The Scriptures, present tense

David Pitman on Why I Preach from the Received Text

Why I Preach from the Received Text, by Pastor David A. Pitman

I appreciated David Pitman’s emphasis on how Baptist Confessions present Scripture in the present tense.

“In every paragraph in the 1689 Confession the Bible is presented in the present tense. The Scriptures ‘are.’ They ‘are contained’ in the 66 books named. The Confession speaks of a Bible given. received, and preserved. I find this in the First London as well (‘the holy Scriptures; in which is plainly recorded.’)

“The New Hampshire Confession echoes this: ‘We believe that the Holy Bible was written by men divinely inspired, and is a perfect treasure of heavenly instruction; that it has God for its author, salvation for its end, and truth without any mixture of error for its matter, that it reveals the principles by which God will judge us; and therefore is, and shall remain to the end of the world, the true center of Christian union, and the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds, and opinions should be tried.’” (Emphasis added)

While on the one hand we read and know the confessions use the present tense, perhaps we do not often think about it. The Scriptures “are,” not just “were.”

In our church confession (Our Statement of Faith: Those Things Most Surely Believed Among Us) we use the present tense: “2. The Bible is inspired by God. Psalm 119:160; Proverbs 30:5; 2 Timothy 3:16-17.”

Two varieties of preservation of the Scriptures

Among Baptists, Evangelicals, Fundamentalists, Reformed, etc. there appear to be two primary varieties of belief on the preservation of the Scriptures. A comparison and contrast may be found in “The Second London Baptist Confession” and “The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy.”

The Baptist Confession of Faith, 1689, London Chapter 1, Paragraph 8.

The Old Testament in Hebrew (which was the native language of the people of God of old), and the New Testament in Greek (which at the time of the writing of it was most generally known to the nations), being immediately inspired by God, and by His singular care and providence kept pure in all ages, are therefore authentic; so as in all controversies of religion, the church is finally to appeal to them.

The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy, Article X

We affirm that inspiration, strictly speaking, applies only to the autographic text of Scripture, which in the providence of God can be ascertained from available manuscripts with great accuracy. We further affirm that copies and translations of Scripture are the Word of God to the extent that they faithfully represent the original.

The 2nd London Baptist Confession presents the older view that the original Scriptures are inspired, have been kept pure, and therefore the apographs (providentially preserved copies of these Scriptures) can be considered authentic. The Chicago Statement on Inerrancy represents a more modern view (affected by modern textual criticism), that the autographa (original text) is inspired and has been preserved “with great accuracy.” It can be considered authentic only to the extent the copies faithfully represent the original. The great problem there is that we must rely on the text critics, many of whom now believe the original text cannot be recovered. Though somewhat cryptic, that is a tacit admission that the originals have not been completely preserved.

Taylor Desoto in Providential Preservation observes:

“Without Providential Preservation, the modern doctrine of Scripture leaves the church without any discernable Bible, just a product that gives the people of God ‘good access’ to the Bible.”

The Criterion

For many moderate to liberal SBC Baptists the traditional liberty of conscience morphed into the liberty to deny the truths God revealed in the Bible. For example, part of the crisis behind the 1963 revision of the Baptist Faith and Message were things such as Ralph Elliott’s book on Genesis, which many Southern Baptists believed taught things that simply were or were approaching heretical. This 1963 revision produced the sentence, “The criterion by which the Bible is to be interpreted is Jesus Christ.” Apparently some conservatives viewed it as a good thing, while others saw the dangers within it. Regardless, it gave a foothold of appeal to liberals to claim they had interpreted their view through (their ideas about) Jesus Christ.

