|
A Brief
Survey Of Independent Fundamental Baptist Churches
What They
are and What is Their History
by Cooper
P. Abrams, III
All Rights
Reserved
Contents:
·
What Is An Independent Fundamental Baptist?
·
What Baptists Are Not.
·
Who Were the First Baptists?
·
When and Where Was the First Recorded Baptist Church in History
·
The Beginnings of the Baptists in America
·
What Makes a True Baptist?
·
The Five Baptist Distinctives
·
Concluding Comments
·
Bibliography
WHAT IS AN
INDEPENDENT FUNDAMENTAL BAPTIST CHURCH?
The
name Independent Fundamental Baptist Church is used traditionally by churches
which pattern themselves strictly after the example of the early church as found
in the New Testament. Today the name Baptist is used by many churches who are
not truly following the teachings of the New Testament. Thus the words
"Independent" and "Fundamental" have been added by many Baptist churches to
further identify themselves as truly Bible believing churches and to show a
distinction between themselves and Baptist churches who were not following God's
word. Most "Baptist" churches were in the past founded on the sound doctrinal
teachings of the New Testament, however, many of them have in varying degrees
drifted away from many of the teachings of the Scriptures. Some of these
churches have gone so far to even deny the fundamental teachings of the Bible,
such as the deity of Christ, the virgin birth and salvation by the Grace of God,
through faith. Others have to a lesser degree compromised the Word of God by
their teaching, practices and church polity trying to confront to popular
religious tends. These worldly churches still call themselves "Baptists" but in
fact they do not believe or practice what true Baptists have historically
believed and more importantly what the Word of God says. The true Independent
Fundamental Baptists have no association or fellowship with these churches
because they teach or practice things contrary to the New Testament.
The
name Fundamental Independent Baptist is of recent origin and came into being
because many modern day Baptist churches compromising the Word of God and
teaching and practicing false doctrines. There were however, many Baptists who
loved the Word of God and held true to it and refused to abandon teaching the
New Testament. In order to distinguish between the doctrinally unsound Baptist
churches and those that believed the Bible many Baptist churches changed their
name. These true Baptists added the adjectives Fundamental and Independent to
their name in order that they not be identified with the false practices and
teaching of the doctrinally unsound churches using the Baptist name.
The
word "Independent" means that the church is not a member of any council,
convention or is a part of any hierarchy outside the local congregation. An
Independent Baptist Church would not be apart of a national organization that
would exercise authority over the local church. Thus, the name "independent"
means that the church patterns itself after the New Testament example and stands
alone under the authority of the Bible. Independent churches have no organized
organization over them in authority. They direct their own affairs under the
authority of the New Testament Scriptures, free from the outside interference.
The New Testament teaches that Christ is the head of the church,(Eph. 5:23) and
the Chief Shepherd )1 Peter 5:4). The local pastor is the shepherd (Heb. 13:17,
Acts 20:28, Eph. 4:11) or leader of the congregation. The Independent Baptist
church has a congregational form of government with each member having the right
of the vote and all the affairs of the churches are conducted by the local
congregation following the guidelines of the New Testament.
Independent Fundamental Baptist churches have fellowship one with the other and
often cooperate in such things as evangelism. They, however, will only
fellowship or cooperate in joint meetings with churches of like belief. They
will not participate, on a church basis, or any outside function with churches
which do not also strictly base their faith and practice on the New Testament.
They will not engage in joint meetings, or evangelistic endeavors, with
Protestants, Catholics, or other doctrinally unsound church groups, who do not
hold to the fundamental teachings of the New Testament. Examples: Billy Graham,
Promise Keepers. Fundamental Independent Baptists church will remain separate
from these churches as well as other Baptists groups who participate with the
unscriptural churches. They practice the Biblical teachings of separation as
stated in Ephesians 5:11, which says, "Have no fellowship with the unfruitful
works of darkness, but rather reprove them. " The Independent Baptist believes
that to join with churches who teach and practice false doctrine is condone and
even show approval of Biblical error and that all doctrinal error is sin.
The
church government of many Independent Baptist churches are to have pastors and
deacons as officers of the local church. (1 Tim. 3:1-16) However, some
Independent Baptist churches do not accept that the word "officer" is the proper
biblical term to be used and particularly does not apply to deacons. (For a
explanation of the biblical role of deacons please go to http://bible-truth.org/deacon.html
The
pastor of the church is called by majority vote of the congregation. Men meeting
the Biblical qualification of deacons (servants) (1 Tim. 3:8-13) are appointed
from the local congregation and approved by the majority vote. Many Baptist
churches have Trustees, but their position was established in order to have
legal "signatories" to sign legal documents of the church. Biblically neither
Deacons or Trustees are a governing body, or a "board," but titles of special
appointed servants who serve at the will of the pastor and congregation. In a
biblical church the pastor is the "overseers" or leaders of the congregation.
