The Lordship of Christ

“I'm Not a Baptist—I Just Love this Church”

Mini Series on Baptist History and Heritage. 1 of 2 in the series.

As presented by Rev. Jonathan Mills, Pastor at Kanata Baptist Church.

2009-02-15

Subject: We are a Baptist church, but our congregation is full of many people who are from different traditions. Today, and next Sunday, we will look at the Baptist heritage and witness and examine some key beliefs. Today: the origin of the Baptists (Amsterdam 1609) and the belief in Soul Liberty and Religious Freedom.

Scriptures¹:

Ephesians 4:1-16

1As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope when you were called— 5one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

7But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. 8This is why it says:
   "When he ascended on high,
      he led captives in his train
      and gave gifts to men." 9(What does "he ascended" mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions? 10He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.) 11It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

14Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. 15Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. 16From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

A) Background the Baptist Movement

The Church in Unity—What Binds Us in Unity

Today is the first Sunday in a mini two week series entitled:

“I'm not a Baptist I just love this church.”

I've spoken to many here who don't know exactly what a Baptist is, or what Baptists believe ... and for the most part, they aren't really too concerned about it. They just love this church and want to be a part of it.

Some who attend this congregation may be secretly nervous about Baptists—wondering when the weird stuff is going to happen. I've seen Baptists on television and they can be pretty strange!

Let me say it clearly: No matter what your background or history, you are welcome here! As much as possible, we try to reduce barriers which come as a result of denominational traditions. We want to study the Bible and live our lives so that we embody the mission statement on the cover of your bulleting … sharing Jesus, growing together, serving others.

While we don't make a huge deal about it, we are “Kanata Baptist Church” -- we are affiliated with the Canadian Baptists of Ontario and Quebec, and part of a wider Baptist family through Canadian Baptist Ministries. It is part of our heritage, our family, and it provides support and accountability for our work.

And, beyond that, we are part of a global fellowship of Baptists through the Baptist World Alliance.

We are, above all, Christian. We always strive to be Christian first, Baptist second.

So why raise this denominational question at all? Why do we even need to talk about it? Shouldn't we just be “Christians” and leave it at that?

Denominational “Short Hand”

Well, first of all, denominations provide a kind of “short hand” about perspectives and views on a number of issues: Someone from an AGC church is most likely not in support of the ordination of women, while someone from a Presbyterian church would be. Someone from a Brethren church would most likely oppose same sex marriage, whereas someone from a United church is more likely to support it. Primitive Baptists use the King James Version of the Bible, while the Vineyard church prefers to use modern translations. If you understand the history and the context of each denomination it is possible to quickly understand many of their key theological perspectives.

But denominational labels can also be used in negative ways.

Comedian Emo Phillips tells the following story:

Once I saw this guy on a bridge about to jump. I said, "Don't do it!" He said, "Nobody loves me." I said, "God loves you. Do you believe in God?" He said, "Yes."

I said, "Are you a Christian or a Jew?" He said, "A Christian." I said, "Me, too!

Protestant or Catholic?" He said, "Protestant." I said, "Me, too!

What franchise?" He said, "Baptist." I said, "Me, too!

Northern Baptist or Southern Baptist?" He said, "Northern Baptist." I said, "Me, too!

Northern Conservative Baptist or Northern Liberal Baptist?" He said, "Northern Conservative Baptist." I said, "Me, too!

Northern Conservative Baptist Council of 1879, or Northern Conservative Baptist Council of 1912?" He said, "Northern Conservative Baptist Council of 1912."

I said, "Die, heretic!" And I pushed him over.

So, you can see that labels are not always helpful.

Celebrating 400 Years of Baptist Life

Another reason for a Baptist series – and this is the main reason-- is because 2009 is a special year for the Baptist tradition. Does anyone know why?

I know this is a bit of an obscure question.

2009 is an important year because it marks the 400^th anniversary of the Baptist movement.

It all began in 1609 – 400 years ago this year!²

I told Jan that I am really excited about this anniversary of the Baptist church and she looked at me like I had two heads.

But I think this is a year to celebrate God's goodness and faithfulness as we trace his hand in the lives of Christians who identified themselves as Baptist.

