East Texas Convention - 153rd anniversary

I will probably cut back on my blog posting for the next two or three weeks. I am having a book printed, preparing some history for Smyrna Baptist Church's 135th anniversary and several other things happening at once that are occupying more of time. One of these is the:

East Texas Sacred Harp Convention - 153rd anniversary

This August 9 & 10 we will celebrate the 153rd anniversary of the East Texas Sacred Harp Convention. This Convention was organized in 1855, is the second oldest continuous Sacred Harp singing convention in the United States, and the oldest singing convention in Texas.

Festivities include: Singing, singing and more singing! Eating Bar-B-Q! We will meet in the Henderson Community Center, located at 302 Fairpark Ave - this is at the corner of Fairpark and South High St. in Henderson, Texas. The Chamber of Commerce provides continental breakfast/refreshments, and the convention will provide lunch both days. Singing will kick off at 9:30 a.m. Saturday morning. We use the Cooper Revision. On Saturday night we will have a Mexican dish "social" at the Rusk County Expo Center.

NOTE: The social will be an informal get together, eat, visit, and sing if you want to. If you want to sing we encourage you to bring copies of songs in the shape note tradition. You might need as many as 100 copies. That's about the size crowd that was present last year.

Some hotels/motels in the area are:

Henderson
Best Western - Hwy 259 S (903)-657-9561
Hilltop/Comfort Inn - Hwy 79 N (903)-657-8789 (This is what was the Holiday Inn Express)
Woodlawn Hills - Hwy 79 N (903)-657-2511

Kilgore
Delux Inn - N Henderson Blvd (903)-984-5501
Holiday Inn Express - Hwy 259 N (903)-986-3533
Best Western of Kilgore - Hwy 259 N (903)-986-1195

Longview
Raintree Motel - W Marshall Ave (903)-757-9119
Ramada Limited Suites - N Spur 63 (903)-757-0500
Homewood Suites - N Spur 63 (903)-234-0214
http://www.longviewtx.com/LODGING.HTML

The Henderson motels are all within a few minutes drive of the community center. Kilgore is about 15 to 20 miles away, and Longview is about 30. Longview is a large town, and has many more motels and hotels. Kilgore & Longview are generally cheaper than Henderson.

Campgrounds & RV Parks

Henderson
Cross and Sons RV Park
903-854-2997

H & H RV Park
903-836-2006

Mt. Enterprise (about 12 miles south on Hwy 259)
Whispering Pines RV Park
903-530-4755

Tatum (about 20 miles)
Martin Creek Lake State Park
903-836-4336

Carthage (about 30 miles)
Carthage RV Campground
903-693-6640
Murvaul Campgrounds & RV Park
903-693-6562
River Ridge Campground & RV Park
903-693-4441

NOTE: 2 new motels are being built in Henderson, but they will not be open in time for the convention.

Make plans to sing with us. Your presence will make it better.
http://www.texasfasola.org

Quotes: God's omniscience

"Did it ever occur to you that nothing ever occurs to God?" -- Baptist preacher R. Charles Blair of Western Kentucky often used this quote, but it is uncertain whether he originated it

Poor and blind and lame I am

1 – In darkness born, I went astray
And wandered from the gospel way;
And since the Savior gave me sight,
I cannot see without His light.

2 – So poor, and blind, and lame I am,
My all is bound up in the Lamb;
And blessed am I when I can see
My spirit’s inmost poverty.

3 – I cannot walk without His might,
I cannot see without His light;
I can have no access to God,
But through the merits of His blood.

4 - It makes me feel my ruined state,
It lays my soul at mercy's gate;
And Jesus smiles at such a guest;
And cheers him with a heavenly feast."

--John Berridge - 748 in Gadsby's Hymns

Junior moments

These little "ditties" were written in May of my junior year in high school -- 1975 (and were never intended to be sung). I don't remember the circumstances exactly, but they were associated with some class assignment. I have saved them all these years and I pass them along here for some unknown reason.

Neglect
The boat rotted
as it waited
to be boarded.

Toil and fun
Toil is tedious
Unless
Flavored with fun.
Fun is frivolous
Without
Work well done.

Wondering, wandering
The world is wondering
what will be done.
Our wisdom's wandering
down in the dung.
To which I added in 1988:
The "church" is clamoring
cancel the cross
Let's do some counseling
at any cost.
And sometime:
Is there help? Is there hope?
What will be done?
Yes, there's help. Yes, there's hope.
God's only Son.