(See Acts 20:28, Hebrews 13:7)
The
word "Fundamental" means that the Baptist church uses the New Testament strictly
as its authority for faith (doctrine) and practice. In recent years the news
media has called doctrinally unsound church such as the Charismatics and
Pentecostals "fundamentalists. " Even some TV evangelists have referred to
themselves as being "fundamentalist. " But they should not be confused with
Fundamental Baptists. They are worlds apart. Many of the TV evangelists and all
of the Charismatic and Pentecostal churches promote teachings which are not
Biblical. Fundamental Baptist use the name in its strictest sense as meaning
holding to the fundamentals of the New Testament teachings without error. True
Independent Fundamental Baptist Churches uphold the purest teachings of the
early church as revealed in the New Testament.
BAPTISTS ARE
NOT PROTESTANTS
Baptists are not Protestants! The name Protestant was given to those churches
which came out of Roman Catholicism during the Reformation which began in the
1500s. It originally applied through the 1700's to Lutherans, and Anglicans.
Later Presbyterians, Episcopalians and Methodist were added to the lists of
Protestants denominations. Though many people including Webster's Dictionary
refers Baptists as being Protestants, it is not correct to refer to them as such
or to lump all non-Catholic denominations in one group and label them
Protestant. Historically, Baptists were never a part of the Roman Catholic
Church or the Protestant Reformation and therefore can not be correctly called
"protestors" or Protestants.
Its is
true that many Baptists left the ranks of Protestant churches which were
doctrinal unsound and apostate. They left these churches because of their strong
conviction the Word of God should not be compromised. Some formed new churches
and called themselves Baptists to make it clear that they believed and followed
the New Testament. It is not historically correct to identify Baptists as
Catholic "protestors" who left the Roman church. In the many books on church
history which make up the bibliography for this paper, there is not one recorded
incident of a Baptist church beginning founded out of Roman Catholicism.
Protestants for centuries saw the Baptists as their "enemies" and murdered them
by the thousands in the name of Protestantism. It is surely an affront to any
historically informed Baptist identify him by the name of a group that has so
hated and persecuted them down throughout history.
There
have always existed, from the time of Christ, New Testament churches which were
not a part of the Roman Church. In fact the Roman Church can only trace its
history back to 313 AD when the Roman Emperor Constantine made Christianity a
legal religion. In 395 AD, Emperor Contantius "Christianized" Rome and made the
worship of idols punishable by death. By 400 AD, the Emperor Theodosius had
declared Christianity the only state religion of the Roman Empire. Many churches
by this time had come under the domination of the Rome government and had ceased
from being New Testament churches. When the Roman Emperor declared Christianity
the religion of Rome, he in mass "converted" hordes of pagans which made up the
Empire. Pagan temples became the meetinghouses for "Christians." Rome, then
hired unregenerate pagan priests as "Christian" ministers. The influx of these
falsely converted pagans is one reason Roman Catholicism came to have so many
idolatrous and pagan beliefs.
However, in the midst of all this apostasy, which was the founded the Roman
Catholic church, there were groups of Christians who were never a part of the
"Christianization" of the Roman Empire. These New Testament believers rejected
every attempt to include them in with the other churches who compromised and
accepted the Roman government's money, rule and authority.
The
over the years the growth of so many false and idolatrous practices caused some
within the Catholic church such as Martin Luther to rebel, and to try to
"reform" the Catholic church. This was the birth of Protestant churches.
Although, many Protestants returned in part to a belief in the Bible as their
authority for their faith and practice, not one of them EVER completely left all
the doctrinal errors and false teachings of the apostate Roman Catholic church.
There is not one Protestant church that is doctrinally pure following the
example and polity of the New Testament.
Protestants have never accepted the principle of separation of church and state.
In Europe, Protestant churches are "state" churches and supported to some degree
by government imposed taxes. In Germany, the state church is Lutheran and in
England, the Anglican church, France, the Roman Catholic Church, etc.
The
idea the bread and wine (grape juice) in the Lord's Supper becoming the physical
body of Christ when taken is a Roman Catholic teaching that Protestants only
changed slightly. Martin Luther until his death held to this false sentiment and
disputed with the Swiss reformer Ulrich Zwingli (1484-1531), over the matter.
