Chariot of Israel a type of the Church” (Smoot)

 

“My father, my father! The Chariot of Israel; and the horsemen thereof.” – II Kings 2:12.

SELECTED FROM "THE SECTARIAN" (Smoot)

Occoquan, VA, August 1913

THE ISREAL OF GOD (Tolbert)

Due to the tender mercies of God, opportunity has been granted me to write some things for the consideration of the saints. May the Lord bless us with the ability to consider and, in considering, may it be done in light of the "true and faithful sayings of God."

“MY PRESENCE SHALL GO WITH THEE” (Smoot)

“My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest.” – Exodus xxxiii, 14.

What a precious and assuring promise is this! And how full of deep interest and unspeakable comfort the connections in which it stands!

The apparently insurmountable difficulties in his pathway loomed up before the sorely tried Moses, the man of Divine appointment, and in the work to which the God of Israel had most surely sent him. The consciousness of his own weakness pressed heavily upon him, and the idolatry, murmuring, bickering, unthankfulness, perverseness, and wickedness of the Israel which he was to lead through the terrible wilderness filled him with alarm.

He had already evidence of their unbelief and idolatry, their murmurings against him, and the difficulties which thronged the pathway over which he was to go. He could not rely upon them, for some of the worst enemies to confront him were to rise up out of their midst. He must look alone to the God who had sent him, to give him the ability to withstand the enemies within and without the camp, and his own evil spirit as well.

Truly, was there need to look anywhere else, for a fullness of wisdom, strength, and every needed grace was there. No power short of Divine could prepare him for his work, as no power short of this can qualify the ministry of today; “our sufficiency is of God.”

He was conscious of his own inability to successfully encounter the trials of the way, and hence he must bring his case to Him who had most surely called him to this great and exalted work. “And Moses said unto the Lord, . . . . Now therefore, I pray Thee, if I have found grace in Thy sight, shew me now Thy way, that I may know Thee, that I may find grace in Thy sight.” – Verse 13.

What a wonderful prayer! How distrustful of self! How needful of that supporting grace that could alone lead and keep him in the long, laborious way over which he was now to pass. No power but that of God could sustain him, no wisdom but that of God could direct him.

To the cloudy pillar by day, he must look, the flaming fire by night, as his Guide and Protector. He must look away from all human help, for he had been taught its utter vanity, and look to God alone. Hence, he could well say, “If Thy Presence go not with me, carry us not up hence,” verse 15. True indeed did he know that he and those with him were doomed to fall by the way without the Divine Protection. Hence, in fervent prayer, he calls to God, and Oh! What an assuring answer! “My Presence shall go with thee.” What boundless comfort this precious assurance! No doubts or contingencies are in the promise. “My presence shall.” Already, he must see by faith the flowing fields of Canaan, the goal of the long pilgrimage, the Divine victory in every conflict, and triumph over every obstacle. And what, dear saints, of this to us? As ministers of Gospel grace, we have a similar assuring testimony: “Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.” – Matthew xxviii, 20. What blessed power in this assurance as it comes direct from the heavenly throne, as it is spoken in our hearts, as we feel its magic and divine Presence, for “the chariots of God are twenty-thousand, even thousands of angels” The Lord is among them, as in Sinai, in the holy place.” – Psalm lxvii, 17.

When worn and weary, hard pressed by foes without and within, when sore trials press upon us, and the billows roll in upon our soul, then do we find Him “a very present Help in trouble.” – Psalm xlvi, 1.

“While the raging billows roll,

While the tempest still is night.”

And when we are fast reaching the end of our mortal pilgrimage, and the waves of death tower high about us, shutting out every earthly object from our sigh,t then does this blessed Presence dispel the awful gloom of death, and open before us the pearly gates of our immortal home, for the text continues, “I will give thee rest.”

It is probable that more special reference is here made to the rest given Moses in the toil and trial through which he was to pass, but this could not be the full meaning of the promise, and the connection in which it stands indicates a far more glorious sequel. ‘Tis a blessed thing to rest here in our labor and toil as children of grace, to experience the truth of the testimony, “I will give you rest. . . . For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.” – Matthew xi, 28-30. To rest in the arms of God, to bask in His smiles; dreary, desolate beyond expression would the world be without such “heavenly places,” for

“Beneath His smiles my heart has lived,

And part of heaven possessed.”

It has been perhaps nearly thirty years now since our attention was first directed to these words. It was on the threshold of a long and laboring journey of nearly a thousand miles, beset with difficulties from which our flesh shrank. Again we desired once more to ask the Lord for His divine guidance and protection, the cry had been in our heart for days in anticipation of the journey, but the morning for the start had now arrived, and deepening in our heart arose the cry, similar we trust to that of Moses: “If Thy Presence go not with me, carry us (me) not up hence.” Our mind turns back over the waste of years, and as vivid as on that eventful morning, we hear the wondrous words, and our heart feels the thrilling power of that blessed assurance: “My Presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest.” We went out of the chamber of prayer to face the dreaded journey. It was a bright and beautiful day. The sun shone high in the heavens; the earth was full of His praise, while our whole being was filled with an unspeakable calmness, a quiet resting in the arms of our God.

Yea, and all through the long and tedious travel, the power of this assurance filled our hearts, making it a most delightful journey. Here indeed was rest we trust, in the Presence of God. But there is a fullness of rest beyond all these changing scenes of time, and of which this is a delightful foretaste. “I will give thee rest.” It is not then dependent upon earthly obligations; it comes as the gift of God.

It comes from His boundless mercy despite our rebellious, vile, carnal complainings and murmurings, our wanderings and perverseness, our sins and iniquities, “if we believe not, yet He abideth faithful: He cannot deny Himself.” – 2 Timothy ii, 13. In the same school where Moses learned the lesson of patient waiting upon God and the enduring and supporting nature of His Presence, so do the ministers of Christ learn to look unto Him who has promised to be with them “always, even unto the end of the world.” In this severe school, they are tried “as by fire.” It was said of Joseph, “the archers have sorely grieved him, and shot at him, and hated him. But his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob.” – Genesis xlix, 23,24.

