Whether the dust has settled from my recent series or not, who can say. In my experience, these things tend to bounce around for a bit, and sometimes, they don’t gain a head of steam until further downstream. Maybe the next time I gather with friends, I will feel that awkward silence that says, “Somethin’ ain’t rat.” Who knows?
But I have the urge to unpack a few thoughts in conclusion. Consider this my apology for not apologizing.
I was pretty young when Berean Baptist Church called me to become her pastor. I was woefully unprepared. Pastoral ministry always seemed to have a romantic quality in my imagination – a fiction that evaporated quickly once the church voted me into office. I quickly discovered the nature of the battle we are in for the hearts and souls of men.
Early on, I felt the weight of responsibility that God had placed on me. God made me see the importance of rightly dividing the Word of truth so believers would be built and not destroyed. I fear that I hurt more than I helped in those early years. God pressed on me a sense that eternal souls hung in the balance and that if I did not carefully handle God’s Word, those souls would be destroyed.
This impacted me profoundly. In my earliest years as a pastor, I followed the examples of men before me. I offered heavy doses of opinion sprinkled lightly with Biblical references. It didn’t take long for me to recognize that, not only were my opinions like a bruised reed and smoking flax, but that the people didn’t travel all the way to church three times a week so they could learn more about my mind.
That launched me into a long practice of expository preaching. I wouldn’t give much for those early series (my first series was through the book of Romans), but I will say that the challenge of digging into the text so I could give the meaning and application (instead of my impressions based loosely on the text) transformed me and shaped my ministry.
In those early years, I came to recognize a strange kind of pressure to conform to the opinions of others. I felt in my bones that if I followed certain texts to their plain meaning, I would be ostracized and rejected. My sense of foreboding was confirmed one unfortunate day when I publicly expressed an opinion outside the vein of conventional wisdom. The attacks against me were furious and personal, and to my shock and horror, I discovered that several pastors were gunning for my church, attempting to persuade the men of my church to expel me as pastor.
God was faithful and our men loyal, and I am grateful for that. But it did make me more wary of “friends” in the ministry. The lynch mob was not without its benefits, though; probably the most essential help to me was that I learned who my true friends were, as opposed to the political alliances and the small-time popes.
Fast forward about fifteen years. I’m not a young man anymore. My ministry is pretty much established, and ministry patterns aren’t likely to change much should the Lord allow me to continue in ministry. I don’t have a circuit of conferences where I preach. I don’t receive regular invitations to preach in other churches. Apart from rare exceptions, I can be found every Sunday preaching at Berean Baptist in Ogden, Utah.
This is a great advantage to me. If I had to worry about whether or not I might get canceled from preaching at the next Sword of the Lord Conference, I would have to be more careful to conform. I wouldn’t have the liberty to criticize unbiblical teaching and practices common to Independent Baptist churches. Or if I did, I would have to watch my back, wary of The Enforcers targeting my church for a hostile takeover.
As it is, I feel a lot of liberty to speak honestly to the faults in our movement. And perhaps this points to one of our most destructive faults. Because if I was young and ambitious, angling for a preaching itinerary or hoping to get noticed by the Sword of the Lord, I would probably have to surrender my conscience to said Enforcers.
Of all the faults common to Independent Baptists, I see this as the worst fault of all. Because if I did have a circuit and an itinerary, and if I were a regularly featured preacher for the Big Dance, I could not write the things I have written. At least, not unless I was trying to lose all of that. If I were a young pastor in my 30s, I would need to keep those opinions to myself. If I had a big church and had to worry about The Enforcers coming along to try to split my church, I would need to suppress any feelings of frustration at the culture of the IFB.
This is why I wrote what I wrote. Because, you can’t touch me. God can, for sure, and I serve at His pleasure. If God removes me from ministry shortly, He is right and good to do so. But it won’t result from any Big Shot preacher besieging my church or demanding my removal. I won’t be getting canceled at the Big Conferences where The Important Preachers preach. I don’t even go to those conferences. I have liberty, both in Christ and in the happy circumstance of my ministry, to say what many pastors and believers in our movement would love to say and have applauded.