Still today, many Protestants see the Lord's Supper as a sacrament, having to
some degree saving properties or giving some spiritual benefit. True New
Testament Christians have always rejected such unbiblical ideas.
Protestants still practice infant baptism which is not taught in the Word of
God. Many Protestant denominations still hold to the writings of their church
fathers as a source of church doctrine and have never accepted the Bible as
their sole source of teachings for their faith and practice, which is a
foundational teaching of Catholicism. They all hold to a system of hierarchy in
church government and do not accept the autonomy the local church. The New
Testament teaches the absolute autonomy of each local church who is to govern
itself as the Word of God instructs free from outside authority and control.
Baptists, basing their beliefs solely on the Bible, and in particularly the New
Testament, have never held to these teachings and see them as heresy. Thus,
history and the doctrines of Protestantism clearly show that Baptists are not
Protestants.
WHO WERE THE
FIRST BAPTISTS?
In
determining who were the first Baptists, you must first identify who you are
referring to. You could mean those persons or churches which held to the
Baptists beliefs although they may not have called themselves Baptists. Or
second, you could be referring to those who held to Baptist beliefs and were
called by the name Baptist.
It is
difficult to trace Baptist churches down through history. Some Baptist
historians, have made attempts at doing this, but in many cases refer to groups
as early Baptists who did not in fact hold to pure Baptist beliefs as held
today. They tried to establish that "according to history, Baptists have an
unbroken line of churches since Christ". (Quote from Dr. J. M. Carroll's booklet
"The Trail of Blood") These historians, in an attempt to show an unbroken line
of Baptists in history, have embraced groups which were clearly not doctrinal
sound.
In the
simplest of terms a true Baptist assembly is one which follows the New Testament
as his sole authority for his faith and practice. Whether these groups of
believers called themselves Baptists or not, if they were doctrinally pure,
following the New Testament for their faith and practice they were New Testament
churches and thus they can be called Baptistic. The point is the name Baptist in
the beginning was used to designate a true New Testament assembly that was
biblically sound. They many have been called by various names, before assemblies
used the name Baptist. The crucial point is not that they called themselves
Baptists, but they followed the Bible as their sole authority for faith and
practice. The connection with past churches for the modern Baptist is not the
name, but rather their doctrine and practice.
Some
Baptists such as the Landmark Baptist and those often referred to as Baptists
Briders", infer they can trace their history back to John the Baptist who was
the first Baptist. However, John the Baptist was an Old Testament saint and the
last Old Testament prophet (Matt. 3:3). He did not belong to, nor was part of
the any "ekklesia." Yes he baptized, but His baptism was the baptism of
repentance (Matt. 3:2) for Jews who were preparing for coming Messiah and
Kingdom God had promised them. John was beheaded by Herod (Matt. 14) before the
Lord Jesus announced the coming establishment of the "ekklesia." (Matt 16:18).
John was God's true prophet and the forerunner of the Messiah Jesus Christ, but
he was not a part of the dispensation of the institution of the local church.
In
examining many so-called early "Baptist" churches you find many doctrinal errors
and false teaching. Surely, no church that practiced false doctrine, as many of
these groups did, can in truth be called a Baptist church. It is my conviction
that it is not possible to "trace" an unbroken line of Baptist churches from
Christ until today. However, let me strongly say there has always existed an
unbroken line of churches who have not erred from the faith, and been true to
the Bible, God's Word. In fact Jesus emphatically stated in Matt. 16:18,
concerning preserving the institution of the local church, that even "the gates
of hell shall not prevail against it." Doctrinally sound New Testament churches
have always existed from the time of Christ and the Apostles until today. To
call these people Baptists or Baptistic, in the sense the believed the Bible and
followed it as their sole authority for faith and practice, in the same way true
Baptist churches do today, is acceptable, although it serves no purpose. To say
there is a unbroken line or succession of Baptist churches from the time of
Christ until today cannot be shown from history.
It
cannot be stated too often that the importance of these churches was not in
their name, but in what they believed and practiced. These churches patterned
themselves strictly after the New Testament example, and this made them valid
churches approved of God. This is the true heritage the Fundamental Baptists
holds dear, there have always been assemblies which submitted themselves only to
the sole authority of the Word of God. It is difficult to document these
congregations because they were rarely in the spot light of history.