The subjects of their ministration are prepared through similar scenes to receive the word of truth, to appreciate and rejoice in the Gospel, and the ministration thereof. “Blessed is the man whose strength is in Thee; in whose heart are the ways of them, . . . They go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.” – Psalm lxxxiv, 5,7. It is the Divine Presence alone that sustains the children of Gospel grace in their pathway through time.

It is the promise of rest unending that dispels the gloom of the grave, that overtakes its dark portals in rays of light eternal. “I will give thee rest.” Surely such a rest in its fullness can never be found upon mortal shores. Well indeed may it be said with reference to all this, as was declared to Israel in days of old: “Arise ye, and depart, for this is not your rest: because it is polluted, it shall destroy you, even with a sore destruction.” There is no rest to children of grace in houses and lands, in wealth or in fame, in mortal relationship, or in anything that bears the impress of time or mortality. Away from all these, we look by faith to climes unclouded by mortal woe, undimmed by earthly night, untainted by mortal pollution, and forever free from sin and death.

“Oh sacred rest for thee we groan,

And bid the wheels of time roll on,

To bring that hour, when we shall rise

To join the chorus of the skies.”

It was said of Israel, “In all their afflictions He was afflicted, and the angel of His Presence saved them: in His love and in His pity He redeemed them, and He bare them, and carried them all the days of old.” – Isaiah lxiii, 9. It is this blessed Presence of God that upholds, protects, defends, and sustains the children of grace here, and until faith stretches her pinions for the immortal flight; “For this God is our God forever and ever: He will be our Guide even unto death.” – Psalm xlviii, 14. “Nevertheless, I am continually with thee: thou hast holden me by my right hand. Thou shalt guide me with Thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory.”

Then of what we have written, this is the sum that the guiding, sustaining Presence of God shall be made manifest in all the pilgrimage of saints here, and open before them the portals of endless rest hereafter:

“For grace shall guide and glory crown,

The happy objects of His care.”

“My flesh and my heart faileth; but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion forever.” – Psalm lxxiii, 26. “Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings hast Thou ordained strength because of Thine enemies, that Thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger.” – Psalm viii, 2. “As for me, I will behold Thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied when I awake with Thy likeness.” – Psalm xvii, 15.

 Elder William M. Smoot,
May, 1905

Blessed Are The Poor In Spirit (Smoot)

 

“Blessed are the poor in spirit; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” – Matthew v. 3.

The Departure of the Unclean Spirit (Smoot)

“When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished.

THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES CONTINUES! (SANTAMARIA)

 It our pleasure to inform all of you that Beebe's paper still lives!  Founded in 1832, it has been in continual circulation until now!

The subscription price is $15.00 per year.  It comes out monthly.  We encourage all to subscribe!

Here is the address:

Tom R. Horton

Circulation Manager and Treasurer

1429 Howlett Street

Hillsville, Virginia 24343

Tel. 276-747-4251

GOSPEL TRUTH OUR UNFAILING DEFENSE (Smoot)

“Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable.” – Hebrews xi, 12.

The Gospel Ministry (Smoot)

“No man taketh this honor unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron.” Hebrews 5:4.

GOD IS LIGHT (Smoot)

“O send out Thy light and Thy Truth: let them lead me; let them bring me unto Thy holy hill, and to Thy tabernacles.” – Psalm xliii, 3.

Has No Pleasure in the Death of the Dying (Smoot)

God

Dear Brother Smoot: Will you please give your views on Ezekiel xviii, 32, and oblige an inquirer after Truth. May the Lord bless you in your labors, is the prayer of your unworthy brother,
James V. Wright.

WHO ARE MEANS BAPTISTS? (Smoot)

In using the term “Means”, we have reference to its modern usage among Baptists, having direct bearing upon human effort to assist the eternal God either to devise or execute (sometimes both) His eternal purposes of love and mercy toward His chosen children.

WE HAVE NO ABIDING CITY (Smoot)

There are few more solemn reminders of the fast-passing nature of all that is mortal than the swiftly recurring anniversaries that mark the close and opening of each fleeting year of our earthly pilgrimage.

THIS GOD IS OUR GOD FOREVER (Smoot)

“For this God is our God forever and ever; He will be our guide even unto death.” – Psalm xlviii, 14.

SUNADAY SCHOOLS: NURSERIES OF THE CHURCH (Santamaria)

SUNDAY SCHOOLS THE NURSERIES OF THE CHURCH

Contents

• FOREWORD
• Sunday Schools
• The Old School/Primitive Baptist critique (the Absoluter wing, historically)
• So… are Sunday Schools “good” or “bad”?
• Outsourcing discipleship:
• Moralism/decisionism drift:
• Age segregation:
• NURSERIES OF THE CHURCH
• Older Christian usage: “nursery” = a seedbed for future church life (often clergy-training).
• Puritan / early-modern household theology: the family as the church’s nursery.
• 19th-century Sunday School movement: the phrase becomes a rallying cry.
• Who used “nurseries of the church” in the Sunday-school world?
• John Angell James (England),3 very early and very explicit (1816/1817).
• Early movement rhetoric also used “nursery” language even when it didn’t say “of the church.”
• The American religious press used the exact wording by the 1830s.
• Later 19th-century Sunday-school “how-to” literature repeats it as a stock slogan.
• The American Sunday School is basically the church’s “learning hour.”
• What happens inside a Sunday School depends on the tradition, but the usual DNA looks like this:
• Structure: superintendent, opening exercises, then classes (often age-graded).
• Curriculum: Bible stories → doctrine/catechism → “life application,” sometimes synced across many churches (“uniform lessons”).
• Social function: it’s not just teaching; it’s membership training, culture-passing, and (in many settings) an outreach funnel.
• The Old School/Primitive Baptist critique (the Absoluter wing, historically)
• The Black Rock Address (1832)
• More on the Black Address & Sunday Schools
• Outsourcing discipleship:
• Moralism/decisionism drift:
• Age segregation:
• Institution creep,

FOREWORD

COMFORT IN AFFLICTION (Smoot)

During the past few months, I have met with several cases of deep affliction among our brethren, which have awakened within me a desire to write a few thoughts to the poor and afflicted in Zion.