Adiaphoron

Adiaphoron, pl. -a (Greek language αδιάφορα "indifferent things"; German "Mitteldinge" "middle matters") was a concept used in Stoic philosophy. It latter came to refer to matters not regarded as essential to faith, but nevertheless as permissible for Christians or allowed in church. adiaphora: matters not of a kind that should be cause for division. See 1 Corinthians 8 and Romans 14 regarding adiaphora.

Copied

A little logic

"No sermon, no confession of faith, no book on theology can restrict itself to the precise wording of the Bible. If the Bible says that Shechem is north of Jerusalem, and if it says that Beersheba is south of Jerusalem, we can conclude that Beersheba is south of Shechem, even if the Bible does not say so." -- Gordon Clark, Predestination, p. 111

"If the Scripture implies something, that something must be accepted. If a college student in a Logic class complains about the age-old syllogism -- All men are mortal; Socrates is a man; therefore, Socrates is mortal -- and remarks, 'I agree that all men are mortal and that Socrates is a man, but you can't force on me that mere human logic implies that Socrates is mortal,' the professor must reply, If you do not grasp the implication, you cannot understand anything, for nothing is clearer." -- Gordon Clark, Predestination, p. 123

Preservation of the Saints

"...God foreknew just what it would require to save a sinner. For an one to believe in the unlimited foreknowledge of God and then believe that God would prepare a remedy for the salvation of a sinner, that he knew would not save him, is sheer nonsense, and, in my estimation, such an idea stultifies the 'Holy One'." -- J. S. Newman in "Final Preservation of the Saints" Primitive Monitor, Vol. 10 No. 12, Dec. 1895

A wise comment about the All-wise God

"For those who believe that God rules purposefully and wisely over all things, our response to loss is a signal of how much idolatry is in our souls. Do we really treasure what we have lost more than God and his wisdom? If we find ourselves excessively angry or resentful or bitter, it may well show that we love God less that what we lost." -- John Piper in How Open Theism Helps Us Conceal Our Hidden Idolatries

Sacred Harp in San Antonio

A Sacred Harp singing convention will be held Saturday & Sunday, July 26-27, 2008 at Coker United Methodist Church on 231 E. North Loop Rd. San Antonio, Texas. For more detailed information, click HERE.

Baptist archive

I recently ran across BaptistArchive.com, and thought it was history related but discovered it was online sermons instead. I decided to post a link anyway.

BaptistHeritage.com has a good bit of information about Baptist historical sites HERE. Pretty good, though very incomplete. For example, the Texas page leaves off the location of the oldest continuous Missionary and Primitive Baptist churches.

What a difference a day makes

Most popular boy/girl baby names in 1950, according to the U.S. Social Security Administration:
1. James / Linda
2. Robert / Mary
3. John / Patricia
4. Michael / Barbara
5. David / Susan
6. William / Nancy
7. Richard / Deborah
8. Thomas / Sandra
9. Charles / Carol
10. Gary / Kathleen

Most popular boy/girl baby names in 2007, according to the U.S. Social Security Administration:

1. Jacob / Emily
2. Michael / Isabella
3. Ethan / Emma
4. Joshua / Ava
5. Daniel / Madison
6. Christopher / Sophia
7. Anthony / Olivia
8. William / Abigail
9. Matthew / Hannah
10. Andrew / Elizabeth

According to writer Jeanna Bryner, "Mary" was the top baby girl name from the 1880s into the 1950s; "John" consistently stayed among the top boy names during that same period. I'm not sure where "Sunday Rose" will fit into the list.

The Independent Baptist Movement

In April through June of 2008, The Sword of the Lord ran four installments on "The Independent Baptist Movement".* In them Editor Shelton Smith insists on the importance of the ideals of the independent Baptist movement, that it is "a credible, viable force, a necessary player in today’s arena" and gives reasons for staying separate from the Southern Baptist Convention. The editor discusses an undefined entity he calls "the independent Baptist movement," which, for this article, is the Hyles-Rice branch of independent Baptists. Of this type of independent Baptist, The Sword of the Lord publication is a prominent voice. I do not object to the Editor writing to and for his constituency, but the average reader should understand that "the independent Baptist movement" is much broader and more diverse than "Hyles-Rice" Baptists. The distinctive feature of independent Baptists is that they are independent. They cannot be confined to any particular style of Baptist.