The Making of the 1963 Baptist Faith and Message by A. J. Smith gives some interesting looks behind the scenes of things that went into making the 1963 BF&M. For example, he writes:

Denominational leaders found it necessary to address the issue raised by Elliott’s book by forming a Committee to revise the BFM. According to Garth Pybass, one of only three members of that Committee still living in 2004, the intention of the “criterion” statement in the article on Scripture was “to convey biblical infallibility based on Christ’s testimony of it in the gospels.” A footnote below comments “this interpretation of the ‘criterion’ statement would take on differing interpretations within the Convention.” (p. 34)

When the Committee agreed to follow a shortened form of the “criterion” sentence they played into the hands of men such as Moody. To say that “the criterion by which the Bible is to be interpreted is Jesus Christ” without qualification raised a host of questions. Marvin Tate, who taught Old Testament at Southern from the early 1960s until his retirement, commented: “Back in 1963 I asked, ‘What does that mean?’ It doesn’t mean anything.” (pp. 139-140)

Smith follows the above with a quote from Herschel Hobbs’s journal article “Southern Baptists and Confessionalism” (“Southern Baptists and Confessionalism: a Comparison of the Origins and Contents of the 1925 and 1963 Confessions,” Review and Expositor 76, No. 1 (1976), 55-56). In it Hobbs pointed out that Elliott in The Message of Genesis said Melchizedek was probably a priest of Baal. He thought that the “criterion” sentence would mean such nonsense would have to be rejected in the light of Jesus and the New Testament. See Smith, page 140.

Below are some interesting comments from Mercer University’s Department of Christianity (a list of the faculty is on page 131 of Smith’s book).

This paragraph [on soul competency, in the preamble] ignores that for Baptists the object of “the individual’s soul competency,” “freedom of religion,” and “the priesthood of the believer” is God and not “soul” itself, “freedom” itself, the “believer” himself. (p. 132).

The paragraph tends to undermine Article I, the Scriptures, by assuming man is free to select those “certain definite doctrines” which they “hold dear.” (p. 132)

The term “criterion” unfortunately connotes the presence of a yardstick by which men can measure or judge Scripture, rather the Scripture measuring and judging man. (p. 172)

The Mercer professors, certainly not champions of fundamentalism, saw the dangers of creating “a yardstick by which men can measure or judge Scripture.” The proof has been in the pudding, as many used it for just that purpose – and howled like hit dogs when the statement was removed in 2000.

Most of you reading this probably are not Southern Baptist. You many think it irrelevant. Let it be a reminder that words, phrases, and sentences have meaning, and often ugly unintended consequences.

Note: Best I have found, the original “criterion” statement out of committee was “The criterion by which the Bible is to be interpreted is the person, work, and teachings of Jesus Christ.” The Mercer faculty was objecting to this, not just the shortened statement that left out “person, work, and teachings.”

Orthodox Baptist Confession of Faith

According to M. L. Moser, Jr., writing in A Baptist Confession of Faith for the 21st Century, the Orthodox Baptist Confession of Faith was drawn up circa 1935 by William Lee Rector, Richard Nelson Colyar, and Lewis Samuel Ballard. If copied correctly, this represents the third edition of the Confession (1958).

Orthodox Baptist Confession of Faith

1. GOD

We believe that there is one, and only one, true and living God; that He is absolute in nature, perfect in attributes, holy in character, the maker and supreme ruler of heaven and earth; that He is infinite in wisdom, marvelous in power, and amazing in love; that He is holy, righteous, and true, worthy of all confidence and love; that He unites in Himself the infinite, the eternal, and the Almighty Three—God, the Father, and God, the Son, and God, the Holy Spirit; that the three persons of the God-head subsist in the same divine nature, essence and being; and that they are co-existent and co-equal in every divine attribute, each one executing distinct but harmonious offices in the great work of redemption.

Gen. 1:1; Deut. 4:39; Mark 12:29; Gen. 17:1; Matt. 5:48; Isa. 6:3; I Chron. 29:11-12; Psa. 103:19; Rom. 11:33-34; Matt. 19:26; Psa. 19:9; Matt. 28:19; I Pet. 1:2-3; I Jno. 5:7; Exod. 3:14; Gen. 1:26 and Tit. 3:3-7.

2. THE DIVINE TRINITY

1. God, the Father. We believe that God, the Father, is the first person set forth in the Divine Trinity; that He is almighty, merciful, and just; that He is holy, righteous, and true; that He is eternally existent, glorious in nature, possessing the attributes of omnipotence, omniscience and omnipresence; and that He, in harmony with His divine office, loves, provides, and protects, thus exercising providential watchcare over the sons of men, and especially a fatherly care over the children of God.