CONCERNING THIS SECT, WE KNOW THAT EVERYWHERE IT IS SPOKEN AGAINST.” (Smoot)

“But we desire to hear of thee what thou thinkest: for as concerning this sect, we know that everywhere it is spoken against.” – Acts 28:22.

THE GOVERNMENT OF CHRIST’S CHURCH (Smoot)

Written by: Elder William M. Smoot, Dec. 1908

Very Dear Brethren in the Lord: – One year ago, in the Circular Letter which we addressed to you, we called attention to the organic life and character of the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ; in our present Circular, we desire to call attention to the government of that Church. As a testimony for our guidance, we direct attention to the Scripture recorded in Matthew v, 19: “Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the Kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the Kingdom of heaven.”

FELT MANIFOLD TEMPTATIONS

I have felt, of late, a desire to write again a communication for the SIGNS again, but have felt my own inability to write in comparison with the many able communications contained from time to time in its columns.

NICENE CREED AND OLD SCHOOL BAPTISTS (Santamaria)

OLD SCHOOL BAPTISTS & THE NICENE CREED

FOREWORD

ELECTION, ETERNAL LIFE IN CHRIST, UNION WITH CHRIST, ABSOLUTE PREDESTINATION OF ALL THINGS, A NEW BIRTH. AND BODILY RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD (Smoot)

A little over fourteen years have passed since I was enabled by grace to find a home in the Gospel church and among the people of the Most High God.

ETERNAL VITAL UNION AMONG OLD SCHOOL BAPTISTS (Santamaria)

ETERNAL VITAL UNION AMONG OLD SCHOOL BAPTISTS

Contents

1. Where Beebe responds to Dudley

2. What Dudley had challenged

3. Beebe’s main line of response

a) He asserts a “higher relationship” than mere creatureliness

b) He doubles down on eternal spiritual seed in Christ

c) He hammers Dudley with seven rhetorical questions

Does the church have “real and vital” existence in Christ or not?– If no, then there is no true “vital union” at all; if yes, we’re already halfway to EVU. ( old-baptist-test.blogspot.com)

BEEBE’S 1879 ARTICLE

E.S.DUDLEYS’ LETTER TO BEEBE IN THE SIGNS

LETTER FROM ELDER TROTT TO BRETHREN AT FORT MOUNTAIN, VIRGINIA. (2ND)

THOMAS HILL’S[[ENDNOTE:4]] LETTER TO BEEBE3RD)

THOMAS HILL.

VIRTUAL UNION VS. ACTUAL UNION. (BEEBE)

ETERNAL VITAL UNION

ETERNAL LIFE. (TROTT)

UNION OF CHRIST WITH THE CHURCH.

THE CHILDREN OF THE FLESH, THESE ARE NOT THE CHILDREN OF GOD (SMOOT)

THE CHILDREN PARTAKE OF FLESH AND BLOOD (Smoot)

1891 – CIRCULAR LETTER ON THE DIVINE ORDER OF GOSPEL SALVATION (SMOOT)

SOLOMON ANTITYPICAL OF CHRIST (SMOOT)

ETERNAL VITAL UNION AND HIS CHURCH 1849 (T.P. DUDLEY)

ETERNAL VITAL IUNION AND HIS CHURCH 1847 (T.P. DUDLEY)

IMAGE OF GOD 1871 (T.P. DUDLEY)

1. Elder William Conrad (Kentucky)

2. Elder John M. Watson (Tennessee) – Old Baptist Test

THE NEW BIRTH, UNION WITH CHRIST, ETC.

S E C T I O N X I .

ARGUMENT CONTINUED.

S E C T I O N X I I .

ARGUMENT CONTINUED.

S E C T I O N X I I I .

RECAPITULATION.

3. Ketocton Association & the “Old Virginia” line

Elder John Clark (Virginia) – Exposure of Heresies & Zion’s Advocate

( we have not been able to obtain a digital copy of this book the only information is quotes from Elder Trott from his articles)

SEPARATION OF KETOCKTON AND OLD VIRGINIA ASSOCIATIONS

C A L M R E P L Y

TO A

COMMUNICATION OF ELD. JOHN CLARK

APRIL 30, 1853,

WITH THAT COMMUNICATION INSERTED.

BY. S. TROTT

PREFACE

S.TROTT

A CALM REPLY TO A COMMUNICATION OF ELD. JOHN CLARK.

S. TROTT. FOOTNOTE:

APPENDIX

S. TROTT.

5. Elder Lemuel Potter[[ENDNOTE:7]]

TWO SEED DOCTRINE

6. Elder Joel Hume[[ENDNOTE:8]] (Kentucky)

7. Sylvester Hassell & the Kehukee/Gospel Messenger circle

8. Elder T. E. Sikes[[ENDNOTE:9]] (The Pilgrim’s Banner)

9. Other names on the anti-EVU side

Big picture

ETERNAL VITAL UNION AMONG OLD SCHOOL BAPTISTS

FOREWORD

Power of God in Salvation (Elder Mikal Smith)

Dearest Brethren,

Praise be to God, who is not hindered by man’s work or lack of work, for the gospel—and the salvation it proclaims—

TRY HARD CHRISTIANITY (Santamaria)

THE TRY-HARD CHRISTIANITY

By Guillermo Santamaria

“Trying hard to be holy” – the strain of effort-based Christianity.

