I have tremendous respect for Pastor Lester Roloff (1914-1982), who tragically died in a plane crash. I respect Brother Roloff for standing up for the inspiration of the King James Bible. When Bob Jones University (BJU) offered him an honorary doctorate degree, he humbly turned it down.
Brother Roloff turned down the honorary doctorate degree from Bob Jones University (BJU) due to his strong convictions against the institution's policies and practices. He was known for his independent stance and often clashed with mainstream Baptist organizations, like the apostate Southern Baptist Convention. God bless Brother Roloff for his faithful stand!
When he did preach at BJU, Brother Roloff ripped hard against the corrupt modern English Bible perversions, such as in this fiery sermon titled: The Living Bible Exposed (the audio significantly improves after 3 minutes; using MixCraft software, I greatly enhanced the video over the original recording).
Evangelist Mike Rios served under Brother Roloff as his Assistant Pastor and had this to say in a letter in 2009 to pastor David Baker...
Dear Bro. Baker,
I just wanted to say that there is even more of a reason for us to stand behind this issue in the defense of the King James Version.
I don't know if I have told you this story, but if I have I apologize for being redundant.
I used to be assistant pastor to Bro. Roloff. I am the last preacher boy that he ordained. I am a first generation independent fundamental Baptist in that I was never kicked out of any denomination or was ever involved with any of the Baptist clubs, BBF, SBC, ABA, XYZ, etc, etc... Bro. Roloff's ministry was my very first introduction to Christianity and I learned early on that there were things worth fighting for and even giving your life for. The King James Bible issue was one of them.
Bro. Roloff, to the dismay of many of the "brethren," followed Pete Ruckman because of his position on the King James Bible. He first heard Dr. Ruckman give a lesson on the KJV at Dr. Gray's annual missions conference in Jacksonville that met every February for many years.
About six weeks before Bro. Roloff went to heaven, I drove with him to a meeting at a church that was honoring Bro. Roloff for his 50th anniversary in the ministry. Bro. Roloff started this church during WW II and through personal soul winning very quickly had a church running well over 1,000 members in Sunday School before the days of the mega soul winning churches of the '70's. When we sat down in the front row during the pre-sermon preliminaries, I noticed a banner that was hanging over the pulpit that was about 30 ft. long and 4 ft. high. In big bold black letters it said, "Let this attitude be in you which was in Jesus Christ..." (NIV).
Just as I noticed the banner, quoting the NIV, I looked at Bro. Roloff who was also just realizing what was hanging over the pulpit. His legs were crossed and his right leg started kicking. Anyone who knew him, knew that when his leg started kicking like that knew that it was a pressure relief valve that Bro. Roloff used to keep from having a stroke on the spot. It meant that history's worst hurricane was fixin' to be released on the present congregation! It meant buckle your seat belts folks cause we are entering into dangerous turbulence.
Needless to say, Bro. Roloff got up and, for the next 50 minutes, paid his unmitigated disrespect to the pastor, asst. pastor, (whom Bro. Roloff had gone to Baylor with,) about their heretical treatment of the King James Bible and their slippery slide into apostasy. He told the congregation that they should shut the church down and come to a real Baptist church. The People's Baptist Church where Bro. Roloff pastored! After the invitation I suggested that we should slip out the side door as there was probably a stoning party waiting for us at the front door.
On the way home Bro. Roloff began to talk about Jerry Falwell's newest adventure into promoting and selling the New King James Version. Falwell's reasons for pushing the New King James were virtually identical to Schaap's reasons for belittling the King James Bible.
You see, Bro. Roloff had more than a casual interest in Jerry Falwell's descent into liberal heresy since when Jerry Falwell founded Thomas Road Baptist Church Bro. Roloff cashed in his life insurance policy, $20,000 in 1972, and gave it to Falwell to get that church off of the ground. Bro. Roloff was furious about Falwell's support of the NKJV and at that time was also very vocal about defending the King James Bible. This was one of the main reasons for Bro. Roloff preaching around the country, "Don't Mess With My Momma." Bro. Roloff told me that night, "I'll never share a platform with Jerry Falwell again as long as I live. I can't afford to be identified with that kind of compromise."
Of course, we know now that he never did because he went home to be with the Lord a few weeks later. He was faithful to the end, in more ways than one.
I was a young man then. Now, I'm old and yet that same resolve that Bro. Roloff took to heaven with him is set in stone with me. If we don't have a perfect Word then our salvation is just as imperfect as Schaap says our Bible is. We are right, Schaap, First Baptist, Hyles-Anderson and anybody else in league are wrong. Period.
Keep up the Fight!
Bro. Mike Rios
There is much ongoing debate today over whether the King James Bible is perfectly preserved and inspired by God. Dear reader there is no controversy if you believe the Bible. Jesus said in John 6:63b, ...the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.
If those words lost their life and Holy Spirit power during translation, then nobody has any business reading from a translation because they would merely be man's lifeless words, and not God's pure Words. If the King James Bible is not inspired by God, then it cannot be a Living Book! It would be absurd to say that the King James Bible has some life, or some limited degree of power, but not as much as the original languages. There are no half measures with God!
What saith the Scripture? Matthew 5:18, For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. How ridiculous it is for modern scholars to tell us that words don't matter, when God Himself said jots and tittles matter! Do you really think that God approves of having hundreds of modern English Bible versions, which all say different things? The Lord said that not one jot or tittle (the smallest grammatical marks in an alphabet) shall pass away until all be fulfilled. Yet, there are 64,575 words missing in the New International Version (NIV) compared to the inspired King James Bible.
Any kind of education that does not strengthen your faith in Jesus is an abomination. Brother Lester Roloff, The Living Bible Exposed