Matt. 28:19; Gen. 17:1; Matt. 19:26; Psa. 19:9; Isa. 6:3; Psa. 100:5; Prov. 15:3; Psa. 139:1-6; Psa.139:13-14; Psa. 103:13; Matt. 6:25-30; Matt. 10:29-31; and Matt. 7:11.

2. God, the Son—Virgin Born. We believe that God, the Son, is the second person set forth in the Divine Trinity; that He is Very God of Very God; that He is almighty, merciful, and just; that He is holy, righteous, and true; that He is eternally existent, glorious in nature, possessing the attributes of omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence; that God, the Father, through the Holy Spirit, is actually and eternally His divine Father, and Mary the Virgin, is actually and innocently His human mother; and that He, in harmony with His divine office, mediates, seeks, and saves, thus exercising the mediatorial office of redemption.

Matt. 28:19; Jno. 1:1-3, 14 and Isa. 9:6; Matt. 28:18; Tit. 3:5-6; Jno. 8:15-16; II Cor. 5:21; Heb. 13:8; Phil. 2:6; Jno. 2:24; Matt. 28:20; Luke 1:35 and Luke 2:7-14; I Tim. 2:5-6; Luke 19:10 and Jno. 3:16.

3. God, the Holy Spirit. We believe that God, the Holy Spirit, is the third person set forth in the Divine Trinity; that He is almighty, merciful, and just; that He is holy, righteous, and true; that He is eternally existent, glorious in nature, possessing the attributes of omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence; that He restrains the world, the flesh and the devil; that He witnesses to the Truth, convicts the lost, extolls the Christ, and testifies to the righteous judgments of God; that He, in harmony with His divine office, comforts, teaches, testifies, preaches, guides, regenerates, empowers, sanctifies, and annoints, thus exercising the quickening role in the works of saving the lost and the supervising role in the life of the saved.

Jno. 14:16-17 and 26; Jno.15:26; Jno.16:7-13; Heb. 9:14; I Pet. 4:14; Isa. 40:12-15; I Cor. 2:10-12; Psa. 139:7-12; II Thes. 2:6-7; Jno. 3:6, 8; Eph. 1:13-14; Acts 1:8; I Pet. 1:2; Isa. 61:1.

3. THE DEVIL

We believe that Satan is an actual person, and not an imaginary influence; that he once enjoyed high heavenly honors and glorious heavenly privileges; that he, through pride, ambition, and self-will attempted to betray the Almighty and brought down upon his head the judgement of God; that he operates today as the god of this world and the prince of the power of the air; that he is a diabolical inventor, an arch-deceiver, and the father of all lies; that he is the greatest enemy, the mightiest tempter, and the most relentless accuser of the saints; that he shall one day be incarnated in the person of the Antichrist and in that role will finally meet the Christ in the Battle of Armageddon; that there “the seed of the woman shall bruise the serpent’s head;” and that he shall eventually be cast into the lake of fire, the eternal place of punishment, prepared for the devil and his angels.

Job 1:6-12 and Job 2:1-7; Ezek. 28:12-19; Isa. 14:12-27 and Gen. 3:14; II Cor. 4:4 and Eph. 2:2; Matt. 24:11 and II Thes. 2:7-11 and Jno. 8:44; I Pet. 5:8 and Gen. 3:1-6; Rev. 12:10; Dan. 7:8 and Rev. 13:1-10 and Rev. 19:20; Gen. 3:15; II Cor. 11:13-15; Jno. 14:30; and Eph. 2:2.

4. THE HOLY BIBLE

We believe that the Holy Bible is a supernatural Book; that it is the very Word of God; that it is the full, the final, and the complete revelation of God’s will to man; that it has God, the Holy Spirit, for its author, salvation for its end, and truth in the original without any admixture of error for its matter; that it was written by holy men of old under the immediate and direct dictation of the Holy Spirit; that it is verbally inspired and a perfect treasure of holy instruction; and that it reveals the principles by which God will judge us, and is, therefore, the true center of Christian union, and the supreme standard by which all human conduct, creeds and opinions shall be tried.

Psa. 119:89; II Tim. 3:16-17; Rev. 22:18-19; Jno. 17:17; Jno. 3:32-34; II Pet. 1:20-21; I Pet. 1:10-12; Zeph. 1:1; Psa. 19:7-11; Exo. 20:3-17; Psa. 1:2; and Jno. 12:48.