I could have said more; I couldn’t have said less. Before I began the series, I believed I would speak for many of us. Since I have completed the series, I am quite convinced. I have received an unbelievable outpouring of support from all over. It has been, to put it mildly, overwhelming.
The death of every great movement comes when an entrenched mob of so-called “elites” takes over the movement and begins to dictate terms to everyone else. When the IFB was all about the Bible, we were something extraordinary. I happened to come along when the Big Shots took over. When that happened, it became more critical that we maintain the traditions and opinions of those Big Shots than that we hold to the Bible. And this has choked the life out of us.
My challenge to you is simple. In our movement, we champion the King James and pay little attention to what it actually says. This has to change. We must not fear debate or disagreement so long as we mutually pursue the truth of God’s Word. We must be willing always to be bringing our lives, our doctrine, and our ministry ever closer to the stream of truth found in the Word of God.
If my little series has encouraged anyone to do this, it has succeeded. God is my witness: this was my hope all along.
I close by sharing a message I received from a young man just starting off in the ministry. If I am correct, this young man is barely even 30 years old. Like so many young men raised in our churches and trained in our colleges, he prefers not to speak publicly because of the savage response he would likely receive. But I believe he represents many young men who want to stay in the IFB but are frustrated by the low view of Scripture and the low value placed on the truth of God’s Word. Hear him…
Not that you need my help defending your positions, but I wanted to give you some thoughts about the blog post series you have been writing. I think you are spot on and that these issues are in large part why young men are leaving the movement. These are just my opinions, but you’ll get the idea. Forgive me if you have heard me say all of this before.
1. We are being asked to believe things cannot be supported with Scripture. My generation believes in biblical authority. We don’t want a preacher’s opinion or even the authority of past experience. We want to see a biblical, exegetical case for why we are doing what we are doing. Appealing to Billy Sunday for why we have altar calls will not cut it. Referencing Jack Hyles on various issues is not compelling. We have looked at their arguments and have found them wanting.
2. The King James issue. This has become a stumbling block for many because most of the reasons given for using the KJV are just bad.
Arguments like “God knew that most of the world would speak English” are just ignorant. While English certainly is the most widely spoken language in the world, the last stat I saw estimated that something like 16% of the world speaks English. A majority of those people are not even native English speakers.
3. Any deviation from status quo blacklists you. What IFB do and believe is derived more from a select group of men from the 50s than it is from the Scripture. Try to correct that and you become a “Bible denier” and are scoffed. Some of us actually do care about doctrine and by that I mean what the Bible teaches about things.
4. While pastors are busy making sure everyone dresses right, looks right, and does everything the same, they literally allow heresy in the form of semi-pelagian easy-prayerism. This isn’t an argument to drop standards. Rather, it is an argument that our standards are way too low. Doctrinally speaking, most IFB pastors I know are shallow. They have a weak ecclesiology, soteriology, christology, eschatology, pneumatology, etc.
Is it any wonder why there is an attraction to reformed teachers and preachers? At least Calvinists care about doctrine.
5. Fundamentalists are really just socially conservative evangelicals. If there is no real difference between us, why not just be an evangelical?
6. IFB preachers demand high standards in appearance, but largely ignore the fruit of the Spirit.
7. Pastoral abuse is rampant. Pastoral authority is often used, even by the pastor’s family, in order to secure a desired outcome. Furthermore, pastors often hide behind their position in order to avoid taking ownership for relational sins.
8. So much of American culture has been conflated with Christianity, we have come to see America as the “New Israel”. As a result, there is often a bad missiology. Furthermore, we put way too much emphasis on America in our services.
9. Many, if not most, IFB preachers use poor hermeneutics and exegesis. As a result, the Scripture’s authority is diminished and the resultant preaching is awful. The Scripture’s voice is all but drowned out by preacher’s own rhetoric.
10. IFB revivalism reflects a Pentecostal theology more than it does a Baptist theology. Common views on sanctification, worship, revival, the Holy Spirit, and more are taken from the forerunners of Pentecostalism. Historic, Baptist doctrine is largely ignored.
