Shepherds After My Own Heart edited by Robert Strivens & S. Blair Waddell

Shepherds After My Own Heart: Essays in Honour of Robert W. Oliver,

Edited by Robert Strivens and S. Blair Waddell, EP Books, 2016, 278pp

Multi-author volumes are among the most difficult books to review, especially those that include a wide variety of subjects rather than concentrating on one theme. You can't really sum up the argument of the book and offer an assessment of its strengths and weaknesses. Giving a precis of each chapter in turn doesn't work either; both from the point of view of the reviewer and the reader. I don't think so, anyway. My difficulty in offering a review of this collection is exacerbated by the fact that I've contributed a chapter about which it would be hard for me to be entirely objective.

Notwithstanding, and whatever the merits of my own piece, I think you'll discover that anyone who picks up this book will find much to inform, stimulate and challenge them. It will be especially useful for theological students and pastors, but this is not simply a work of pastoralia. It's breadth of interest, including theology, ministry, Baptist thought, and history reflects that of the man to whom this collection of essays are dedicated, Dr. Robert W. Oliver. 

I mentioned my personal connection with Robert in an earlier post, and said that I was looking forward to reading the other contributions to this Fetschrift. Well, now I'm finished and I have to say that the book is a fitting tribute to Robert, packed with material that speaks to both mind and heart. It seems invidious to pick out only some chapters for comment, but several are truly outstanding. I was moved to read Paul Oliver's touching tribute to his father. Joel Beeke's chapters on the perseverance are a fine distillation of the biblical and Reformed teaching, applied in a pastorally helpful way. Aspiring ministers would do well to read Geoff Thomas's A Minister Looks Around and Back for a good slice of pastoral reality and inspirational encouragement. It was certainly a tonic for me, and I'm no rookie these days. 

Michael Haykin discusses Andrew Fuller's teaching on the Holy Spirit in conversion. Tom Nettles gives attention to the impact of Jonathan Edwards on Baptist thought. Former LTS student' Dinu Moga's essay on The Baptist Movement in Romania filled a gaping hole in my knowledge of church history. Robert Strivens and Blair Waddell helpfully bring out oft neglected aspects of the Evangelical Revival. The former with regard to Dissent and the revival and the latter on some of George Whitefield's alleged character flaws. Philip Eveson seeks to rescue the Confession of Faith of the Calvinistic Methodists from undeserved obscurity and defends the document's Calvinistic credentials. 

I wish I'd been able to take account of Preaching with Spiritual Power by Ralph Cunnington when writing my chapter on The Pastor as Spirit Empowered Preacher of the Word. I don't think I would have changed my overall emphasis in the light of Cunnington's work, but it would have been good to have interacted a little. My review hints at lines of convergence and divergence. It's for others to give their opinion on my efforts.

Anyway, I hope Robert Oliver enjoys reading this collection of essays as much as I did. 

Shepherds After My Own Heart: Essays in Honour of Robert W. Oliver

It was lovely to be present this afternoon to celebrate the 80th birthday of Robert Oliver at the Leigh Park Hotel, Bradford on Avon. Unbeknown to Robert a surprise party had been organised. A book compiled in his honour was presented to him by Robert Strivens, one of the editors. Appropriately enough the title explores various biblical, theological and historical themes and different aspects of pastoral ministry. I contributed a chapter on The Preacher as Spirit-Empowered Preacher of the Word. EP Books, 2016, p. 278.

I first came across Robert Oliver when he was appointed to teach Church History at the London Theological Seminary. I studied there from 1988-1990 and Robert began his work in 1989. As I recall, he picked up the syllabus at the 18th Century, with special reference to the Evangelical Revival and Great Awakening, and took us through to the 20th century. His lectures were the product of careful research and were delivered in a gripping and lively way that only served to enhance my love of church history. 

Robert's remarks on my history essays were schoolmasterly in their accuracy and economy. He punctured my presumptuous attempt, as he saw it, to rewrite Arnold Dallimore's 2 volume biography of George Whitefield in a lengthy essay that bore little relationship to the set topic: Whitefiled as a Leader of the Great Awakening. The need to be brief and to the point rather than bulky and ill-focused was a useful bit of criticism for a budding preacher and wannabe writer.  

