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Is Being Baptist Worth the Effort?
Daily, I sense negative vibrations in Baptist life as I read state papers, check websites, receive e-mails, etc. Terminations, defundings, power surges, exclusionary practices, crippling creedalism, church-state violations, the trampling of a free press, and the squelching of academic freedom. These and other sources of trouble saturate Baptist reality and Baptist news.
Is it any wonder that some churches choose to remove the word “Baptist” from their names? Why should we be surprised when Baptists exclaim, “I am tired of controversy.” Isn’t it easy to understand why friends in other denominations ask what’s going on among “the Baptists”? And who can blame the general public for sneering at this denominational label?
Baptist history offers models—not abstract, but real live models—for dealing with such circumstances. Five will suffice.
John Clarke, noted colonial Baptist pastor, spent twelve years in England in the 1650s and 60s patiently securing a charter for Rhode Island guaranteeing religious freedom for all citizens. Church-state separation was his cause.
Luther Rice rode horseback thousands of miles up and down the eastern seaboard in the early 1800s. He crossed rivers, endured bad weather, suffered illnesses. Missions was his cause.
Gottfried Alf, founder of Baptist work in Poland, baptized more than 3,600 people by 1883 and experienced numerous imprisonments on account of his faith. Believer's baptism was his cause.
Addie Davis was ordained to the gospel ministry by a North Carolina Baptist church in 1964—the first woman to be ordained in Southern Baptist history. Woman's right to be called to ministry by God was her cause.
Martin Luther King, Jr., African-American Baptist leader, served as a pastor, developed a theology of non-violent opposition to human injustice, received the Nobel Peace Prize, and was assassinated. Civil rights was his cause.
Baptist history, approached rightly, places us in the contexts of real heroes, shows us how to take up our crosses in pure obedience to Christ's calling, teaches us how to defy the negative, and thrusts us into the offensive as principled Christians.
Is being Baptist worth the effort? The contributions of Clarke, Rice, Alf, Davis, and King say yes.
Focus carefully on the lives of Baptists who were willing to sacrifice themselves for the absolute Lordship of Christ, the authority of the Bible, believer’s baptism, voluntarism in faith and practice, religious liberty, the priesthood of all believers, missions, congregational government, and other sacred Baptist teachings. Biblical principles jump from their stories.
Let’s face it: Many have poured their lives and careers into being Baptist. They have fought the good fight. They have kept the faith. They will finish the course. No amount of negativity will stop their forward progress. For each, the example/teachings of Christ provides their motivation.
What is your cause? Identify it. Go for it. Stick with it.
Charles W. Deweese is Executive Director, Baptist History and Heritage Society, Brentwood, Tennessee. |
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Online since April 7, 1999
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