Now, there is a handout. If you forgot to bring your handout from last week, we graciously made some more copies. So if you need a handout, raise your hand, and then one of the ushers will give you a handout. Well, we have been studying the events which led to the Synod of Dort. which was convened in the Dutch Republic in November 1618. And we continue our studies today. And by way of review, we have seen a little bit about this man Jacob Arminius, sometimes known as James Arminius. and the brewing storm, that's what I called it. It surely was a spiritual storm. And then we noted also previously the remonstrance, the protest that the Arminian followers, the Arminian individuals put forth and the deepening controversy. And so the followers of Arminius published their theological beliefs and what they called the remonstrance. That was in 1610. Their beliefs were set forth in five points, and if you look at your handout, you can refer to quotation number one, and that is the succinct labels of their five points. It's not everything that they wrote, of course, but just the labels. So they believed in conditional predestination, universal atonement, and saving faith, but specifically asserted that man had the ability to believe the gospel. They believed that God's grace could be resisted and they also said there's no certainty of perseverance of the saints. So last Sunday we saw that and we also looked at some errors that undergirded that unbiblical thinking of these five points of the Arminian remonstrance. And then last week we went on further and considered the Dutch church and the Dutch government, and I called it storms and civil strife, because throughout this time period there in the Dutch Republic, these theological controversies were interwoven with political divisions, there was civil strife, and the increasing civil strife was really due in large measure to the fact that the reformed and the Armenian groups had differing views, very differing views, regarding the relationship between the church and the state. The counter-remonstrants, as they were called, the reformed, believed that the Dutch reformed church should be independent of state control, and the remonstrants, as they were called, the Armenians, believed that the church should be subordinated to the state, to the civil government. That created more and more problems within the country. And the civil strife was ended, we saw last week, when the Federal Council of the Dutch Republic voted, gave supreme political authority to the republic, the federal level, and not to the provincial governments. And as a result, we saw last week that legal actions, military actions, were taken in various provinces in the Dutch Republic The town councils were purged of anyone who was of an Arminian persuasion and civil peace was restored to the country. So that's a brief review. So this morning now we come to some new material and what I'm calling the Synod of Dort, the advance of God's truth, the advance of God's truth. So with this legal and political victory behind him, Prince Morris of the House of Orange there in the Dutch Republic, he now moved the federal council to summon a general synod of the Dutch Reformed Church in order to settle, hopefully for once and for all, the religious disputes between the Armenians and the Reformed. And the first meeting of this synod was held on November 13, 1618 in the city of Dortrecht, hence the Synod of Dort. And the final meeting was held on May 9, 1619, so almost six months later. So the Synod of Dort met for those six months to consider these various theological realities and to draft up their documents. The synod had in attendance 56 ministers, five university professors, and 18 political commissioners. Each member of the synod was required to take an oath, and that oath was a very solemn oath before the synod proceeded to its business. And I'm going to read that to you. It's not in your handout, but you can listen understand this oath that they were all required to take. Here I quote it, I promise before God in whom I believe and whom I worship as being present in this place and as being the searcher of all hearts that during the course of the proceedings of this synod which will examine and decide not only the five points and all the differences resulting from them, but also any other doctrine, that I will use no human writing, but only the word of God, which is an infallible rule of faith. And during all these discussions, I will only aim at the glory of God, the peace of the church, and especially the preservation of the purity of doctrine. So help me, my Savior, Jesus Christ. I beseech him to assist me by his Holy Spirit," end quote. So that was the solemn oath that each member of the Synod was required to take. And so that oath reveals and underscores that the men of the Synod of Dort were men of biblical integrity. They were not motivated by politics. They were not motivated by power. They were not motivated by gaining prestige. They were motivated by a holy zeal to define, to defend, to establish, to proclaim, and to advance the pure gospel of Jesus Christ. And it was also decided that this synod would not simply be a synod for the Dutch people, the Dutch Church. It was purposed to set forth the reformed thinking of those from many