Samuel Robert Cassius (1853-1931) was born a slave in Virginia and lived in Washington, D.C., during the Civil War. As an adult, he moved to Indiana, where he heard the “Restoration plea” and obeyed the gospel. He spent most of his life living, working, and preaching in Oklahoma.
In the book To Save My Race from Abuse, Cassius’ biographer described his preparation for a debate with a Primitive Baptist in which Cassius was to affirm “that the Church of Christ, of which I am member, is apostolic in faith, doctrine and practice” (To Save My Race from Abuse, p. 41). Unfortunately, his opponent backed out and the debate never happened. In the following quote, Cassius adapted the imagery of the armor of God (cf. Ephesians 6:10-17) to describe his readiness to defend the truth in debate.
“I carried two large solid rocks—one in each hand. In my right hand I had the four Gospels, in my left the Acts of the Apostles, and belted about my waist I had all of the pistols of Paul, James and Peter, and between my teeth I carried the sword of the Spirit.” (ibid. p. 41).