For an
example there is Patrick of Ireland. Patrick was born in Scotland in 360 AD and
sold into slavery at age sixteen and carried to Ireland. Later, he escaped and
became a Christian missionary. Although the Roman Catholic Church claims him as
one of their "saints," there is no evidence he even knew the Catholic church
existed. In his writings he appears ignorant of the practices of the Roman
Church and never refers to church councils, creeds, traditions or even to the
existence of a pope. There was no hierarchy in the churches he founded, which
were patterned after the simple New Testament example. These churches were
missions minded and formed schools to train preachers and missionaries. Later in
history, around 600 AD, Austin, Catholic monk, was sent to Britain by Pope
Gregory the Great. King Ethelbert and his court, and a considerable part of his
kingdom, were won over by the successful monk. (David Benedict, A General
History of the Baptist Denomination in American, and Other Parts of the World,
London: Lincoln and Edmands, Nr. 53, Cornhill, 1813, Fundamental Baptist CD ROM
Library, 1701 Harns Rd. , Oak Harbor, Washington 98277) Under the Roman Catholic
influence these missionary centers diverged into monasticism. However, history
is clear that in the beginning and into the 9th Century there were churches in
Britain that rejected pedo-baptism, popery and other false doctrines of the
Catholics. These churches remained sound in doctrine and practicing the faith of
the New Testament. These churches are good examples of Bible believing churches
that existed independent of the Roman Catholic Church, and were for some time
not corrupted by its influences. They were in fact churches founded on the same
New Testament principles that modern day Baptists traditionally founded their
churches.
Some
have pointed to the Anabaptists as the examples of early Baptist churches. This
again cannot be proven from history. The Anabaptists were mostly a God-fearing
group of people. They loved the Lord and many of them gave their lives and
fortunes for the sake of Christ. However, history does not record even one
Anabaptist group or church becoming or founding a Baptist church. Most of the
Anabaptists successors became the Mennonites, Amish and Quakers. Not one Baptist
church can show in its history a direct succession from the Anabaptists. Many
Anabaptists churches were strong New Testament churches believing and following
the Word of God. Other Anabaptists groups were in gross error and corrupted. As
with any true New Testament church, its validity as a true church approved of
God, does not, nor or ever did rest on its name or upon a succession of
churches, but on its adherence to the principles of God's Word.
Some
Baptist churches believe in a succession of Baptist churches who passed down the
authority to baptize and give the Lord's Supper. It is my conviction that this
is contrary to the very foundation of what is a true New Testament church. A
true New Testament church bases its faith, practice and authority solely in the
Word of God. To hold to the "secessionist" position takes the authority away
from the New Testament and places it in the hands of man. Secessionism is the
gross error of Catholicism. God said He would preserve His church and that task
was not left in the hands of fallible men or groups. God, I believe deliberately
used isolated groups in many different places during time to preserve His church
and did not choose to use a line or chain of churches to past His Word and
authority on to the next generation. He preserved His word and the Word
preserved a true Gospel witness during every moment of history since Pentecost.
What possible value is there in appealing to a supposed unbroken line of Baptist
churches as a church's authority. There is every value in appealing only to
present adherence to the New Testament as one's sole authority for faith and
practice.
The
best illustration of this point can be made this way. Suppose an airplane flew
over some isolated country that had no past or present contact with anyone else
in the world. Further, suppose that a Bible somehow was to fall from the plane
and the inhabitants of this isolated land were to be able to pick up that Bible
and read the text for themselves. Suppose too that some of them on reading that
Bible were to believe and repent of their sins and place their trust in God's
Son and His redemption for personal sin. These new believers would then,
following the New Testament example, submit to believer's baptism and organize a
local church. That local body of baptized believers would be as valid a true New
Testament church as any church Christ ever founded. Why, because it was founded
on God's Word and there is no necessity that it have contact with some other
church which belongs to a succession of churches. It is a historic fact the
first Baptist church in America was founded by another Baptist congregation. It
was founded by Roger Williams, according to the teachings and example of the New
Testament. The Gospel is to be preached throughout the world by believers
empowered by the Holy Spirit as Acts 1:8 plainly states. When a congregation
results from the preaching of the Gospel, authenticating that congregation as a
New Testament church rests solely on its doctrine and practice....not in its
affiliation.