400 years later, the Baptist denomination is one of the largest Protestant groups worldwide comprising some 37 million baptized believers, as part of a community of approximately 102 Million active believers who worship in Baptist churches in 214 Baptist conventions and unions worldwide.³

In Canada, there are more than 1,000 Baptist congregations from coast to coast affiliated with Canadian Baptist Ministries, representing over 250,000 people.

B) The Historical Context of the Baptist Movement

The First “Baptists” weren't Baptists

So I'd like to celebrate 400 years of Baptist life and witness this morning, and next Sunday too.

It all began in England.

In the 1500's, England was a confusing place so far as Christianity was concerned. The Protestant Reformation had just begun in Germany and many countries were abandoning Catholicism and becoming Protestant.

I'm sure you've heard about the exploits of King Henry VIII. He wrote against the Protestants and the Pope gave him the title “Defender of the Faith.”

Personally, Henry was a committed Catholic.

But when he asked the Pope for a divorce, the Pope wasn't returning his calls.

So he removed the England from the Pope's authority, and started the Church of England (Protestant).

(There's a lot more to the story than that—but this is a summary).

Protestantism hadn't really taken hold when Queen Mary ascended to the Throne. She was later known as “bloody Mary”

because she reinstated Roman Catholicism and rounded up hundreds of Protestant leaders and had them burned at the stake.⁴

So when, Queen Elizabeth I came along, and had to clean up a terrible mess. Was England Protestant or Catholic? Was the head of the church the Pope or the Queen of England?

Elizabeth settled the land as a Protestant state once and for all.

Then in 1559 Elizabeth made two major changes:

First, there was the Act of Uniformity. It established the the Book of Common Prayer would be the only official order for prayer in any church in England.⁵

(It also established a fine—roughly the equivalent of $25—for anyone who did not attend church on Sunday morning).

Also in 1559, came the Act of Supremacy. This required anyone taking public office or church office to make an oath of allegiance to the Queen as the Supreme Governor of the Church of England.⁶ Many Bishops and ministers refused and were removed from office and sent to prison.

Puritans and Non-Conformists Imprisoned

Today, we take freedom of worship as a basic human right.

It was not always that way.

There was only one church in England and any who tried to practice anything else were persecuted.

There were many Christians in England who longed for a different church. They read the Bible and yearned for the New Testament church to come alive in their day. They wanted to worship according to their conscience and they did not want to be constrained by the Book of Common Prayer or by a state run church.

When they read the scriptures, it seemed clear; the head of the church is not a King or Queen, or a Pope or Archbishop; the head of the church is Jesus Christ.

Eph. 4:15 “...we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ.”

When forced with the choice between obedience to God, or obedience to the Monarch, their choice seemed obvious: They took the lead form Peter and the Apostles had been told by the Jewish authorities not to preach about Christ.

In reply, they said Acts 5:29 “We must obey God rather than men!”

For the Christians in a small church in Gainsborough England, they continued to worship as non-conformists despite the risks. They would not compromise, and they took a solemn covenant oath saying:

“We covenant with God and with one another to walk in all his ways made known or to be made know unto us according to our best endeavours whatsover it shall cost us.”⁷

It cost them a great deal.

Eventually—in 1607 or 1608—they fled London and settled in the city of Amsterdam where they could pursue their faith in a context of religious toleration.

As an aside—let me just make sure that everyone understands I am relating these events because of their historical significance—not because I am trying to stir up sentiments against Anglicans or Roman Catholics. Both of those Christian denominations are very different than they were 400 years ago. These events are important because they shaped the thoughts and actions of the early Baptists.

The Baptism Discovery

So this small congregation of English non-conformists studied the scriptures in a small room they rented in the back of a Bakery in Amsterdam.

One key discovery they made had to do with baptism. They became convinced that the Bible does not have any examples of infant baptisms—instead, they discovered that only people who have made a personal declaration of faith in the Lord Jesus were baptized. Since their greatest desire was to be entirely consistent with the practices of the New Testament church they decided to embrace believer's baptism.

Here is the original account of what happened next.

