It finally happened.
I figured it was only a matter of time.
I was actually looking for it, but am surprised that I just now came across it on my bookshelf.
After approximately 150 years since the seed of anti-evangelism took root among the Primitive Baptists…
After the divisions over gospel means and predestination at the turn of the 20th century...
After going to the scriptures with flawed hermeneutics...
After completely separating conversion from regeneration, and the subjective from the objective…
The doctrine of conditional time salvation has finally made its way into the realm of church articles.
Accepted by Augusta Primitive Baptist Church on May 12, 2002, article #7 reads:
Temporal Salvation. We believe the gospel is the good news of God's salvation by the finished work of Jesus Christ. It is intended solely for God's elect born again children, for their good, joy and happiness. It brings life and immortality to light, and by it, we are fed spiritually. Belief and obedience to the gospel by the performing of "good works" provides a great reward in this life and a timely deliverance (temporal salvation) from spiritual ignorance, a life displeasing to God, and from the pitfalls of this world, our flesh and the devil. We also avoid the chastening rod of God's wrath here in this life by living in obedience to His word. The gospel has no role in the eternal salvation of God's children and many of God's elect will never be converted to the truth of the gospel unto discipleship (infant deaths, mentally afflicted, those in remote parts of the world, or those who in an act of rebellion reject the gospel in unbelief).
And of course, the "proof" texts: 2 Tim. 1:10, Acts 10:28, Eph. 2:10; Titus 3:8, Matthew 5:16, 2 Tim. 3:16, Matthew 11:28-29, Acts 2:40, Heb. 10:26-31, 2 Tim. 2:13
The inclusion of this false teaching into a church’s articles of faith confirms the distance that now exists between it and the Old Baptists of years gone by. I can see how this has been culminating for a while now, though, as the antinomianism consistent with extreme time salvation has already prompted some to rewrite their articles on eternal security, by exchanging the perseverance of the saints for the more compatible expression, the preservation of the saints. The ultimate teaching behind it, and other doctrinal departures, was bound to come sooner or later in the form of its own dedicated article in a church’s confession.
Its main errors are in asserting that:
1) The gospel is only for the regenerate elect.
2) Good works are meritorious on the part of the regenerate (i.e. Arminianism).
3) Evangelical faith and obedience concern only temporal matters.
4) Election is not necessarily unto a “belief of the truth” (2 Thes. 2:13) and “unto obedience” (1 Peter 1:2) but only unto glorification.
Though we strongly disagree with the teaching, this is actually what the Fulton brethren should have done in 1900 instead of supplying footnotes to the London Confession’s teaching on effectual calling. It would have been more honest to include a separate article such as that above instead of feigning allegiance to what they in reality denied.
Our minds are made to wonder if this article stands alone today, or if others have followed suit by adopting it into their own records. If so, we hope that it will help to warn others of what the heresy teaches.
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