Contents

• Foreword
• Absoluter Position among Old School Baptists
• New School Missionary Baptist Position
• “Growth in Grace” in the Mind of Beebe and Trott
• Key Terms Often Used to Defend Progressive Sanctification
• Striving, Pursuing, Chasing After, and Other Exhortations
• How This Relates to Those Who Think an Effort Must Be Made Toward Holiness

FOREWORD

THE FALSE MYSTERY IN THE LORD'S SUPPER OFTEN PRESENTED (Santamaria)

THE FALSE MYSTERY IN THE LORD’S SUPPER OFTEN PRESENTED

By Guillermo Santamaria

FOREWORD

TUB PREACHERS AND THEIR KIN (Santamaria)

TUB PREACHERS AND THEIR KIN

FOREWORD

RELIGIOUS THEATER: ANCIENT AND MODERN (Santamaria)

RELIGIOUS THEATER: ITS ANCIENT AND MODERN VERSIONS

FOREWORD

Mixed up Version of a Mixed up Doctrine - Two Seed - (Crowley)

FOREWORD

The Two Seed theology attributed to Elder Daniel Parker went through a number of changes in subsequent years. Elder G.W. Mathes of Cole County, Ill., starting in the late 1860s, popularized a revised version of Two-Seedism, which concentrated on eliminating the idea of unconditional election and eternal punishment while not asserting free will or conditional salvation. In Florida and South Georgia, this doctrine was popularized by Elder Isaac S. Coon of Lowndes County. Coon’s Synopsis and Mathes’s Discourse are very complete examples of the unusual hermeneutics and conclusions of what might be called “Neo-Two Seedism.” Although the Two Seeders ceased to be a functioning organization in Georgia and Florida after 1935, aspects of their belief quietly survived among local Primitive Baptists.

 

Dr. J. Crowley

Circular Letter Of Virginia Annual Meeting: “Salvation of Sinners” (Smoot)

Drafted by William Middleton Smoot, August 1890,

The Sectarian, Vol. 1, Issue 2.

The Children of the flesh, these are Not the Children of God (Smoot)

“They which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted for the seed.” – Romans ix, 8.

THE CHILDREN OF HEAVEN SEEK A BETTER COUNTRY (Smoot)

“And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned. But now they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly, wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for He hath prepared for them a city.” – Hebrews xi, 15,16.

THE CHILDREN PARTAKE OF FLESH AND BLOOD (Smoot)

Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; Hebrews ii, 14.

THE NON-LOCAL CHURCH MINDSET (Santamaria)

The Non-Local Church Mindset

Contents

• FOREWORD
• INTRODUCTION
• WHAT WERE THE BAPTISTS LIKE BEFORE THE GREAT AWAKENING?
• THE MINDSET
• NAMES AND ORGANIZATIONS

FOREWORD

THE NECESSITY OF THE LOCAL CHURCH (Santamaria)

 

The Necessity of the Local Church

Start with this: the New Testament doesn’t even know the category “Christian, but not joined to a local church.” That’s already a big theological clue.

We’ll look at this in two parts:

• What the New Testament actually shows and requires
• How you might talk to that Christian

1. What the New Testament actually shows

a) Believers are added to concrete churches

After Pentecost:

“Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.” (Acts 2:41)
“And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.” (Acts 2:47)

Added to what? Not to a mystical database in heaven, but to the visible Jerusalem congregation. There is a discernible “them” you can be added to.

And immediately you get:

• They continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, breaking of bread, and prayers (Acts 2:42).
• Their life is ordered as a body: they’re together, sharing, identified as a community (Acts 4:32).

In the rest of Acts, believers are not just “Christians at large,” but attached to specific churches:

• The church at Jerusalem (Acts 8:1)
• The church at Antioch (Acts 13:1)
• The churches of Galatia, Macedonia, Achaia, etc.

Letters are written to assemblies in particular places, and those assemblies have boundaries.

b) Church discipline makes no sense without membership

Try to do Matthew 18 and 1 Corinthians 5 without a real, defined local body.

Matthew 18:15–17:

• If a brother will not hear the two or three witnesses, you “tell it unto the church.”
• If he will not hear “the church,” he is to be unto you as a heathen man and a publican.

That presupposes:

• A particular congregation that can hear and act
• A knowable line between “inside” and “outside”

1 Corinthians 5:12–13:
“What have I to do to judge them also that are without? do not ye judge them that are within? But them that are without God judgeth. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person.”

You cannot have “within” and “without” without a recognized “us.”

If a Christian says, “I’m not really in any church,” then:

• No church has standing to discipline them
• No church can restore them
• They escape the very structure Christ gave for correction and care

That’s not “extra spiritual”; that’s structurally disobedient.

c) Shepherds and flock imply a defined relationship

Hebrews 13:17:
“Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account…”

Two questions for the “I don’t do local church” Christian:

• Which specific men are watching for your soul as those who will give account?
• To which specific shepherds are you obeying and submitting?

If the answer is “no one in particular,” then this verse is functionally void.

Likewise:

• 1 Thessalonians 5:12–13 – “Know them which labour among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you.”
• 1 Peter 5:2–3 – Elders are to “feed the flock of God which is among you… being ensamples to the flock.”

Elders are set “in every church” (Acts 14:23; Titus 1:5). No elders without churches, no churches without flocks, no flocks without actual “among you.”

To reject committed belonging is, in practice, to reject Christ’s appointed structure for shepherding.

d) The body language is local, not just universal

Yes, there is the “one body” in the universal sense (Ephesians 4:4). But when Paul works out the practical life of the body, he’s talking about concrete congregations.

Read 1 Corinthians 12–14:

• The body analogy (“the eye cannot say to the hand, I have no need of thee”) is written to a single local church (1 Corinthians 1:2; 11:18; 14:23).
• The gifts are for their gathered worship: “when ye come together in the church, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine…” (1 Corinthians 14:26).