Surely, “Judgment must begin at the house of God.” I love Independent Baptist churches, and I want to see our churches thrive. I wrote what I did because of that desire. If I have stepped away from Scripture, ignore what I have said. But at the very least, we ought to give it some thought.
It is my fervent prayer that God will revive our churches once again. Not a revival of activity and emotion, but a return to the Word of God as the foundation for what we do, a return to the gospel as central to our work and emphasis, a delight in following God’s Word instead of the loudest voices in the movement. May God move in our midst to produce such an emphasis.
The Village Smithy 
It was good series and good way to end it too. Men need to talk about passages, doctrines, and issues without fear of retribution. I hope people will listen and take heed of what you wrote.
LikeLiked by 2 people
“we champion the King James and pay little attention to what it actually says. This has to change. We must not fear debate or disagreement so long as we mutually pursue the truth of God’s Word. We must be willing always to be bringing our lives, our doctrine, and our ministry ever closer to the stream of truth found in the Word of God.”…… I just preached today on The Bdlt of Truth and how w/o it fastened properly, all of our armor is rendered useless! Thank you for the series and may God continue to bless & enrich your ministry
LikeLiked by 1 person
For some reason, “Comments are Closed” under your — “One Big Thing I Wish Would Change Among Independent Baptists” (concerning the AV 1611)— (These “closed comments” must be glitch in your blog, I’m sure, since, as you say— “what they say about heat and kitchens applies at the Smithy’s as well.” ) — So, I’ll go ahead & comment here, since neither you, or I, “have nothing to lose”—
Dave, your Blog post, last month ( https://davemallinak.com/2023/08/29/one-big-thing-i-wish-would-change-among-independent-baptists/ ) questioned whether inspiration & preservation applies to the KJV?
Yet, you also claim Scrivener’s as your TR of choice???
Whenever a “TR-only” man cites Greek, he usually points to Scrivener’s edition of the New Testament. And— to be fair, Scrivener’s is probably the best edition of any Greek New Testament, available today. However, it is NOT the “underlying text” of the AV1611.
Here’s some reasons why:
1. Scrivener edited & engineered his Greek NT in 1881 (the KJV was first published in 1611).
2. In Scrivener’s original preface (1881 Cambridge University Press) he states this fact: “…the Authorised Version was not a translation of any one Greek text then in existence, and no Greek text intended to reproduce in any way the original of the Authorised Version has ever been printed.” — See: Original Preface: https://assets.cambridge.org/97811080/24723/frontmatter/9781108024723_frontmatter.pdf
3. In Scrivener’s original preface (1881 CUP), Scrivener indicates that he assumed the AV 1611 translators used Beza’s Greek NT more than any other, and thus, Scrivener collated from Beza (and a few others) as much as possible—HOWEVER, he also admitted— “It was manifestly necessary to accept only Greek authority, though in some places the Authorised version corresponds but loosely with any form of the Greek original, while it exactly follows the Latin Vulgate.” (NOTE: the TBS editions available today, do not include Scrivener’s original preface, but rather claim the following falsehood in their edited preface— “The Textus Receptus printed in this volume is the Greek text followed by the translators of the English Authorised Version of the Bible first published in the year 1611.” [“…this volume IS the Greek text…”???] …THIS claim is NOT TRUE! …Certainly it is very similar, as was Scrivener’s goal— but it is not THE Greek text that the translators followed! …Is someone trying to sell “knock-off” copies of a Greek NT to desperate “TR-only” men???)
In 1881, Scrivener was trying to match a Greek text to the AV 1611, but he admitted that he could not always find a Greek text that actually matched the KJV, but instead, he did find that the Latin Vulgate matched the KJV, exactly. Therefore, in order to produce an “underlying Greek text” matching the KJV, one can only assume that Scrivener actually “back-translated” from either the Latin Vulgate, or the KJV, Itself, in said passages— in order to “reverse-engineer” his 1881 Greek edition. And, while the result is almost exactly the same in Greek, as It reads in the English, AV 1611— there are some minor differences between Scrivener’s 1881, and the AV1611. So, which should we choose as the “final authority”? …Seriously? …Is it even a debate???
