Featured The Conservative Baptist Conflict

Is the only option to ignore? Can it also be just a difference of understanding? I means does everyone always have to be exactly right about everything according to TCassidy or he will separate? Really?

 

Jerome has dutifully found and graciously linked to the Doctrinal Statement known as the Goodchild Confession. I have typed it for the convenience of BB readers:

The executive committee of the Fundamental Fellowship, chaired by Frank Marsden Goodchild (1860-1928), proposed “to restate the foundation doctrines of our faith in the following brief and simple confession which is but a re-affirmation of the substance of the historic Philadelphia and New Hampshire Confessions of Faith:”
1. We believe that the Bible is God’s word, that it was written by men divinely inspired, and that is has supreme authority in all matters of faith and conduct.
2. We believe in God the Father, perfect in holiness, infinite in wisdom, measureless in power. We rejoice that he concerns himself mercifully in the affairs of men, that he hears and answers prayer, and that he saves from sin and death all who come to him through Jesus Christ.
3. We believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only begotten Son, miraculous in his birth, sinless in his life, making atonement for the sins of the world by his death. We believe in his bodily resurrection, his ascension in to heaven, his perpetual intercession for his people and his personal visible return to the world according to his promise.
4. We believe in the Holy Spirit who came forth from God to convince the world of sin, of righteousness and of judgment, and to regenerate, sanctify and comfort those who believe in Jesus Christ.
5. We believe that all men by nature and by choice are sinners but that “God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life;” we believe therefore that those who accept Christ as Savior and Lord will rejoice forever in God’s presence and those who refuse to accept Christ as Savior and Lord will be forever separated from God.
6. We believe in the church—a living spiritual body of which Christ is the head and of which all regenerated people are members. We believe that a visible church is a company of believers in Jesus Christ, baptized on a credible confession of faith, and associated in worship, work and fellowship. We believe that to these visible churches were committed, for perpetual observance, the ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s Supper, and that God has laid upon these churches the task of persuading a lost world to accept Jesus Christ as Savior, and to enthrone him as Lord and Master. We believe that all human betterment and social improvement are the inevitable by-products of such a gospel.
7. We believe that every human being has direct relations with God, and is responsible to God alone in all matters of faith; that each church is independent and autonomous and must be free from interference by any ecclesiastical or political authority; that therefore Church and State must be kept separate as having different functions, each fulfilling its duties free from the dictation or patronage of the other.

[Source: The Baptist, Vol. II, No. 22, July 2, 1921, Arthur W. Cleaves, editor; Chicago, IL: Northern Baptist Convention, p. 684]

 

The essentials of the Faith are those doctrines that ALL christians must uphold to be seen as being really one of us, things such as Physical resurrection of Jesus, Jesus death on Cross only way to forgive our sins, must be born again, there is a Second Coming.

We can disagree on things like baptism modes, timing of second coming, worship styles, bible versions etc!

 

Not if you claim to be a Baptist.

 

Agreeing to disagree on "non-essentials" may sound magnanimous, but it is usually just an excuse to continue to slide into theological liberalism. Spurgeon faced the same dilemma with the downgrade controversy.

 

I am a Baptist, and do see believers baptism as the best way to do it, but would not exclude from fellowship those sucha s a Presbartarian who sees it as infanr baptism mode!

 

Fine. But don't call them Baptists.

 

The Bible

Does your redemption rely on this?

Does your redemption rely on this?

I really can't believe that anyone thinks it's sinful to listen to CCM. I'll grant that it's often really crappy music.

Yes. That is the perpetual problem when adding extra-biblical tests of orthodoxy, which is nothing less than legalism.

When someone says, you can't be a Christian if you listen to CCM, view R-rated movies, drink, chew, or go with girls who do. . . you are creating a test of orthodoxy, which is unbiblical, and reveals where your legalism lies.

Liberals have these extra-biblical tests of orthodoxy as well. They are just different. They might say, you can't be a Christian if you are a Republican, if you are "homophobic", Islamophobic. . .

Whether Left or Right, there are countless millions filling pews who are not relying on the gospel of Christ, but on their own righteousness. That's a serious problem.

 

Neither would I. Baby dedication is dry baptism, and Protestants who baptize infants don't think it salvific, so Reformed Baptists and Conservative Presbyterians (PCA) have far, far more in common that Reformed Baptists and mega-church semi-Pelagian or IFB, Arminians.

 

I don't, just fellow Christians!

 

Yes, as we would agree on the essentials of the Faith!

 

It's difficult. I know that very well, but we must resist making secondary issues essential issues.

The thief on the cross didn't have much theology to agree or disagree with, yet Christ promised him a place at the table. What were his views on end times???

 

Or on what mode of water baptism?

 

It gets CRAZY! How about for how long a dunk? Does it count if you weren't under for more than 10 seconds? I'm surprised there aren't a few Baptist churches out there with a name which reflects their position on the time it takes for a sinner to be underwater in baptism. "One Minute Baptist Church". It could turn to be a contest. . .

Dear Lord, I hope I didn't give anyone an idea. . .

 

My brother, Teshua1, is a smart guy. He can tell a Baptist from a Presbyterian. He can tell by the highwater mark.

 

Us

Usually it all depends on if just the hair only got wet or not!