Reformed Baptists
[2] Depending on the denomination, Calvinistic Baptists adhere to varying degrees of Reformed theology, ranging from simply embracing the Five Points of Calvinism, to accepting a modified form of federalism; all Calvinistic Baptists reject the classical Reformed teaching on infant baptism.
They adhere to a higher degree of Reformed theology than other Calvinistic Baptist groups and usually subscribe to the London Confession of 1689.
In the narrower sense, certain churches and groups have preferred "Sovereign Grace" in their name, rather than using the terms "Calvinism", "Calvinist", or "Reformed Baptist".
[13] All of these groups generally agree with the Five Points of Calvinism – Total Depravity, Unconditional Election, Limited Atonement, Irresistible Grace, and Perseverance of the Saints.
Groups calling themselves "Sovereign Grace Baptists" have been particularly influenced by the writings of John Gill in the 18th century.
[14] Among American Baptists who have revived such Calvinist ideas were Rolfe P. Barnard and Henry T. Mahan, who organised the first Sovereign Grace Bible Conference in Ashland, Kentucky, in 1954,[15][16] though groups designated as Sovereign Grace are not necessarily connected to them.
[1] Charles Spurgeon (1834–92), pastor to the New Park Street Chapel (later the Metropolitan Tabernacle) in London, has been called "by far the most famous and influential preacher the Baptists had.
Their characteristic traits may be the founder (Keach, signer of the 1689), theologian (Gill), hymnist (Rippon), preacher (Spurgeon), and restorer (Masters).
[6] Baptist churches in the United States continued to operate under the confessional statement, the 1689 London Baptist, but they renamed it according to the local associations in which it was adopted, first the Philadelphia Confession (1742, which includes two new chapters),[21] then the Charleston Confession (1761, adopted from the London without changes).
When the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary was founded, its governing confession, the abstract of principles, was summarized form of the 1689 London Baptist Confession, and its founding president, James P. Boyce wrote his "Abstract of Systematic Theology" from an evident Calvinist position.
[22] Many of the developments in the U.K. mentioned above during the 1950s and following also made an impact on Baptists in America, seen especially in the Founders Movement (which was connected to the so-called "Conservative Resurgence" in the SBC) and in the works of men such as Walter Chantry,[23] Roger Nicole, and Ernest Reisinger.
In March 2009, noting the resurgence of Calvinism in the United States, Time listed several Baptists among current Calvinist leaders.
Membership in the SGBA is open to any Baptist church subscribing to the Constitution and Articles of Faith.
[39] In Brazil there is a modest association, the Comunhão Reformada Batista do Brasil (Baptist Reformed Communion of Brazil) sprung mostly from the work of US missionary Richard Denham at São José dos Campos, SP.