(NOTE: It is of little concern to me that the AV1611 DOES read exactly as the Latin Vulgate, in certain places—obviously, if the KJV translators found the Vulgate to be correct IN THOSE passages, then they left It, as is— no harm done.)
But, here is where the harm is done—
Sadly, most “KJV Bible colleges” are using the “Scrivener TR” (the TBS edition— which doesn’t include his original preface, as found in the 1881 CUP edition, cited above). And, when a young Greek student in typical “IFB Bible college” sees his professor hold up a TBS Greek NT, and hears — “this IS the TR underlying the AV 1611”, yet he discovers that “Scrivener’s TR” isn’t quite the same as the KJV— a similar thought process happens—as what happens to Greek students at BJU, et al, when a student is convinced that the Nestles-Aland is the “true Greek”, and yet, it doesn’t match the KJV— DOUBT – DOUBT – DOUBT — Doubt upon the 1611 English translation of God’s Word.
-For those students convinced that the UBS, Alexandrian, Nestles-Aland text is more trustworthy—touting these corrupted Greek MSS results in a complete rejection for the authority of the KJV, and its TR family of texts.
-Similarly, for the student at the IFB college— it results in a wariness that the KJV is “still the best we’ve got in English”—but, should not be considered to be as authoritative as the “trusted Greek TR”—edited by Scrivener in 1881. This is what happened to Timothy Berg (and, no doubt, to countless other young men, once enrolled at “IFB Bible College”, who are now casualties to the “Greek-is-better-game”) – see here: https://kjbhistory.com/the-preface-to-the-greek-tr-of-f-h-a-scrivener/
Do I respect the TR family(the TRUE majority text)? Of course, I do. I believe that the vast majority of MSS within the TR family is obviously the correct lineage of Greek MSS, and the evidence is overwhelmingly on our side— but, I am NOT “TR-only”— I am unashamedly, “KJV-only”. I reject the false teaching that God only preserved His Word in “the originals”, or, only in the “original languages”. Anyone who believes that, doesn’t really have a “Bible” = a single bound copy of God’s PRESERVED Word, that they can hold in their hand. Before I ever entered an “IFB Bible College”, my pastor warned me that today’s accepted Greek MSS remnants (the “originals” are gone) do NOT hold authority over the AV1611—praise God for faithful, Bible-believing pastors!
THIS is why I refuse to play the “Greek game”… It’s like playing a game of “Greek cards”, without all of the cards. It is a lose-lose game, and it isn’t necessary— we (today’s English speaking people) ALREADY have God’s Word. We don’t need to go backwards, searching for “something better”.
And, to all of my “TR-only” & “Scrivener TBS” friends, out there— Mark Ward is grinning at you, from ear to ear—See for yourself: https://byfaithweunderstand.com/2021/11/23/is-the-textus-receptus-perfect-in-every-jot-and-tittle-henry-ambrose-vs-frederick-scrivener/
“In Scrivener We Trust”
“My hope is built on nothing less –
than Scrivener’s edition, and the T.B.S. press –
I dare not fully trust the KJV,
But actually lean on Greek, you see!”
(apparent motto & theme song of the “TR-only”, but NOT KJV-only “scholars”)
– Pastor Matt Furse
September 2023
LikeLike
Hi Matt,
I don’t know why you couldn’t comment. I don’t restrict comments.
I’ll answer this and other comments you’ve made in a future blog post. It probably won’t be until January or February, as I have a few other requests to deal with ahead of yours.
This will also give you time to demonstrate your commitment to debate and discussion. I believe you have blocked Jason Hodge from engaging with you on your own social media. This seems odd to me, given your propensity for braying loudly at my fence. How about, while you are waiting for my response, you go ahead and allow Jason to comment freely on your things, and restore any comments you have removed. Then, come on back over here and tell me that you did that. I’m happy to allow future comments from you once you have done this.
Otherwise, we’ll restrict the paper tigers from commenting.
LikeLike