Regarding Adoniram Judson
Over the years, I have noticed that Christians erect a lot of unprofitable mythology around their heroes. Without doubt, there have been those who greatly loved the Lord, who endured great suffering, and who went to incredible lengths to serve God based on their understanding. I admit that I have found inspiration in their dedication. That said, we should all be well aware of the dangers that attend the establishment of evangelical heroes. Zeal of God does not a right understanding of salvation make. We should take care less we confound the two. Stated plainly - just because a man endured great afflictions and displayed strong convictions does not establish that man as a faithful guide for biblical truth. “Let God be true and every man be a liar.” (Romans 3:4) That includes men of evident zeal and commitment to God when they have erred from the truth. One such man was Adoniram Judson. I came across this quote from the much ballyhooed Judson and found it quite an eye-opener with respect to his soteriology:
"Surely you can hold out no longer! Thanks be to God, I see you taking off your necklaces and your earrings, tearing away your ribbons and ruffles and superfluities of headdress, and I hear you exclaim, What shall we do next? An important question deserving serious consideration. The ornaments you are renouncing, though useless, and worse than useless, in their present state can be so disposed of as to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, relieve the sick, enlighten the dark-minded, disseminate the Holy Scriptures, spread the glorious gospel throughout the world. Little do the inhabitants of a free Christian country know the want and distress endured by the greater part of the inhabitants of the earth. Still less idea can they form of the awful darkness which rests upon the great mass of mankind in regard to spiritual things. During the years that you have been wearing these useless ornaments, how many poor creatures have been pining in want? How many have languished and groaned on beds of abject wretchedness; how many children have been bred up in the blackest ignorance, hardened in all manner of iniquity?" (Quote from Adoniram Judson, Church History, CB and S Hassell, p. 773)
So far so good. It is not hard to identify expressions of material vanity among us. I might question what he means by "enlighten the darkened mind" given Paul's statements in I Corinthians 2:11-14. Giving him the benefit of the doubt, I read on...
"How many immortal souls have gone down to hell with a lie in their right hand, having never heard of the true God and of the only Savior! Some of these miseries might have been mitigated; some poor wretch have felt his pain relieved; some widows heart to have been made to sing for joy; some helpless orphans have been rescued from hardened depravity, and trained up for a happy life, here and hereafter;" (Hassel's History, p.773)
Is Judson suggesting a tie between financial contribution to missions and the eternal destiny of men's souls? Surely not...
"some, yea many precious souls might have been redeemed from the precious fires of hell, where now they must lie and suffer to all eternity" (Hassel's History, p.773)
The bible teaches that redemption is a past accomplishment of the Lord Jesus Christ, "Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, HAVING OBTAINED ETERNAL REDEMPTION for us." (Hebrews 9:12) This redemption was purchased by his own blood, not by the necklaces and earrings of women in a church congregation. Moreover, the Lord said that he gives his sheep eternal life and they shall never perish (John 10:28) and that of all those that the father gave him that he "should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day." (John 6:39) Judson's suggestion that something that a man does or does not do in this life could thwart the work of the Lord Jesus Christ on behalf of his people is devoid of spiritual understanding. Were it not for the number of Christians deceived by this nonsense, Judson’s statement would be comical. The apostle Paul insists that the things of "life" cannot overturn the impeccable intercession of the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 8:38). Judson's understanding of the intercessory work of Christ and the purpose of the gospel is at odds with the apostle Paul. It is just plain wrong.
"had you not been afraid of being thought unfashionable, and not like other folks! Had you not preferred adorning your persons and cherishing the most seductive feelings of vanity and pride!" (Hassel's History, p.773)
Judson reiterates his blasphemous assertion that the eternal destinies of men are hinging upon the fickle preferences of those in the church. What stark contrast to the faith once delivered to the saints - a faith which David referred to as "an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and sure." (II Samuel 23:5) By his own admission, Judson's "salvation" is unsure, for it finds its efficacy not in the cross work of Christ, but in the contributions of man. Could a more blasphemous assertion be put forth than to suggest that the Lord's work on behalf of his people is rendered impotent unless men improve upon it with money? Lest this observation lose its jarring effect - how does your church's doctrine and practice with regard to "missions" line up in this respect? I ask that in all sincerity. Is there any sense in which “failure to contribute to missions” is equated with “some folks needlessly ending up in hell”? Those who look into this matter may find the answer disturbing.
"O Christian sisters, believers in God, in Christ, in an eternal hell! can you hesitate and ask what you shall do? Bedew these ornaments with the tears of contrition; consecrate them to the cause of charity; hang them on the cross of your dying Lord."
Ironically Judson's impassioned plea strikes at the heart of his error. It asserts that the cross of Christ simply was NOT enough and that it will only find its efficacy if it is adorned with the silver and gold of our vain conversation. Consider the astonishing contrast between Adoniram Judson and the Apostle Peter:
JUDSON: Many precious souls might have been redeemed had you but hung your ornaments of silver and gold on the cross of Christ!
PETER: Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation. (I Peter 1:18)
I call Judson's doctrine “Might-Have-Been-Redemption.” It is not within a thousand miles of the “Having-Obtained-Redemption” declared in Hebrews 9:12. Judson's teaching is not the gospel of blood redemption by Christ, but the gospel of vain conversational redemption by man. God's people are saved by what Christ did. Period. End of story. The corruptible things such as silver and gold from our vain conversation have precisely nothing to do with that finished work.
While I admire Judson's zeal, it was not according to knowledge. This is the sandy soil upon which the modern missions movement finds its unsure footing. “Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?” (Galatians 4:16)
- Elder Daniel Samons
POST SCRIPT
In my experience many zealous promoters of the Fullerite Calvinist “missions” remain woefullly ignorant of what those men preached. While I can't think of any PB Elder who would get behind the aforementioned nonsense that Adoniram Judson promoted, I can honestly say that even most of the Calvinists with whom I've traveled over the years would be wary of endorsing Judson's crass connection between financial contribution and the eternal salvation of men's souls. On the few occasions I've had to point this out to modern-Calvinists, I have been met with false accusations of misrepresentation, dismissive accusations of hyper-Calvinism, and an utter unwillingness to affirm anything negative about their Fullerite forefathers, even in the face of evidence that proves they made radically gospel-distorting statements to raise money for their ministry. Had these quotes been attributed to Joel Osteen, I feel certain they would rise up in unanimous opposition to them... "Harumph!" But when rightly attributed to Judson, the response is usually more like, "Who are you to question the man of God?"
Never underestimate the idolatrous influence of evangelical hero-worship.
- Elder Daniel Samons