R.B. Jones

Rhys Bevan Jones was born in 1869 in Dowlais, Glamorgan, Wales.

He attended Pontypool Baptist College of Monmouthshire.

He was ordained in 1893, at the early age of 23.

His first pastorate was at Berthlwyd. After a short time he went to Caersalem, Llanelly, where his church was in strong competition with the Congregationalist church. He was a rising star among Baptists there, using logic and reasoning in a time when sermons were noted for their poetic eloquence. His abilities were soon called upon to fill the vacant pulpit of the important church at Salem, Porth.  

He pastored the Baptist Church in Treharris, Glamorgan, from 1893-1895; the Baptist Church of Llanelli, Carmarthenshire, from 1895-1899; and the Baptist Church of Porth, Glamorgan, from 1899-1933.

He had a pleasant, deep but mellow, voice. He spoke in a deliberate and distinct manner. His Welsh was good and his sentences well formed. He kept his voice under control, and even when raising it a few times to a shout, it was done while maintaining a musical quality. He gave serious thought to his sermons, carefully preparing them, planning them, and then writing them out completely. When he read his sermon from the pulpit it was done so well, that it was difficult to discern if he was reading it or not. His mannerisms and style were such that he commanded the attention of the audience.

During his first ten years in the pulpit, he was noted as a wonderful preacher. But a change came over him, and in the later years, he was not known, but the Savior was made known instead. His first years proved he had the mechanics and aptitude of being a great preacher, but his later years demonstrated he had a message to give, and a heart to see people give their lives to the Savior.

The change came about when Rev. F.B. Meyer, a fellow Baptist pastor, came to speak at the Llandindod convention in 1903. Jones knew that there was something missing in his life, and that he needed to be filled with the Spirit. The struggle began when hearing Dr. Meyer preach, and it continued for three weeks afterwards.  The change in his heart enabled him to see that the Scriptures all had a relevant message to him. The Word of God became living and vital. He could not believe how simple it is to just depend totally on the Lord Jesus, just as Jesus depended totally on God. But the change came at a high cost to him, bringing persecution and a great cost.

He changed from only speaking in the “great” pulpits, to adapting to bring God’s word anywhere and everywhere. He did open air meetings, preaching on street corners and town halls. When doing open air meetings in 1904 in Rhosllanerchrugog, the public houses were emptied out, as people came. Men abandoned their drinking glasses and fled, as if some invisible hand had prodded them away. A phrase that came from the meetings that lasted for many years was “Christ saves from the gates of hell, not from hell. He cannot save from hell, but He can save from the gates.”

The change in focus caused him to be convinced that there was an urgent need for thorough training in the Bible, and not just a simple knowledge about the Scriptures. What scholars said was not important; instead, it was what the Author said that mattered.  This resulted in the starting of the founding of the South Wales Bible Training Institute of Porth in 1919, where he remained its principal until his death. The impact soon became world-wide, as students came to learn the Scriptures, and the revelation it gives in moral and spiritual truth. His institute stood in stark contrast to the liberalism that had taken over the Welsh pulpits as in much of the world, that saw the Bible as an archaic and deeply flawed book that needed updating and upgrading in order to be useful.

He was married and had three sons and three daughters.

He wrote the book, Spiritism in Bible Light and it was published in 1920.

He founded the Evangelical Group Faith Mission of Wales around 1930.

He wrote the book, Rent Heavens, and it was published in 1930.

He was the first editor of the Yr Efengylydd, the Welsh evangelist magazine.

He died on April 10, 1933, at the fairly young age of 63, having literally worked himself to death. His last few weeks on earth were of a pale, faltering old man, who had been consumed.

Sources

David Ceri Jones, David Ceri’s blog, “Fundamentalism and Evangelicalism in early twentieth century Wales,” posted Aug. 9, 2009. Accessed Oct. 1, 2009: http://davidceri.blogspot.com/2009/08/r-b-jones-and-early-twentieth-century.html

National Library of Wales “Rev. R.B. Jones Papers” Reference Code: GB 0210 RBJONES. Internet link accessed Oct. 1, 2009: http://arcw.llgc.org.uk/anw/get_collection.php?inst_id=1&coll_id=886&expand=

Robert Ellis, Living Echoes of the Welsh Revival (published by Tony Cauchi, The Welsh Revival website, 2002-2004). Internet link accessed Oct. 1, 2009: http://www.welshrevival.org/histories/ellis/04.htm