5. CREATION

We believe that the Genesis record of creation is literal and not allegorical or figurative; that God personally created the heaven and the earth; that He miraculously brought forth all original matter out of nothing; that He actually fashioned all organic forms as specific creations subject to limited changes within the specie; that He definitely ordained each specie to bring forth after its kind; that He finally formed man out of the dust of the ground, not by any process of evolution but by instant action, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became immediately a living soul; that He created man in the image and likeness of God; that His every creative act was complete and perfect in itself; and that not one of His creations was conditioned upon antecedent changes naturally wrought during interminable periods of time.

Gen. 1:1 and Jno. 1:1-3, 14 and Heb. 11:3; Gen. 1:21, 24-27 and Gen. 2:7; and Col. 1:15.

6. THE FALL OF MAN

We believe that man, originally created in holiness and actually associated with God in innocence under His law, did, by voluntary transgression of the Lord’s command, fall from the high and happy state in which he was created, and, as a consequence, became a sinner alienated from God and brought upon himself and all mankind just condemnation; and that he is now, by virtue of his fallen nature, utterly void of holiness, positively inclined to evil, and actually condemned to eternal ruin, without defense or excuse.

Gen. 1:26-27 and Eccl. 7:29; Gen. 3:6; Gen. 3:23-24; Ezek. 18:4; Rom. 5:12; Rom. 1:21-23; Rom. 3:10-18; and Rev. 21:8.

7. THE BLOOD ATONEMENT

We believe that the lost sinner is guilty and already under the condemnation; that he is by nature alien to God and because of sin condemned to die; that atonement for sin was effected through the mediatorial office of the Son Who by divine appointment, freely took upon Himself our nature, yet without sin; that He, through obedience during His earthly walk, personally honored the divine Law by keeping it, and, through His death on the cross, actually satisfied the penalty of the offended Law by suffering in the sinner’s stead; that He, through His obedience and sacrificial death, made full and vicarious atonement for all sin; that He died, the just for the unjust, bearing our sins in His body on the tree; and that He, through the shedding of His blood on the cross of Calvary, evidenced eternal provision for cleansing, for pardon, for peace and for rest.

Isa. 53:6; Rom. 6:7 and Rom. 8:23; I Tim. 2:5-6 and Heb. 2:17 and II Cor. 5:21; Matt. 5:17-18 and I Pet. 2:24; Heb. 10:10-12; I Pet. 3:18; Rev. 1:5; Isa. 55:7; Jno. 14:27; Matt. 11:28; I Jno. 1:7; Eph. 1:7; and Heb. 9:22.

8. REPENTANCE AND FAITH

We believe that repentance and faith are solemn and inseparable prerequisites of salvation; that they are inseparable graces wrought in the heart by the quickening Holy Spirit; that the alien sinner, being deeply convicted of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment to come by the personal ministry of the Holy Spirit, and by Him having his understanding enlightened so that he can see the way of salvation through Christ, does actually repent, turning to God with unfeigned contrition, confession, and supplication, and does actually believe, surrendering himself wholeheartedly to the Lord Jesus, immediately receiving Him as personal and all-sufficient Savior and openly confessing Him before all men.

Acts 20:21-22 and Mk. 1:15; Acts 11:18 and Eph. 2:8 and Jno. 6:44; Jno. 16:8-11; Matt. 3:1-2, 8; Acts 3:19; Luke 13:3 and Luke 18:9-14; Acts 9:6 and Rom. 10:10.

9. SALVATION BY GRACE

We believe that grace is elective and saving, that it embraces the personal triune and redemptive ministry of God, the Father, and God, the Son, and God, the Holy Spirit; that it comprehends all of the labors put forth by the Almighty in the interest of perfect righteousness and the salvation of the lost soul; that it encompasses foreknowledge, foreordination and predestination; that it, and it alone, saves even unto the uttermost all who repent toward God and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ; and that salvation thus wrought is wholly by grace, “the free gift of God,” requiring neither culture nor works in any form to secure it or to keep it.

II Tim. 1:8-9 and Eph. 2:8-9; Tit. 3:3-7 and I Pet. 1:2-5; Matt. 23:37; Rom. 8:28-30; Heb. 7:25 and Acts 20:20-21; Rom. 6:23; Rom. 11:6; Rom. 5:20; Isa. 1:18; and Isa. 55:1.

