Why Be Fundamental

Table of Contents

PREFACE

DEDICATIONS

CHAPTER 1

THE DOCTRINE OF SALVATION

CHAPTER 2

THE DOCTRINE OF BAPTISM

CHAPTER 3

THE DOCTRINE OF HELL

CHAPTER 4

THE DOCTRINE OF THE LORD’S SUPPER

CHAPTER 5

THE DOCTRINE OF CHURCH DISCIPLINE

CHAPTER 6

RIGHTLY DIVIDING THE WORD OF TRUTH

CHAPTER 7

THE HERESY OF ECUMENISM

BIBLIOGRAPHY

PREFACE

What does it mean to be fundamental and why? By definition, the term fundamental means a principle, theory, law, etc. serving as a basis, and fundamentalism means religious beliefs based on a literal interpretation of the Bible (Webster’s New World Dictionary). And rightly it should be. Yet, in recent years there have arisen those who claim fundamentalism and teach the exact opposite. Still, there have arisen those in the pulpit who do not even want to associate themselves with the name of fundamentalist. Why? Are they so educated that they, in their mindset have to dumb down God’s Word for those who come through the doors of their pastorate? No! Even for the lay person God’s Word explains itself. We live in a day where not only our children, but we also are being dumbed down in society and in the pews of the churches we attend.

As being fundamental, we need to rise to the occasion and speak up for what we believe. Now if this causes you to call us funny mentalists, then so be it! Sadly, we are countered by those who would argue that what we teach is only a matter of interpretation. If this is so, why then do they have such a hard time grasping even the base teachings of the scriptures? Regretfully, those who have a hard time with base or simple teaching from the Word are spiritually dwarfed (stunted) because they know only the milk of the Word and have not tasted of the meat. These are they that stand in the pulpit and before Sunday school classes and teach things they know not. Listen to Hebrews 5:12-14, By now you should be teachers. Instead, you still need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word. You need milk, not solid food. All those who live on milk lack the experience to talk about what is right. They are still babies. However, solid food is for mature people, whose minds are trained by practice to know the difference between good and evil (God’s Word Translation).

The purpose of this book is to put us into remembrance of just how deep God’s Word really is. The growth of the child of God is not just downward and getting a firmer grasp on the Rock of Ages, it should be upward as well. Being able to explain the Word simply enough for a child to understand, yet deeply enough for even the most experienced among us to learn something new.

This book and the contents herein are not meant for light reading. It is designed for one to go to God’s Word and seriously consider its doctrine, reproof (rebuke), discipline, and instruction. It is an open invitation for those who are not skilled in the Word to become so, and for those who are to gain a greater knowledge. In Numbers 23:19 we read, "God is not a man—and lieth, and a son of man—and repenteth! Hath He said—and doth He not do it? And spoken—and doth He not confirm it? (Young’s Literal Translation). Paul in Romans 3:4 said, …let God become true, and every man false (Young’s Literal). For many this book will provoke outrage and for others it will provoke interest. This author does not claim to know everything about the scriptures, and will never know it all until he gets to glory. The Bible is the only tangible foundation and building that contains the mind of our Blessed Lord. It should be the bedrock of our faith. We sing the words of an old song, How Firm a Foundation written by George Keith, who exclaims; How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord, Is laid for your faith in His excellent Word!" Yet, most of us do not so much as crack our Bibles except in times of distress or sorrow, then only read it as we would a cheap novel.

Let us now go to God’s Word expecting to hear and learn from Him.

DEDICATIONS

First and foremost I thank the Lord for His Word. For the strength that is gained from it day by day. No other book on the face of this earth can be compared to it, for within its pages are found faith, peace, joy, and final victory. It is to Christ, I owe an eternity of gratitude for saving my soul and making a place in Glory for me.

For my parents; never did you dream that the Lord could do what He has done in my life. It is your relentless pursuit to please the Lord that has made me what I am today. The place for teaching took place there in our home. No matter what happened to us, whether the house we lived in burned down, or living in a trailer and building another house without air conditioning, the Lord has seen us through so much and has been so gracious to our family. I thank the Lord for placing me there.

For my late wife, The Lord was the One who brought us together; her encouragement and dedication to the work of the Lord has literally driven me to write this book. Today, she is with her Lord and she is finally at rest. I thank God for her influence in this book.

To my dear Brother Eddie Atkinson, in the twilight years of your life I want you to know that even though many have had an impact on my life, you have made the biggest. I have looked to you for wisdom and guidance in the study of God’s Word. You may not have it heard enough in your life but I thank you for your many years as pastor and missionary. I pray that the Lord will generously bless you for your many years of service.

The following is a list of pastors and preachers that I have been privileged to know in my life time:

The late H. Frank Fort

The late A.O. Singer

The late Edgar Mc Neely

The late Ron Dulany

The late Don Warren

The late Jim Prince

The late Kermit Johnson

The late Alfred Gould

The late Johnny Morgan

The late David Brown

The late Leland Lanier

Eddie Atkinson

Lester Hutson

Dan Dulany

Tim Dulany

Rudy Rios

You are men of God, and you are the ones who have been my mentors over many years. For this, you are deeply loved.