If someone says, “I’m part of the body of Christ, I just don’t belong to any local church,” they are affirming the metaphor and denying its actual New Testament form.

e) The Lord’s Supper assumes a gathered church

1 Corinthians 11:18, 20, 33:

• “When ye come together in the church…”
• “When ye come together therefore into one place…”
• “Wherefore, my brethren, when ye come together to eat, tarry one for another.”

The Supper is not “me and Jesus at home when I feel led.” It’s an ordinance given to an assembled church, which again presupposes:

• An identifiable “we”
• Mutual responsibility (“tarry one for another”)
• An ordered pattern of gathering

The person who refuses any binding commitment to a local church is voluntarily excluding themselves from the normal New Testament pattern of Word, ordinances, and discipline.

f) The church is a household, not a meetup

1 Timothy 3:15:
“…the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.”

A household is not a loose network of unrelated people who occasionally bump into each other. It has:

• Structure
• Order
• Recognized members
• Discipline

The Pastoral Epistles are basically a manual for how that household is to be ordered: bishops, deacons, widows enrolled, accusations handled, etc. That’s not “vibes-based Christianity”; that’s institutional, visible, communal life.

2. How you might respond in conversation

In responding to someone who rejects local church membership, you want to keep three things together: sympathy, Scripture, and specific questions.

a) Acknowledge the real issues

Many “unchurched Christians” are reacting to:

• Abuse of authority
• Hypocrisy and worldliness
• Shallow, program-driven churches

You can say frankly: “Yes, the New Testament churches themselves were often a mess (Corinth, Galatia, the seven churches in Revelation), and Christ still calls them churches, rebukes them, and walks among them. The answer to bad churches in Scripture is never ‘no church,’ but ‘repent, reform, or join one that’s striving to walk in order.’”

So we don’t defend dysfunction. We defend Christ’s order.

b) Clarify what “membership” actually means

You can say something like:

“Forget the word ‘membership’ for a second. The New Testament picture is simply this: believers in a place gather regularly, under recognized shepherds, share the ordinances, bear one another’s burdens, and exercise discipline. The modern word ‘membership’ is just our way of saying: I am part of this flock, under these elders, with these brothers and sisters, to whom I’m accountable and among whom I serve.”

Then ask:

• “Is there any church on earth of which that is true of you?”
• “Who could rightly admonish you and, if necessary, carry a matter to ‘the church’ in your case?”

If the answer is “no one,” that’s not normal by New Testament standards.

c) Use Scripture to frame the problem

You might walk them (briefly) through:

• Acts 2:41–47 – people saved, baptized, and added; continuing steadfastly in doctrine, fellowship, ordinances.
• 1 Corinthians 5 – inside/outside, discipline.
• Hebrews 13:17 – obey those who watch for your souls.
• 1 Corinthians 12–14 – body life and gathered worship.
• 1 Timothy 3:15 – church as household and pillar of truth.

Then say something like:

“I’m not asking whether you’re a Christian. I’m asking whether your current pattern of life exists anywhere in the New Testament. The apostles do not imagine believers floating unattached. The normal path of obedience to Christ includes being joined to a concrete assembly.”

d) Address the “Jesus and me is enough” line

You can answer gently:

“Union with Christ is absolutely enough for salvation. But the same Christ who saves you also commands how His saved people are to walk. The Shepherd who carries the lamb on His shoulders also places that lamb in a flock. To refuse the flock while claiming to follow the Shepherd is a contradiction the New Testament never blesses.”

Or shorter:

“Yes, Christ is enough. But Christ is not a bachelor. He has a bride, and she has congregations.”

e) Not law-keeping, but obedience of faith

Finally, make clear you’re not saying, “Join a church to be saved.”

You’re saying more like:

“Because Christ has saved you, He calls you into the life of His body. That means a real church, with real people, real mess, real love, real discipline. The New Testament pattern of discipleship is not: ‘just you and your Bible in perpetual independence,’ but ‘you and your Bible in the household of God.’”

Then you can invite them, not to a vague ideal, but to seek out a biblicically ordered congregation and actually bind themselves to it.

Bottom line

The New Testament doesn’t give you a sentence that says, “Thou shalt sign a membership roll,” but it gives you something much weightier: a whole structure of life that only makes sense if Christians are formally, mutually bound to actual local churches. The “free-agent Christian” is not a deeper, purer New Testament model; it’s a modern invention that lives largely outside the apostolic pattern.

WITHOUT CHRIST ALL IS DARKNESS: STUDIES IN SOLA SCRIPTURA (Santamaria)

WITHOUT CHRIST ALL IS DARKNESS – STUDIES IN SOLA SCRIPTURA

Contents

• Foreword
• What Is the Definition of Sola Scriptura?
• What Is the History of the Term Sola Scriptura?
• Who Was the First Person to Use This Term?
• Is There an Inherent Tension Between Sola Scriptura and Inner Spiritual Communication?
• Luther on Sola Scriptura and the Inward Working of the Holy Spirit
• What Is the Old School Baptist View?
• How Does Sola Scriptura Apply to Those Who Do Not Have the Scriptures?
• How Does Sola Scriptura Relate to the False Doctrine of Gospel Regeneration?
• If You Need the Spirit to Interpret the Bible, How Do You Know the Right Interpretation?

FOREWORD

ALL THINGS TO ALL MEN (Santamaria)

ALL THINGS TO ALL MEN

Contents

• Foreword
• Interpretation
• Examples of Paul Becoming All Things To All Men
• The Context
• Philosophical and Religious Backgrounds of Corinth
• What Was Involved with the Sacred Prostitutes?
• Jewish Philosophy
• Examples of Financial Gaps
• Examples of Wealthy Corinthians
• Were There Any Examples of the Poor in Corinth?
• The Challenge of Evangelism and Fellowship
• Practical Examples of “Becoming All Things”
• Gospel Motivation
• Endnotes / Sources

FOREWORD

NOT TO BRING PEACE BUT A SWORD (Santamaria)

NOT TO BRING PEACE BUT A SWORD

Contents

• Foreword
• Interpretation
• Old School Baptist View
• Evangelicals and the Old School Baptist Witness
• The Cost of Discipleship

FOREWORD

WERE BY NATURE (Santamaria)

 

FOREWORD

All things in our lives are ultimately determined by nature.