WHEN AND WHERE
WAS THE FIRST RECORDED BAPTIST CHURCH IN HISTORY
Benedict in his history of the Baptists states the Gospel was preached in
Britain within sixty years of the Lord's return to heaven. These churches appear
to have been baptistic and remained sound until Austin, the Catholic monk
brought Catholicism to the Isles in 597 AD. He states there were Baptists in
England 1400 AD. He mentions a man named William Sawtre, who was identified as a
Lollard and Baptist, was the first person burned at the stake after Henry IV's
1400 AD decree to burn heretics. Benedict states that the English Roman
Catholics in 1535, put to death twenty two Baptists for heresies. In 1539 thirty
one more who had fled to Holland were apprehended and martyred there. He records
that five hundred others who were identified as Anabaptists were also killed in
England during this period. After Henry VII separated England from the Roman
Catholic Church the Baptist faired no better. Many Baptists were executed by the
newly formed Church of England during what is called the "Protestant
inquisition. " (David Benedict, A General History of the Baptist Denomination in
American, and Other Parts of the World, London: Lincoln and Edmands, Nr. 53,
Cornhill, 1813, Fundamental Baptist CD ROM Library, 1701 Harns Rd. , Oak Harbor,
Washington 98277)
The
line of English churches that can be traced, who called themselves Baptists,
began in 1610 in Holland. This is not to say there were no Baptists in Britain
earlier, but that this began a line of churches whose history can be traced. It
began with a man named John Smyth who was a bishop in the Church of England. In
1606, after nine months of soul-searching and study of the New Testament he was
convinced that the doctrines and practices of the Church of England were not
Biblical, and thus he resigned as priest and left the church.
Because of persecution by the Anglican church of all who disagreed with it and
who refused to agree to its authority, John Smyth had to flee England. In
Amsterdam, he with Thomas Helwys and thirty six others formed the first Baptist
church of English people known to have stood for baptism of believers only.
Smyth,
believed the only real apostolic succession is a succession of Biblical New
Testament truth, and not of outward ordinances and visible organization such as
the Church of England or the Roman Church. He believed the only way to recover
was to form a new church based on the Bible. He then baptized himself (which is
not biblical) and then the others of his congregation. In only a few years
however, the church had lost all but ten members to the Mennonites and other
groups in Holland. Smyth died in 1612, and the church ended in Holland shortly
after that with Helwy, Thomas and John Murton returning to England as
persecution there had lessened. History records the members of this Baptist
church went back to England or remained in Holland and joined Mennonites. It did
not produce a succession of other churches, but those who founded it went on to
set up other Baptist churches in England.
Back
in England these men, on returning to England, formed the first recorded Baptist
church on English soil. By 1626, the churches had grown from one, to five
churches and by 1644 there were forty congregations. Through preaching the New
Testament, the Gospel went forth in power and the Baptist movement grew rapidly.
These
first Baptist churches formed in England were Armenian in theology, which taught
that all men could be saved. The Calvinistic or Particular Baptists were a
different group and believed in limited atonement in which only the elect could
be saved. Particular Baptist had their beginnings around 1616, when some
"dissenters" left the Church of England and were lead by the Rev. Henry Jacob.
By 1644, these congregations grew to seven churches.
About
this time the Puritans were also becoming strong in England. The Puritans were
dissenters from the Church of England. They wanted to bring reform to the Church
of England. Although they were a great deal more pious than the Church of
England they still practiced most of its beliefs including infant baptism.
Anyone who differed with the practices of the State church were subject to great
persecution. Puritans and Baptists alike, to escape persecution, migrated to the
New World.
One
man Hanserd Knolleys, is an example of dissenter of the Church of England who
had to flee to America. He was a presbyter and former deacon in the Anglican
church. Knolleys was under deep conviction of the need to preach the New
Testament and follow its example as one's rule of faith. He refused to wear the
robes of his church office, and refused to let unsaved people take the Lord's
Supper. Further, he ignored the reading of the "order of service" and simply
preached the Scriptures. To preach the Bible without the rituals of the Church
of England was against the law. Knolleys joined other dissenters left England.
In 1638, he landed in Boston and settled for a short time in Piscataway (now
Dover) in New Hampshire. There he became the pastor of the Puritan church. The
Puritans were in control of the colonies and in fact had set up a theocracy in
which the Puritan church governed both secular and religious affairs. Because
Knolleys refused to baptize infants and preached against it he was banned from
the colony by the famous Puritan governor Cotton Mather. Knolleys after two
years returned to England at the request of his father. He became an outspoken
"Separatist" or dissenter of the State church. In 1645, he formed a Baptist
church in London. Shortly after the Church of England fell from grace when the
English monarch was overthrown and the Presbyterians became the favored church
of the state. The Presbyterians took over the job of persecution biblical
believers and forbade Knolleys from preaching in parish churches. He, however,
continued to preach by holding services in his own home. One of the last acts of
the Presbyterians, before the Long Parliament in England fell, was to past a law
passing the death penalty on anyone who was caught holding to what they called
"Eight Errors in Doctrine." These "doctrines" included infant baptism.