In those days students were expected to submit sermon manuscripts to lecturers and then receive their feedback in a one-to-one tutorial session. On reviewing one of my efforts, Robert helpfully suggested that I should divide my material under a number of headings which would make it easier for the congregation to follow what I was trying to say. The substance was alright, he averred, but my material had no obvious structure. And so it is today that my sermons invariably have three or four clearly stated points. 

Our paths crossed once more when I took up my first pastorate in Stalbridge, Dorset in 1991. It was then that I started to attend the Bradford on Avon Ministers' Fraternal of which Robert was Chair until he stepped down in January of this year. After a spell out of pastoral work I was pleased to be able to rejoin the fraternal when called to my current pastorate in 2003. 

Like many I have reason to be thankful to God for Robert's ministry and friendship, and was honoured to be asked to contribute an essay to this Fetschrift. I look forward to reading the other contributions and hope that Robert enjoys our offering. Available here.

Training for the Ministry in the Reformed Baptist Tradition by Robert Oliver

On Wednesday we had a meeting of the Bradford on Avon Ministers' Fraternal. Our longstanding Chair and former Minister at Bradford on Avon Baptist Church gave an address on the subject in the title above. Here are some brief (and rough around the edges) notes. 

In 1644 the 1st London Baptist Confession was drawn up and approved by seven London Baptist Churches. But to understand the emergence of Reformed or Particular (that is Calvinistic, not fussy) Baptists we have to go back a little further in history. 

The English Reformation that had developed in fits and starts since the reign of Henry VIII was brought to a juddering halt by Queen Mary. She set about to literally burn Protestantism out of England and many faced a martyr's death. 

Some English Protestants fled to Calvin's Geneva for refuge. There they encountered a more thorough reformation than they had witnessed back home. The regular preaching of the Word was especially prominent. This emphasis on biblical exposition and application let to the printing of the Geneva Bible, replete with notes and other study aids. 

As the Geneva Bible came into the hands of godly English-folk it stimulated a desire for sound biblical preaching. 

Mary died and was followed by Elizabeth I. Hopes were raised that the new monarch would give fresh stimulus to the Reformation in England. However, virtually all she would allow was for the Church of England to revert to it's pre-Marian state. The Elizabethan Settlement set the Reformation in stone. Queen Bess was certainly no great fan of preaching.  

The Puritan vision of Reformed Church driven by a revitalised preaching ministry was going nowhere fast. Some began to question the very idea of a State Church. They held that churches should be allowed to reform themselves according to the Word of God without having to wait for permission from the State. There were the Separatists.

Initially they were not Baptists. A persecuted minority, they sought refuge in Netherlands. In 1596 they drew up a confession of faith. This, with some revisions, was the basis of 1st London Baptist Confession of 1644.

A pioneer Reformed Baptist movement began to emerge among Separatists in 1630 London. Initially they questioned the validity of  CofE baptism, as they had seceded from the 'corrupt' church. The position of believers' baptism was adopted in 1638. General Baptists had already rejected infant baptism, but they were Arminian in their theology and baptised adults by effusion. The Reformed Baptists were Calvinistic and advocated believers' baptism by immersion.

And so the 1644 confession was agreed. The Calvinistic stance was in part due to the influence of William Ames. Ames was an English Separatist who found refuge in Holland. He was present at the Synod of Dort and authored the widely read, Marrow of Theology.

None of early Reformed Baptists had  had any formal theological training. Their pastors were artisans and merchants. But they had been brought up on a solid diet of sound Puritan preaching. Eventually theology graduates joined number such as Samuel Cox.

The RBs held that Ministers of the Word needed to be proficient in Hebrew, Greek and Latin. Early pastors Christopher Blackwood and John Tombs were scholarly men. 

With toleration granted to Baptist in the 1650s, RB churches proliferated. Gifted preachers and evangelists such as Richard Gifford were mightily used by God to spread the Word and plant new RB churches. 