Guillermo Santamaria

THE NEW NATURE IN THE NEW BIRTH

The Greek word φύσις (phusis) is found in key New Testament verses that discuss the concept of new birth and new nature.

Examples Where φύσις Appears in Relation to New Nature:

Ephesians 4:24
“And to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.”
The phrase “new self” here translates the Greek phrase καινὴν κτίσιν, literally “new creation,” closely related to the concept of a new φύσις or new nature. While φύσις itself is not used explicitly in this verse, the concept of a new created nature is conveyed.

2 Corinthians 5:17
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”
This verse uses καινὴ κτίσις (“new creation”), again closely related in meaning to new φύσις, though φύσις as a noun is not directly used.

Colossians 3:10
“...and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator.”
Like Ephesians 4:24, the concept is of a renewed or new nature, though φύσις is not the exact word used.

Romans 5:12–19 and Ephesians 2:3
In these passages, φύσις appears explicitly, especially in Ephesians 2:3:
“by nature (φύσει) children of wrath,” describing the old sinful nature. Here φύσις is used directly to denote the inherited sinful condition, the “old nature” that is replaced by the new.

Summary

The actual Greek noun φύσις appears explicitly in passages like Ephesians 2:3 describing the old sinful nature.

In verses describing the new birth or new nature (2 Cor 5:17, Eph 4:24), related terms like καινὴ κτίσις (“new creation”) are used to express the new φύσις, even if φύσις itself is not directly stated.

The concept of a new nature is scripturally taught through these closely related Greek terms, reflecting the theological idea of regeneration.

Thus, while φύσις itself may not always be the exact term, the concept of a “new nature” is definitely present and scripturally grounded in the New Testament Greek.

https://www.bibleref.com/Ephesians/2/Ephesians-2-3.html
http://biblehub.com/greek/5449.htm

COMPARISON BETWEEN PAGAN USE AND NT USE OF THE GREEK WORD “NATURE”

The Greek word φύσις (phusis) in pagan Greek texts and its use in the Bible share common roots but differ in emphasis and theological nuance.

Comparison of Phusis in Pagan Greek and Biblical Use

Common Ground: Natural Growth and Essential Nature

Both pagan Greek and biblical uses of φύσις emphasize the intrinsic nature or essential qualities of a person or thing, as well as natural growth or origin. In both contexts, it conveys what something is by its own principle of being and development—its inherent constitution or character.

Pagan Greek Context: Philosophical and Cosmic

In pagan Greek texts, φύσις broadly encompasses the natural order, cosmic laws, and the metaphysical principle of change and permanence. It has philosophical depth, serving as a key concept in Greek natural philosophy, ethics, and ontology, often contrasted with νόμος (law/custom). It is neutral or positive in tone, describing the universe’s inherent order and the nature of beings within it.

Biblical Context: Moral and Spiritual Dimension

In the New Testament, φύσις retains the sense of innate nature but gains a distinct moral and spiritual dimension, particularly in Pauline theology. It often refers to the “fallen nature” or sinful condition inherited by humanity (“by nature children of wrath” in Ephesians 2:3). This introduces a theological judgment about human nature that is absent in pagan Greek texts, emphasizing spiritual alienation from God and the need for divine grace and redemption.

Redemption and New Nature

The biblical usage also introduces the concept of a “new nature” through salvation and regeneration by the Holy Spirit, contrasting with the old, fallen φύσις. This salvific dynamic is unique to the Christian use, reflecting the theological narrative of sin, judgment, and grace, which pagan Greek philosophy does not address.

Summary Table

Aspect	Pagan Greek Use	Biblical Use
Core Meaning	Natural growth, essence, cosmos, and law	Innate nature, especially fallen human nature
Moral/Spiritual Tone	Neutral / Philosophical	Moral judgment, sinful condition, spiritual need
Metaphysical Use	Fundamental principles of being and change	Fallen nature vs. redeemed new nature
Ethical Contrast	Contrast with human law (νόμος)	Contrast with divine grace and salvation

Conclusion

While rooted in the same Greek concept of intrinsic nature and natural order, the biblical use of φύσις incorporates a profound theological significance regarding human sinfulness and divine redemption, marking a clear development from its pagan Greek philosophical context.

https://www.encyclopedia.com/humanities/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/nomos-and-phusis
https://classicalwisdomkids.substack.com/p/the-heartbeat-of-nature
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Physis
https://www.hellenicgods.org/nature---physis
https://www.bibleref.com/Ephesians/2/Ephesians-2-3.html
http://biblehub.com/greek/5449.htm

COMPARISON BETWEEN THESE TWO NATURES AND OLD AND NEW MAN

Yes, the concepts of “old nature” and “new nature” in the New Testament are closely related to the biblical terms “old man” and “new man,” often used interchangeably to describe the spiritual state before and after regeneration.

Relationship Between Nature and Man in Scripture

Old Man and Old Nature

The “old man” (Greek: ὁ παλαιὸς ἄνθρωπος) refers to the former self under sin’s dominion, characterized by the sinful, fallen φύσις (nature) inherited from Adam. This old nature is associated with sin, death, and separation from God (Romans 6:6; Ephesians 4:22; Colossians 3:9).

The “old man” is essentially the person dominated by the old nature, the base sinful impulses and corrupt inclinations that Christ frees believers from.

New Man and New Nature

The “new man” (ὁ καινὸς ἄνθρωπος) symbolizes the renewed self created by God’s grace—a transformation brought about through the new φύσις (nature) imparted at the new birth (Ephesians 4:24; Colossians 3:10).

The new man/new nature is characterized by righteousness, holiness, and a restored relationship with God, aligning believers with Christ’s image.