Knolleys was imprisoned many times and suffered at the hands of the "State
Church". He is only one of many such godly men who would not compromise the
truth. The "crime" of these men was that they believed the Bible was God's
Truth, and rejected dictates of false churches and men.
THE BEGINNINGS
OF THE BAPTISTS IN AMERICA.
It is
well to note the Pilgrims were also Puritans, and Puritans were Protestants who
had left the Church of England. They should not be confused true Bible believing
churches, because their beliefs and practices were much like the Church of
England. Although, they were not as corrupt as the Church of England, they still
practiced a strict ritual of church service, a state church, and among other
things, infant baptism. They were intolerant to anyone who did not agree to the
authority of the Puritan church, which was supported by a governmental church
tax of all the people. You may admire their piety, but a true believer in the
New Testament would have a great problem with many of their doctrines and
especially why they persecuted the Baptists and drove them from their colonies.
Everyone in the colony was automatically a member of the State church and were
taxed to support it. Failure to pay the tax brought the wrath of the civil and
church leaders and people were publicly beaten, placed in stocks, fined,
imprisoned, and banished from the colony by the civil authorities under the
direction of the Puritan church officials. Puritan churches persecuted the
Baptists in America until the U. S. Constitution was made the law of the land in
1787. The first Baptist church on American soil was a direct result of the
Puritan persecution of true New Testament believers.
Roger
Williams is credited with founding the first Baptist church on American soil.
Williams graduated from Cambridge University in 1627, and was apparently
ordained in the Church of England. He soon embraced "Separatists" ideas and
decided to leave England. In 1631, he arrived in Boston. He was much displeased
with the Puritan theocracy. He strongly believed in separation of church and
state and upheld the principles of soul liberty. "Soul liberty" is a belief that
everyone is responsible to God individually. It bases its belief in the New
Testament teaching that every believer is a priest to himself, having full
excess to God without the need to go through a church, church leader or priest.
(Hebrews 4:15-16 and 10:19-22) Despite his views he was made the pastor of the
church in Salem. Shortly after that, because of his doctrinal preaching, he was
forced to leave Salem and went for a short time to Plymouth. He returned to
Salem where he was summoned before the court in Boston because of his outspoken
beliefs and was banished from the colony. The charge recorded against him was
that "he broached and divulged new and dangerous opinions against the authority
of the magistrates. " Clearly, he was banished because he believed in religious
freedom and believed and taught the New Testament was a believer's sole source
for his faith and practice. His "crime" was that rejected the unbiblical ideas
of a state church, infant baptism and other false teachings of the Puritans. The
Puritans did not believe in such things and they drove him from their colony.
In
1638, Williams made his way to what is now Providence, Rhode Island, and there
bought some land from the Indians. Some of his former congregation in Salem
joined him and they set up a colony. Its beginning charter reads as follows:
"We whose names
are hereunder written, being desirous to inhabit ourselves in active and passive
obedience to all such orders or agencies as shall be made for the public good of
the body in an orderly way, by the major consent of the present inhabitants,
masters of families, incorporated together into the same, only in civil things."
In 1663, Charles
II, gave the colony a royal charter and it read:
"Our royal will
and pleasure is, that no person within the said colony, at any time hereafter,
shall be in any wise molested, punished disquieted, or called in question, for
any differences of opinion in matters of religion, and do not actually disturb
the civil peace of the said colony"
This
was the first time in the history of the world that a government was established
which granted religious freedom! This charter was the very cornerstone of
American religious freedom! Up to this time Williams was not a Baptist. He
continued to read the New Testament, and became fully aware that infant baptism,
sprinkling for baptism, and allowing unsaved people to be members of the church
was not Scriptural. Thus, resolving to follow the Lord's commands in truth, in
March, 1639 he formed the first Baptist church on American soil. He began by
baptizing himself and then baptizing ten other members.
Shortly after that, Williams withdrew from the church and became what he called
a "seeker." History does not record why he would not identify himself as a
Baptist. Please note that this presented no problem for this first Baptist
church in America. This church was not founded on a man, but on the Bible. It
was not founded because a line of Baptist churches down through history. It was
founded because some saved men believed the Bible and wanted to follow the New
Testament example of what a true church should be. Even after Williams left it,
it continued to follow the New Testament and was not adversely effected. It was
not the man who founded the church that was important, but the New Testament
principles on which he founded this church. They called themselves Baptists
because that was the best name they could choose to describe what they believed
and the name identified them a Bible believing people. This church had no ties
to anyone or any other church, yet this was a Baptist church as much as any
Baptist church ever was. They were a New Testament church, not because of a
succession of churches or men, but because they formed their church on the
principles of the New Testament. That made them in the eyes of God as legitimate
a church as any Paul founded. The sole authority for any true church is God's
Word and not it founder, or its heritage. Not once in the New Testament do you
find even a hint that a church was legitimate because it was founded by Paul or
called itself by a particular name.
