B.H. Carroll

Biography

B.H. Carroll was a giant among men, and not just because of his six foot four inch frame. He was one of the most influential Baptist leaders and thinkers during his time. He was an voracious reader with an outstanding memory and also a skilled debater. One story survives that at the age of sixteen he once won both sides of a debate contest.

Benajah Harvey Carroll was born into a Baptist preacher’s home in Carroll County, Mississippi, in 1843. His family eventually made their way to Burleson County, Texas, in 1858. He would enter Waco University (the predecessor to Baylor University) but never finish his degree. He dropped out when Texas seceded from the Union in 1861.

The next few years of Carroll’s life seem to be taken straight from a western novel. He joined the Texas Rangers after dropping out of school. In 1862, he joined the Confederate army. In the Battle of Mansfield in 1864, Carroll was wounded by a Union minié ball in his thigh, which narrowly missed an artery. He returned home to Texas to recover, but he felt the effects of this wound for the rest of his life.

In spite of his religious upbringing, Carroll struggled with skepticism. In 1865 he was at last converted and joined the Baptist Church in Caldwell, TX. He was ordained in 1866 and pastored a few small churches. In 1870, he became pastor of the First Baptist Church in Waco, Texas, where he would serve until 1899.

In spite of not completing his college degree, Carroll was soon greatly involved in education. He taught at Baylor from 1872 through 1905. In that year, the Baylor Theological Seminary was founded with Carroll at its head. This institution morphed into Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in 1908 and two years later moved to its present location in Fort Worth, Texas.

Carroll was an influential preacher, teacher, and writer. He penned a 17 volume Bible commentary titled An Interpretation of the English Bible. Many other lectures and sermons have been collected and printed, including very popular works on Baptist doctrine.

Carroll suffered from ill health throughout the final years of his life. He passed away on November 11, 1914, in Fort Worth.

B.H. Carroll has become one of my favorite authors to read. His sermons and teachings stir the heart and challenge the mind. Even when I disagree with his position (his postmillennialist views are an obvious example) I still find myself appreciating the structure and bases for his arguments. Carroll was largely a self-educated theologian, who went from being a skeptic of Christianity to one of its ablest defenders. His teachings on Baptist principles and ecclesiology are some of the best ever produced. – MBG

Sermons

Most of these sermon books were compiled after Carroll’s death in 1914.

Note: I am slowly scanning and adding sermons from Carroll’s books as I am able.- MBG

Baptists and Their Doctrines (published 1913)

Evangelistic Sermons (published 1913)

  • The Prodigal Son
  • Salvation from Sin
  • The Nature and Person of Our Lord
  • Comfort in the Shepherd’s Staff
  • The Shining of the Face of Moses
  • Watch, Work, War
  • “Blessed are They that Mourn”
  • No Cross, No Crown
  • God’s Help in the Hour of Trial
  • Encouragement to Prayer
  • Volunteers, Not Conscripts, for the Army of Jesus

The River of Life (published 1928)

  • The River of Life
  • Special Miracles, or Bones, Fringes, Shadows, Handkerchiefs and Aprons
  • The Boiling Pot and the Blood on the Rock
  • Pressing Toward the Mark
  • Deliverance from the Mighty and Terrible One
  • Working for Christ
  • Relation of Faith to Character and Morals
  • Friends or Enemies – Which?
  • Ishmael, the Wild Man
  • The Way to World Peace
  • Rivers of Living Waters
  • Limitations to Satan’s Power, or Lambs, Little Sheep, and Sheep
  • The Throne of Iniquity

Inspiration of the Bible (published 1930)

  • Inspiration of the Scriptures as Believed by Baptists
  • The Question of Inspiration Re-Opened By Higher Critics
  • Examples of Inspiration Explained
  • Luke’s Case, And Other Important Relative Matters
  • Qualifying Facts Enabling Us to Limit Inspiration and State Its Meaning
  • Difficulties Met and Objections Answered
  • The Book of Daniel: An Outstanding Example of Inspiration
  • Some Questions Answered and a Resume of the Whole Discussion of Inspiration

Jesus the Christ (published 1937)

Ambitious Dreams of Youth (published 1939)

  • Ambitious Dreams of Youth
  • Paul the Greatest Man in History
  • A Sermon to Young Men
  • Prepare to Live
  • The Bread of Life
  • The Light of Life
  • God’s Measure of Human Prosperity
  • The Obligations of Christian Wealth
  • The Voice of Sin
  • Christ’s Healing and Saving Power
  • Freedom From the Bondage of Sin
  • The Sinner’s Way to God
  • God’s Cure for Sinning Christians
  • The Peril of Rejecting Christ

The Holy Spirit (published 1939)

