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John Gill and the Cause of God and Truth
So often when speaking about the work of the Holy Spirit which infused the churches with new life in the 18th century, mention is made of Anglican stalwarts such as Whitefield, Hervey, Toplady and Romaine. The works of these men through God’s sovereign grace cannot be praised enough but the fact that recent biographers have highlighted their activities has tended to give the impression that other denominations, such as the Baptists, were quite inactive during this period. This is by no means the case as the testimony of John Gill shows. John Gill was born in 1697 in the town of Kettering and became a member of the Particular Baptist church there before being called to the pastorate at Goat Yard Chapel, Horselydown, London. This…
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18 Bible Doctrine – How Does Paul’s Teaching In Romans 9 Align With God The Father’s Role In Salvation?
A Transcript Of The Video Study In our previous study, I unfolded for you the structure of Paul’s letter to the Romans. It was my purpose to show you how Paul’s teaching in Romans 9 fits into the letter as a whole. Well, I pointed out that there are four main sections to the letter. It opens with an introduction (1:1-17) and closes with a conclusion (15:14-16:27). In between are the two main sections—First, Paul explains why sinners are under condemnation (1:18-3:18); Second, he explains how sinners are secured salvation (3:19-15:13). Now, with reference to God securing salvation for sinners, there are a further four sections to the letter—the role of God the Son in the work of salvation (3:19-5:21); this is connected with the…
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Reformation Today and Justification from Eternity
The March/April, 1999 number of Reformation Today features four articles on John Gill. The first, entitled John Gill – a Sketch of his Life, is a succinctly written biography of Gill’s faithful and productive life in the service of the gospel. Next, Editor Errol Hulse continues with John Gill – An Appreciation, presented as a review of The Life and Thought of John Gill (1697-1771), (ed. Michael Haykin). Here, Hulse ignores the facts of Gill’s own testimony to make what he calls ‘a fair assessment of the damage which emanated from his errors.’ Thus, though the book Hulse reviews chiefly depicts Gill as a great evangelist and soul-winner, Hulse’s one-sided critique is centred on Gill’s supposed Hyper-Calvinism and lack of evangelistic fervour. This is stretching…
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17 Bible Doctrine – How Does Paul’s Teaching In Romans 9 Fit Within The Letter To The Romans As A Whole?
A Transcript Of The Video Study In our previous study, we took a snapshot at how the scriptures use the analogy of a potter and the clay to depict the sovereignty of God and the relatedness of the human race to Him. It was concluded that Paul did not use this analogy carelessly, as if any other comparison would have served his purpose all the same. No, rather, he deliberately chose the analogy because it happens to be one of the clearest descriptions of God’s masterplan for the ages—He is the potter, and we are the clay! Now, as we have discovered, the main structure of this framework is outlined by Paul in Romans chapter 9. However, this is by no measure apparent to most…
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The Ministry of Septimus Sears (1819-1877)
The Ministry of Septimus Sears (1819-1877) as Seen By his Congregation and Challenged by David Gay Septimus Sears, renowned in England as one of the country’s most outstanding pastors and preachers, started his ministry at the age of 20 before taking over Clifton Strict Baptist Church, Bedfordshire which he shepherded from 1842 to his death in 1877. Sears suffered all his life from severe heart trouble and was burdened by long periods of paralysis and typhus. His neck bones were so deformed that he had to wear an iron collar to support his head. Nevertheless, he preached three times on the Lord’s Day and often during the week. He edited two Christian magazines, The Little Gleaner and The Sower, and published many sermons besides a…
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What Is Hyper-Calvinism?
What Is Hyper-Calvinism? This same question appears as the title for an article written by Ronald Hanko for the Protestant Reformed Churches in America (PRCA). You may view the full article here. Hanko admits that his group (PRCA) is often maliciously charged with being hyper-Calvinists, because it rejects the well-meant offer of the gospel. However, he argues the historic definition for hyper-Calvinism[1] is restricted to those who deny the doctrine of duty-faith, rather than those who reject the free-offer. He writes, “Historically, the name has been applied to those who deny that the command of the gospel to repent and believe must be preached to all who hear the gospel.” He goes on to explain: “A hyper-Calvinist (historically and doctrinally) is…one who believes rightly in…
