The
Kind Of Baptists We Are By
Milburn Cockrell
(1941-2002) “WHO ARE YOU?” “But sanctify the Lord in your hearts: and be
ready always to give
an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in
you,
with meekness and fear” (1 Peter 3:15). According
to this verse of
Scripture, it is a Christian duty to reverence Jesus Christ as Lord in
our
hearts. If we truly do this, then it will make us ready at all times to
give a
defense of the faith we profess in Him and His Word. We must be ready
to make a
full statement as the circumstance may require of our doctrinal
position. If
there is reverence for Christ in the heart, the lips must be able to
make an
oral expression. At no time are we to be unprepared, or timid in
stating our
views of the teachings of the Bible. This defense must be made in
meekness and
modesty to men and in fear of our sovereign Lord. Quite
often people ask me, “What kind of a
Baptist Church is your Baptist Church?” Others inquire, “What doctrines
do you
teach and practice?” Still others question us as to why we are not
affiliated
with any Baptist convention, association, or Bible fellowship. Our
critics
demand, “What rare breed of Baptists are you?” In the light of I Peter 3:15 1 feel that necessity is
laid upon me to take some time to answer these questions for all
concerned. WHO
WE ARE NOT At
times our friends make false
assumptions about us, and our enemies misrepresent our views before the
world.
Because we believe in the doctrines of grace we are accused of being
Reformed
Baptists. We are not Reformed Baptists. We repudiate the idea of
Baptist
churches beginning at the time of the Protestant Reformation in 1641.
We
maintain that Baptists are older than the Reformation. We feel that our
origin
goes back to Christ and the New Testament. We believe we are as old as
the
Christian religion. Christ’s church does not need reforming so long as
it stays
with the teaching of the Bible. We differ with these people on
ecclesiology and
eschatology. We are
not Primitive or Old School
Baptists. These people separated from the old line of Baptists under
Daniel
Parker in 1832. Unlike us, they are in the main anti missionary and
oppose
Christian education. Unlike us, many of them do not know if they are
saved, and
some of them deny Baptist succession. WE ARE
INDEPENDENT BAPTISTS ON
CHURCH COOPERATION To us a
convention, an association,
and a Bible fellowship are extra-scriptural organizations, which lord
over the
local churches. We do not believe the mission of a Baptist church is
merely to
be a collecting agency for some man-made religious society. We teach
that the
churches of Christ on earth are Divine organizations which are
responsible to
Christ in the work of preaching the gospel, baptizing believers, and
teaching
God’s Word (Matthew 28:19-20). The
local church is the highest
ecclesiastical authority on earth and the only organization with a
Divine
commission from Heaven. Each
church in New Testament times
was a sovereign, autonomous, independent body. There is no example in
the Bible
of the subordination of a church to an organization outside of itself.
Each
particular church was absolutely independent in the exercise of its
churchly
rights, privileges, absolutely prerogatives. It was separate from all
other
churches, individuals, and bodies so far as authority and control were
concerned. Christ was its only head and lawgiver (Ephesians
1:21-23). No
church delegated to another body the right and function Christ
committed to it. Since
Christ left ecclesiastical
affairs entirely in the hands of His churches (Ephesians
3:10, 21), it
is safe to trust His arrangement. It is unsafe to depart from it. The
Divine
plan is the best plan with the fewest evils and the most advantages. It
has
served Baptists well for well over a thousand years. Let others do what
they
will. We will stay with the New Testament order. Our
enemies sometimes accuse us of
being too independent, but we do not believe it is possible to be too
independent in the Bible sense. We are not isolationists. While each
church is
independent and sovereign in its locality, it also realizes its
interdependence
upon other churches of like faith and order Our churches voluntarily
cooperate
with each other in missions, Christian education, benevolence, Bible
conferences,
fellowship meetings revival work, and publication work. All church
cooperation
is absolutely voluntary and free from any authoritative or dictatorial
control. WE ARE
LANDMARK BAPTISTS ON THE CHURCH Our
people steadfastly maintain
that a New Testament church is a local and visible congregation of
baptized
believers (Acts 2:41-47). Every true
church is the body of
Christ in its locality (1 Corinthians
12:27). The church did not begin with Adam or on the first
Pentecost after
the resurrection of Christ, nor at the time of the Protestant
Reformation. The
New Testament church was organized by Jesus Christ during His personal
ministry
on earth out of the material prepared by John the Baptist (Matthew
16:18). Since the days of Christ, the world has never been
without a true church. We teach that the principles and practices of
the New
Testament continued even during the Dark Ages because the gates of Hell
never
prevailed against the church (Matthew
16:18). Our