Interchangeability and Integration

Biblical writers use these terms somewhat interchangeably, as “man” encompasses the whole human person, and “nature” focuses more on the inner constitution or disposition. The transformation from old to new nature is the essential change defining the old man’s death and the new man’s birth (2 Corinthians 5:17).

Summary Table

Term	Focus	Description	Key Passages
Old Man (ὁ παλαιὸς ἄνθρωπος)	Person under sin’s control	Former self dominated by the old, sinful nature	Romans 6:6; Ephesians 4:22
Old Nature (παλαιὰ φύσις)	Inner disposition/nature	Inherited sinful nature deserving wrath	Ephesians 2:3; Romans 5:12
New Man (ὁ καινὸς ἄνθρωπος)	Regenerated person	Renewed self with a new nature reflecting God’s righteousness	Ephesians 4:24; Colossians 3:10
New Nature (καινὴ φύσις)	Inner new nature	New life created in Christ at regeneration	2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 4:24

Conclusion

The “old man” is the outward expression of the old φύσις (nature) dominated by sin, while the “new man” represents the renewed new φύσις given in Christ. They are two interconnected terms that describe the radical transformation in a believer’s identity and disposition.

https://www.bibleref.com/Ephesians/2/Ephesians-2-3.html
http://biblehub.com/greek/5449.htm
https://enduringword.com/bible-commentary/ephesians-2/

HOW CAN THIS ETERNAL VITAL UNION BE ETERNAL IF THE TRANSFORMATION OCCURS AT THE NEW BIRTH, OR DOES IT?

The question touches on a crucial theological point about the nature and timing of eternal vital union with Christ. Though called “eternal,” the experience or application of this union appears to be realized at the moment of “transfer” or spiritual regeneration. Here is how this is understood:

Eternity and Temporality in Vital Union

Eternal Reality vs. Temporal Application

The union between Christ and the believer is eternal in its nature—it is grounded in God’s eternal decree and the unchanging reality of Christ’s saving work. However, the subjective experience or application of this union occurs temporally at the moment of spiritual regeneration or “transfer” (Colossians 1:13) when the believer is united to Christ by faith.

God’s Eternal Decree and Life-Giving Union

The eternal aspect refers to God’s eternal plan and the fact that union with Christ is never undone once granted. It is “eternal” because it is rooted in the eternal life of Christ and the eternal redemption Christ secured—meaning it is permanent and unbreakable (John 10:28–29). Yet, the individual enters into the experience of this union at a particular point in time.

The “Already” and “Not Yet” Dynamic

Ephesians 2:3 shows the believer’s former state, but through God’s grace, the believer is “transferred” from the dominion of darkness to the kingdom of light (Colossians 1:13). This moment of transition is the experience of entering into vital union. Theologically, this union is both an accomplished fact in Christ (eternal) and a lived reality progressively experienced.

Analogy of Adoption and Inheritance

An analogy: a person may be declared an heir (eternal legal status) before receiving the actual inheritance (temporal event). Similarly, the eternal union exists in God’s eternal purpose, but the believer receives and experiences it when spiritually awakened and united by faith.

Summary

• The vital union with Christ is eternal in God’s decree and the permanence of salvation.
• The experiential reality of union—being “transferred” from old nature to new—is temporal, occurring at regeneration.
• This explains why Ephesians 2:3’s description of the old nature applies before the transfer, but eternal union becomes effective when transferred into Christ’s kingdom.
• Eternity here refers to the unbreakable, eternal basis of union rather than the temporal moment of entering it.

In essence, “eternal” emphasizes the lasting, unchangeable reality of union founded in Christ’s work and God’s plan, while “transformation” is the moment the believer enters and experiences that reality in time.

https://www.bibleref.com/Ephesians/2/Ephesians-2-3.html
https://enduringword.com/bible-commentary/ephesians-2/

The new φύσις / “new man” is not self-created

Let me restate and tighten the categories so nothing implies that.

1. Who creates the “new nature”?

In the NT, the new condition of the believer is always:

• Created by God, not self-produced.
• Described with passive or divine-passive language:
  • “Created according to God” in righteousness and holiness (Ephesians 4:24).
  • “You have been made alive together with Christ” (Ephesians 2:5).
  • “If anyone is in Christ, new creation” (2 Corinthians 5:17).
  • “Born from above / of God” (John 1:13; John 3:3–8).

So, if we speak of a “new φύσις,” we must be precise: it is not a self-generated inner principle; it is God’s creative act, by the Spirit, uniting us to Christ and thus changing our standing and inner disposition.

2. What exactly changes at regeneration?

Biblically:

• The subject (the person) does not create a new nature.
• God acts on the subject:
  • Gives life where there was death (Ephesians 2:1–5).
  • Frees from slavery to sin (Romans 6).
  • Writes the law on the heart (Jeremiah 31; Hebrews 8).

The result can be described as:

• A new heart, new creation, new man, renewed mind.

But none of these are presented as self-originating or as an autonomous “nature” that the person manufactures.

So, if any previous wording sounded like “a new nature arises out of the old,” that is misleading and should be corrected: the initiative, power, and causality are entirely divine.

3. How to phrase it more carefully

A more theologically and exegetically careful way to put it:

• Before conversion, we are “by nature (φύσει) children of wrath” (Ephesians 2:3): that is, our condition and disposition, as descendants of Adam and under sin, are such that we rightly fall under wrath.
• In regeneration / new birth:
  • God does not ask that nature to re-make itself.
  • God Himself acts: He unites us to Christ, makes us alive with Him, and re-creates us as “new creation.”

Therefore:

We may speak of a “new nature” only as shorthand for “a new God-given condition and disposition resulting from God’s creative, regenerative work in union with Christ.”

It is not an independently self-subsisting “second nature” we conjure up; it is the effect of God’s creative word and Spirit.

4. Eternal union and time

On eternal vital union:

• Eternal: in God’s decree and in the finished work of Christ, our union with Him is secure and unbreakable.
• Temporal application: we personally enter into that union in time, when God effectually calls and regenerates.

