John R. Gower and the Culture of Turn-of-the-Century Free Will Baptists (3/3)
Throughout history Christians have consistently been faced with the task of discerning what aspects of the culture could be reconciled with the Christian faith. While not every decision carries remarkable consequences, inattention to the danger of cultural influences has led some to abandon core doctrines or the faith altogether. Studying how our forebears have interacted with their culture can cultivate wisdom for our decisions in...
John R. Gower and the Culture of Turn-of-the-Century Free Will Baptists (2/3)
In a previous post, I gave a brief biographical sketch of the Free Will Baptist farmer-preacher John R. Gower, who served in the Cumberland Association in Middle Tennessee during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In this essay, we will explore how the cultural context of Gower’s life informs our understanding of the temperance movement in the Cumberland Association specifically and among Southern Free Will Baptists...
John R. Gower and the Culture of Turn-of-the-Century Free Will Baptists (1/3)
Much of the history of Free Will Baptists in the nineteenth century is limited to analyzing the events that occurred within the movement but fails to connect the hopes, dreams, pursuits, and fears of our movement fully to the broader cultural and political context. In this essay, I provide some context to the culture of Free Will Baptists at the turn of the twentieth century by considering the life of John R. Gower, a farmer, social...
HSF Conversations: Christians and the Military with Richard E. Myrick
In this episode of HSF Conversations, senior contributor and associate editor Phillip T. Morgan discusses with retired Lieutenant Colonel Dr. Richard E. Myrick what it is like for a Christian to serve in the military, the unique opportunities and challenges that military life offers, and how churches can best minister to those serving in the military. With twenty years of active service in the United States Marine Corps, Dr. Myrick...
Show Kindness and Mercy: Benevolence or Redistribution?
In our winter 2025 Recommended Books post, senior contributor Jesse F. Owens praised Alex DiPrima’s Spurgeon and the Poor: How the Gospel Compels Christian Social Concern for its call to Christian social action. His laudatory summary caught my eye. These kinds of exhortations are exactly what we need to bring before our fellow believers. We need to remember that the second great commandment (Mk. 12:31) calls us to love our neighbor as...
Recent Comments