doctrine of justification is clearly and strikingly revealed in the sacred oracles of truth, and is by God the Holy Ghost made manifest in the souls of all the election of grace. Hence, Paul speaks of it as one of the links in the chain of our salvation. “Moreover,” says he, “whom God did predestinate, them he also called; and whom he called, them he also…

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“Hold-Fast”

A Sketch of Covenant Truth and Its Witnesses

By: John E. Hazelton

“Hold fast the form of sound words” (2 Tim 1:13)

“An everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and sure” (2 Sam 23:5)

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The following pages are but a slight sketch of a vital subject; they aim in a simple way to show the continuity through the centuries of the testimony to “the faith which was once for all delivered unto the saints” (Jude 3). The Author has, so far as possible, given interesting quotations, bearing upon present-day perils, so that it may be said of each Witness referred to…

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“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast.”—Ephesians 2:8,9

In the crowded synagogue of Capernaum the Lord Jesus Christ, addressing many who had eagerly followed Him because of His miracles, declared, “Therefore said I unto you, that no man can some unto Me, except it were given him of My Father.” Immediately the enmity to the truth of God which is latent in every unrenewed hearted was deeply stirred; for, “From that time many of His disciples went back, and walked no more with Him.” “Will ye also go away?” was the piercing question put to the twelve. “Then Simon Peter answered Him, Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the…

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“The sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.”—Ephesians 6:17

The peaceful little Leicestershire town of Lutterworth, situated in the midst of beautiful pasture lands, has no more prominent object than its noble Church, the tower of which is visible for miles round. To it many travelers wend their way that they may look upon a place which will ever be association with John Wycliff, who in the fourteenth century was so eminent a patriot and above all so great a spiritual benefactor to his country by his translation of the Bible into the English tongue, multiplying the copies with the aid of transcribers, and by his “poor priests” in their russet gowns recommending it to the perusal of their hearers. His spare, emaciated form, weakened by study, hardly promised a Reformer who could stand before the rising storm, but within this frail body was an immense energy and an immovable conviction, and the personal charm which ever accompanies real greatness drew many around him. He was wondrously strengthened for the work given him to do, and in his well-nigh 300 treatises…

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“In doctrine shewing incorruptness, gravity, sincerity.”—Titus 2:7

The seventeenth century is the era of the Puritans, who have left behind them a vast mass of theology which is the common property of the Church of Christ; the neglect into which their writings have fallen is an unmistakeable token of spiritual degeneracy, for the absence of their works from a minister’s shelves can be compensated neither by Fathers, nor Reformers, nor by the ephemeral and often unscriptural religious literature of the day. It may be at once admitted that many of their works are over-cumbered by references to works little known and altogether unread; but in the best there are experience, unction, warmth; not only truth grasped and wrought out by great minds, but realized by loving hearts. The writers have tasted that the Lord is gracious, and Spirit-taught men and women, as we shall see in succeeding chapters, have ever found instruction and refreshment in their pages. With the political aspects of Puritanism we have here nothing to do; our object is simply…

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“Thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require My flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more; for I will deliver My flock from their mouth, that they may not be meat for them.”—Ezekiel 34:10

After the death of Oliver Cromwell nothing but God’s mercy prevented the re-establishment of Popery, and but for the faithfulness of the Nonconformists in the time of James II it would, in all human probability, have been restored. Political Protestantism prevailed, and in 1688, under William III, became firmly established. But truth languished. Ministers of the school of Burnet and Tillotson could not preach the Gospel of the grace of God; they approved it not; their doctrines respecting justification leaned more towards Rome than towards Scotland or Geneva. Amongst the papers of Laud was found a letter addressed to him by a foreign Jesuit, who exhorted him to make the encouragement of Arminianism his chief object; for that its establishment would, more than anything else, promote the growth of Popery. Arminianism was encouraged by High and Broad Church alike, and the strength of Protestantism was dependent more on its being…

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“Mine eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with Me.”—Psalm 101:6

This and the following chapters are designed to give a sketch of some of the most noteworthy and useful of the exponents of the doctrines of grace during the nineteenth century; a few named did most of their work during the latter part of the preceding century, but, as they did not pass away till the earlier years of the nineteenth, they are included in these chapters…

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“And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”—John 8:32

William Huntington (1743-1813) must occupy the first place in this chapter in order of time and reach of influence. He was born in the Weald of Kent, between Goudhurst and Cranbrook, his mother being the wife of a day labourer working for seven or eight shillings weekly in the winter, and in the summer for nine shillings per week. He learned to spell and read and write a little, and this constituted his educational equipment for the battle of life. He walked in evil paths, and at one period of his life used to unload coals from the…

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“For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body.”—1 Corinthians 12:13

In sketching some of God’s witnesses among the Baptists in the nineteenth century, Samuel Eyles Pierce (1746-1829) should be first mentioned, because in his earlier years he sat under the ministry of Toplady, Romaine, and Hawker, with the latter of whom he was on terms of close friendship till the end of the life of the Vicar of Charles. Romaine’s ministry was especially useful to him. He writes: “In a subsequent sermon, Mr. Romaine said, ‘Believers, you that are believers, God looks upon you as He doth on Christ; and loves you with the love He doth Him.’ ‘I looked up,’ says Mr. Pierce, ‘with amazement! Oh, thought I, if I can find this in the Word of God, it is the greatest truth I ever heard. I will go home and search the Bible. I conceive the 17th of John is the most likely place to find it.’ I constantly went every Lord’s Day, and I was so swallowed up in hearing that I always stood; nor did I lose one single sentence. I received it into my very heart. Mr. Romaine often expressed himself thus…