10. REGENERATION

We believe that in order to be saved lost sinners must be regenerated or born again; that regeneration is a recreative act, far beyond comprehension, wrought in the believer’s heart by the direct personal ministry of the Holy Spirit; that it is instantaneous, miraculous, and non-evolutionary or cultural; that it embraces the divine acts of cleansing the heart from all inward sins and of pardoning the soul of all outward guilt, in connection with the work of begetting a new creature in Christ Jesus; that the dead sinner is made to live through the new birth, becoming thereby a regenerated spirit, possessing eternal life, the gift of God; that the new birth comes after the Holy Spirit secures voluntary repentance and belief in the gospel; that it is the actual impartation of the divine life, not a mere transformation of the human life; and that the proper evidence of regeneration appears in the holy fruits of the obedient and willing faith of the followers of the Lord Jesus.

Jno. 3:3-5 and 7; II Cor. 5:17; Jno. 3:8 and Jno. 3:16; Jno. 1:12-13; Isa. 1:18 and Tit. 3:5-7; Eph. 2:1, 5 and Rom. 6:23; Jno. 16:8-11; Matt. 7:16-18 and James 2:17-20.

11. JUSTIFICATION

We believe that justification is one of the great gospel blessings secured through Christ for all who trust Him; that it is a legal and divine decree, declaring the believing sinner just; that it is thus a state of being free from condemnation, including forgiveness for inward sins and pardon for outward sins; that it secures through faith freedom from legal bondage, exemption from the wrath of God, and possession of peace which passes all understanding; that it is bestowed, not in consideration of any works of righteousness which we have done, but solely upon the evidence of faith in God and the Redeemer’s blood; and that it brings us into a state of unchanging peace and favor with God and secures every other blessing needful for time and for eternity.

Rom. 3:24-25; Rom. 3:28; Rom. 8:33; Rom. 8:1 and Jn. 5:24 and Rom. 4:3-8; Rom. 6:6; Rom. 5:9; Rom. 5:1 and Phil. 4:7; Rom. 8:31-33; Gen. 15:6; and Heb. 2:4.

12. THE SECURITY OF THE BELIEVER

We believe that salvation wrought by grace is everlasting; that the saved soul journeying through the valley of the shadow of death need fear no evil; that the Holy Spirit-begotten and born are kept by the power of God; that the believer in Christ Jesus shall not be brought into judgment; that no one can lay anything to the charge of God’s elect; that they are securely held in both the hand of the Father and the Son; and that the age-old Baptist doctrine, “Once in grace, always in grace,” is heavenly and gloriously true.

Jno. 3:16; Jno. 3:36; Jno. 5:24; Jno. 6; Psa. 23:4; Isa. 37:23-24; Phil. 1:6 and I Pet. 3:5; Jno. 5:24 and Rom. 8:1; Jno. 10:27-29 and Rom. 8:31-33 and Rom. 8:35-39 and II Tim. 1:12.

13. SANCTIFICATION

We believe that sanctification is a divine work of grace; that it is not a state of sinless perfection attained through a “second blessing” or through a special “baptism of the Holy Ghost;” that it is an act of grace by which the believer is separated unto God and dedicated unto His righteous purpose; that by it we enter into divinely appointed privileges and thus become larger partakers of His holiness; that it is a progressive work, begun in regeneration, and carried on in the life of every believer by the presence and the power of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God; and that it is nurtured only by heaven’s appointed means, especially by the Holy Spirit, the Word of God, and the saved through his self-examination, obedience, self-denial, watchfulness and prayer.

I Thes. 4:3 and I Thes. 5:23; Rom. 15:16 and Jer. 1:5; Prov. 4:18 and Jno. 17:17 and II Cor. 3:18; I Jno. 2:29 and Rom. 8:5; I Tim. 4:5; Luke 9:23; Matt. 24:42 and 7:7-11.

14. THE LORD’S RETURN

We believe that Christ Jesus is coming back to earth again; that His return shall be personal, audible, visible and bodily; that it shall mark the advent of the “day of the Lord” and usher in the millennium; and that He shall in that day turn the tables on Satan, take up the throne of His father David, put down all of His enemies, rule with a rod of iron, triumph over sin, and give the world an example of righteous government during His thousand years of personal reign on earth.

