Calvinism among Southern Baptists

Posted under Interesting Stuff

In my message a few Sundays ago from 2 Thessalonians 2:13-3:5 I referenced a book I had read recently called, Calvinism: A Southern Baptist Dialogue.  The book is essentially a dialogue between a variety of Southern Baptists discussing the influence of Calvinism on the SBC historically and contemporarily.

In the opening chapter, Ed Stetzer, Director of LifeWay Research and Resident Missiologist, summarizes the findings of two recent studies – Lifeway’s 2006 Calvinism Study and NAMB’s Center for Missional Research 2007 New Minister’s Study:

• “Calvinism is a growing influence among Southern Baptist leaders with about 10 percent affirming the five points of Calvinism.  However, when we look at recent SBC seminary graduates who now serve as church pastors, nearly 30 percent identify themselves as Calvinists.
• Congregations led by Calvinists tend to show a smaller attendance and typically baptize fewer people each year.  The data doesn’t show why these churches are smaller.
• Even though churches with Calvinist leadership baptize fewer people each year, their baptism rate is virtually identical to churches led by non-Calvinists.  The baptism rate is the percentage of annual baptisms relative to the total average worship attendance, a statistic used to measure evangelistic vitality.
• Both Calvanistic and non-Calvinistic leaders believe local congregations should be involved in sponsoring missions and planting new churches.  The two studies showed 95 percent of both leadership types affirmed the necessity of missions and church planting.
• Recent graduates who are Calvinistic report that they conduct personal evangelism at a slightly higher rate than their non-Calvinistic peers.”

Simply defined, Calvinism is a system of theology that developed during the Reformation.  It is a system that emphasizes God’s sovereignty in all things, including but not limited to, predestination…and is simply expressed by the acrostic TULIP (the flower of Holland since these points developed there, though not originally in this order):

• T – Total Depravity
• U – Unconditional Election
• L – Limited Atonement
• I – Irresistible Grace
• P – Perseverance of the Saints

It was Calvin’s followers who, 50 years after Calvin, developed these five points.  Additionally, these points actually came about as a response to the teaching of James Arminius, who in many ways taught the opposite of each of the TULIP points.  His teaching has come to be known as Arminianism…and stresses general atonement and conditional election. 

The “U” of TULIP speaks to the issue of predestination, or more specifically election (the positive side of it) – and stresses that election is based on God’s sovereign choice (unconditional) rather than God’s foreknowledge of who will come to faith in Christ (conditional).  This is the great question that Christians have wrestled with down through the years…is election based on God’s foreknowledge or forechoosing?  Is it divine sovereignty or human responsibility or somehow both?

After the opening chapter by Stetzer, a variety of other Southern Baptists offer their perspectives on the influence of Calvinism among Southern Baptists.  A statement by David S. Dockery, President of Union University, found on page 29 is helpful:

“One question for this chapter is, Are Southern Baptists Calvinists, or have Southern Baptists been Calvinists?  And the answer is yes and no. If you ask our Wesleyan and Arminian friends, they say yes without hesitation, for the dividing line for them is the issue of eternal security.  Anyone who holds to eternal security from their perspective is a Calvinist of some type, which covers almost everyone in every aspect of Southern Baptist life today.  On the other hand, if by that question we mean, Are the majority of Southern Baptists or have the majority of Southern Baptists been consistent, five-point Calvinists?  I think the answer is no.”  

And then on page 30 Dockery adds:

“Baptists always have had differences over the issue of how to understand God’s sovereign initiative in salvation and the importance of human responsibility, and the present situation is no exception.”

According to Tom J. Nettles, Professor of Historical Theology at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, “Southern Baptists were the product of a complex of dynamics at work among Baptist Calvinists.  The influence of Arminians was either completely rejected, in most cases, or severely muted, in some cases.” (page 47)

According to Malcom B. Yarnell III, Director, Center for Theological Research at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, “…Baptists…moved away from or developed out of the Calvinistic context.  They implicitly retained certain beliefs and explicitly rejected other beliefs of the classical Calvinists.  The problem is that not all modern Baptists agree on exactly how much should be retained and how much rejected.” (page 79)

In summary, reading the book highlighted a number of other things:  1) As Baptists developed historically they included both Calvinistic and non-Calvinistic varieties, 2) Southern Baptists (as with baptists in general) disagree on the five points of Calvinism, 3) Southern Baptists disagree on how influential Calvinism has been on the SBC historically, and 4) many Baptists are often referred to as “moderate Calvinists,” “modified Calvinists,” or “baptist Calvinists” because they ascribe to several but not all of the five points of Calvinism…and are thus called 1 or 2 or 3 or 4 point Calvinists.

For those who love history and theology, it’s an interesting read.