other countries as well. And so there were other individuals who were invited and who came to the Synod of Dort. In fact, there were 26 delegates. men from other Reformed churches who attended the Synod of Dort. They came from the country of Germany, various parts of Germany, from Switzerland, and from Britain. There were ones invited from France, but the King of France refused to let them go, leave the country of France, and attend the Synod in the Dutch Republic. Because the Armenians had originally set forth their theological principles in five points in their remonstrance, the Synod of Dort, as I've mentioned before, decided to respond to those five points with their specific five points. But in addition to that, the Synod drafted supporting theological canons. That's what they termed them. So you often hear this terminology, the canons of Dort. Well, what is a canon? A canon is a general law by which something is judged. So they drafted these supporting theological canons declaring the Calvinistic and reformed understanding of the biblical truths surrounding, in particular, the doctrine of salvation. The canons of Dort were not intended to provide a comprehensive confession of faith. And so there are many aspects of reform theology which the canons of Dort do not address. But these five points of the synod with the further refinements and subsequent years eventually became known as the five points of Calvinism. As should be evident from what I've just told you from this history and contrary to what many people believe, The five points of Calvinism were not written by John Calvin. There are many people who just assume that. But they were really drafted by the Synod of Dort. The Synod did not call these five points the five points of Calvinism. And these five points, as I've already stated, were really part of a larger body of biblical truth drafted by the Synod of Dort. The canons of Dort did express what the great reformer John Calvin believed and taught. And what John Calvin believed and taught regarding these particular doctrines did actually, of course, not originate with John Calvin. Neither did they originate with Augustine. But they really originated with the word of God itself, of course. But this is the historical origin of what we today term the five points of Calvinism. Now, Dr. Nick Needham, the church historian from Scotland, has written a very useful praises or resume of the synod's five points, and I'm indebted to him for this summary. So if you look in your handout at quotation number five, please. So in the handout, quotation number five, First of all, predestination, this is a summary of the five points of the Synod of Dort. Predestination is God's eternal purpose to give saving faith to some sinners out of the mass of fallen humanity. It is unconditional. That is, it is not based on God's foreknowledge of anything in those chosen. Number two. The death of Christ is sufficient to save the whole of humanity, but by God's sovereign will, it is effective in actually saving the elect by enlivening them to a true, justifying, sanctifying, persevering faith. That eventually became known as limited atonement or particular redemption. Number three. The synod agreed with the third point of the remonstrance of the Armenians, the spiritual inability of the fallen human will apart from divine grace. However, point number four of the synod, the synod rejected the remonstrant view that grace is always resistible. On the contrary, the grace that regenerates is sovereignly efficacious. And that word efficacious simply means it's able to accomplish its purpose. So when God is determined to save somebody, he does do it. Number five, this grace also ensures that the elect will persevere to the end and enter glory at last. True saving faith can never be entirely lost. And a person can attain an assurance that he or she has this faith and will therefore persevere. So again, that's just a summary of the five points of the Synod of Dort. And as I've said, in the following years, there was refinement, expansion, and even in one way condensing so that we have what we call today the five points of Calvinism. So now, as an aside, excuse me, not as an aside yet, the Senate of Dort concluded its proceedings by establishing the Cadans of Dort, the Belgic Confession of 1561, and the Heidelberg Catechism as the confessional standards for the Dutch Reformed Church. And those documents became known as the Three Forms of Unity. Those who are here from a Dutch background, will know exactly those terms because you grew up with it in your Dutch church. And to this day, that's what they're called, the three forms of unity. As an aside, if you have never read through the Heidelberg Catechism, you may wish to do so, as it is very instructive and it's very edifying. The Canons of Dort are a bit more challenging, I think, The Belgic Confession is fine. There are some things we would certainly disagree with. But the Heidelberg Catechism begins with this question. It's very different from the Baptist Catechism. Question number one of the Heidelberg Catechism. What is your only comfort in life and death? What is your only comfort in life and death? And here is the answer. It's really excellent. That I, with body and soul, both in life and death, am not