However, let no one think little of the name of Baptist for it is the name that
most has identified those individuals and churches who have uncompromisingly
stood on the Word of God. They are the only group into modern times whose
churches were founded on the Scriptures alone and not on the traditions or works
of some man. Baptists have always been the champions of the Word of God and
preaching of the Gospel. History is clear there is no other denomination that
has so loved and been faithful to God's Word as has the Baptists. Even the
enemies of the Baptists openly recognize their zeal for the Word of God.
After
Roger Williams stepped down, Thomas Olney took over as the pastor of the church
in Rhode Island. Although, this was the first Baptist church to be founded on
American soil there is no recorded offspring from this church and modern
American Baptist churches can not trace their history directly to it. Other
churches founded in New England and in the Middle colonies were the actual
mother churches of modern Baptist churches as these churches were responsible
for starting other churches.
On May
28, 1665, a Baptist church was founded in Boston, by Thomas Gould, who refused
to accept infant baptism. There were nine original members of the church which
included two women. A storm of persecution broke out because these Baptist
preached what the Puritans called "damnable errors." Most of the members of the
church were fined or imprisoned or both, at one time or another. Thomas Gould,
died in 1675 an untimely death, partially because of his having his health
broken by several long imprisonments.
In
1678, shortly after the church had erected a new building, the Puritan
controlled government nailed its doors shut and forbade anyone under penalty of
the law to enter or worship there. This lasted only one Sunday however, and the
following Sunday the doors were opened and services held in defiance of the
order. The magistrates found their order was becoming unpopular and impossible
to enforce so the church in the future was left unmolested. In 1684, a Baptist
church in Maine seeking greater religious liberty was relocated to Charleston,
South Carolina.
The
Dutch colony of New York for a time persecuted Baptists within its territories.
The first Baptist church in New York was started by William Wichendon, in 1656.
He was heavily fined and then imprisoned. Being to poor to pay the fines he was
banished from the colony. Later, the Dutch issued new orders and allowed
religious liberty.
In
1700, a Baptist minister, William Rhodes began to hold meetings on Long Island
and in 1724 organized the first Baptist church there. The most important center
of early Baptist churches was around Philadelphia, "the city of brotherly love."
In 1684, Thomas Dungan started a church at Cold Springs, New York which lasted
until 1702. In 1688 a Baptist church was organized at Pennepeck, Pennsylvania
with twelve members. It helped start the first Baptist church in Philadelphia
the following year. It became an independent church in 1746.
Offers
of religious liberty drew many Baptists to settle in New Jersey. The first
church was founded there in 1688, in Middletown and was made up of many who had
fled persecution in the other colonies. Many churches were organized in the
following years.
In
other areas Baptist churches were being formed about this same time. In North
Carolina the first Baptist church was started in the northeastern coastal region
at Perquimans, in Chowan County in 1727.
In
Virginia, Baptist were not welcome. Before the America won its independence and
the Constitution became law, the Episcopal church, which was the American branch
of the Church of England, was the only legal church in Virginia. There was a
fine of 2000 pounds of tobacco for failure to have one's infant children
baptized. One Baptist church, however, did begin after 1714, in Surry Country,
and another at Burleigh, Virginia. Virginia was especially harsh in religious
persecutions. Anyone not holding Episcopal ordination was forbade to hold
services. Baptists with other citizens were taxed to support the Episcopal
church. It is well to note that not all Virginians felt this way. Two champions
of religious liberty were the Virginians Thomas Jefferson and Patrick Henry.
Thomas Jefferson is believed to have been deeply influenced to press for
religious freedom in American, by the plight of several Baptist preachers he
knew. For example inn Isle of Wight county in southeastern Virginia, Baptist
preachers were taken to Nansamond River, nearly drowned by Episcopalians to show
their contempt for Baptist's beliefs in immersion and their rejection of infant
Baptism. They were then tarred and feathered and ran out of the county.
The
center of Baptist activity in the colonies was in the Philadelphia area, and
Baptists held regular "general meetings" of the churches for devotional and
evangelistic purposes there.
It can
be historically determined that forty seven Baptist churches were in existence
before the Great Awakening. All but seven were above the Mason-Dixon line.
