Credo Fellow Highlight: Michael A. G. Haykin

Credo is Latin for “I believe.” From the creeds of the Church Fathers to the confessions of the Reformation, Christians have been faithful to confess the faith once for all delivered to the saints. Credo retrieves this classical and reformational heritage in order to create and cultivate theological renewal today. By bridging the gap between church and academy, Credo helps churchgoers, pastors, and students alike learn theology and retrieve orthodoxy for the sake of Christian fidelity today.

However, a team effort is required if the church and academy alike are to remain faithful to this orthodox faith, a team that spans denominations and brings together some of today’s most outstanding theologians, pastors, and writers. I am pleased to welcome the Credo Fellows, each of which embodies the spirit of Credo in their own teaching and writing ministries. Each week, we are highlighting one of the new fellows, allowing you to hear more about their passions, from the halls of patristic and medieval history to the corridors of dogmatics and classical literature.

Matthew Barrett, executive editor

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Michael A. G. Haykin (Th.D., University of Toronto) is the Professor of Church History and Biblical Spirituality and Director of The Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He is an expert in the Church Fathers and has done extensive research on the early Baptist missionaries. Haykin has a B.A. in Philosophy from the University of Toronto (1974), a Master of Religion from Wycliffe College, the University of Toronto (1977), and a Th.D. in Church History from Wycliffe College and the University of Toronto (1982). Michael and his wife, Alison, have two grown children: Victoria and Nigel.

Books

Rediscovering the Church Fathers: Who They Were and How They Shaped the Church(Crossway, 2011)

While the church today looks quite different than it did two thousand years ago, Christians share the same faith with the church fathers. Although separated by time and culture, we have much to learn from their lives and teaching.

This book is an organized and convenient introduction to how to read the church fathers from AD 100 to 500. Michael Haykin surveys the lives and teachings of seven of the Fathers, looking at their role in such issues as baptism, martyrdom, and the relationship between church and state. Ignatius, Cyprian, Basil of Caesarea, and Ambrose and others were foundational in the growth and purity of early Christianity, and their impact continues to shape the church today.

The Missionary Fellowship of William Carey (Reformation Trust, 2018)

The eighteenth century was a time of remarkable missionary activity. As the British Empire expanded around the world, Christian missionaries followed in the wake of merchants and explorers to bring the gospel to places where Christ had never been named.

At the heart of this global missionary movement was William Carey. From humble beginnings in England, Carey journeyed halfway around the world to preach the gospel on the Indian subcontinent. Known as the founder of modern missions, Carey is often portrayed as a solitary trailblazer and pioneer. But that isn’t the full story.

In The Missionary Fellowship of William Carey, Dr. Michael A.G. Haykin explores Carey’s life and introduces us to the band of brothers who labored with him to spread the gospel on a global scale. As we follow their stories, we will discover how God uses Christian friendship to advance His kingdom and be encouraged to nurture deep, long-lasting, Christ-honoring friendships in our own lives.

Eight Women of Faith(Crossway, 2018)

Read the Stories of Eight Remarkable Women and Their Vital Contributions to Church History

Throughout history, women have been crucial to the growth and flourishing of the church. Historian Michael A. G. Haykin highlights the lives of eight of these women who changed the course of history, showing how they lived out their unique callings despite challenges and opposition—inspiring modern men and women to imitate their godly examples today.

• Jane Grey: The courageous Protestant martyr who held fast to her conviction that salvation is by faith alone even to the point of death.
• Anne Steele: The great hymn writer whose work continues to help the church worship in song today.
• Margaret Baxter: The faithful wife to pastor Richard Baxter who met persecution with grace and joy.
• Esther Edwards Burr: The daughter of Jonathan Edwards whose life modeled biblical friendship.
• Anne Dutton: The innovative author whose theological works left a significant literary legacy.
• Ann Judson: The wife of Adoniram Judson and pioneer missionary in the American evangelical missions movement.
• Sarah Edwards: The wife of Jonathan Edwards and model of sincere delight in Christ.
• Jane Austen: The prolific novelist with a deep and sincere Christian faith that she expressed in her stories.

The Christian Lover: The Sweetness of Love and Marriage in the Letters of Believers(Ligonier, 2009)

In The Christian Lover: The Sweetness of Love and Marriage in the Letters of Believers, Dr. Michael A. G. Haykin declares that “reading expressions of love from the past can be a helpful way of responding to the frangibility of Christian marriage in our day.” To that end, he brings together letters from one or both parties in twelve significant relationships from church history. The correspondents include such notables as Martin Luther (writing to his wife Katie), and John Calvin (expressing to friends his grief over the death of his wife Idelette). Lesser-known writers include Helmuth von Moltke, who wrote to his wife as he faced execution as the hands of the Nazis in 1945. The contents range from courtship communications to proposals of marriage to final words before dying, but most have to do with the events of everyday life. Dr. Haykin, professor of church history and biblical spirituality at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., provides an introduction to each set of letters and draws practical applications for today’s believers based on the expressions of love made by the correspondents. In the end, The Christian Lover is a celebration of marriage, an intimate window into the thoughts of men and women in love with both God and one another.

A Sweet Flame: Piety in the Letters of Jonathan Edwards (Reformation Heritage, 2012)

A Sweet Flame introduces readers to the piety of Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758). Dr. Haykin’s biographical sketch of Edwards captures the importance the New England minister placed on Scripture, family piety, and the church’s reliance upon God. The remainder of the book presents 26 selections from various letters written by Edwards, two written by family members at his death, and an appendix drawing upon Edwards’s last will and the inventor of his estate.

To the Ends of the Earth: Calvin’s Missional Vision and Legacy (Crossway, 2014).

Calvinist missionaries.

If you think that sounds like an oxymoron, you’re not alone. Yet a close look at John Calvin’s life, writings, and successors reveals a passion for the spread of the gospel and the salvation of sinners.

From training pastors at his Genevan Academy to sending missionaries to the jungles of Brazil, Calvin consistently sought to encourage and equip Christians to take the good news of salvation to the very ends of the earth. In this carefully researched book, Michael Haykin and Jeffrey Robinson clear away longstanding stereotypes related to the Reformed tradition and Calvin’s theological heirs, highlighting the Reformer’s neglected missional vision and legacy.

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