my own, but belong unto my faithful Savior, Jesus Christ. who with his precious blood has fully satisfied for all my sins and delivered me from all the power of the devil and so preserves me that without the will of my Heavenly Father not a hair can fall from my head. Yes, that all things must be subservient to my salvation and therefore by his Holy Spirit He also assures me of eternal life and makes me sincerely willing and ready henceforth to live unto him." End quote. What is your only comfort in life and death? That I'm not my own, but I belong unto my faithful Savior, Jesus Christ. If you read that, you meditate on it, it is extremely encouraging, very edifying, It's really wonderful. So I just say that as an aside to encourage you to perhaps take time, some time, to read through the Heidelberg Catechism. Well, the prayer with which the entire Synod of Dort concluded its doctrinal deliverances on May 9, 1619, was this. And of course, all of this was written down and recorded. That's why we know these realities. So here was the closing prayer of the Synod of Dort. May Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who, seated at the Father's right hand, gives gifts to men, sanctify us in the truth. bring to the truth those who err, shut the mouths of the calumniators, mean slanderers, shut the mouths of the calumniators of sound doctrine, and endue the faithful ministers of his word with a spirit of wisdom and discretion that all their discourses may tend to the glory of God, and the edification of those who hear. Amen. So that was their closing prayer for the advance of biblical truth, the advance of the gospel. Well, all of the ministers of the Dutch Reformed Church were required to subscribe to these documents. That is, they were required to embrace, from the heart and mind, support wholeheartedly and teach the biblical truths set forth in the three forms of unity, the Canons of Dort, the Belgic Confession, and the Heidelberg Catechism. Approximately 190 pastors refused to do so, and they were removed from their churches for refusing to subscribe to the Canons of Dort, to the three forms of unity. And thus, at least officially, Arminianism was purged from the Dutch Church. To put this number into perspective, the 190 who were removed from their churches, there were approximately 1,100 pastors in the Dutch Reformed Church at that time. And so the number which was removed was about 17%. So in the big picture, it was A significant number, but it was not an overwhelming number, certainly far from majority, 17%. In the following years, the canons of Dort were translated into other languages and were also adopted by other reformed churches in Europe. They were regarded by the reformed theologians as an excellent summary of the orthodox teaching of the Bible of the doctrine of salvation in particular against the erroneous teachings of the Armenians. The Synod also decreed something else. They decreed that a new translation of the Bible from the original languages, of course the Hebrew and the Greek, into the Dutch language would be undertaken. And that was started because the Dutch Bible at that point in time had not been translated from originally the Hebrew and the Greek. And so they said this must be done. So that task was begun and it was completed in 1635. And that Dutch Bible ended up actually affecting very much the Dutch language even as Martin Luther's translation of the Bible into German affected in a positive way the German language. This Bible had an impact upon the Dutch language as well. But of course, lastly and very importantly, I've already mentioned this earlier, civil peace had been established throughout the Dutch Republic at this point in time. Well, what are some lessons that we can learn from this? Well, I think the first is biblical truth is deserving of your love, your love. Biblical truth is deserving of your love. and your defense. Turn in your Bibles, please, to John chapter 8. John chapter 8. And beginning at verse 31. John 8 31 Jesus therefore said to those Jews that had believed him. If you abide in my word then are you truly my disciples and you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free. Now stop and think about those words of Jesus. You shall know the truth. and the truth shall make you free. Truth, you see, did matter to the Lord Jesus Christ and it should matter to you today in America. Truth should matter in the political sphere. Truth should matter in the cultural sphere. Truth should matter in the church. Truth matters because God is the God of truth. God cannot lie. God will not lie. God does not lie. God is the God of truth. And so truth matters and it is God's truth, the Bible, which the spirit uses in order to deliver men and women, boys and girls, from their enslavement to sin and Satan. So truth does matter and you must love it and you must defend it. Defending the truth of the scriptures is not stirring up a tempest in a teapot Defending the truth is a matter of eternal consequences. Loving the truth is a matter of eternal consequences. Turn now to John 17. John 17 and verse 17. Jesus is praying to his God and Father in heaven. And here in part of his prayer, John 17, 17, we have these well-known words. Sanctify them in the truth. He's praying for his disciples. Sanctify