  • Jesus and the Holy Spirit
  • The First Pentecost
  • The Church the Habitat of the Holy Spirit
  • The Gift of the Holy Spirit
  • The Church the Holy Temple of God
  • The Sin Against the Holy Spirit
  • Judas Iscariot’s Sin Against the Holy Spirit
  • The Gospel Plan of Salvation not a Last Will and Testament
  • The Unchanging Christ

Revival Messages (published 1939)

  • Christ Seeks Not Yours, But You
  • A Sermon for Erring Christians
  • Conditions of Success in Soul-Winning
  • “I Have Sinned”
  • “Come and See”
  • Man’s Responsibility to God
  • “The Kingdom of God is Come Night Unto You”
  • “Now is the Day of Salvation”
  • The Conquering Word of God
  • The Measure of Responsibility
  • The Goodness and Mercy of God
  • The Inspiration of the Bible
  • The Faith of Noah
  • The Wages of Sin
  • The One Thing Needful
  • God Sets His Seal on the Christian’s Heart

Christ and His Church (published 1940)

  • The Foundation of the Church of Christ
  • Salvation not in Church or Ordinances, But in Christ
  • Objects of the Church
  • The Glory of the Church
  • The Convicting Power of the Church
  • God’s Enlargement of a Church
  • Judgment at the House of God
  • A Discussion of the Lord’s Supper
  • God is Faithful
  • The Name, The Eyes and the Heart of God
  • The Good, Acceptable and Perfect Will of God
  • The House of God
  • Little Christians
  • The Church Covenant

The Providence of God (published 1940)

  • The Providence of God
  • Man’s Creation, Fall and Redemption
  • Walking with God
  • Reasons For Being Baptized
  • The Heavenly Jerusalem
  • God and His Ministers
  • The Blessing of Hope
  • A Thanksgiving Sermon
  • The Case of Job
  • Lessons from the Case of Job
  • The Constraining Love of Christ
  • The Bible Doctrine of Sanctification
  • The High Claims of Jesus

The Way of the Cross (published 1941)

  • The Way of the Cross
  • Salvation Through the Blood of Christ
  • Wherefore Then the Law?
  • The Bewitching Power of Satan
  • The Way of Cain
  • Paul’s Gospel of Jesus
  • What Shall I Do to Inherit Eternal Life? Part I
  • What Shall I Do to Inherit Eternal Life? Part II
  • Christ the End of the Law
  • If Thine Eye Offend Thee
  • Sowing Wild Oats Not Conducive to Salvation
  • The Case of Simon Magus
  • The War Between the Flesh and the Spirit
  • The Evils of Religious Compromise

Messages on Prayer (published 1942)

The Supper and Suffering of Our Lord (published 1947)

  • Some Observations on the Lord’s Supper
  • A Simple Sermon on the Lord’s Supper, or Memory, Faith, Thanksgiving and Hope
  • The Meaning of the Lord’s Supper
  • The Testimony of the Lord’s Supper
  • The Relation Between the Lord’s Supper and Temptation
  • A Question of Ownership, or The Deep Significance of the Lord’s Supper
  • The Faith of Abraham, or A Forecast of God’s Love in Giving His Son
  • The Three Hours of Darkness, or Jesus Before the Court of Hell
  • The Cost of Our Redemption
  • Why Preach Christ Crucified, or The Power of the Gospel of Christ
  • How Christ is Lifted Up, or Preaching Christ Crucified versus Sensational Methods
  • Constraining Love, or Paul’s Response to the Suffering of Christ
  • The Wolf, The Hireling and the Sheep, or Our Security on Account of Christ’s Suffering
  • Mutual Satisfaction, or The Results of the Suffering of Christ

Christian Education and Some Social Problems (published 1948)

Patriotism and Prohibition (published 1952)

  • The Heroines of ‘Thirty-Six
  • Our Country’s Flag
  • Some Reminiscences of the War Between the States
  • The First Amendment and Its History
  • Prohibition no a Party Fight
  • A Little More Grape
  • The Liquor Traffic
  • Governor Ross Answered
  • Paraphrase of the Dallas Platform
  • An Interrogation of the Antis
  • Thomas Jefferson and the Present Issue
  • That What-Is-It?
  • The Doom of Local Option
  • A Vision of an Old Man
  • Personal Liberty
  • Prohibition
  • Local Option an the Court of Criminal Appeals
  • The Prohibition of the Liquor Traffic
  • The Pending Prohibition Issue in Texas

Sermons and Life Sketch of B.H. Carroll (published 1957)

  • My Infidelity and What Became of It
  • Baptism in Water
  • Baptism in Spirit
  • Baptism in Fire
  • The Spirits in Prison
  • The Second Coming of Christ
  • The Human Side of Regeneration
  • Repentance and Remission of Sins

Resources

Links