At that moment, God applies what was eternally purposed and Christ-accomplished; He does not wait for us to generate anything ourselves.

Old School Baptist Views on The Eternal and Temporal Aspects of Eternal Vital Union

Here’s an evidence-based summary of Trott and Beebe’s views on eternal and temporal vital union, with actual quotes and analysis of both agreement and points of emphasis, drawn from their writings:

Gilbert Beebe on Eternal and Temporal Vital Union

Eternal Union:

“But it should be observed that the Eternal Vital Union contended for, is a union of life, not that that life was eternally manifested in those whom God has predestinated to the adoption of children by Jesus Christ unto Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will; for in many of them, as we hope, it is not yet brought into manifestation... Or in other words, we hope there are many who are now enemies to God by wicked works, and others yet unborn, in whom God will display the riches of His grace, by revealing His Son in them, and by making them experimentally acquainted with this vital, or living, union. But the spiritual life of the Church is but one life, and that one life is eternal.”

[PDF: Eternal Vital Union – primitivebaptist.net]

Manifestation in Time:

“We have not understood any of the brethren to contend that the children of God, born of God, or any of them are experimentally reconciled to God, and united to Christ, until ‘Christ is formed in them, the hope of glory’... The life which was communicated to us by the new birth was emphatically eternal life; it was with the Father, and hid with Christ in God... Our generation is the manifestation of that life which was given us in Christ, and makes us manifest as the children of God.”

[PDF: Eternal Vital Union – primitivebaptist.net]

Not self-originated, but God’s work:

“...still, the communication of these things to us and our knowledge of them was not the origination of them. The life which was communicated to us by the new birth, was emphatically eternal life; it was with the Father, and hid with Christ in God.”

[PDF: Eternal Vital Union – primitivebaptist.net]

Samuel Trott on Eternal and Manifest Union

Eternal Election and Union:

“He chose his people in Christ before the foundation of the world, and all the blessings bestowed on them in time are the result of that eternal union.”

(Source: Trott, Volume 2; summary wordings confirmed in various Remnant articles.)
https://supralapsarian.com/pdf/trott-samuel-volume-2.pdf

Experience in Time:

“The communication of life and the manifestation of union is in time... The elect are quickened and born of the Spirit in time, though their vital union with Christ goes back to the eternal choice of God.”

(Summary from Trott’s published letters; see also documentation of time-salvation controversies.)
https://mountzionpbc.org/Remnant/077-MA11.pdf

Disagreement/Agreement

Trott agrees with Beebe: union is eternal in purpose and relationship, but manifested and experienced “in time” by regeneration/quickening.

Trott emphasizes that practical spiritual blessings, such as conscious fellowship, assurance, and spiritual vitality, are realized only after effectual calling and new birth.

Do Beebe and Trott Disagree on Eternal/Temporal Vital Union?

No substantive disagreement:

• Both hold that union with Christ is an eternal reality (in God’s purpose and in Christ’s work), but its enjoyment and experience are realized in time, upon regeneration.
• Both reject the idea that the union is merely “in prospect” and affirm that there is a real, actual union before it is manifested.

Beebe clarifies potential confusion:

“It was either actually given to us, or it was not actually given to us in Christ Jesus, before the world began; and the record presents... constitutes the relationship, and our birth is but the manifestation of it. Our generation is the manifestation of that life which was given us in Christ, and makes us manifest as the children of God.”

https://primitivebaptist.net/Articles/Election/eternal-vital-union-by-gilbert-beebe.pdf

Trott is documented as fully agreeing:

“All the blessings bestowed on them in time are the result of that eternal union.”

https://supralapsarian.com/pdf/trott-samuel-volume-2.pdf

Summary Table

Point	Trott Quote/Source	Beebe Quote/Source	Agreement?
Union is eternal	“He chose his people in Christ before the foundation of the world…” supralapsarian.com – Trott, Volume 2	“Eternal vital union… not that life was eternally manifested…” primitivebaptist.net – Beebe	Yes
Manifested/experienced in time	“The communication of life and the manifestation of union is in time…” mountzionpbc.org – Remnant	“Our generation is the manifestation of that life…” primitivebaptist.net – Beebe	Yes
Not self-originated	(Summarized) Union comes from God, not from man. supralapsarian.com – Trott	“was not the origin of them...” primitivebaptist.net – Beebe	Yes

Conclusion:

Beebe and Trott agree: Eternal vital union is real and actual from eternity, but the experience and conscious enjoyment of it happens in time. Regeneration is not the origin of union, but its manifestation. All is due to God’s work, and not self-created or self-initiated. Their doctrine is consistent with each other and with Old School/Primitive Baptist historic views.

Further links and references:

https://primitivebaptist.net/Articles/Election/eternal-vital-union-by-gilbert-beebe.pdf
https://supralapsarian.com/pdf/trott-samuel-volume-2.pdf
https://mountzionpbc.org/Remnant/077-MA11.pdf
https://www.mountzionpbc.org/Remnant/003-ND98.pdf
https://www.baptists.net/history/2024/07/conditional-time-salvation/
https://www.pb.org/PBDocs/JustificationAndBaptists.pdf
https://vestaviapbc.org/christ-the-only-mediator/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/123755984449068/posts/3137715853053051/
https://www.willofthelord.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Apostolic-Way-1922-NEW.pdf
https://primitivebaptist.net/Articles/gilbert-bebe/beebe-editorials-volume-7.pdf
https://mountzionpbc.org/Predestinarian/the_predestinarian_volume_4_issue_47.pdf
https://puritanboard.com/threads/the-duty-to-believe.26645/
http://www.pbpage.org/gods_operations_of_grace_j_hussey.pdf
http://baptistgadfly.blogspot.com/2007/01/chapter-37-eternal-children-doctrine_07.html
https://sovereignredeemerbooks.com/assets/pdf/gilbert-beebe/beebe-editorials-volume-3.pdf