Hello and welcome to Baptist Perspective with Jimmy Barber. Whether you're listening while driving home from work, sitting with a hot cup of coffee, or making dinner, we hope this podcast will be thought-provoking and edifying. Now, here with today's episode is Jimmy Barber. We ended our last podcast by saying that one of the reasons for introducing Obadiah Holmes was the connection of Holmes with one of the pastors or teachers of the congregation where Holmes, Clark, and Crandall were taken after their arrest. His name was Thomas Cobbett, spelled sometimes with two Ts and sometimes with one. It was further noted by Galstead that, quote, Cobbett correctly perceived that the crux of the dispute between the Baptists and the Puritans, whether in London or in Boston, was the Baptists' views on the limits of civil government more than any other single doctrine. This was further documented by quoting from the dedicatorial epistle to Oliver Cromwell in Cobbett's book The Civil Magistrate's Power in 1652. He wrote, quote, this also, right honorable, the rather move me as a member of this polity, even in a way of gratitude, to dedicate to your excellency this apology for civil Christ and governments, while they ought in their civil and political way to restrain and punish abuses and enormities, even in matters of the Lord and of the church, end of quote. To further show the weight of this subject, it was pointed out that Cobbett's book was reprinted in 2008 by a well-known Baptist with a forward written by another well-known Baptist minister. Thomas Cobbett wrote an earlier book in 1648 entitled a just vindication of the covenant and church estate of children of church members, as also of their right unto baptism, where it was directed against John Spilsbury, a Baptist in England, among others in England. Baptist Piety, The Last Will and Testimony of Obadiah Holmes by Edward Goldstedt, page 36, gave this information. When John Clarke published his Ill News from New England, or A Narrative of the New England Persecution, in 1652, ascribing the persecution along with a full account of Holmes, Clarke, and Crandall, Cobbett countered it with a brief answer to a certain slanderous pamphlet called Ill News from New England or a Narrative of New England Persecution in 1653. He later included it with his earlier book, The Civil Magistrate's Power. In Ill News, nearly 20 pages were devoted to a defense of liberty of conscience. There, Holmes, Clark, and Crandall wrote that no servant of Christ has, quote, any liberty, much less authority from his Lord to smite his fellow-servant, nor yet with outward force or arm of flesh to constrain or restrain his conscience, no, nor yet his outward man for conscience' sake, or worship of his God, where injury is not offered to the person, name, or state of others." Baptist Piety, page 39. To show Cobbett's reply in other issues regarding the subject at hand, we can do no better than by quoting from Galstead's Baptist Piety, pages 39 through 41. Cobbett, equally concerned to reply at length on this point, employed logic, scripture, and history to refute the dissenter's position. And along the way he scored some effective points. For example, Cobbett pointed to the contradiction in Ill News, which on the one hand praised Cromwell in his use of the Sword of Steel against all enemies, while on the other hand it condemned the Bay Colony's exercise of civil power in religious concern. On Christ's parable of the wheat and the tares, stating let them grow to the harvest, the argument flew from both sides. Cobbett contended that Christ, in His exposition of the parable, spoke not one whisper to suggest that He requires, quote, "...church or commonwealth officers to let all the children of wicked seducers, traitors, seditious and schismatical persons, blasphemers, professed atheists, etc., to go unpunished." Recognizing that his primary audience was more England than New England, Cobbett innocently inquired what Britain's situation would be if this pernicious Baptist view prevailed. How could Cromwell and party condemn and damn Episcopal government in the church and all their trash, or root out the Book of Common Prayer, The doctrines in Ill News, if taken seriously, he continued, would even stain that which has been and is the glory of that religious state throughout the Reformed part of the world." No, if England and Cromwell will look closely, they will see, quote, how nearly our government here has trodden in their steps, making coercive laws against what they have forbidden by law under civil penalties, albeit the penalties possibly not in every point the same, end of quote. What we expect from England, he added, is not criticism but encouragement, quote, to go on and prosper in our holy zeal to vindicate the name, truth, worship, and ways of Jesus Christ from all such as would subtly spoil us of them in the whole or part." And if Obadiah Holmes, John Spurr, John Hazel, and such as that are to be let alone, unrestrained, and unpunished both civil government and state and churches here would soon be blown and we should become a very chaos." Thus Obadiah Holmes, a fool for Christ, had his brief moment on the stage of history. But how quickly the lights were dimmed. No biography was ever written. No portrait ever painted or statue erected. No church or school ever bore his name. Isaac Bacchus, in his history, tried to rescue the reputation of Holmes for posterity, as he successfully did that of Roger Williams, but somehow it did not work. True and impartial history Bacchus wrote in 1791, is one of the most difficult services in the world." The attention given to Obadiah Holmes and the connection with Thomas Cobbett, as provided not only in this podcast, but in the previous two messages, demonstrates the importance of the place of civil government and its relationship to the congregation of God. We have seen that belief that civil government is to be a nursing father to the house of God was introduced by the Catholics, by Augustine and those associated with him, and later adopted by the Protestants during the Reformation. The Protestants, in their desire to escape religious persecution in Europe and Great Britain, continued to practice this doctrine as they came to the shores of the New World. Down through the centuries of the history of the Christian religion, the only people who did believe and practice religious freedom for all were the Anabaptists, of which the Baptists were often identified. And now we find that many people claiming to be Baptist in belief are identifying with the Protestants regarding the place of civil government and seeking to classify themselves with the Reformers who persecuted their forefathers. Eventually, we plan to show that the reason this nation adopted religious freedom in the law of our land, the Constitution of the United States with the Bill of Rights, was because of the sufferings of Baptists by the Protestants in the infancy of our nation, and the Baptists working with our Founding Fathers to establish this freedom. This freedom was the pattern for the entire world, and this nation along with the world owes to the Baptists a debt of thanks. May the Baptists of today awake to the truth of their heritage and enlighten ourselves to our faith and seek to walk in the footsteps of our forefathers. There is a vast amount of history that needs to be read and studied, not only by the adults, but I pray the youth of today will be motivated and inspired to know and continue their heritage. Nevertheless, at the beginning, we said that we were limiting our studies to only three of our Baptist forefathers, Obadiah Holmes, Isaac Backus, and John Leland. Now that we have covered Holmes, we will move on to Isaac Backus. Isaac Backus, lived from 1724 to 1806, was born in Norwich, Connecticut. but lived much of his life as a Baptist in Massachusetts. Here again we can only touch on some of the highlights of his life and his trials and persecutions in his working for religious freedom in America. His A History of New England, with particular reference to the Baptist, is an invaluable asset to any library. It was originally in two volumes, but from the author's preface in volume 3, as found in the second volume, indicates that he planned on a third volume. Another book of recent years published in 1968 that is quite informative is, entitled, Isaac Bacchus on Church, State, and Calvinism, Pamphlets, 1754-1789, edited by William McLaughlin. These works alone are over 1,600 pages, which we cannot devote to our studies. One work of Bacchus that is available is a little book entitled Your Baptist Heritage. It was published originally in 1844 under the title of Church History of New England from 1620 to 1804. It can be found at the supplied length for the price of $8. Since our time is exhausted for today, the Lord willing, we will continue with His life, that is, Isaac Bacchus, and influence in securing religious freedom in our country in the next podcast. Please be mindful of me in your prayers as we continue with this most valuable and essential subject. Farewell. Thank you for listening to today's edition of Baptist Perspective. We archive our episodes so you can go back anytime and listen again. Do you have a question about something you've heard? Or just want to let us know you're listening? Visit us at baptistperspective.wordpress.com. That's baptistperspective.wordpress.com. Thanks again for listening.