people detest and despise the
Protestant doctrine of a universal, invisible church. This false theory
began
in post-apostolic times among spiritualizers of the Scriptures. It was
popularized at the Protestant Reformation. It has gained ascendancy in
our time
by means of the Scofield Reference Bible, Fundamentalism, and the New
Evangelicalism. Despite its worldly popularity, to us the universal,
invisible
church theory is an inconceivable conception, an unsupposable
supposition, and
an unspeakable superstition. WE ARE
PARTICULAR
BAPTISTS ON THE DOCTRINES
OF GRACE
Our
people earnestly contend for
what some call “the tulip doctrines.” A Tulip Baptist is one who
believes in
total depravity (Ephesians 2:1; Romans 7:18-19; Psalm 51:5),
unconditional election (Ephesians 1:4; II
Timothy 1:9; II Thessalonians 2:13),
limited atonement (Matthew 20:28; John
10:15),
irresistible race (Ephesians 1:19-20; John 15:5), and the perseverance of the saints (John 10:28; Job 17:9). Those who believe
these are not followers of John
Calvin, but believers in the teachings of the Bible. These truths were
believed
and taught long before Calvin or Augustine were born. Old confessions
of faith
of our Baptist fathers reveal that they held to these recious truths. We
teach that there is no salvation
apart from the free, sovereign, distinguishing grace of God and the
work of the
almighty Holy Spirit upon the dead sinner (John
16:8, 10). Salvation is by free
grace, never by free will. Believing these truths, we oppose
Arminianism and
all of its kindred evils. We resist modern decisionism, hour-long
invitations, graveyard
stories, praying through on the mourner’s bench, highpressure tactics
in
evangelistic meetings worldly entertainment to give aid to the power of
the
gospel, and gimmicks and stunts to draw a crowd. Such things are
useless in the
salvation of sinners, for God has promised to bless the gospel only (Romans 1:16). WE ARE
MISSIONARY BAPTISTS ON EVANGELISM Our
firm stand on the doctrines of grace
does not make us anti-missionary nor non-progressive. We are missionary
in
profession and practice. Our missionaries are sent out under the
authority of a
local Baptist church. These missionaries are supported by the home
church and
other churches of like precious faith. Even at this present hour God is
raising
up many to go to the foreign fields from among our churches. To us
there is no
need of a mission board. Whatever work a mission board can do the local
church
can do, and do it with a Divine commission. Such boards lord over the
churches
who have little say in what goes on and are permitted only to pay the
bills. In
our opinion it is worse than foolish to boast of church authority and
then
attempt to delegate missionary work to a missionary society. WE ARE
ANABAPTISTS ON BAPTISM Our
people contend that there are
five things essential to Bible baptism. First, there must be Divine
authority
as given to Baptist churches (Matthew
28:19-20). Second, there must be
a Scriptural administrator, an ordained Baptist minister (Acts
13:1-3; I Corinthians 1:16).
Third, there must
be a Scriptural actor, a born-again believer in Jesus Christ (Acts 16:31-33). Fourth, there must be a
Scriptural action, a complete
immersion in water (Romans 6:4).
Fifth, there must be a Scriptural aim, not in order to be saved, but
because
you seek to declare salvation already obtained by faith in Christ (Galatians 3:26-27). Our
people totally reject pedobaptism. We
do not receive alien immersion from Pedo-Baptists or apostate Baptists.
Neither
do we receive letters from Pedo-Baptists or so-called Baptists who have
denied
the faith. Because of this practice our people have been dubbed by our
enemies
for over a thousand years “Anabaptists;” that is, “rebaptizers.” WE
ARE STRICT BAPTISTS ON THE LORD’S SUPPER We hold
that the Lord’s Supper is a
memorial ordinance in which the members of one local church, by means
of
unleavened bread and wine, show forth the Lord’s death till He comes. This
supper is restricted to each
local church who alone has the responsibility of disciplining its
members (I Corinthians 5:6-13). The
Bible restricts the Lord’s
Supper as to place (I Corinthians 11:18),
the motive (I Corinthians 11:21-22),
the purpose (I Corinthians 11:27-29),
the baptized (Acts 2:41-42), those in
the faith (II John 9-11), the orderly (I Corinthians
5:11-13), the elements (Matthew 26:26-29), the design (I Corinthians
11:23-26), and a united church (I
Corinthians 11:26-20). We do
not believe in the practice
of open communion. It is a terrible act to offer the Lord’s Supper to
the unsaved
and unbaptized. Such a practice is unbaptistic and unscriptural. We
deplore the
idea that the Lord’s Supper is a sacrament WE ARE
HISTORIC
BAPTISTS ON THE WOMAN’S
PLACE IN THE CHURCH Our
people take serious the words
of I Corinthians 14:34: “Let your women
keep silence in the
churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they
are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law.” In our church business meetings the
women keep their mouths shut. No woman is permitted to teach in a mixed
assembly, which contains men. Neither does she lead in public prayer
when men
are present. In all
our ranks there is not one
woman missionary, preacher, or deacon. Neither do we have any future
