Charles Haddon Spurgeon and Ellen White - Similarities

[BobRyan]

I just finished watching this biography/dramatization of the life of C.H. Spurgeon and was struck with the list of similarities between his life and ministry and that of Ellen White - both of whom were doing ministry in the 1850's to the 1880's (Ellen White continued her ministry until 1914). Both were authors of a great many books and both wrote about the Gospel and the Love of God.

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Charles Haddon Spurgeon (19 June 1834[1] – 31 January 1892) was an English Particular Baptist preacher.

He was a strong figure in the Reformed Baptist tradition, defending the 1689 London Baptist Confession of Faith, and opposing the liberal and pragmatic theological tendencies in the Church of his day.

Spurgeon's conversion from nominal Congregationalism came on 6 January 1850, at age 15

A famous Baptist preacher-who never went to college – very popular in London, and around the world to this very day.

Died after only 40 years of ministry starting at age 17

Fought the Evolution/Darwinism fad that was destroying the churches in Europe – in 1888 and onward. A great depressing battle among Baptists - for Spurgeon that he felt like he lost.

But he may have slowed the adoption of Darwinism among Baptists in England even if he could not affect it in the rest of Europe.

 

[BobRyan]

"Ellen White made a remarkable contribution to the world of literature. Her prolific pen spilled forth 25 million words and 100,000 printed and handwritten pages that formed more than 5,000 periodical articles and 49 books. She is, according to one researcher’s probe into the Library of Congress, the fourth most translated author in the history of literature. In addition, she is the most translated American author of either gender."


From; Ellen G. White - Wikipedia

“Ellen G. White is the most translated female non-fiction author in the history of literature, as well as the most translated American non-fiction author of either gender.[9]


Quote from: Graybill, Ron (February 1994). "Visions and Revisions, Part 1". Ministry Magazine. Archived from the original on July 24, 2011. Retrieved March 13, 2011.

========================== BARNA survey of Pastors ======

Barna reported that Ellen White's books were being read by a great many pastors in America -


Research Releases in Leaders & Pastors • May 30, 2005

BARNA – books that most influence pastors –

Survey Reveals The Books and Authors That Have Most Influenced Pastors - Barna Group


“The under-40 pastors championed several authors who were not ranked highly by older church leaders. Those authors included business consultant James Collins, seminary professor Thom Rainer, nineteenth century Seventh-Day Adventist icon Ellen White, and pastor John Ortberg.”

“Pastors who lead charismatic or Pentecostal congregations were by far the least likely to include books on theology among their chosen titles: only 2% did so.

“The age of the pastor had a clear impact on the books they regarded most highly. Pastors in their mid-fifties or older were only one-third as likely as their younger colleagues to mention any leadership books. The oldest pastors also showed a preference for authors from their own generation, including men such as Dallas Willard, Charles Stanley and Warren Wiersbe among their favorites, although those writers did not make the national list.

“Pastors under the age of 40, meanwhile, were more than twice as likely to mention books on prayer; only half as likely to include The Purpose Driven Life; and just one-sixth as likely to place The Purpose Driven Church in their top-ranked volumes. In fact, while one-third of all pastors over 40 mentioned at least one book by Rick Warren, just 14% of those under 40 did so

“The Barna Group, conducted among a nationwide, representative sample of Protestant pastors, shows that the most influential books often fail to reach the bestseller lists. That’s one of several key findings drawn from the list of books that pastors say have influenced them the most in the past three years. The survey also found that a relative handful of authors have the most consistent influence on pastors, and that a dozen or so books have had the most widespread impact during that time frame.

 

[BobRyan]

Similarities --


1. Both began ministry at age 17

2. Both taught that all Ten of the Ten Commandments are included in the moral law of God written on the heart under the New Covenant (see “Baptist Confession of Faith sectn 19)

3. Both taught that at some point in time many Christians taught that the Sabbath commandment was edited (not abolished) to point to week-day-1 resulting in many Christians referring to Sunday as “The Sabbath” (see “Baptist Confession of Faith sectn 22)

4. Both preached against Antinomianism

5. Both were in ministry between 1851 and 1890 – Ellen white actually started in the 1840’s and continue to 1914

6. Both were avid readers of the Bible and Pilgrim’s Progress

7. Both were outstanding speakers

8. Both opposed liberalism in church doctrine

9. Both were avid writers and used the proceeds from the books for the cause of God

10. Both opposed Darwinism as it was making inroads into the Christian Church

11. Both were strongly influential in their respective denominations – though neither of them attended college

12. Both changed denominations as teens

13. Both were highly Gospel focused Gospel oriented, and spoke often of the Love of God.

14. Both were dedicated to sola scriptura testing of all doctrine and practice.

15. Both believed in the Trinity, Saved by grace through faith, 66 books of the Bible

16. Both were baptized by immersion after having been baptized as an infant.

17. Both rejected Baptismal Regeneration doctrine . Charles Spurgeon Differs from Today’s Baptists on Baptism