Baptist continued to grow in numbers through the period of the Great Awakening
and up to the time of the Revolutionary War. Baptist as a whole were patriots
and many Baptist pastors served as chaplains in the Revolutionary Army. The
Great Awakening stirred religious interests in the colonies and a reported great
revival took place. The Revolutionary War for some time slowed the growth of
Baptist churches. However, after independence was won and the Constitutional
written giving all Americans religious freedom, the Baptist again began to grow
until today they are the largest denomination in the United States.
WHAT MAKES A
TRUE BAPTIST?
Today
there are at least a hundred different groups which all themselves "Baptist."
Many of these churches have conflicting beliefs and practices. The natural
question then to ask is, "What makes a person a true Baptist?" In examining the
history of Baptists and determining what makes up 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 true historical
Baptist congregation which is synonymous with what is a true biblical New
Testament church.
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 strictly 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 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 Revelation 22:18, 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, 1 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.
THE FIVE
BAPTIST DISTINCTIVES
1. WE
ACCEPT ONLY THE NEW TESTAMENT AS OUR AUTHORITY IN ALL MATTERS OF FAITH AND
PRACTICE.
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 many be perfect, thoroughly furnished
(equipped) unto all good works." (II Timothy 3:16-17) We reject that God is
giving supposed "new" Revelation, 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, modern day prophets, or councils of churches.
2. WE
BELIEVE THE CHURCH IS TO BE MADE UP OF SAVED BAPTIZED BELIEVERS.
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
believed and trusted in Jesus Christ as their Savior is a member of the body of
Christ. Only the saved who have publicly professed salvation can be a member of
a local New Testament church.
3. WE
BELIEVE IN STRICT SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE.
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.
4. WE
BELIEVE IN THE PRIESTHOOD OF THE BELIEVER.
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.
(1 John 1:19) No church has the authority to forgive sins or grant intercession
to God.
5. WE
BELIEVE IN THE AUTONOMY OF THE LOCAL CHURCH.
Simply stated the
Scriptures gives no higher authority than the local congregation of born again,
baptized believers. We believe 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 Revelation 2:6,15, stated that He
"hated" the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes. This group of heretics in the early
church with other doctrinal errors promoted a clerical hierarchy in the church.
Concluding
Comments:
A
church which cannot answer yes to all of these questions cannot historically
call itself a Baptist church. These are the distinctives which separate Baptists
from all Protestants, any organized church or "Christian" cult.
A
person can rightly take pride in truthfully bearing the name Baptist. Many men
have suffered and given their fortunes and their lives to hold the name in
truth. It stands for devotion and a strict 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 New Testament teaches or what the early churches believed and
practiced.
We
must agree with John Smyth, 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.
It is
the Word of God, the Bible, that makes up what is a real and true church! The
Bible and only the Bible reveals to men how to have their sins forgiven and have
everlasting life and heaven. That is what saved believers have always believed,
because that is what the New Testament which is God's 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, pope, prophet, 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 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
set up by man over the authority of the local church has lead to doctrinal
errors and corruption without exception and God has not party with them.
Bibliography
1. A
History of the Baptists,
John T. Christian, Sunday School Board of the Southern Baptist Convention.
2. A History of the Baptists, by Robert G. Torbet, Valley Forge Press,
1987.
3. The Baptist Heritage, Four Centuries of Baptist Witness, H. Loen
McBeth, Broadman Press, 1987.
4. A Source Book for Baptist Heritage,H. Loen McBeth, Broadman Press,
1990.
5. The Baptist Heritage, by J. M. Holliday, Bogard Press.
6. The Baptist March in History, by Robert A. Baker, Convention Press
7. Christianity Through the Centuries, Earle E. Cairns, Zondervan Press
8. Documents of the Christian Church, Henry Bettenson, Oxford University
Press
9. Foxe's Book of Martyrs, Marie Gentert King, Editor, Spire Books
10. A Manual of Church History, by Albert Newman, Vol. I and II. , The
American Baptist Publication Society.
11. Miller's Church History, by Andrew Miller, Zondervan Publishing House
12. A Short History of the Baptists, by Henry Vedder, Judson Press
13. A Short History of Western Civilization, by John B. Harrison and
Richard E. Sullivan, Michigan State University.
14. The Trail of Blood , J. M. Carroll, Ashland Avenue Baptist Church
İCooper P.
Abrams, III ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This publication may be copied and used freely,
but must not be sold in whole or in part. It is requested that if you make
multiple copies of the material and distribute it that you contact the author as
an encouragement to him. January, 1989/Revised June, 1994/June, 1996, Minor
revisions made December 2004, April 2006.
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