Job 18:25-26 and Isa. 9:6-7 and Zech. 14:4 and Mal. 4:2 and Luke 1:31-33 and Matt. 25:31-34; Rev. 19:11-21 and Acts 1:11 and I Thes. 4:16-17 and Rev. 1:7; II Pet. 3:10; Rev. 20:4-6; Rev. 19:20 and Rev. 20:1-3 and Rev. 20:10; Isa. 9:7; I Cor. 15:25-27; Psa. 2:9 and Rev. 12:5 and Rev. 19:15; I Jn. 3:8; and Psa. 72:1-20.

15. THE RESURRECTION

We believe that Christ Jesus arose bodily from the grave on the first day of the week, which day we now observe as the Lord’s Day, a day of worship; that His miraculous emergence from the tomb forecasted a like bodily resurrection for every member of the Adamic race; that the dead in Christ shall rise first and in glorified bodies like His; that they shall be caught up to meet the Lord in the air; that the dead in trespasses and sins, or the dead out of Christ, shall rise at the close of the millennium; and that they shall be brought before the Great White Throne Judgment and there face the Judge of the quick and the dead.

Matt. 28:6 and Luke 24:1-12; I Cor. 15:12-22; I Thes. 4:13-18; Rev. 20:5-6; Rev. 11:15; Dan. 12:3; I Sam. 2:6; Isa. 26:19; Hosea 13:14; and Isa. 25:6-8.

16. INDIVIDUAL REWARDS

We believe that reward and salvation are not one and the same thing. We believe that the Lord shall reward His own; that He Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout; that the dead in Christ shall rise first; that a solemn separation shall take place; that the blood-washed and Holy Spirit-begotten shall be caught up to meet Him in the air, and there be rewarded according to the deeds done in the body; and that the place called the New Heaven and the New Earth is ordained the everlasting dwelling place of the children of God. We believe that the wicked are children of the devil; that they are rebels against God; that they reject the free offer of salvation through Christ; that they ignore the wooings of the Holy Spirit; and that they, as a consequence, are hell-bound, being under a death sentence; that they shall spend eternity in the Lake of Fire which burneth with fire and brimstone where the Dragon, the Beast and the False Prophet are and shall ever be.

I Cor. 3:11-15; I Thes. 4:16-18 and Matt. 24:40-41 and Matt. 13:47-50; I Cor. 3:8 and Rev. 21:1-8; Jno. 8:44; Rom. 8:7; Jno. 3:18; Rev. 20:10-15; and Rom. 6:23.

17. THE RIGHTEOUS AND THE WICKED

We believe that there is a radical and essential difference between the righteous and the wicked. We believe the righteous are they who believe in Christ Jesus, the justified by faith, and the sanctified by the Holy Spirit and the Word; that the righteous are heirs of God and joint-heirs with the Lord Jesus Christ; and that eternal life, the gift of God, is the matchless possession of the just. We believe that the wicked are they who do not believe in Christ Jesus, the condemned because of unbelief and the corrupted by the god of this world; that the unjust spurn the privileges of God’s grace, choosing the life of sin and rebellion; and that eternal damnation is the inescapable portion of the unjust.

Mal. 3:16-18 and Jno. 3:6; Rom. 3:22, 24 and 4:3 and 1:17; 8:1-17 and Acts 20:32 and Jno. 15:3; Rom. 8:17; 6:23; 2 Cor. 4:4; Rev. 21:8 and Matt. 23:37 and Prov. 29:1 and Mt. 25:41.

18. THE LOCAL CHURCH

We believe that a New Testament Church, according to divine purpose and plan, is a visible, local, organized body; that it is composed of baptized believers associated together by a covenant of faith and fellowship in the gospel; that New Testament validity flows from strict obedience to essential principles of New Testament Law; that it is a sovereign, independent, democratic and militant body; that its ministry is gloriously blessed with the presence and leadership of the Holy Spirit and the light and revelation of the Written Word; that its work should ever be from within to without and never from without to within; that it is a self-governing body and is the sole judge, under the limitations of the Scriptures, of the measure and method of co-operation; that it is the only ecclesiastical tribunal the Lord has on earth; that its judgment concerning membership, missions, benevolence, co-operative alignments, and support is final; that it was personally founded by Christ Jesus during His ministry on earth; that it is subject to His laws and is the custodian of His ordinances; that the perpetuity of our faith, our doctrines and practices, ordinances and ordinations, has been effected through the Holy Spirit personally planting and preserving local Baptist churches of like faith and order down through the centuries even until now.

