�������
Today there are at least a hundred different groups
which call themselves "Baptist." Many of these
churches have conflicting beliefs and practices. The
natural question then to ask is, "What makes a
person a Baptist?" In examining the history of
Baptists and determining what constitutes a genuine
and true Baptist, five distinctives should be
noted. These five distinctive beliefs separate the
true Baptists from other groups who have mistakenly
taken the name Baptist and all non New Testament
churches such as the Protestants. Examine any
church in light of these five distinctive it will be
shown if they are in fact true historical Baptist.
It is well also to note that these five distinctives
are traits also of the true New Testament church!
These distinctives are the distinctives taught in
Bible which constitute a true New Testament church.
The one thing that makes one a Baptist is that
historically they have followed the New Testament
alone as its sole rule for� faith and practice.
Baptists strongly insist that God's Word is not up
for arbitration or subject to the individual's,
group's, denomination's or church's "private
interpretation". (II Peter 1:20) Baptist believe
you do not have to be a Baptist in order to be saved
and have eternal life, but a person must believe the
Gospel as revealed in the New Testament. (I
Corinthians 15:1-4)�
� Further, if a person is truly saved and
uncompromisingly follows the principles of the New
Testament he will in a true sense be a Baptist
whether he uses the name or not. Baptist also believe
the Bible interprets itself, and that Christ is the
one and only head of the church.
Fundamental Baptists are strict in interpreting the
Bible in a "literal" sense. In other words, when the
Bible speaks, the words have a literal meaning and
that it the meaning God intended. They reject the
efforts of the many who "spiritually" interpret the
Scriptures, placing hidden or specially revealed
meanings to the words of the Bible. Further, they
reject so-called "scriptures" of modern day so called
prophets. They believe that when the Book of
Revelation was completed by the Apostle John about
90-95 AD, the Word of God was complete. It is
believed that God meant what he said in Revelations
22:18, that the Scriptures were not to added to or
taken from. (See also Gal. 1:6-10, 1 Tim. 6:30, Titus
1:9-11, II Tim. 4:1-5, I Cor. 13:8-10)
Ask these five questions of any church, and if they
can answer all five in truth with a yes, then you
will have a true Baptist church. All others miss-use
the name.
This means that we do not accept any authority except the New Testament Scriptures. Christ is head of the Church, and it is His bride. We believe the Word of God, the Bible is complete and it solely, "...is given of by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished (equipped) unto all good works." (II Timothy 3:16-17) We reject that God is giving supposed "new" revelations, believing that God forbids any adding to or taking away of the canon of Scriptures. (Rev. 22:18-19) We do not accept any authority over the New Testament Church, but Christ Himself, including any hierarchy to include popes, or councils of churches.
Baptist reject the baptism of infants flatly! The church is made up of Baptized believers only. (Acts 2:41-42) An infant is not capable of believing, and is protected by the Grace of God until the age of accountability. Further, only those who have made a profession of faith in Jesus Christ and trusted in Him as their Savior is a member of the body of Christ, and thus can be a member of the body of Christ on earth, the local New Testament church.
Jesus said to ""render unto Caesar the things that
are Caesar's and unto God the things that are God's."
Further the Scripture says "what fellowship hath
righteousness with unrighteousness? And what
communion that light with darkness?" No power on
earth is higher than God's Word, and the church
should not be in any way yoked with the state, or
controlled by it. We support the rightly appointed
authority of government over us and pray for them
that we live our lives in peace.
The Scripture teaches that every believer can without
the aid of priests or churchmen go, "boldly unto the
throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find
grace in the time of need". (Hebrews 4:16)
The Scripture states further in Hebrews 10:19,
"Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into
the holiest by the blood of Jesus." The believer does
not needed a priest or a church to intercede on their
behalf to God.
The believer can boldly, by the fact
of being washed in the blood of Christ, instantly be
in contact with God by simple prayer, and further can
bring his petitions or requests for forgiveness of
sins directly to God himself. (I John 1:19)
No church has the authority to forgive sins or grant
intercession to God.
Simply stated the Scriptures gives no higher authority than the local congregation of born again, baptized believers. We believe that the local church is to be governed by the Word of God, and the local church does not need, or does the Scripture teach that the local body rests under the authority of any earthy group. It is a group unto itself, under the authority of God, and solely responsible unto Him for its conduct, direction and affairs. Jesus in Rev. 2:6,15, that he "hated" the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes. The group of heretics in the early church along with other doctrinal errors promoted a clerical hierarchy in the church. A church which cannot answer yes to all of these questions can not historically call itself a Baptist church. These are the distinctives which separate Baptists from Protestants, or any organized church or "Christian" cult. A person can rightly take pride in truthfully bearing the name Baptist. Many men have suffered greatly and given their fortunes and their lives to hold the name in truth. It stands for devotion and an uncompromising obedience to God and his commandments. It holds high the saving Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, as revealed in the New Testament and an unwavering commitment to carrying out the Great Commission, that is, to teach everywhere the truth of God's Word. The validity of a church as being a true Biblical New Testament church does not rest in it ability to show an unbroken line of succession from the time of Christ. In fact, no church on earth can make that claim.� Even the Roman Catholic Church which boasts of his unbroken history cannot prove an unbroken line of churches earlier than the Third Century, and what Catholicism teaches today in no way resembles what the early New Testament church believed. We must agree with John Smyth, that the true New Testament church is founded on its belief and practice of the Scriptures, and not on any outward succession of a visible or invisible organization. In this sense, any church which founds itself strictly on the New Testament teachings, is a true and Biblical church, even if it existed in time, only yesterday. It is not the name or the organization that makes a Biblical church, but its practice of the faith as revealed in the New Testament. As stated earlier, if a Bible were to be dropped from a plane over a remote area, and the natives were to take the Scriptures and believe them, then they would be saved and made a part of the Body of Christ. If they then took the New Testament as their guide, and organized a local congregation of believers it would be a church fully acceptable to God and as valid as church as even the early church of Bible times! It is the Word of God, the Bible, that constitutes what is a real and true church! The Bible and only the Bible reveals to men how to have their sins forgiven and have eternal life and heaven. That is what truly saved believers have always believed, because that is what the New Testament which is God's very Word to man says. The Baptist bases his authority solely on the Bible itself. They do not accept that authority was given to any particular man, group or church on earth to be the means of the salvation of men. God has not entrusted that authority to impart salvation to any man or church. God alone has that authority and He in the person of the Holy Spirit brings conviction and salvation to those who in simple faith believe. A church that is a truly Biblical one, patterns its self after the example in the New Testament. It is one made up of baptized believers organized in a local congregation for fellowship, teaching and evangelism. All systems of hierarchy established by man over the authority of the local church has lead to doctrinal errors and corruption without exception
 GUESTBOOK
Get your own Free Home
Page |