I Believe Baptist Briders Missed a Lot By Not Honoring the Protestant Reformation
While I don't consider myself Protestant and historically, Baptists are NOT Protestants but I don't consider myself a Baptist Bride follower. The problem of the Baptist Bride movement is that it lies on the false claim that John the Baptist supposedly founded the denomination and Jesus is the first Baptist. That's really as ridiculous as the Roman Catholic claim that Peter is the first Pope.
Here's the problem of the Baptist Bride movement: they are enjoying stuff that were historically contributed by Protestant Christians all the while believing that they are the only "Bride" of Christ. Other Christians are just waiters and janitors. This should start raising the question of the contributions of other non-Baptist Christians to Christendom.
I can understand if not everyone can embrace Calvinism as to the reason why not everyone believes. I can embrace non-Calvinist Christians as brothers and sisters in Christ. What needs to be mentioned is that some things Christians enjoy today are Calvinist-made. For instance, the song "Amazing Grace" is very Calvinistic. The song "Why Have You Chosen Me" and "I'm Forever Grateful" are Calvinistic. Should I mention that the translators of the King James Bible (and note that I'm pretty much a moderate King James Onlyist) were all Calvinists?
The Reformation brought in many important contributions. Although the printing press was invented by a Roman Catholic named Johannes Guttenburg but the Bible was outlawed. What was amazing was that the Roman Catholic institution would later try to outlaw the printing press even if it was invented by their very own. Years later, Martin Luther would use the printing press to print more Bibles in vernacular language. Printing the Bible in German is also part of the important history of giving the Bible to the laymen. Yet today, the average Roman Catholic is woefully misled into believing that their religion gave us the Bible.
As much as I'm a King James Onlyist which I believe is the best translation around but it's stupid how some KJV only are not only hostile towards Reformed theologians but also towards the Reformation. The King James Bible was completed in 1611 and it still has a long history. John Calvin wrote the Geneva Study Bible which is an important stepping stone. William Tyndale who was executed during the Reformation translated the Bible into English. Without these contributions I wouldn't be holding the KJV in my hand today.
The Reformation was important in this way. It not only challenged the so-called "apostolic power" of Rome but also for getting the Bible distributed. It challenged Rome by showing she didn't give us the Bible. If Rome gave us the Bible then why did she forbid people from owning one? Why did she have those who gave Bibles brutally massacred? Without the Reformation there wouldn't be more Bibles spread and the world would have probably still been stuck in the Dark Ages.
The Reformation was important in this way. It not only challenged the so-called "apostolic power" of Rome but also for getting the Bible distributed. It challenged Rome by showing she didn't give us the Bible. If Rome gave us the Bible then why did she forbid people from owning one? Why did she have those who gave Bibles brutally massacred? Without the Reformation there wouldn't be more Bibles spread and the world would have probably still been stuck in the Dark Ages.
You could also think of the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith. These are Reformed Baptists. Even if Baptists historically came before the Protestants but later, other Baptists would adopt the Reformed view. It's tragic how some Independent Fundamental Baptists are woefully misled. What's worse, I even discovered how Jack Hyles not only advocated the Baptist Bride movement but also his church was full of false converts. Other fundamentalist Baptists (not all) even woefully preached that Luther and Calvin would have jailed them if they were born during that time. The 1689 Baptist confession became the standard for later Baptists.
Should I mention that some die-hard Baptist preachers were Calvinist or Reformed? We have John Gill and Charles H. Spurgeon. It would be something to think how some Baptists could honor Spurgeon as an example all the while they reject the Reformation. Spurgeon was someone who honored the Reformation. As a Baptist, I would say that if it wasn't for the Reformation then I don't think the great Baptist preachers of the past would have preached what they preached.
Personally, I think I'm already a Calvinist for this reason. I even think that I couldn't get out of the Great Whore of Revelation if Jesus wasn't calling me. Revelation 18:5 has the voice from Heaven calling God's people to get out of the Great Whore. The phrase "My people" rings to my head that the Elect are called out of her. Maybe, I couldn't even get out of her if God didn't call me first. John 6:44 says that no man can come unto Jesus except by the power of the Father draws them first. Did I get out of Rome only because the Father drew me to Christ? Leaves room for thought.
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