Baptists hold to the New Testament Concept of the Church Dan Nelson, Part 1 (Introduction)

Dan NelsonTimeline 01/28/2021 (16)MeWe – The Next-Gen Social Network

Baptists hold to the New Testament Concept of the Church Dan Nelson, Part 1 (Introduction)
Baptists who study the New Testament seriously hold to that concept taught abundantly there. For several weeks, I would like to share this New Testament teaching with examples from writings and examples in Baptist History illustrating their adherence to this great teaching.
One’s understanding and belief in the church is very important. Ever since Constantine joined the church and state together through the Edict of Milan in 311 A.D. those seriously wanting to stand for the church as a local assembly of true believers in Christ that have testified to their faith of believer’s baptism have been on the outside looking in. This position was not just another point of view. As the Universal Establishment of Religion buttressed by the State Government gained power it bulldozed every opponent of it in its sight and it became dangerous to hold another conviction and especially to believe that which was proclaimed the “universal religion” was not real but just a phony.
The viewpoint was not just an offshoot of the Reformation of time when the Anabaptists (Anti-traditional baptism of infants) stood for only legitimate believers being baptized. One had to decide if they would affiliate with something they thought was false and a sham or stand outside the raging river holding to the definition and practice of the church as they found it in the New Testament.
The view was also an important one since those who were a part of the universal establishment of religion became affiliated with the church through infant baptism. Then many (we could say the majority) believed falsely they were Christians by this one ceremony that joined them with this universal establishment of religion for life. It became exceedingly difficult to convince those with such false-assurance to come out of this institution and definition of the church becoming a part of a group that was revolutionary in deciding not to a part of this religious scheme.
Baptists did oppose this centuries-old arrangement and paid dearly for it. Excommunication followed by harassment and persecution was their lot before the Reformation in groups like the Albigenses and the Waldenses. This gave way to martyrdom in various places like France and Italy.1 (A History of Baptists John Christian Volume 1 Bogard Press: Texarkana, 1922 60-65, 69-82). It was a big deal to hold to the New Testament concept of the Church as opposed to one supported by the State leading to many people’s false assurance of salvation. During the Reformation, a line was drawn between Protestants and Baptists in their concept of the church. William Estep explained: “The Anabaptist interpretation of the church fall differed greatly from that of the Reformers. The Reformers accepted the Roman interpretation of the Constantinian era uncritically as a period of the church’s triumph. In so doing they fell victim to the Constantinian synthesis unwittingly embracing a pre-Christian sacral society whose paganism they conveniently overlooked or christened and sought to regulate. For them, the Reformation was a revolt against papal authority but not against the Roman concept of the one church as an institution. They believed that the old church needed cleansing from various abuses and errors, but they did not want to be cut off from its corporate solidarity. Even after their organizational break with Rome was complete, they still felt a sense of continuity with the Roman Church of pre-Reformation days.”2 (William Estep, The Anabaptist Story, Eerdmans: Grand Rapids, MI, 182).
In America, Baptist preachers were jailed in places like Massachusetts and Virginia for failing to be licensed and join the provincial state religion. It is no wonder that John Leland lobbied Madison for a first amendment proclaiming the freedom of religion in the new nation formed here in America.3 (Dan Nelson, Baptist Biographies and Happenings in American History, Faithful Life: Fort Meyers, FL, 16-19, 20-23,62-66, 73-76).
The study of the biblical concept of the church is not a waste and exercise in semantics. It has a long history of travail and struggle in Baptist History and is not only worth our consideration but our adherence if we are to stand for New Testament churches in our day and age. May you profit from this

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