Spurgeon and Calvinism

[Barnpreacher]

I'm curious as to what everybodies take in here on Spurgeon is? How would he be classified in your minds? I know the Hypers in his time considered him to be nothing more than an Arminian, but how is he generally classified by today's reformed theologians? His messages on God's Sovereignty and Man's Responsibility ruffled some feathers back in his time. Do they still today?

 

[heartoflesh]

Originally posted by Barnpreacher
I'm curious as to what everybodies take in here on Spurgeon is? How would he be classified in your minds? I know the Hypers in his time considered him to be nothing more than an Arminian, but how is he generally classified by today's reformed theologians? His messages on God's Sovereignty and Man's Responsibility ruffled some feathers back in his time. Do they still today?

I don't know much about who these Hypers were, but you'de have to be pretty wide off the mark to call Spurgeon an Arminian!

I don't know of any sound Calvinists that find fault with Spurgeon today. As Piper has stated on more than one occasion, sometimes you have to preach like an Arminian, and the Calvinists won't like it!

 

[openairboy]

I wonder what sort of clout the hypers had the last two centuries in England. If Spurgeon can be considered an Arminian and Pink was called an Arminian by some, which I think happened in England and Australia, but who in their right mind would've listened to those guys.

The fact that Spurgeon calls calvinism a nickname for Christianity should settle the case.

openairboy

Originally posted by Barnpreacher
I'm curious as to what everybodies take in here on Spurgeon is? How would he be classified in your minds? I know the Hypers in his time considered him to be nothing more than an Arminian, but how is he generally classified by today's reformed theologians? His messages on God's Sovereignty and Man's Responsibility ruffled some feathers back in his time. Do they still today?

 

[Barnpreacher]

There was a hyper in Spurgeon's time by the name of James Wells. He spent many years finding fault in the way Spurgeon preached, and he made it publically known through religious media outlets.

 

[JonathanHunt]

Poor James Wells. The best known baptist preacher in all of the south of England until an upstart bumpkin turned up in the smoke!

 

[Barnpreacher]

I wonder what sort of clout the hypers had the last two centuries in England. If Spurgeon can be considered an Arminian and Pink was called an Arminian by some, which I think happened in England and Australia, but who in their right mind would've listened to those guys.

Personally, I agree you'd have been wrong to side with the hypers against Spurgeon. To think that hypers would call Pink an Arminian blows the mind. They must have never read his book on 'The Sovereignty of God.'

The fact that Spurgeon calls calvinism a nickname for Christianity should settle the case.

I agree 100%. I just didn't know how other Calvinists thought about him. To me he's the greatest preacher of all time.

 

[Barnpreacher]

An excellent insight to this would be Iain Murray's Spurgeon vs. Hyper-Calvinism.

One of the more refreshing books I've read in a while. I could actually sit down and read that book without having to hurt my brain. I call that leisure reading!

 

[Puritan Sailor]

I think the general Reformed consensus would be that Spurgeon is great. He would probably be considered the protoptype of the modern Reformed Baptist. He was very ecumenical and gracious with his reformed peado-brethren, yet a faithful baptist.

 

[VirginiaHuguenot]

Originally posted by puritansailor
I think the general Reformed consensus would be that Spurgeon is great. He would probably be considered the protoptype of the modern Reformed Baptist. He was very ecumenical and gracious with his reformed peado-brethren, yet a faithful baptist.

 

[openairboy]

Originally posted by puritansailor
I think the general Reformed consensus would be that Spurgeon is great. He would probably be considered the protoptype of the modern Reformed Baptist. He was very ecumenical and gracious with his reformed peado-brethren, yet a faithful baptist.

Did Piper say, in his "Men Whom the World is Not Worthy" series, "Spurgeon would not let a paedo-baptist in his pulpit"? I thought I remember him saying this or the flip was that Spurgeon would, but he wouldn't.

Thanks to those with a better memory. I think I start a lot of rumors with my faulty memory. I'm the one stranded at the top of a mountain and the person at the bottom is yelling, "Don't move", and all I hear is "MOVE!"

openairboy

 

[Barnpreacher]

Did Piper say, in his "Men Whom the World is Not Worthy" series, "Spurgeon would not let a paedo-baptist in his pulpit"? I thought I remember him saying this or the flip was that Spurgeon would, but he wouldn't.

In his biography on Spurgeon Piper says he chose a paedobaptist to be the first head of his pastor's college, and that he did not make that an issue barrier to those who preached in his pulpit. Piper takes a pretty strong stance against infant baptism (a stance I stongly agree with myself), but I don't think that would keep him from letting someone like Sproul preach in his pulpit. I know he would preach with Sproul at conferences.

 

[pastorway]

Spurgeon was a godly man, a prince of preachers, and a fantastic role model! He proves the truth that to be a Calvinist in no way hinders the work of evangelism!! In fact, his evangelistic zeal makes most Calvinists today look hyper.

Oh that we had more preachers like him.

Phillip

 

[JonathanHunt]

Originally posted by openairboy


Did Piper say, in his "Men Whom the World is Not Worthy" series, "Spurgeon would not let a paedo-baptist in his pulpit"? I

If he did, he was wrong. AT Pierson, who was supplying the tabernacle at the time of Spurgeon's death and was an old friend, was at the time a paedobaptist.

He later became a baptist, however.



JH

 

[The Lamb]

Spurgeon was an honest preacher who preached the whole council of God. He never shyed away from "apparent arminian texts."

A problem with hypers is not that they emphasize the Sovereignty of God, which cannot be done, but instead they take away the duty of man.

Spurgeon preached both.



Joseph