Matt. 28:19-20; I Cor. 1:1-3; Acts 2:41-42; II Cor. 8:5; Matt. 16:19 and Matt. 18:15-17 and Jno. 14:16-17, 26; Acts 1:8 and Acts 13:1-4; Matt. 18:17-18; Matt. 16:18-19; Matt. 26:26-29 and Matt. 28:19-20; I Tim. 3:15; Mark 3:13-14 and Luke 6:12-13.

19. ORDINANCES

We believe that Baptism and the Lord’s Supper are ordinances personally set in the church of the living God by the Lord Jesus Christ. We believe that Baptism is the burial of a believer in water by the authority and instruction of a local Baptist Church; that it symbolizes the death and the burial and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ; that it also typifies the believer’s death to sin, the burial of his old nature, and his resurrection unto a new life; and that it is administered in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. We believe the Lord’s Supper is a memorial spread and administered by the authority and instruction of a local Baptist church; that it symbolizes the broken body and the shed blood of the Son of God; that its observance points backward to the crucified Lord on Calvary and forward to the returning Lord in glory. We believe that these ordinances are not sacraments, but are sacred symbols, pointing to the world’s only Savior, and bidding the sons of men look unto an everlasting fellowship with the King of kings and Lord of lords when He shall return to take over the reins of all government.

Matt. 26:26-29 and Matt. 28:19; Rom. 6:3-5 and Matt. 16:19 and Acts 10:47; I Cor. 11:23-24; I Cor. 11:24-25; and I Cor. 11:26.

20. CHURCH ADMINISTRATION

We believe that the Churches of God and the state should be kept completely separate; that civil officers should be prayed for, conscientiously honored and obeyed; that diligence should be had in seeking the will of God in all Church matters; that missionary endeavor should ever be executed from within the local Church to without; that pastors and deacons, the only divinely appointed church officers, should be duly ordained and brought to understand the sacred duties devolving upon them; that the Lord’s Day, the first day of the week, should be honored both by saint and sinner; that Bible teachings should be constantly and consistently fostered by local Church bodies; that members should be deliberately and prayerfully voted into the fellowship of the local body; that unruly Church members should be prayerfully and Scripturally disciplined by the local Church; and that Church letters should be granted to sister local Churches of the same faith and practice.

Acts 1:8 and Acts 13:1-35; Rom. 13:1-7; Acts 14:23 and Acts 6:1-6; Acts 2:42; Rev. 1:10; Matt. 16:19 and Acts 10:47; Matt. 18:15-17; Acts 15:19-27 and Acts 18:27 and Rom. 16: 1-2 and Matt. 28:19-20.

21. CHURCH CO-OPERATION

We believe that it is the privilege and the right of local churches to co-operate with each other in carrying out the commission of the Lord; that such co-operation is righteously effected only when the principles of Christ are preserved in the work fostered; and that all associated endeavor of local churches should be carried on in such a way as to preserve the sovereign integrity of each local body in all matters of faith and practice.

II Cor. 8:1-6, 16-24; II Jno. 1-4; Matt. 16:18-19 and Acts 15:19-27.

Source:

Orthodox Baptist Confession of Faith

Matured by the late Dr. W. Lee Rector

Former Pastor of the First Orthodox Baptist Church

With suggestions and sanctions from a large number of outstanding orthodox Baptist ministers of the land.

(Third Edition)

Published by First Orthodox Baptist Church

Dr. J. Cullis Smith, Pastor and Editor

Ardmore, Oklahoma

June, 1958

A Brief Statement on the Nashville Statement

Last Tuesday[i] some Evangelical Christians (reported as 148 initial signatories[ii]) released The Nashville Statement: a Coalition for Biblical Sexuality[iii] “in the hope of serving Christ’s church and witnessing publicly to the good purposes of God for human sexuality revealed in Christian Scripture, we offer the following affirmations and denials.” The statement has 14 articles in an “affirm and deny” formats, dealing with marriage, homosexuality, transgenderism,[iv] etc. It met with welcome plaudits and stiff rebuttals.

