A. W. Pink and Baptism

[Hippo]

I have in the past read both biographies of Pink however I have yet to find his position on baptism to be clearly set out.

Pink appears to have been a baptist but his first pastorate was of a Congregational Church (which I presume tohave been paedobatist) and in his middle-latter years he engaged somewhat with the Free Presbyterian Church.

I do not recall hearing much debate of his views on baptism in either biography and while this board has often mentioned his credobaptism as one of the reason for his later non-engagement with various denominations I have never seen any contemporaneous evidece that this was an issue.

Would I be correct in stating that while Pink was a credobaptist he does not appear to have seen this doctrinal issue as being of great importance when compared with other doctrinal issues?

Was pink baptised as an infant and then baptised again as a believer?

 

[Pilgrim]

In his biography of Pink, Iain Murray says Pink was a Baptist but that he tended to avoid addressing the issue because, as you note, he was tackling issues that he considered to be more important and didn't want to be unnecessarily divisive at a time in which all of the churches seemed poised to fall prey to either liberalism, excesses of revivalism or prophetical speculation. I think Pink did address the issue in the article "The Divine Covenants."

If I'm not mistaken all of the churches he pastored were Baptist. In Murray's book it appears that Pink's later years of isolation were because he didn't fit in with the Presbyterians, Baptists or Brethren in England after returning there from Australia prior to the outbreak of WWII. (I think this was because the Presbyterians were paedo, the Brethren were Dispensational and maybe the Baptists were either Arminian or liberal or for some other reason that I can't recall.) Again, it's been a while since I've read the book and I understand a revised edition was released a couple of years ago, but the sense I got was that if Pink wasn't allowed to preach he didn't want to be part of a church at all or at least didn't feel that he could be. He denounced the Presbyterian churches on the Isle of Lewis (including the one pastored by Kenneth McRae) as being dead and lived out his final years in isolation, continuing to publish his magazine Studies in the Scriptures from which most of his books were later gleaned.

 

[MW]

If I remember correctly, Pink didn't fall out with the Free Ps over baptism, but over his lack of usefulness in the church. I would need to place my hands on his Letters to verify this (but for some reason these are missing from the shelf).

 

[Pilgrim]

If I remember correctly, Pink didn't fall out with the Free Ps over baptism, but over his lack of usefulness in the church. I would need to place my hands on his Letters to verify this (but for some reason these are missing from the shelf).

This is my recollection as well, more specifically that he wasn't useful to the churches (not just the Presbyterians) because he couldn't subscribe to their confession or statement of faith or otherwise had doctrinal disagreements with them. I don't have Murray's bio of Pink anymore (and never had the letters) so I can't verify this right now. It's been a few years since I would have looked into this anyway so I could be wrong. I'm sure that someone on the PB has the bio as well as the letters and can verify this.

Regardless, I'm sure some of his detractors in particular would be surprised to learn that Pink once preached 300+ times in a year and conducted evangelistic tent meetings in Los Angeles.

 

[Hippo]

My recollection of Pink's fallout with the Free Presbyterians was when they changed their rules so as to prevent non members from preaching in their churches, and as has been pointed out by Chris Pink was not willing to become a member of any Church at that point in time.

I am interested if anyone knows Pink's own baptismal history as I cannot recall this being covered in his biography. I must get round to reading his letters though.

 

[Pilgrim]

My recollection of Pink's fallout with the Free Presbyterians was when they changed their rules so as to prevent non members from preaching in their churches, and as has been pointed out by Chris Pink was not willing to become a member of any Church at that point in time.

I am interested if anyone knows Pink's own baptismal history as I cannot recall this being covered in his biography. I must get round to reading his letters though.

From what I recall, Pink may have been born into a Congregational family but apparently became a Baptist not long after his conversion from the Theosophical society.

 

[Hippo]

I have followed Rev Winzer's suggested course of action and looked in Pink's letters, there is not much in the "Letters from Spartanberg" or "Letters of an Itinerant Preacher" collections but in Banner of Truths "Letters of A W Pink" there is a letter of 14/10/34 that contains the section:

"During the last 25 years I have read prayerfully and carefully many works, constructive and controversial, on the vexed question of Baptism, so that I am thoroughly cognizant of the arguments on both sides. I do not feel it is the Lord's time for me to discuss this subject with you, as I do not wish to bias or unsettle you in any way thereon. I do not regard it as in anywise a vital matter, and it ought never to disrupt or even disturb Christian fellowship; yet, personally, I dare not quench the light which I believe God has given me thereon. I can only add that, my reading of Edwards has not shaken my convictions to the slightest degree."

Incidently when looking at the Logos Pink collection I notice that "The Sovereignty of God" is not included, is this correct and does anyone know why?

 

[David FCC]

In Mr Pink's annual books "Studies in the scriptures" he has a writing at the end of each of them named "our annual letter". In the 20th edition of these writings he details that he was not a member of any church due to his writing ministry stating that if he was to join a particular denomination he would risk losing many of those that his writing was aimed at.

I am very fortunate in that I received all 13 editions that he wrote while living on our Island. He is buried in our local town cemetery but as yet I have not been to see exactly where.

Hope this is of interest