them in the truth. Your word is truth. So why should you love the truth of the Bible? Why should you defend it? Because Jesus is teaching you here in his prayer, uttered to his God and Father in heaven, that truth is what God uses to make you holy. You should love the Bible, you should love scriptural truth because God the Spirit uses his truth to effect sanctification of you and of his people. Turn to Philippians chapter 1. Philippians chapter 1 and verse 7. The Apostle Paul is writing to the Christians in that church in Philippi and here in verse 7 breaking into his words, even as it is right for me to be thus minded on behalf of you all, because I have you in my heart, inasmuch as both in my bonds and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel, you all are partakers with me of grace. You see, Paul defended the gospel of God's grace against the errors and promoters of error, which undermine the gospel, because he understood, he believed, he embraced the fact, the truth, that the truth, biblical truth, is that which saves, is that which sanctifies his people. People will not be truly saved from their sins if all they're hearing is error. And Paul did not defend the truth by being nasty. He did not defend the truth by being caustic, belligerent, or arrogant. So I'm not saying we should ever do that, of course. Your life in defending the truth must underscore what you're saying. If you say God is a God of love, then when you're defending the truth of God, you need to have a heart of love for those to whom you are speaking. Your life must be a godly life. But we do nevertheless need to defend the truth and we need to love the truth. Turn to Galatians 2 and verse 11. Here we see a concrete example of the apostle Paul loving and defending the truth. Galatians 2 and verse 11. But when Cephas, referring to Peter of course, Peter the Apostle, when Cephas came to Antioch, I resisted him to the face. He didn't do this via email. He didn't do this via Facebook. He didn't do this via Instagram or whatever other means there are. He didn't do it through Twitter or text messages. Now, don't go away saying he's condemning Facebook. I'm not saying that. But you know, some of the stuff that does go on in defense of truth on Facebook, I don't think it's necessarily really promoting truth, especially when there's a flavor of nastiness and just how is this good? Well, what did Paul do? Of course, there is no Facebook in Paul's day. I know that. But he resisted Peter to the face. In other words, he had guts. He had courage. But it was gracious courage. He was not nasty. He had courage, gracious courage. But when Cephas came to Antioch, I resisted him to the face because he stood condemned. For before that certain came from James, the apostle James in Jerusalem, obviously a Jew, a believer, a Christian, For before, verse 12, for before that certain came from James, he, Peter, ate with the Gentiles. But when they came, the Jewish believers from Jerusalem, he drew back and separated himself, fearing them that were of the circumcision. And the rest of the Jews dissembled likewise with him, insomuch that even Barnabas was carried away with their dissimulation. But when I saw that they did not walk uprightly according to the truth of the gospel, I said unto Cephas before them all, if you being a Jew live as do the Gentiles and not as do the Jews, how do you compel the Gentiles to now live as do the Jews? So you see here, Paul, confronted Sivas not only to his face but in the presence of all because his sin was a public sin. So this is not an example for you to say, well, I'm going to rebuke brother so and so in the presence of all because he said this to me privately. No. If it's private sin, you address it privately. But Peter wasn't doing this in a corner. He wasn't doing this in secret, in private. It was public. And he was basically being hypocritical. And Paul saw that his behavior was undermining the gospel of God's truth, the truth that saves sinners from their sins. And so he defended the gospel. He defended the truth. And he was actually a faithful friend. Faithful are the wounds of a friend. but the kisses of an enemy are profuse. And we know from other reading in the New Testament, I didn't put this reference in here, it just came to my mind, how Peter later on refers to our beloved Paul. He's written many things hard to understand, but you see, Peter saw that as love. Paul was loving Peter. Paul was loving God's truth. Paul was loving sinners. Paul was loving God himself. And brothers and sisters, that's what America needs. We don't need wishy-washy Christians. We don't need sentimentally driven Christians. We need men and women who are Christians in truth and indeed in heart as well who love God, love his truth, love his church, love sinners, and are willing to speak the truth in love and, when necessary, defend the truth from a heart of goodwill and love. But that won't happen if you don't personally love God's truth. So we must love God's truth. That's what was the reality at the Synod of Dort. That was the reality that gripped the hearts, the minds, the souls, the affections. And that's the problem with some of you here. Your affections are not gripped by God's truth. Your affections are gripped by the world around you. You're