Despite the subtitle "Its Ideals, Its Integrity, Its Imperatives", much of the first three installments deal with the independent Baptist movement (IBM) in its relationship to the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC). The IBM is contrasted to the SBC and the SBC looms as a constant threat. Many of the Hyles-Rice Baptists came out of the SBC and much of this faction of the IBM was incubated there. Underneath all this lies a tacit admission that the SBC is its closest relative, and the open acknowledgement that the SBC is the most likely siren to lure IBM preachers to shipwreck.

The editor explores the SBC's conservative resurgence, lamenting the "take-over" was not a "make-over". Reformation often is not restoration. Smith offers 16 reasons why IBM preachers and churches should maintain their distance from the SBC, many with which I agree. Among the diverse complaints are: "more ecumenical" and "less Baptist" than ever before, "a growing problem with five-point Calvinism," "very few pastor-led churches," "a major deficiency in evangelism," and "a sizeable denominational bureaucracy."

While there may be a crippling denomination bureaucracy in the SBC, the editor fails to acknowledge that some independents have developed their own miniature systems and acceptable man-made institutions. It may be technically true that "There is no national or international headquarters to which that church reports or answers. In other words, there is no denominational hierarchy or bureaucracy." But there are IBM organized fellowships, mission agencies & clearinghouses, seminaries & Bible colleges, etc.** The SBC may have been left, but not far behind. Another problem for young IBM ministers is that they often see little difference on the local church level, which the daily operations carried on much the same as in the SBC.

The fourth installment, for the most part, focuses on the independent Baptist movement and leaves the SBC to rest. This section looks at the IBM's image, ideals, infrastructure, imperatives, integrity and importance. IBM churches and preachers are touted as a distinctive people who are faithful to the Word of God. Yet, along with the editor, they apparently can't distinguish between a fundamental of the faith -- salvation by grace, eternal security, baptism, fiat creation, an inerrant Bible, separation -- and dispensational pretribulational premillennialism. And unfortunately the "distinctive" features that often make some of them unpopular and unwelcome is the display of arrogance, authoritarianism, negativity, and irascibility. But and if ye suffer for righteousness' sake, happy are ye.

One strong emphasis in this article and among the Hyles-Rice movement in general is pastor-led churches versus board-run in the SBC. Both are scripturally deficient. Let them seek out and find the biblical example of plurality of elders. Like the reformationists out of Rome, this IBM movement hasn't come out all the way back to the Bible (on this and other issues). One nearby incarnation of these "pastor-led local churches where the pastor is at liberty to be both prophetic and pastoral" includes an authoritarian dictator who has gophers to go before him to open doors and otherwise take care of his majesty's needs. Oh, certainly all IBM pastors don't fit that mold. Jesus said it shall not be so among you.

Much of Editor Smith's critique is valid. Independent autonomous local churches surely stand on solid scriptural ground. The call for separation from the world is needed now more than ever. Stay out of the SBC. Stay independent. And stay independent of any independent Baptist "movement"! If you have come out to be separate, be not content in mere separation, but "Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein."

* Appears to be the same or substantially the same as the hard copy
** Possibly more frequently than other legitimate movements, it seems that there is a predominance of "Doctors" in this branch of the IBM, no matter how much or little education he may have.

Oops

Acts 19:13-16 Then certain of the vagabond Jews, exorcists, took upon them to call over them which had evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preacheth. And there were seven sons of one Sceva, a Jew, and chief of the priests, which did so. And the evil spirit answered and said, Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are ye? And the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, and overcame them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.

I wonder if God gave the sons of Sceva a split-second between "who are ye" and the man leaping on them? That frozen moment in time just before the pain begins. That split-second to think "oops" just before the consequences of our actions hit us.

The Living Stone

On Christ salvation rests secure;
The Rock of ages must endure;
Nor can that faith be overthrown
Which rests upon the "Living Stone".

No other hope shall intervene:
To Him we look, on Him we lean;
Other foundations we disown,
And build on Christ, the "Living Stone".

In Him it is ordained to raise
A temple to the Father's praise,
Composed of all the saints who own
No Saviour but the "Living Stone".

View the vast building, see it rise;
The work how great, the plan how wise!
Oh, wondrous fabric, power unknown
That rears it on the "Living Stone"!

But most adore His precious name,
His glory and His grace proclaim:
For us, condemned, despised, undone,
He gave Himself, the "Living Stone".

