Adrian Rogers was pastor of Bellevue Baptist Church, Cordova, Tennessee and elected three times as president of the Southern Baptist Convention. He was the first president elected, and a leader in, the SBC Conservative Resurgence. His messages are still widely distributed through TV, radio, and literature. He is the favorite preacher of multitudes of Southern Baptists.
Below are a few of Adrian Rogers thoughts on predestination and Calvinism:
“Did God predestine some people for Heaven and predestine some people for Hell? Are humans just pawns on the chessboard of fate? Absolutely not!”
“There are some who…say that God has chosen some before they are born to go the Hell and others He has chosen to go to Heaven - and there’s absolutely nothing they can do about it. I don’t accept this for a moment…”
“God hardened Pharaoh’s heart because Pharaoh first hardened his own heart.”
“All God did was to crystallize the sin that was already in him [Pharaoh]. God did not take a little tender child and say, “I’m going to harden your heart and then I’m going to cast you into Hell.”
Pharaoh “had blasphemed the God of Heaven, and God had warned him. God has sent His messenger to him, but this man stubbornly and arrogantly said “no” to God. It was then that God further hardened the heart of this man whose heart was already hardened. But don’t get the idea that God just raised up Pharaoh to send him to Hell. God warned Pharaoh, but he wouldn’t heed the warning.”
On Romans 9 and Jacob and Esau; “God is not talking about two little babies, one born for Heaven and one born for Hell. That’s not what He is saying at all. This is national, not personal.” Later, “God was not talking about salvation. He was simply saying that Israel is going to be His choice, and the descendants of Jacob are going to be His spiritual leaders in the world…Nothing is said here about one twin going to Heaven and the other twin going to Hell.”
On the Scripture, “The vessels of wrath fitted to destruction.” “Well, how did they get ripe for destruction? In his word study, Vincent reminds us that this is the middle voice, which means simply that they fitted themselves for destruction. It is not the potter than fits them for destruction. It is the potter who is long-suffering. It is the vessels of wrath who fit themselves for destruction. God never made anybody to go to Hell. God wants people saved. He wants you saved. First Timothy 2:4 speaks of ‘God who will have all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of truth.’”
“The following Scriptures show God’s universal love for all and His promise to all who will trust in Christ.” Rogers then quotes John 3:16-17; Isaiah 53:6; Romans 8:32; 1 Timothy 2:4; 1 John 4:14; 1 John 2:2; Revelation 22:17; Romans 9:33.
After quoting 1 John 2:2 Adrian Rogers says, “In this classic passage Jesus is spoken of as the propitiation or the satisfaction, not only for the sins of those who are already saved, but for the sins of the whole world.”
“If you want to be saved, to be one of the elect, then just come to Jesus.”
“I invite you to pray like this,
‘Dear God, I know that You love me. I know that You want to save me. I am a sinner and my sin deserves judgment, but I need mercy and I want mercy. I am not going to harden my heart against You, God. I open my heart. Come into my heart and into my life right now. Forgive all my sin, save me, Lord Jesus.’
Friend, pray that from your heart, ask Jesus to save you, trust Him to do it, and He will!”
These quotes are from the sermon booklet, Predestined for Hell? Absolutely Not!, by Adrian Rogers, Love Worth Finding, P.O. Box 38800, Memphis, TN 38183-0300, (lwf.org); 1999; 2010. 901/382-7900.
Order the booklet today; it just costs $2. Order extra for those who have questions about this subject.
-David R. Brumbelow, Gulf Coast Pastor, August 29, AD 2011.
Related Articles:
Brief History of SBC Conservative Resurgence
Unlimited Atonement, Jesus Died For All
Adrian Rogers on "Wit & Wisdom of Pastor Joe Brumbelow"
Paige Patterson on Calvinism
B. H. Carroll on Hyper-Calvinism
Books on Calvinism, Predestination
Wit And Wisdom Of My Dad
Ancient Wine Production and the Bible
Roy Fish on Calvinism; part 1 of 2
Other articles found in lower right margin under Gulf Coast Pastor Articles (Labels).
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Thankfully the in the SBC we can disagree with eachother over this issue... I think Romans 9 teaches individual election to salvation.
ReplyDeleteI believe this is the sermon I heard on VCY America radio here in Milwaukee, WI the other day. I only caught a bit of it & I believe there was even more to this subject & sermon than what is shown here. Does anyone know how I can listen to the whole sermon. Hearing only part of it on the radio left me a bit confused as I struggle with the issue of calvinism & it caused me to believe also that Adrian Rogers was a calvinist as well. Can anyone please clear this up for me & also direct me to the full sermon. Thanks:)
ReplyDeleteNicole,
ReplyDeleteThe entire booklet or sermon, "Predestined for Hell? Absolutely Not!," by Adrian Rogers can be purchased at lwf.org. The link is provided in the above post.
There are two ways to look at Adrian Rogers and Calvinism. Some would call him a non-Calvinist. Others would call Rogers a Moderate Calvinist. After all, Rogers certainly believed in Eternal Security, and, depending on how they are defined, Total Depravity and Election.
Read Adrian Rogers booklet for more information. You might also be interested in checking out the books listed in another post, Books on Calvinism, Predestination. The link to this article is above.
Hope this helps.
David R. Brumbelow
It is funny how the Southern "Baptist" disagree on the original 1689 Baptist statement of faith.
ReplyDeleteThe Moderate Calvinism of the New Hampshire Baptist Confession and the Baptist Faith and Message have been much more influential among Southern Baptists than the more Strict Calvinism of the 1689 statement.
DeleteDavid R. Brumbelow