more concerned about what you're going to do on Friday night to have entertainment and fun. You need your heart gripped. your affections gripped by God's truth, by God himself. So may God help us all. If we're guilty, humble ourselves. Don't be defensive. Humble yourself. Ask God to work in your heart, to give you repentance if that's needed, to change. True happiness, true blessedness is found in loving God, Jesus Christ, Loving his word, loving the people of God, loving sinners. That's true happiness. Well, that's a lesson. But a second lesson is this. A right understanding and love of biblical truths, summarized in the five points of Calvinism, positively impacts the preaching of the gospel, or I could say it positively impacts your personal sharing of the gospel, with someone else. When you're talking one-on-one with a friend, a work associate, a neighbor, a relative, someone who's unconverted, when you're doing that and you're bringing the gospel to him or her, you're sharing the gospel, a right understanding and a love of the biblical truths summarized in the five points of Calvinism positively impacts that sharing and the preaching of the gospel. Calvinistic, I'll use that term, biblical, Calvinistic preaching will be suffused when you rightly understand what we call Calvinism, which is, again, just the Bible. But Calvinistic preaching, rightly understood, will be suffused with an urgency because you understand that man is totally depraved in his sin. that he is lost. He's not just simply wounded. He's spiritually dead and he's lost and he's a rebel. Understanding that biblical truth about all men and women, boys and girls will give you an urgency to speak, to preach the gospel truth. You will remember verses like Jeremiah 17, verse 9. Turn there, please, in your Bibles. Jeremiah 17 and verse 9. Probably most of you could have quoted this verse. Jeremiah 17, verse 9. The heart is deceitful above all things, and it is desperately corrupt. Who can know it? When you really understand what Jeremiah is declaring here, God through Jeremiah really, when you understand that, that will give you an urgency to share the gospel with others. This sinner that I'm speaking to has a heart that is deceitful. So you won't be surprised when you're bringing the gospel that he or she deflects things that you say. because they have a deceitful heart. But their heart is also desperately wicked, desperately corrupt. So you shouldn't be surprised when they say, well, I don't see anything wrong with homosexuality. You should accept it. You Christians are wrong on this. Well, their heart is not only deceitful, it's desperately wicked. So they're believing things that are a lie. They're believing things that are sinful and wicked. They've got a wicked heart. And then we're told here in Jeremiah 79, who can know it? In other words, you cannot truly fathom the depth of human depravity. You cannot even truly fathom the remaining sin in your own heart as a genuine Christian. So you need to remember that truth, you see, when you're speaking gospel truth to others. And you need to have that truth give you a sense of urgency. It's important that they know this reality. And you remember the words of the Apostle Paul to the Christians in Rome. There's none righteous, no not one. There's none that understands. There is none that seeks after God. They've all turned aside. They're together unprofitable. There is none that does good. No, not one. You remember those truths and you say, I shouldn't be surprised when this man or this woman, boy or girl, when they are just so blind, they're spiritually dead. And when they seek to go in a wrong direction morally because there is none righteous. No, not one. But secondly, Calvinistic preaching will be suffused with earnest sincere and winsome appeals to sinners due to a biblical understanding of the sovereignty of God, of the sovereign predestinating grace of God. When you really understand those biblical truths and they are impacting your heart, you will then, as you speak the gospel to others, you will have that sincere, winsome appeal to them to repent and believe in Christ. It doesn't keep you from evangelizing. It actually urges you on to evangelize because you know that God has determined from before the foundation of the world to save a multitude which no man can number. He has determined it. It will happen. And of course, you and I don't know who they are, but you should bring that gospel truth to every single sinner you have the opportunity to speak to. And you should remember that God's sovereign predestinating grace, that indeed gives authority to what you're saying. And so you can be earnest and sincere and winsome. In a previous class, I had you turn, don't turn here, I had you turn to Matthew 11 to see Jesus appeal to people who he was previously rebuking for their unbelief. And he says, come unto me, there you see it. But I thought, well, there's other passages, too. So turn to John 6. It may be not quite so obvious at first here in John 6 as it is clearly in Matthew 11. But in John 6, beginning at verse 37, hear what the Lord Jesus Christ spoke. On this occasion, John 6 verse 37, all that which the Father gives me shall come unto me. And he that comes to me I will in no wise cast out. Do you see