“Mr. Smyth, Mr. Helwisse and the rest, having utterly dissolved and disclaimed their former church state and ministry, came together to erect a new church by baptism unto which they also ascribed so great virtue as that they would not so much as pray together before they had it. And after some straining of courtesy who should begin … Mr Smith baptized first himself and next Mr. Helwisse and so the rest making their particular confessions.”⁸

That's it! From these humble beginnings, the Baptist movement began.

C) Baptists and Freedom

In some respects, this is a pretty funny story: They couldn't decide who should be baptized first, so John Smith takes the pitcher of water and baptizes himself and then baptized the others (they baptized by pouring for the first few decades).

Though it was the act of baptism which defined the moment in time when these Christians made a definite break with the past—it was the call to freedom which would more fully identify these men and women and what they stood for.

Many of the beliefs which are a part of the Baptist identity have to do with freedom and liberty.

Baptists and Freedom and Liberty

Baptists believe, for instance, in the Separation of Church and State. We hold that the government should not run the church, nor should it interfere with the ministries of the church. Likewise, the church should not be responsible for running a state government.⁹

Baptists also believe in the right of the individual to Interpret the Scriptures under the direction of the Holy Spirit. There are times when we may not agree on how to interpret a particular passage of Scripture – so let's agree to respect one another while earnestly and prayerfully studying the Scriptures. (an example of Christians holding two different positions in scripture is the issue of meat which had been sacrificed to idols, described in Romans chapter 14).

[“We covenant with God and with one another to walk in all his ways made known or to be made know unto us according to our best endeavours whatsover it shall cost us.” Note; there is an acknowledgement that God will make his truth known as time goes on—so the sense of knowing God's truth is always changing. This makes it hard to pin down binding doctrinal statements]

The third great freedom is Soul Liberty¹⁰—that is, the freedom of individuals to make their own choices regarding faith without compulsion or pressure from any outside person or agency.

The outworking of this, in the Baptist tradition, is that we embrace the Lordship of Christ, and we proclaim salvation through the life, death and resurrection of Christ – but an individual's response to accept Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord must always be the choice of that individual.

Helwys Dies in Prison for Freedom

In 1612, Thomas Helwys¹¹ led a small group from the Amsterdam congregation back to London where they began to share their hope in Christ—despite the persecution and hardships they faced.

Helwys, himself, wrote “A Short Declaration of the Mystery of Iniquity”¹² which is believed to be the very first book in English to defend the principle of religious liberty. He sent a copy to King James 1 and inside the front cover he wrote:

“The King is a mortal man, and not God, therefore he hath no power over the mortal soul of his subjects to make laws and ordinances for then and to set spiritual Lords over them.”

In the book he writes “For men’s religion to God, is betwixt God and themselves; the King shall not answer for it, neither may the King be judge between God and man. Let them be heretics, Turks, Jews, or whatsoever, it appertains not to the earthly power to punish them in the least measure.”¹³

Baptists have always been fierce defenders of freedom of religion.

I read Thomas Helwys' words, and even today they sound radical: That heretics, Turks (ie. Muslims), Jews or whoever else must be free to pursue religion according to their own conscience. The reason for this is because ultimately God will judge the human heart. Therefore, it is vain and futile for secular powers to try to force people to follow a particular religious path. And, it also stems from a view that all people are important and must be treated with respect.

It doesn't mean that we have nothing to say to people who have chosen different religious traditions—we have the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and we declare the message of saving grace freely and passionately with all who will listen. But we do not coerce or force people to embrace Christ—for saving faith in Jesus Christ is only possible if it is a genuine, personal decision.

// Down through the ages, the voice of Thomas Helwys echoes with the cry; “We must obey God rather than man.”

Soon afterward he published this book, Thomas Helwys was arrested and thrown in jail where he perished in 1616.

Conclusion

Bus Ads in Ottawa

So, let me give you a very relevant illustration of the principle of religious liberty—and with this I will close.

Have you heard? The atheist buses are coming to Ottawa. [since the writing of this message, OC Transpo has blocked the ads, though it is an open question and it has been appealed].

This is a picture of Ariane Sherine, the British comedian who originally came up with an ad campaign which is currently running on buses in London: “There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life.” The campaign was supported by the British Humanist Association and prominent atheist advocate Richard Dawkins and is now spreading to many places around the world.