Welcome plaudits come from those who share the same biblical understandings of those who made the statement. I am in basic agreement with the statement, in its presentation of what has been the standard view among Christians on marriage and sexuality (and still is for many). We could complain that some things might have been said better, differently, more or less,[v] but there is a common biblical bond among those who hold the truth that the word of God sets sexual expression and activity within the covenant bonds of (heterosexual) marriage.

The “stiff rebuttals” seem to me to come from two (sort of united) fronts. One tact plays down its importance as a statement of old angry white guys (who probably voted for Trump). Looking through the list of initial signatories, it is hard to tell whether the signers are angry or if they voted for Donald Trump.[vi] But as I glance through the names (none of whom I know personally), I do see names that I recognize as not old, not white and not male. The other tact plays up its importance, warning against the dangers of the biblical viewpoint held by churches for a couple thousand years, while noting that it is too widespread for them to be comfortable with.

The bottom line is that we differ on whether homosexuality, transgenderism, etc. are sexual sins to be abandoned (Nashville Statement) or sexual activity that ought to be celebrated (Christians United Statement). This is a wide chasm that cannot be bridged.

Related articles

• Christians United Statement -- A theological statement in opposition to the Nashville Statement
• Evangelical leaders issue Nashville Statement, a 'Christian manifesto' on human sexuality -- "It speaks with forthright clarity, biblical conviction, gospel compassion, cultural relevance, and practical helpfulness."
• Evangelicals counter 'agree to disagree' sexuality -- "The article that may gain the most attention is the document's declaration on the acceptability of evangelical disagreement regarding the issues of homosexuality and gender identity."
• I signed the Nashville Statement. It’s an expression of love for same-sex attracted people. -- "Christians understand the brokenness of the world. We signers know ourselves, like all humanity, to be broken by sin."
• Keeping Christianity weird: Why the Nashville Statement matters -- "It does not seem all that newsworthy to reassert what the church everywhere has confessed for the last 2,000 years."
• ‘Nashville Statement’ condemns LGBT Christians and those who support them -- "ERLC President Russell Moore, whose agency is listed as co-sponsor, called the statement “an urgently needed moment of gospel clarity”."
• Rosaria Butterfield: “Why I Signed the Nashville Statement” -- "Conversion to Christ did not initially change my sexual attraction for women. What conversion did change immediately was my heart and mind."
• Why even [some] conservative evangelicals are unhappy with the anti-LGBT Nashville Statement -- "The comments of those who would otherwise be behind the statement’s traditional views show the way the Trump presidency has scrambled internal evangelical debate in the United States — particularly on the question of who has legitimacy to speak about morality in the public square."
• Why the Rejection of the Nashville Statement on Sexuality Is a Rejection of the Bible -- "I’m all for dialogue with professing LGBT Christians, and I have often apologized for the church’s past failures in our treatment of those who identify as LGBT."
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• Progressives Appalled As Christians Affirm Doctrine Held Unanimously For 2,000 Years -- "I can’t believe these people would just come out and blatantly state something Christians have unflinchingly agreed on for millennia." (Satire)

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[i] Tuesday August 29, 2017

[ii] I’ve seen other numerical reports, such as “over 150.”

[iii] It is called the “Nashville Statement” because the draft of the statement was finalized in Nashville, Tennessee.

[iv] According to Oxford Dictionary, transgenderism is “a state or condition in which a person’s identity does not conform unambiguously to conventional ideas of male or female gender.”

[v] Perhaps the more commonly discussed among those who generally agree on the statement will be Article 10: “WE AFFIRM that it is sinful to approve of homosexual immorality or transgenderism and that such approval constitutes an essential departure from Christian faithfulness and witness. WE DENY that the approval of homosexual immorality or transgenderism is a matter of moral indifference about which otherwise faithful Christians should agree to disagree.”

[vi] As I said, I generally agree with the statement – and I did not vote for Trump. I may be an old white guy, but I don’t think I’m angry about much of anything.