Thursday, October 22, 2009

Doctrinal Statements

A doctrinal statement should be limited to doctrine. When practices are included in the list as doctrines, they become a tool used to force the churches in line with the practice in the doctrinal statement or be out of fellowship or thrown out of fellowship of the association. When either occurs, the association infringes upon the sovereignty of the local church. What are the weirdest things you have ever seen in a doctrinal statement of ABA churches in a local association or state association?

Friday, October 16, 2009

Protestant-minded Baptists

I. K. Cross wrote a booklet called Landmarkism: An Update, in which he referred to Protestant-minded Baptists that "want to be free to receive Protestant and other immersions without regard to doctrinal standards." (page 28). Baptism is more than an immersion by a religious group. Immersion does not guarantee a church that the candidate they receive has scriptural baptism. All the SBC congrgeations in our area that I have asked approve the immersion of Protestant denominations.
Some Missionary Baptist church members are Protestant-minded Baptists-they see nothing wrong with joining a SBC congregation even though they practice receiving alien immersion (immersion without a proper authority), pulpit affiliation and open commuion. Pastors, teachers, youth workers need to teach the truth about baptism, the Lord's Supper, local church and church authority. When church members feed on Protestant religious books, TV religious programming and sermons from pastors that go to the internet to "get a sermon," they will be spiritually malnourished. Warning: when a church is not used to a good diet on sound doctrine, it will be hard for them to digest God's truths.
There are probably more Protestant-minded Baptists in more ABA churches than anyone would like to admit.