The Freethought Association of Canada is planning to sponsor the campaign in Toronto¹⁴—and more recently it has been reported that the ads will also be coming to buses Ottawa.

So, what are we to do.

Some Christians have complained to the Advertising Standards Board in England, hoping that their complaints will result in the ads being canceled. But that hasn't happened.

Many Christians just feel like the campaign further emphasizes how Christianity is being marginalized in western society.

Others view the ads as a welcome opportunity because it suddenly makes faith a talking point around the water cooler, and that's a welcome opportunity.

If Baptists are true to their roots – we would respond by saying it is a person's right to express their religious convictions. Even if we do not like the ads, we would defend a person's right to express their beliefs.

Ironically, it was the courageous efforts of Christians like the early Baptists who made it possible for atheists to have the freedom to express their view that they don't believe God exists.

//

Equally important, we have the hard fought victory of self-expression which allows us to also express our views in the public forum. How will we do this? I trust that we will all look forward to the water cooler discussions which are sure to come,

bearing in mind the words of Peter: “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect …” (1 Pet. 3:15b)

Perhaps someone else will follow the lead of the Trinitarian Bible Society in England. They are planning their own ad campaign. Very simply, it will convey the words of

Psalm 53:1; “The fool hath said in his heart, there is no God.”¹⁵

Additional Scripture References:

Notes and Additional Material:

The Emergence of Christian Denominations

In order to understand why there are hundreds of Christian denominations, you really need to do a detailed study of history—because no denomination grew in a vacuum. Each one had its foundational period, where events and circumstances contributed to its launch. In many cases, the denomination was never intended, but it has happened nevertheless.

Take for example the Salvation Army. In the 1800's, William Booth started the Salvation Army to reach the homeless and alcoholics of London's city streets. His intention was that people would continue attend their local church, but be active in the Salvation Army's activities throughout the week.

More than 100 years later, a denomination has emerged—there are Salvation Army churches in the city. But interestingly, they do not practice Baptism or Communion—because these were never part of the plan when the church emerged. As far as I know, they are the only Christian denomination who do not perform these Sacraments/Ordinances.

A few years ago, I did a study in church history, and we looked at the emergence of many of the major Christian denominations; Roman Catholic; Lutheran; Anglican; Christian Reformed; Eastern Orthodox; Methodist; United Church of Canada; Pentecostal; and so on.

Today, and next week, I would like us to look at the Baptist denomination and explore its unique contributions to Christendom, as we seek a better understanding of the perspectives and beliefs which form a part of Kanata Baptist church's heritage and history.

It's interesting, if you were to interview the very first “Baptists”, and you told them that they were the first Baptists, they wouldn't know what you were talking about. There was already a group of Christians in Europe who had recovered the New Testament practice of Believer's Baptism – they were called the Anabaptists (which means to “re-baptize”).

This first group was far more interested in religious freedom than they were in baptism. In that sense they probably would have preferred a name like Christian Libertarians rather than Baptists. But, “Baptist” is the name that stuck.

I hope you will indulge me with a few moments of history—because it is essential if we are to grasp the central hopes and ideals of this first congregation.

Interesting Blog article.

This writer is talking about the split that occurred between two masonic lodges. While the subject is very different, I am intrigued by his reflections on the nature of groups which split apart from each other and the way that they speak about each in the aftermath of the split. Very insightful.

In the blog, the writer tells the Emo Phillips joke about the man who is about to jump from the bridge.

The thing that makes this joke so funny is that we all recognize that some perversity of human nature makes us less tolerant of a group that is almost like us than, than we are of some group that is very different. But we also recognize that any group that splits off from us becomes a them; this implies some kind of rejection of us; we get defensive and wonder - demand - that they explain themselves in order to make things more consistent with our own world view. This is difficult enough, but we then add to this volatile mix that they have their own reasons for splitting off, and have probably endured a long time - years, maybe decades - in harboring frustration. In order to justify splitting off, they develop a psychological or sociological rationale, which often takes the form of blaming us for actions or situations which they believe to be unfair. The result is generally a situation in which the groups, despite being very close on many other issues, harbor some animosity toward the other for some narrow range of wants or desires.

By Bryon Veloso.

http://masonictao.wordpress.com/2007/12/11/die-heretic-scum-redux/