On this day in 1753, David Barrow was born. The place was Brunswick County, Virginia. He was saved by the grace of God in his seventeenth year, and when he was eighteen, he began preaching Christ. He was ordained in 1774 and soon became the pastor of three churches in Virginia, while maintaining an itinerant ministry.
In 1778 he and another minister were invited to preach near the mouth of the Nansemond River, but they were warned that it could be dangerous. Sure enough, as soon as the first hymn was announced, a gang of men came up to the stage, singing their own obscene songs. Then they took Brother Barrow and his companion down to the river and proceeded to “baptize” them in the mud at the bank, holding them down and nearly drowning them. Throughout the ordeal, the ruffians kept asking if the preachers truly believed.
This was not the only time that Brother Barrow was attacked for preaching the free grace of Christ.
David Barrow had served in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War, contending for the liberty of the colonies. He was also convinced of the importance of other forms of liberty – spiritual and racial. In 1798 he became pastor of the Mount Sterling Baptist Church in Montgomery County, Kentucky. There he became a zealous advocate for the abolition of slavery. This led to a division in his church and more persecution, some of which came from his Baptist brethren.
Generally speaking, Baptists are more concerned for spiritual principles than social. But there are occasions when the two blend together. David Barrow published an able book on the subject of slavery, but an even more important book was written under his name in defense of the Trinity.
He passed away on November 14, 1819.