right there in those words of Jesus, a declaration of the sovereign predestinating grace of God. And you also see, actually, the free offer of the gospel. Because Jesus is saying, and he, him, really anyone who comes to me, I will not cast out. Again, you say, well, how can that both be true? Well, Jesus spoke both truths in the same breath. It is true. That's what the Bible teaches us. So you hold those truths in your hands and in your heart and in your mind. And you proclaim both truths. And you can even proclaim them at the same time. But notice now verse 38, John 6, 38. For I am come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of him that sent me. And this is the will of him that sent me, that of all that which he, God, has given me, I should lose nothing. You see, there's another declaration of the predestinating grace of God. Continuing on, but I should raise it up at the last day, verse 40. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone that beholds the Son and believes on Him should have eternal life. You see, there the Lord Jesus is sincerely graciously, winsomely, bringing the gospel to those who are listening to him. He says everyone, everyone that beholds the Son and believes on him, yes you must believe on him, everyone who beholds the Son, believes on him, they'll have eternal life. This is the gospel. It is offered to sinners, totally depraved sinners, spiritually dead sinners, And God's sovereign predestinating grace, when you rightly understand it from the Bible, will give you that heart of earnest, sincere pleading with sinners to turn to Christ. But Calvinistic preaching, thirdly, will be suffused, when it's rightly understood, it will be suffused with the exaltation of God, the humbling of man. but the exaltation of God, his majesty and glory in the salvation of sinners. That's what happens when you truly understand the Bible's teaching about what are called the five points of Calvinism. It will affect your affections and it will impact your sharing of the gospel, preaching of the gospel. Turn to Ephesians chapter one. Ephesians Chapter 1. The Apostle Paul is not preaching here. He was writing a letter to Christians in Ephesus. But even as he's writing out these wonderful truths, you see, his heart starts to overflow with an exaltation of God, with an understanding of the wonderful majesty and glory of God. and the condescending love and grace of Almighty God for worms of the dust, human beings, sinners. Ephesians 1 verse 3. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. See, he starts off with that. He blesses God. He's exalting God. He's praising God. He tells us why. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world. When you stop and think about that, why, why did I, we sing this in 271 in our blue hymn books, why was I made to hear the voice of Christ? Why? Well, in verse 4, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blemish before him in love, having predestined us unto adoption as sons through Jesus Christ unto himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of the glory of his grace, which he freely bestowed on us in the beloved. You see, Paul's heart just started to overflow with praise to God, praise to the glory of God's grace, showing mercy and favor to undeserving, wrath-deserving sinners, guilty rebels. So when you understand these truths, when they grip your heart, when you love these truths of God's sovereignty, God's grace, God's free offer the gospel, when you start to contemplate, why did God even do this? How did he do this? What has Christ done? You see, God becomes big and you become small. And that's the way it should be. And then you give praise to God. You exalt God. And that's what our world needs to hear today. Well, the term Calvinistic preaching is, in one sense, a misnomer, an inaccurate term, because such preaching is actually apostolic preaching. And really, it's preaching the whole counsel of God. And such faithful Calvinistic or biblical preaching is absolutely relevant to modern Americans. It is vital to modern Americans. They need to hear this kind of gospel truth preaching and sharing. It's absolutely relevant and vital to our day or for that matter, of course, any day. And with the blessing of God the Holy Spirit, such preaching, such sharing of the gospel will truly speak to the heart and the need of modern 21st century Americans, Asians, Africans, doesn't matter who they are. They're all human beings created in the image of God and they need the gospel. And we need to understand that. Such Calvinistic or biblical preaching humbles the proud. It warns the impenitent. It encourages those who are sorrowing over their sins. It urges everyone to forsake his or her sins. It exhorts all to seek the Lord Jesus Christ while he may be found. It begins and it ends with God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom alone belongs all praise, honor, glory, and worship forever. So brethren, we need to pray that God would bring about in our day a thorough and widespread recovery of such biblical preaching because it is what our country, it is what our world needs. It's what every age needs. So we need to pray that God would bring to pass such a recovery of biblical truth and biblical preaching of the gospel. Well, we're going to