plans of
ordaining any like our liberal brethren in conventions. A lady wears a
hat in
our church services as a symbol of subjection to her husband. Our
churches
oppose the E.R.A. amendment and the women’s liberation movement. WE
ARE PRE-MILLENNIALISTS ON ESCHATOLOGY In the
main our people maintain the
doctrine of pre-millennialism and beIieve it to be the historic
position. A-millennialism
is a Catholic and Protestant belief. We teach that Jesus Christ will
come and
rapture the saints to glory for the Judgment Seat of Christ (Romans
14:10-12; II Corinthians 5:10-11) and the Marriage of the Lamb (Revelation
19:1-9). At the end of Daniel’s Seventieth Week the
glorified saints
will return to the earth with Christ for the battle of Armageddon and
the
Judgment of the Nations (Revelation
19:11-21). Israel will be
regenerated and restored as a nation (Isaiah
11:11-12; Ezekiel 37:1-28),
and
Christ and the saints will reign over the earth a thousand years (Revelation 20:1-6). After the Millennial
Reign Satan will be loosed and judged (Revelation 20:7-10), and the unsaved judged and cast into the lake of
fire (Revelation 20:11-15). Then Christ
and the saints will reign forever on the renovated
earth (Revelation 22:5). We have
little time to spend with those
who teach the amillennial tradition. We detest its spiritualizing
system of the
interpretation of the prophecies of the Bible. We believe all Bible
prophecy
has a literal fulfillment, and even the prophetic symbols contain
literal
truths The popularity of a-millennialism among Catholics, Protestants,
and
religious liberals is enough to convince us once for all it is not of
God. WE
ARE CONSERVATIVE BAPTISTS ON MORALS We do
not teach that a Christian
can live a sinful, wicked, worldly life (Romans
6:1-22). We preach and teach a
high standard of morality. Disorderly church members are excluded from
the
assembly of the saints (I Corinthians
5:9-13). Such excluded members
are restored only upon repentance and amendment of life (II
Corinthians 2:3-7).
Growth in grace is expected, but we do not believe it is possible to
attain
sinless perfection in the flesh (I John
1:8, 10). This awaits the coming
of Christ (Phiippians 3:20-21). We
totally reject the teaching that a
person can habitually make a practice of sinning and be truly a child
of God (I John 3:1-10). We do not
believe in falling from grace, but we do believe
that a saved person will live different from an unsaved person (I Corinthians 6:9-11). We denounce as
heresy the “new-lite” teaching of some that
there is no sin but a doctrinal sin. To us those who do not strive for
a holy
life are the children of the Devil. WE ARE
LIBERAL BAPTISTS ON GiVING Our
people have a good record in
giving to the cause of Christ through God’s storehouse, the local
church (I Timothy 3:15; Malachi 3:8).
In the main our churches preach tithing and our
members practice it. We are not much for pledges and high-pressure
tactics. We
believe people should give out of love for Christ (II
Corinthians 5:14; 9:6-7) and in
obedience to His command (Matthew 23:23; I
Corinthians 16:1-2). Many of
our churches pass no offering
plates. This is hard for some to believe, but it is no brag, just
facts.
Usually there is an offering box placed near the back of the church (II Chronicles 24:8-9) where the members
put their tithes and offerings. WE ARE
BIBLE
BAPTISTS ON ALL MATTERS OF
FAITH
AND PRACTICE
Our
creed is not found in a
confession written by some man. Our creed is the Bible and the Bible
only. We
are the people of a book, the Holy Bible. We believe in the complete
verbal
inspiration of the Bible (I Timothy 3:15-17).
If it is in the Bible, we believe
it; if it is not in the Bible, we reject it (Isaiah 8:20;
Acts 17:11).
Every doctrine must be established by a “Thus
saith the Lord.” Most of
our churches who have
Sunday schools use the Bible as a textbook, not a Sunday school
quarterly which
is denominational propaganda. It is our belief that the Bible is the
best
Baptist literature in all the world. CONCLUSION We are
not a perfect people, nor
are our churches infallible. We are what we are by the grace of God. We
do have
our problems. But we are bold to say that we worship a perfect Saviour,
and we
preach an infallible Book, the Holy Bible. God is blessing our efforts,
and our
future is bright. We are as able to meet the challenge of our time as
our God. We do
not condemn to Hell those who
are not in agreement with us. We leave them to the Lord who will judge
all by
His Word. We hold to the priesthood of the believer and feel that every
man has
a right to worship God according to the dictates of his own conscience.
We will
forever defend the right of any man to follow his religious
convictions, and we
reserve the right to do likewise. Our
people are called by various
names in different sections of the world. We in the main are content to
be
called just “Baptists.” We believe that true Baptists have always held
to the
doctrines and practices, which we maintain. Let the world call us what
they
will. We desire only to follow Christ and His Word in every detail. By
the
grace of God we will continue to walk in the old paths and keep to the
old
landmarks until the glorious day of His appearing. |