The RBs disapproved of 'disorderly preaching' by unrecognised men. Church approval was required for 'lay preachers' or 'gifted brethren'. It was insisted that churches not the not the magistrate should grabt this approval to competent and orthodox men.

When the monarchy was restored with the return of Charles II, only Anglican worship was allowed. Non Anglican preaching was officially banned, but Baptists such as John Bunyan and Benjamin Keach continued. 

In 1677 the 1st London Confession was revised and the 2nd London Baptist Confession drawn up. It made provision for preachers who were not pastors or elders (26:11). The updated confession was formally adopted by RB churches in 1689 when Dissenters were granted toleration.

The need for training was recognised. Both for pastors and 'others who are gifted and qualified' to preach. Training was initially provided by local churches. But Academies also began to emerge. Some RB's like Samuel Howe saw no need for 'human learning'. But that was not the general view. 

In 1679 Broadmead Baptist Church in Bristol was left a legacy by wealthy merchant Edward Tyrell to establish a training ministry associated with the church. Bernard Foskett led the Bristol Academy with distinction from 1720-58. He was proficient in Hebrew and Greek, taught systematic theology and Bible handling skills to a growing body of students.

Dissenting Academies sprung up across the country to train men for the Ministry, as Nonconformists were not allowed to attend university at the time. The Bristol Academy trained preachers from all over UK. As well as the Academies some candidates for the Ministry received personal tutoring from experienced pastors. 

The Baptist Academies tended to be more confessional in orientation and held to trinitarian orthodoxy, while other Nonconformist Academies drifted into Unitarianism, to the detriment of the Presbyterian and Congregationalist churches. 

With Robert's historical overview in mind we discussed training for pastoral and preaching ministries today in the UK RB scene. Currently there is no dedicated RB seminary. Reformed Seminaries and Bible Colleges tend to be interdenominational. That can be a strength in terms of fostering catholicity of spirit, but may be a weakness in terms of fostering a distinctive RB ministerial identity. 

We had a planning session over lunch to draw up a schedule for the year ahead. Robert announced that he was standing down as Chair after many years of distinguished service. It was kind of fitting that his swansong as Chair was an historical talk on training for the Ministry. Two subjects that are very close to his heart. I first came across Robert when attending the London Theological Seminary in the late 1980's and he was appointed Church History lecturer. 

I joined the Bradford on Avon fraternal when a newbie pastor in Stalbridge, Dorset in the early 1990's, and have been attending regularly since we moved to Westbury in 2003. Being part of this 'Band of Brothers' has been of real encouragement to me over the years. I'm sure Robert's wise and gracious chairmanship of the fraternal has been much appreciated by members past and present. We were glad to hear that he intends to continue meeting with us despite stepping down as Chair.  

Adam where art thou?

The other at week our Bradford on Avon Ministers' Fraternal, Robert Oliver spoke on the controversy over the historicity of Adam among American Evangelicals. A recent John Owen Centre Conference was devoted to this theme. Here are some notes on Robert's talk. 

Barbara Haggerty an American journalist wrote an article on the National Public Radio website on Evangelicals Question The Existence Of Adam And Eve. Surveys show that 4/10 Americans believe the Genesis creation account  But some conservative scholars doubt that Adam was an historical figure. According to Dennis Venema, studies on the human genome show that humans emerged from earlier species thousands of years ago. The idea that the whole human race originated from two ancestors over a relatively short period of time gives no time for genetic mutations that are currently present in the genome.

Venema is a senior fellow at BioLogos Foundation, a Christian group that aims at reconciling faith and science. The group was founded by Francis Collins, an Evangelical and current head of the National Institute of Health. John Schneider, who once taught theology at Calvin College in Michigan said, "it's time to face facts: There was no historical Adam and Eve, no serpent, no apple, no fall that toppled man from a state of innocence." 

Geneticist Francis Collins is a converted atheist. He became a Christian as a result of reading Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis. In The Language of God, he argued for a form of theistic evolution. BioLogos means life-truth. The foundation exists to promote belief in theistic evolution. Influential American Evangelical leader Tim Keller is an advocate of theistic evolution, although his relationship with BioLogos is difficult to discern.

