Baptist

Baptist churches are part of a Christian movement often regarded as an Evangelical, Protestant denomination. Baptists emphasize a believer's baptism by full immersion, which is performed after a profession of faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior. A congregational governance system gives autonomy to individual local Baptist churches, which are sometimes associated in organizations such as the Southern Baptist Convention. In the late 1990s, there were about 43 million Baptists worldwide with about 33 million in the United States.

Beliefs that vary among Baptists

Because of the congregational style of church governance on doctrine, doctrine on the following issues often varies greatly between one Baptist church and another.

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• doctrine of separation
• Calvinism/Arminianism
• the nature of Law and Gospel
• the ordination of women
• homosexuality
• the extent to which Church and State should be separate from each other
• the extent to which non-members may participate in communion services
• Eschatology

Baptists generally believe in the literal Second Coming of Christ at which time God will sit in judgment and divide humanity between the saved and the lost (the Great White Throne judgment Book of Revelation 20:11) and Christ will sit in judgment of the believers (the Judgment Seat of Christ Second Epistle to the Corinthians 5:10), rewarding them for things done while alive. Amillennialism, dispensationalism, and historic premillennialism stand as the main eschatological views of Baptists, with views such as postmillennialism and preterism receiving only scant support.

Related Topics:
Second Coming - Book of Revelation - Second Epistle to the Corinthians - Amillennialism - Dispensationalism - Premillennialism - Postmillennialism - Preterism

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Comparisons with other denominations

Baptists share certain emphases with other groups such as evangelism and missions. While the general flavor of any denomination changes from city to city, this aspect of Baptist churches is much more prominent than in most Anglican, Methodist, Lutheran and Presbyterian churches.

Related Topics:
Evangelism - Missions - Anglican - Methodist - Lutheran - Presbyterian

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The Pacifism of the Anabaptists and the Quakers is not an ideal held by most Baptists. The Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America was organized in 1984 to promote peace, justice, and non-violence, but it does not speak for all Baptists that accept the ideal of pacifism. Moreover, Baptists are strongest in the southern United States, an area known for strong support of the military and thus not supportive of pacifist views.

Related Topics:
Pacifism - Anabaptists - Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America - 1984

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In Australia, the Baptist Union is very close to the Campbell-Stone Church of Christ. The two groups share similar theology, even sharing a bible college.

Related Topics:
Australia - Campbell-Stone - Church of Christ

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