move on now from the Synod of Dort to the history of the pilgrims, the history of the pilgrims. We don't have much time left, but I will begin. We do have some time. I would like to give some historical background to the pilgrims. First of all, the particular Baptist in England could be rightly termed children of the Puritans in most respects. But the particular Baptist differed from the vast majority of Puritans in the matter of baptism, church membership, and church government. So the particular Baptist could be called the children of the Puritans, but they differed from the majority of Puritans in those areas. And remember, originally, the word Puritan was given to those within the Church of England who wanted to purify the Church of England. But it became a broader term because, as I said even yesterday, I think to someone, John Owen was not in the Church of England. He was a Congregationalist. But everyone refers to John Owen as a Puritan. So it's not wrong to call these particular Baptists Puritans, I don't think. But the particular Baptists became known along with Presbyterians and Congregationalists as separatists because they separated themselves from the Church of England due to doctrinal differences, due to practical differences as well. So they separated, Presbyterians, Congregationalists, Baptists, and they became known as separatists. And as we previously learned a little while back, the separatists in England were often persecuted. They were often imprisoned. Remember, John Bunyan was imprisoned. Some were executed by the civil authorities of England, and sometimes the authorities within the Church of England actually fomented all of that. And so although it seems unbelievable to us today, The truth is that our Baptist forefathers in England were often greatly persecuted, as were others, the separatists, because of their convictions. In an attempt to slow the growth of the number of separatists in England, a law was passed in April 1593, which required everyone age 16 or older to attend their local Anglican church. Now, Anglican is the same thing as Church of England. Sometimes, even to this day, you hear the term, the phrase, established church. So if you hear one of our friends from Britain talk about the established church, they're talking about the Church of England, the Anglican Church, because it was established by law to be the official Church of England. So they call it that. So this law in 1593 required everyone age 16 or older to attend their local Anglican church. Obviously you had to sign your name because failure to attend the worship services in that local Anglican church for a period of one month meant you were taken and thrown into jail. Think what that would be like if we did that. Don't show up for prayer meeting for one month, throw you in jail. Just teasing. After release from prison, if such an individual continued to absent himself or herself from the worship services of the local Anglican Church, that individual was given a choice, death or exile. So obviously, people generally chose the exile route. Those who didn't choose to leave England, they sought to do, moved around, whatever they could do, but many started to leave England. And the Anglican Church and the civil government were more than happy to have such individuals leave the country in exile because the separatists really were becoming more and more of a pain, a spiritual thorn in their side. In addition, by the end of 1604, King James I of England had mandated that all ministers within the Church of England, so that would include Puritans, must completely conform to the Anglican Church's 39 articles, the Book of Common Prayer, and its entire liturgy. And there were Puritans who really were not willing to do that. So by this time, it seemed to many that the Church of England was now beyond hope of being reformed or purified, and therefore separation was necessary, and then departure from England was necessary. And so many indeed left England. Many of the separatists were, and here I quote, and with this we'll conclude our class today, many of the separatists were, and I'm quoting now William Bradford, Many of the separatists were hunted and persecuted on every side until their former afflictions were but as flea bitings in comparison. Some were clapped into prison. Others had their houses watched night and day and escaped with difficulty. And most were obliged to fly and leave their homes and means of livelihood," end quote. So that's what happened. And this is the historical background to the pilgrims. I'm not finished yet, but we're out of time. So I will close in prayer then at this point. Father, we do thank you for our spiritual forefathers, for those who have lived in previous generations, who have lived godly lives, who have lived godly lives often in very, very difficult circumstances. Help us to be faithful to you, faithful to your son, faithful to your gospel, faithful to all of your word, faithful to one another, faithful to sinners. We pray that you would encourage our hearts as we consider what you have done in times past, that today, we would live for your glory, promoting the glory of Jesus Christ by our lives as well as by our words. So receive our thanksgiving and our prayers as we come in Jesus' worthy name. Amen.