For Bro. Jason Fortenberry, my present pastor; we kid each other a lot and about this and that on occasion and we have had some serious talks in the short time that I’ve known you. I want you to know that even though we have varying views concerning the scriptures, I think it may be possible that the Lord put me in First Baptist Church – Newton as maybe a mentor of sorts. I have noticed in the time that I have been at First Baptist that you honestly seek the Lord’s Will not only in the life of the church, but also in your personal life as well, and I pray that as you do that the members of our church will follow suit. I would like to share a scripture that Bro. Eddie Atkinson shared with me a long time ago when I surrendered to the ministry:

Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Proverbs 3:5-6.

CHAPTER 1

 "

THE DOCTRINE OF SALVATION"

Before we get under way, I would like to take an opportunity to state that fundamentalism is the basis of what we Baptists hold dear. The studies that we shall deal with, not only in this chapter, but also in this book have been studied and brought to light as I have learned them. What is to be read herein is a compilation of thirty years of research and study. We will, on occasion, use different translations of the scriptures and quotes from various commentaries and authors. So, get a firm grip on your temper and let’s get started!

PART 1

MISCONCEPTIONS OF SALVATION

In Romans 10:1-17, we find, "Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved. For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believeth. For Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the law, that the man which doeth those things shall live by them. But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, Say not in thine heart, Who shall ascend into heaven? (that is, to bring Christ down from above:) Or, Who shall descend into the deep? (that is, to bring up Christ again from the dead.) But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach; That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things! But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report? So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God".

The scripture we have just read is commonly misunderstood and misinterpreted. Let us consider the way this scripture is most often misused. The vast majority, and this includes most Baptists, view this scripture as the way to the Lord Jesus to save them from Hell. Did you ever stop and consider that there are three aspects to Salvation? Here they are:

1.   Salvation from the Penalty of sin.

2.   Salvation from the Power of sin.

3.   Salvation from the Presence of sin.

In this first part of the chapter, we will primarily deal with the aspect of salvation from the Penalty of sin. So, what is fact and what is fiction? It shall be our goal to discern the difference between the two. Now, in keeping with the context of this passage, we discover to whom this scripture is addressed. The very first word of our text is Brethren, and in chapter 1:7 we find, "To all that be in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints. By this we conclude that the Brethren in chapter 10:1 are the same as those … beloved of God, called to be saints in Chapter 1:7. Now for those who follow the diverse doctrines of Catholicism, the term saint mentioned does not match the definition given by the Catholic Church nor Webster’s New World Dictionary. Which says, somebody honored by church after death: a member of a religion who after death is formally designated as having led a life of exceptional holiness. Sorry, no one who names the Name of Christ has ever … led a life of exceptional holiness or even dared to admit it. Therefore the definition is irrelevant and will not be considered. Listen to the Interlinear Bible, … to all those who are in Rome, beloved of God, called out saints"

Who then are the saints mentioned herein? These are believers in Jesus Christ. The believer is not some Caesar milquetoast with WELCOME written across their chest, and neither is the saint, for the believer and the saint are one in the same. Though the believer and saint are titles, these can be summed up as a sinner saved by Grace. As far as the title of saint, in the sight of God, spiritually speaking that one person is innocent. This person is just in God’s sight, for thus it is written, "Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus (Romans 3:24-26). Again, Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law (3:28). What did the law demand? Sacrifice! This, therefore, gives relevance to Hebrews 9:13, 22 which says, For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: – And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission. Yet if it were necessary for sacrifice to continue today, why then haven’t we done so? The Law demanded the sacrifice of animals and these did nothing for the price of sin. In fact, it demanded more. With animal sacrifices, the Law demanded the continuation of sacrifices on an annual basis. Thus God the Father already knowing the weakness of the law according to Romans 8:3-4 (in that the law could not save ones soul from Hell) sent His Son as the permanent propitiation or appeasement for His wrath. And as a result of this; … Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many (9:28a) and with this in mind, let us turn to something else that stands out in Romans 10:1, called to be saints (KJV) or called out saints"(Int.).

Within the Gospel itself we find this call. It is a call to …repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 20:21). The term call in the Greek means, to incite by word, i.e. order:-bid, (at, give) command (-ment). So what is this command? Believe! Whether we want to admit it or not, the term believe, in the Book of John only it is found forty-nine times. Thirty of those were direct quotes from our Lord. With this in mind, this term is found 140 times in just the Bible itself. If the Holy Spirit felt it was necessary to mention this term that many times, then maybe we should pay close attention.

Let us now consider two other terms found in our text in Romans 10:9, 13. (1) Confess (v.9) and (2) call (v.13). Confess is defined as acknowledge faith in something: to declare faith or belief in something or somebody. In the Greek, confess is defined as to assent, i.e. covenant, acknowledge. Now the term call in the Greek is echoed by Webster’s New World Dictionary by defining it as a summons; invitation".

In the scriptures there is a call for repentance to the alien that comes to Christ. One such place is found in Acts 17:30. "And at the times of this ignorance God winked (overlooked (margin)) at; but now commandeth all men everywhere to repent" (emphasis added). Again, we hear Peter preaching, "Repent ye therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out" (Acts 3:19, emphasis added). In verse