Frequently Asked Questions
Is Your Church a Ruckmanite Church?
Answer:
Our church is a "Bible-believing" church. "Bible-believing" means we preach and teach from the Bible which we believe to be the inerrant and authoritative word of God. We preach and teach from the King James Bible. In other words, we believe the King James Bible to be the inerrant and authoritative word of God - the inspired and preserved word of God for the English speaking people. This means we do not correct or change any of it's words by referring to ancient dead languages, nor the scholarship of those that claim to understand them, which scholarship varies from scholar to scholar. We simply believe the book that God in His providence has given to us.
Because we are a “Bible-believing” church, we typically get labeled as a “ruckmanite” church. The basis for the label is Dr. Peter S. Ruckman, the pastor of an independent Baptist Church in Pensacola, Florida and founder of the Pensacola Bible Instititue. Dr. Ruckman has been one of the leading proponents for the King James Bible in the debate over whether the King James Bible has errors or is in fact the word of God for the English speaking people. Basically, he takes a very strong stand for the King James Bible. So what has happened is that anyone who takes a stand for the King James Bible that is stronger than say, David Cloud's stand, gets labeled a "ruckmanite."
The difference between their positions is basically, I think summed up in the difference between whether the King James Bible is the inspired and preserved word of God for the English speaking people or the King James Bible is the preserved and inspired word of God for the English speaking people, so the argument is over the transmission of the text. As far as I am concerned, the end result is the same either way, that the King James Bible that we profess to believe is inerrant (without error) and without need of correction, but should be believed and taught to the English speaking people and should be the final authority in all matters of faith and practice, thus making any reference to ancient dead languages unnecessary and often mis-leading.
Again, being an "independent" church, we owe no loyalty or allegiance to any Bible preacher or teacher, whether it is Peter Ruckman, David Cloud, Charles Spurgeon, G.B.Vick, J. Frank Norris or D.L. Moody, etc.; that loyalty and allegiance belongs only to the Lord Jesus Christ and His word, the King James Bible. We believe the Apostle Paul’s teaching in this regard. Who are any of these men? “…but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man…” These men may have labored, “but God gave the increase.” Seeing then that it is “God that giveth the increase,” none of these men are “anything” see 1 Corinthians 3:5-7. Because of this where any Bible teacher agrees with that book, we consider them friends; where they disagrees with that book, we disagree with them; where they correct that book, we feel no remorse in correcting them with the book that they attempt to correct.