GASPER RIVER BAPTIST ASSN. (KY) NOT CALVINIST

 The "Gasper River Association Record" records the obituary of Elder Benjamin Tolbart (Tolbert) on page 31. Tolbert is a known Non Calvinist who founded Hazel Creek and Antioch Baptist churches (and others) with Elder James Keel (or Kiel), a known Non Calvinist from the Holston Assn. You can read about these two men and the churches they founded here . Both of these men and the churches they founded were in the Gasper River Assn. Elder Tolbert is listed as a messenger from Sandy Creek Church to the association meeting of 1818 (his name is misspelled "Talbot").

In 1825 (page 12) it reports "The preaching on Sabbath by Elders R. Rutherford, D.L. Mansfield, and Tolbert brought a refreshing season. A number of persons, weeping for sin came forward and knelt at the stand, requesting the prayers of God's people." This is obviously an "invitation" or "altar call", not a practice known in most Regular Baptist (Calvinist) churches. 

On page 13, we see that in 1831 Gasper River was involved with the fight between the Red River and Bethel associations. The churches in the Bethel Association had left Red River, because "Calvinists from the north of us" had been allowed to join Red River, and once they had numerical strength, brought charges against Elder Andrews for preaching general atonement. Once the churches who had always taught general atonement left, this meant Calvinists were now a majority in Red River. The Gasper River Assn. said "...the Red River fraternity remained incorrigible, signifying her intention to withhold fraternal greetings unless this association (Gasper River) would cease to indorse her enemy. The secret is the Bethel Association was too evangelical for the other (Red River).For from its origin  the old maternal body (Red River), reclining in the old antinomian chair, had looked on the daughter (Bethel) with suspicion; and corresponded no longer with Gasper River."

It is quite clear that Gasper River sided with the Bethel Association, thought Red River to be obstinate, and thus agreed with the Bethel Association in doctrine, not only because of these statements, but because it is no secret that Elders Tolbert and Keel were leaders in Gasper River, founding many of the churches in it.

While the Gasper River Association Record does not record the articles of faith of that association, if there were any, we can certainly get a glimpse of what they were, or would have been, from the articles of faith of Hazel Creek Church, Antioch Church, both founded by Elder Tolbert, here .

The full  "Gasper River Association Record" can be read here .

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