226 – The Teaching of Election is Not Hardshellism

SEMESTER 2

226 – The Teaching of Election is Not Hardshellism

BIBLE INSTITUTE OF CORRESPONDENCE

COURSE:  SOTERIOLOGY II LESSON # 26
THE TEACHING OF ELECTION IS NOT HARDSHELLISM

Tape: So 213 – 9 Side: B

INTRODUCTION:

1. One of the most ignorant and totally unrealistic reproaches brought against the teachers of sovereign, soteriological election is, “It is hardshellism.”
2. The fact is that all of the teachers of election I know are missionary, and would not even accept hardshell baptism.

I. WHAT IS HARDSHELLISM?

1. Typically they deny the necessity of preaching or hearing the gospel for salvation.
2. They do not believe in sending missionaries and see no need of preaching the gospel to the lost.
3. This is simply to say that they exclude the necessity of means.

III: Their alleged interpretation of Rom. 1:16. (Hear on tape.)

4. Conversely, election is inseparably joined to the gospel. (2Th 2:13)

II. “HARDSHELLS” AND “MISSIONARIES” DID NOT SPLIT OVER ELECTION

1. In time past the overwhelming majority of Baptists held unswerving­ly to the doctrine of sovereign election of men to salvation.
2. The split came over implementation of means, not the necessity of them.

III: “Old school” address at Black Rock Conven­tion. (Hear on tape.)

3. The issues were as follow:

i. Tracts (societies)
ii. Sunday Schools (outside churches)
iii. Bible societies (for the publication of the gospel)
iv. Missions (under boards)
v. Schools of theology
vi. Protracted meetings

4. The Primitive Baptists rejected these, because they felt they saw error in them.
5. The liberals of the day embraced them, because they envisioned success.
6. From this came, through deterioration, modernism and hardshellism.
7. By God’s providence His true churches emerged, from the dust and smoke, still holding the doctrine of sovereign election.
8. This is unquestionably evidenced by the following facts:

i. They both accept the statement on election in the Philadel­phia Confession of Faith.
ii. The doctrine is also taught in the New Hampshire Confes­sion (accepted by both).
iii. The fact that all standard textbooks of theology, and doctrinal textbooks of representative Baptists, teach this doctrine.

III. BAPTIST BELIEVERS IN ELECTION ARE MOST DILIGENT IN MISSION WORK

1. Hardshellism condones no mission effort except that which is designed to teach the quickened.
2. Yet some of the most fervent missionary churches dedicated to evangelism in this country today hold firmly to the doctrine of election.

III: The churches where I am asked to hold mission conferences
III: The financial effort dedicated to outreach in our church.

3. Modern mission vision did not originate among General Bap­tists, but Particular Baptists.

IV. ELECTION IS NOT TWO-SEEDISM

i. The “Two Seed” doctrine popularized by Daniel Parker is not like the doctrine of sovereign election.
ii. Hear tape for explanation of what “Two-seedism” is.
iii. Sovereign election teachers hold, that we are all by nature children of wrath even as others. (Eph. 2:3)

Conclusion: The equating of election to hardshellism, two-seedism or fatalism is ignorance of the most willful sort.