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“Cast thy bread upon the waters; for thou shalt find it after many days.”—Ecclesiastes 11:1

The literature of the past century, expository of the distinctive truths of the Gospel, has been of singular value; and whilst it lacks the massiveness and majesty of the doctrinal Puritans and the beauty and power of others, it is adapted to the period in which we live, for it translates with unction and scripturalness immortal truths into the language of the day. The works of Huntington, already referred to, have become Christian classics amongst us, and few gracious readers can peruse…

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“Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another, and the Lord hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon His Name.”—Malachi 3:16

Neither Luther or Calvin held those shallow Pelagian views, now so common, of a gradual amelioration and Christianising of the world. Calvin writes, “It is a superstition to think that the world is improving in religion and morality. It is not improving but it is always going back.” Luther says, “I know that the world is becoming epicurean; that is to say, they will lose faith in God and immortality, and give themselves up to the pleasures of the things of this world, and then suddenly shall be heard the voice, ‘Behold, the Bridegroom cometh.'” These statements are Scriptural; we have no warrant to expect the conversion of the world, but in the words of James to the Church at Jerusalem, God visits the…

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First, at no time is a sinner duty-bound under both covenants simultaneously.

Second, so long as the sinner remains unregenerate, he/she is held accountable under the terms and promises of the Covenant of Works (not the Covenant of Grace).

Third, once the sinner has been born again, he/she is delivered/released from the Covenant of Works, being brought experientially under the terms and promises of the Covenant of Grace.

Fourth, the non-elect have absolutely no part in the Covenant of Grace—it is not their duty to believe savingly on Christ, nor is it the duty of the preacher to offer…

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Wade Burleson wrote an article entitled, “The Problem of Calling People Hyper-Calvinists”. Having attended the John 3:16 Conference in 2008, he described how Dr. David Allen, Professor of Preaching at Southwestern Theological Seminary, circulated a handout that listed a dozen names identified as “Hyper-Calvinists”. Following Dr. Allen in the pulpit, was Dr. Steve Lempke of New Orleans, who made the observation, “I am not sure that there is such a thing as a living hyper-calvinist. I find that those who call others hyper-calvinists have simply run into people more calvinistic than they are.”

Yet, there is a listing for “Hyper-Calvinism” in the New Dictionary of Theology. The definition is framed by Dr. Curt Daniel, who earned a doctorate studying “hyper” Calvinism…

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William Styles published a book in 1902 entitled, “A Guide to Church Fellowship, as Maintained by Primitive, or Strict and Particular Baptists”. On pages 31 and 32, under the general heading, “ Error Concerning the Covenant of Grace to be Resisted”, the following statement is found:

“Any so-called Gospel which expressly or implicitly denies these truths [anti-duty-faith and anti-free-offer]—which represents the regeneration and conversion of sinners to be contingent on the earnestness and activity of “Gospel workers”—or the progress of God’s salvation…

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William Styles published a book in 1902 entitled, “A Guide to Church Fellowship, as Maintained by Primitive, or Strict and Particular Baptists”. On pages 78 and 79, under the general heading, “Duty-Faith is Denied by All Strict and Particular Baptists”, the following statement is found:

“Duty-faith is the doctrine that it is the duty of natural men to exercise spiritual Faith in the Lord Jesus, and so to obtain salvation. Its emphatic denial is a distinguishing feature of the Strict and…

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On Friday, 21st March 2014, Dr. Matthew Hyde delivered the annual lecture for the Strict Baptist Historical Society at Bethesda Chapel.^[1] After the lecture, he and I shared a brief exchange on the subject of high-calvinism and nineteenth-century Strict Baptist pastors. Since one of these pastors, John Hazelton, had been connected with the church that I pastor,^[2] his name naturally came up. Subsequent to our chat, Dr. Hyde graciously gave me one of his copies of William Styles’, “John Hazelton: A Memoir”.

I believe Baptists should be familiar with the life and ministry of John Hazelton for three reasons:

First, the life and ministry of John Hazelton is worth knowing because he was one of the leading Baptist ministers in the city of London during the nineteenth-century.

Second, the life and ministry of John Hazelton is worth knowing because he is among a gallant group of Baptist ministers who tenaciously subscribed to a high view of Sovereign Grace.

Third, the life and ministry of John Hazelton is worth knowing because he has much to teach this generation of professing Christians who like to call themselves Reformed Baptists.

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Duty-Faith and the Free-Offer are two of the most pernicious heresies infiltrating churches today.

Preachers that demand sinners exercise faith, as the initiating cause of the new birth, are appealing to the flesh, wherein dwelleth no good thing. Subsequently, false converts are mass produced through manipulative devices in getting people to ‘make a decision for Christ’. The scriptural concept of faith is this—the sinner believes because he has been born again; he is not born again because he believes. Hence…

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