I’ve written before about my great, great-grandfather, Jonah S. Murphy, who was a Primitive Baptist Pastor and moderator of the Tygarts Valley River Old School Baptist Association. You can read about him here and here.
Last week, while scouting through old minutes from associational meetings, my dad found some circular letters written by Elder Murphy. Here is the letter from the 1931 meeting:
Tygarts Valley River Old School Baptist Association
Held with the Mount Olive Church
1931
Circular Letter
The Tygarts Valley River Association of Old School Predestinarian Baptists, now in session with the Mt. Olive Church, Barbour County, West Virginia, to all the several churches of which she is composed, and to all of like precious faith, sendeth Christian salutation in the Lord.
Dearly Beloved Brethren: In bonds of sweet fellowship of the gospel of grace, it is alone through the loving kindness and tender mercy of a covenant keeping God that we are spared to meet once more in an associate capacity. Many changes have taken place in time since our last meeting as an association, but our God changes not; He is the same yesterday, today and forever. Then dear brethren, let us not depart from the old path, but continue steadfastly in the doctrine of Christ and the apostles, contending earnestly for the faith of God’s elect, preaching salvation alone through the active and passive obedience of Christ on earth and His intercession in heaven, for there is none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved.
The professing world has gone wild after the many so-called religious institutions of men, worshipping and serving the creature more than the Creator; teaching for doctrines the commandments of men, and by cunning craftiness and deceitful handling of the word of God, act as though they were making some show of proof of their man-made pet theories; honoring God with their lips but their heart is far from Him, they preach a Savior but do not preach the righteousness of the Savior by which, and through which, alone the sinner is saved.
Some say we Old Baptists are too far behind the times in a religious sense. We are thankful to know that is so, for the truth has ever been at issue with the times. It was so when the dear Savior was on earth. They say He was a wine-bibber and a gluttonous man, a lover of publicans and sinners. The Holy Angel of heaven told Joseph that he should save his people from their sins; that was His mission to earth, and He says He did do it.
Yes, He says, “Father, I have finished the work Thou gavest me to do.” Then having finished the work of redemption, He is of God made unto His spiritual Israel, wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. Then, he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord. Then dear brethren let us never be ashamed of the Apostolic doctrine of salvation by grace, but worship God in spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.
The word of inspiration and also our experience teach us that by nature we were dead in sin. Yea the servants of sin, the subject of death, and every other misery temporal, spiritual, and eternal unless the Lord Jesus set us free. But if the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed. Then until super-abounding grace displayed itself in the soul and overcome it, there was no heart to oppose sin, but bound by Satan’s cords could make no resistance until released from that infirmity. Then perish the thought of free moral agency, the Arminian’s carnal boast.
Then dear brethren, let us praise God for having predestined us unto the adoption of children that we should be accepted in the beloved.
May grace, mercy, and peace abound to all the Israel of God. Amen.
J. S. Murphy, Moderator
