THE FIRST TESTAMENT CHURCH FOREWARD I first made the acquaintance of the author in the summer of 1975 (to the best of my recollection). I was a very young pastor and was preaching a series of revival services in Hot Springs, Arkansas. The host pastor asked me if I had ever met Brother Gilford Shuffield. After indicating that I had never had the occasion to do so, he drove me out in the country to the home of Brother Shuffield, who had recently moved back to Arkansas from California. We had a very enriching time of fellowship with Brother Shuffield and his wife Leta, who was, and still is, a most gracious host. It was to be the first of many, many occasions to fellowship with this very dear brother around the Word of the Lord. Over the ensuing years which were to follow, until his death in March of 1993, Brother Shuffield and I had the occasion to spend much time together. We exchanged pulpits on a number of times, preaching revivals at our respective churches and encountering one another at fellowship meetings and various other inter-church functions. Conversation with Brother Shuffield was always centered around the Word of the Lord and could be guaranteed to be challenging and spiritually invigorating. As the successor-pastor to Brother Shuffield at Faith Baptist Church in Malvern, I am honored to write the foreword to this book on "The First New Testament Church." The church desires to extend Brother Shuffield's ministry and memory by the republishing of this very provocative study of the origination and establishment of the first New Testament church. It is hoped that it will be a great blessing to all who read it, and that it will further promote the great gospel message for which Brother Shuffield so dutifully and diligently contended -- a message rich with church and Kingdom truth. May the God of covenant glory use it to that end. In His Grace,
Gary V. Smith, Pastor |