Al Mohler responded to Haggerty's article on his blog with a post, False Start? The Controversy Over Adam and Eve Heats Up. Mohler argues that, "this question is now a matter of Gospel urgency." Paul saw Adam and Eve as the first parents of the human race and took the fall as a historical event. However, in Saving Darwin, Karl W. Giberson advocates the view that the biblical creation account not to be read as history. According to him, the Bible a library not a book. In any library there will be works of fiction such as the Harry Potter  books, and factual biographies of Abraham Lincoln. So with the Bible, Genesis 1-3 is the biblical equivalent of Hogwarts, while  Jesus is an historical figure like Abraham Lincoln. 

Peter Enns attacked Mohler for defending the historicity of Genesis 1-3, see here. Enns, author of The Evolution of Adam says that Conservative Evangelicals make too much of Adam. Adam was a symbol of Israel rather than a historical figure. Genesis 1-3 is about the origin of Israel not history. Genesis is not intended as history. 

To what extent are Evangelicals seeking academic approval in trying to accommodate the bible to theistic evolution? In trying to do so, Evangelical advocates of theistic evolution are putting the gospel metanarrative of good creation/fall/redemption/restoration under threat. That is why Al Mohler was right to say that this question is a  matter of "gospel urgency".

You can order recordings of addresses given at the John Owen Centre Conference on Adam in the Church, the Bible and the World. 

John Calvin in England

At our Ministers' Fraternal in Bradford on Avon, Robert Oliver spoke on the influence of John Calvin on the Reformation in England. Not that the Reformer ever visited these fair shores. But his ministry and writings had a powerful impact on the course of the English Reformation. After giving us a brief sketch of the Reformer's life, Robert began to show the way in which the Calvin helped to shape the course of the Reformation in England.

In a sense there were two Reformations in England; a political Reformation triggered by Henry VIII's break with Rome over his divorce of Catherine of Aragon, and a grassroots religious Reformation powered by the new Protestant teaching. Although Henry split from the Pope and made himself head of the Church of England, he was no Protestant. He harboured political suspicions against Catholics, regarding them as potential traitors. Yet the king disliked Protestant doctrine. It is said that on one day he had three Roman Catholics beheaded for treason and six Protestants burned for heresy.

Henry VIII was succeeded by Edward VI, who, under the influence of Protestant counsellors sought to advance the cause of the Reformation in England. The Church was made Protestant in doctrine and forms of worship. Protestant preaching was encouraged. But Edward died at the age of 16. He was followed by his Roman Catholic half sister, Mary. Some have suggested that the Reformation under the boy king was rather superficial. But the fact that 300 men and women, including leading churchmen like Cranmer, Latimer and Ridley were willing to die for their Protestant faith under Mary's reign of terror suggests that Reformed teaching was beginning to take a hold upon the populace.

But Mary's attempt to re-Catholicise England was a failure. Indeed, by the end of the reign in Elizabeth I in 1603, Protestantism was the dominant form of Christianity in the country. John Calvin had a very important role to play in the advance of the Protestant faith in England. Many leading English Protestants fled from their homeland during the Marian persecution and found refuge in Geneva. A church was founded for the English exiles, complete with its own confession of faith, psalter and a copy of the New Testament all in their own tongue.

Men who would later take Reformed teaching back to England came under the influence of John Calvin. Above all he gave them a model of reverent and accurate biblical exegesis. Calvin exemplified his careful approach to the biblical text in his own preaching ministry. It could also be seen in his many commentaries on books of the Bible. Gone was the fanciful method of exegesis favoured by the medievals. Calvin's aim was to discover the mind and intention of the biblical authors and set forth the plain sense of Scripture. He employed grammatico-historical exegesis, interpreting Scripture by Scripture in the light of the analogy of faith. The Roman Catholic Church claimed that she alone could interpret the Bible and argued that Protestantism would lead to theological anarchy. Calvin countered that through the witness of the Spirit and careful exegesis, it is possible to arrive at an accurate understanding of Scripture. His Institutes of the Christian Religion was written to aid Protestants in their reading of the Bible .