Samuel Medley, (1738-1799).
as posted on Song To The Lamb 17 Apr 2008

The beliefs of others: Moravians

"In worship, the Moravians combine liturgical and extemporaneous prayer. At all the liturgical services music forms a prominent feature. Their liturgy and hymn-book are of a superior order. They have greatly enriched the treasures of German hymnology, and produced also one of the best English hymnists in James Montgomery (1771–1854), 'the Cowper of the nineteenth century.' Love-feasts are held preparatory to the communion, in imitation of the ancient Agapæ. Foot-washing was formerly practiced, but has been discontinued since the beginning of the present century. " -- Creeds of Christendom, with a History and Critical notes. Volume I. The History of Creeds. 1877, by Harper & Brothers Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House (6th Edition), p. 878

Quotes re music, singing

"In a day and age where so many troubles and trials are on every hand, we need to sing a song -- a song with foundation, strength and guidance -- a song of peace and joy about the sovereign God and his love for us." -- Harvey Dockery in the Preface to the 2002 Alabama Christian Harmony

"Heaven is the seat and home of song. It is not strange therefore that the pious on earth, bending their footsteps thither, anticipating their future employment, should give expression to their religious emotions in hymns of praise. Hence, in all ages of the church, the singing of the songs of Zion has constituted an essential part of worship." -- The Psalmody: a Collection of Hymns for Public and Social Worship, published in 1853

"Singing is not a simple heart singing, or mental singing; but a musical melodious modulation, or tuning of the voice. Singing is a duty performed always with the voice, and cannot be done without the tongue." -- Benjamin Keach, The Breach Repaired in God's Worship, or Singing of Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs Proved to be an Holy Ordinance of Jesus Christ, 1691.

"Musick hath Charms to soothe a savage Breast,
To soften Rocks, or bend a knotted Oak."
-- William Congreve, in The Mourning Bride, 1697 [Also from that source, "Heaven has no rage like love to hatred turned, Nor hell a fury like a woman scorned"]

Tis my desire

Tis my desire with God to walk,
And with His children pray and talk;
Although I persecuted be
Yet Jesus suffered so for me.

Tis my desire above the rest
To lean my head on Jesus' breast;
To be baptized, like Christ, my King
And yield to Him in everything.

Tis my desire, around the board
To meet Thy saints, my dearest Lord;
In union with Thy saints to be,
And oft commune with them and Thee.

Tis my desire His saints to meet,
To wash the dear disciples' feet;
And serve them, as my dearest Lord
Has taught me in His blessed Word.

From A New and Choice Selection of Hymns and Spiritual Songs for the Use of the Regular Baptist church, and all lovers of song, 17th edition by Elder E(rasmus) D. Thomas, pastor of the Regular Baptist Church, Danville, Ind. No. 546 (pp. 498-499)

The first two lines were used by B. F. White in his tune Desire for Piety (No. 76b The Sacred Harp, all editions). He credited the source as Baptist Harmony, p. 479. Perhaps this is The Baptist Harmony, being a Selection of Choice Hymns and Spiritual Songs for Social Worship, by Staunton S. Burdett, Pleasant Hill, SC, 1834.

Creation ex nihilo

"Creation ex nihilo, out of nothing, implies two things. First, there was no antecedent power to stimulate God; there was no one to suggest plans to God, or to suggest alterations to the plans God had; still less could anyone defeat God's purposes. God was alone. He could do as he pleased.

"In the second place, after God created something, the thing had no authority to complain, Why have you made me thus? A wren has no right to complain that it is not an elephant. God had decided to create a world, and a world by definition includes differences. The different things had no right to hold God responsible for the qualities they have or the qualities they lack. god is responsible to no one. He distributed wings, legs, horns, and minds just as it suited him." Gordon Clark, Predestination, p. 111

Victory and defeat

"Victory has a hundred fathers and defeat is an orphan." -- Italian diplomat Count Galeazzo Ciano (1903-1944) [Sometimes seen as "Success has many fathers, but failure is an orphan."]

"A preacher ain't nothin' but a man." -- Elder Duncan McCranie

Book reviews by others

Book reviews of books on Baptist history, faith and practice:

Jason K. Lee reviews Primitive Baptists of the Wiregrass South. By John G. Crowley

Jason G. Duesing reviews Baptist Ways: A History. By Bill J. Leonard

Jason G. Duesing reviews The Story of Baptists in the United States. By Pamela R. Durso and Keith E. Durso

Jason G. Duesing reviews Paradox and Perseverance: Hanserd Knollys, Particular Baptist Pioneer in Seventeenth-Century England. By Dennis C. Bustin

James Leo Garrett Jr. reviews A Genetic History of Baptist Thought: With Special Reference to Baptists in Britain and North America. By William H. Brackney

Chris Johnson reviews The Baptist Way. By R. Stanton Norman