“It is not expected that we should give a church history in this limited essay. All that will be done is to glance at the existence of the church in each successive century ; and we shall only be able to notice where the true church flourished in one or two places at the same time. . . . Owing to the different languages of those nations where the followers of Christ have lived. and to the asperities of their opposers, the church has been known by the name of Baptists, Anabaptists, Wickliffites, Lollards, Hugonots, Mennonites, Hussites, Petrobrusians, Albigenses, Waldenses, Paulicans, etc.; and to oppose image worship, infant baptism, transubstantiation, and the unwarrantable power of the Pope, have ever been characteristics of this people. . . .
We should keep in mind that nearly every question has two sides; and while the controversy between us and the pedobaptists respects church origin, we are happy to have their full concession that they are recent dissenters from the Roman Catholics; and that the Baptist church is not only the true church of God, but that for her ‘it is easy to trace a succession of witnesses for Jesus Christ against His rival at Rome.'”
(The above quote is from “The Convert’s Guide to First Principles” by Israel Robords, pastor of the First Baptist Church of New Haven, CT. It was published in 1838, to instruct a large number of new converts in the church from a recent revival. The quote is from pages 78, 79, 97, and 98 of the book. Notice that in 1838 you have a New England pastor referring to a Baptist “succession” and a “true church.” This is just further proof that J.R. Graves and the Landmark movement did not teach anything new in Baptist history. A special thanks to Bro. Steve LeCrone for finding this important quote. Note: The last sentence of the quote includes a phrase from Brown’s Bible Dictionary, p. 152. )
The Fire and Hammer 