But Calvin provided more than a model of biblical scholarship for the English exiles. He was also an exemplary preacher. The Reformer would preach every day of alternate weeks, and up to three times each Sunday. He preached straight from the original Hebrew or Greek. His sermons were plain and simple as he explained the text of Scripture and showed how God's Word applied to the people of 16th century Geneva. In order to maintain eye contact with his congregation, Calvin preached without notes. This also helped to ensure that his ministry was lively, direct and punchy.

All this did not go unobserved by the English refugees in Geneva. When Mary died, Elizabeth I ascended the throne. She made the Church of England Protestant once more. But when the English Protestants returned home, they found that their queen was in no mood to sanction further reform of the Church. The Protestant leaders turned their all attention to preaching after the model of John Calvin. By this means, the hearts and minds of the English people were won for the Reformed cause. Powerful Puritan preachers like Henry "Silvertongue" Smith proclaimed the message of the Bible to their fellow countrymen. Elizabeth didn't much like preaching and did all she could to discourage "prophesyings". But by the 1570's is was evident that Protestant preaching had won the day. The English had become a "People of the Book."

Another big factor in the advance of English Reformation was the publication in 1560 of the Geneva Bible. This translation of Scripture was started by English Protestants in Geneva during the reign of queen Mary. By 1644, 100 editions had been printed. The Bible had several distinguishing features. It was printed in clear Roman type and verses were added to the biblical text for ease of reference. Although a hefty tome by today's standards at 24.1 x 18.8 x 6.6 cm, the Geneva Bible was much more portable than the old Great Bible, which was described as being "as portable as Stone Henge." The Bible contained a concordance, maps and diagrams of things like the tabernacle and garments worn by the Old Testament priests. But above all, the Geneva Bible was a study Bible with marginal notes that explained and applied the text. The notes were written after the model of John Calvin's lucid, brief and telling comments on Scripture. With the Geneva Bible in hand, any Christian man could now read Scripture with understanding and expound its message to his family with accuracy and conviction. Biblical literacy rates rocketed as this new version of the Scriptures became readily available. Ordinary believers demanded that their parish priest gave them Bible-based preaching. Like the Bereans of Acts 17:11, English Christians were in a position to scrutinise preaching against the standard of Scripture. People would travel many miles to hear God's Word preached by a godly, gifted and Spirit empowered Puritan Minister. It is said that the Puritan pulpit had more influence on the Elizabethan populace than the plays of Shakespeare or Marlowe. If the English had become a "People of the Book", that book was the Geneva Bible. And that Gevena was Calvin's Geneva.

So, John Calvin, though his expository labours and preaching ministry had a profound effect on the progress of the Reformation in England. With the Reformer's life and work receiving renewed attention in this, the 500th anniversary of his birth, let us pray that his vision of Bible-based gospel preaching may once again take hold of the pulpits of this land.

Bibliography: Robert Oliver mentioned several books

The Expository Genius of John Calvin, by Steven J, Lawson
John Calvin, A Pilgrim's Life, by Herman J. Selderhuis
The Reformation by Patrick Collinson
The Geneva Bible 1560 Edition

PTS @ Penknap Lecture: 'Jonathan Edwards & Revival'

Local readers may be interested to know of this forthcoming event, held under the aspices of the Protestant Truth Society:

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‘Jonathan Edwards & Revival’

...

Monday 27th October 7.30pm
@
Penknap Providence Church,
Tower Hill, Dilton March,
Westbury, Wiltshire, BA13 3SP.

Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758) was mightily used of God in the Great Awakening. With his firsthand experience, sound grasp of biblical teaching and penetrating discernment, he is commonly recognised as the great theologian of revival. His concern for an outpouring of the Spirit of God led to an international “concert of prayer” for revival.

Speaker: Dr. Robert Oliver,
(Bradford on Avon & London Theological Seminary)

l

All welcome!