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WHAT IS A HISTORIC BAPTIST?
By David A. West, Sr.
http://hbdoctrine.webs.com/historicbaptist.htm
This article was extracted from the Editor's Introduction
to the Premiere Edition of The Baptist Heritage Journal.
The following set
of beliefs and distinctives comes directly from the pages of God's infallible Word. They represent what mainstream
Baptists have believed and practiced down through the centuries. The Historic Baptist Faith is synonymous with New
Testament Christianity. A New Testament Christian will not just believe these truths in his heart. More
importantly, he will also practice, protect, preserve, and propagate these beliefs for which his forefathers
valiantly stood. In contrast to the many adjectives used to describe Baptists today, the following definition
describes a Historic Baptist.
THE HISTORIC BAPTIST VIEW OF GOD AND MAN
Historic Baptists
have always held a high, scriptural view of God. Their view differed substantially from the God that many preachers
present from pulpits today. They saw God as the absolute Sovereign, the ruler over the affairs of men. Their voices
echoed, as Nebuchadnezzar of old when his understanding returned to him, that "...I blessed the most High, and I
praised and honored him that liveth for ever, whose dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from
generation to generation: And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to
his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto
him, What doest thou?" (Daniel 4:34b-35) The God they preached was "high and lifted up" (Isaiah 6:1b). He was the
"only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords" (I Timothy 6:15b). In contradistinction to their view of God,
they saw man as spiritually stillborn (Romans 5:12; Ephesians 2:1), wandering aimlessly as a lost sheep (Isaiah
53:6), with no ability or desire to seek after God (Romans 3:11). Man's only hope was that the almighty God would
lift him from the cesspool of sin which he so enjoys, and save him by His incomprehensible Grace. He would agree
with Spurgeon who wrote "I look at everything through its relation to God's glory. I see God first, and man far
down the list. We think too much of God to please this age."
THE HISTORIC BAPTIST VIEW OF BAPTIST HISTORY
Today, many
undervalue the study of Christian history or Baptist history, believing it to be irrelevant to our situation today.
This is a clear reflection of the inroads that Existential thought has made into Baptist circles. There are many
lessons to learn from the study of history. For example, the study of history shows how Christendom has reached its
present condition. It explains the origin of many erroneous beliefs and practices so prevalent today. Often one's
practice is not rooted in Scripture, but rather founded on tradition which developed over the centuries. Everyone
would do well to see if what he stands for is in the Bible, or if it is based on the traditions of man. History is
extremely relevant.
Part of the reason Baptists are in their present condition is because they are
ignorant of their own history. They know nothing of the battles which their forefathers fought. They know nothing
of the blood spent to secure equal religious liberty for all. Many Baptist preachers and laymen know nothing of
John Clarke, Obadiah Holmes, and Isaac Backus. Even fewer know anything of John Smythe, Thomas Helwys, Hansard
Knollys, William Kiffen, and Benjamin Keach. Yet these men are our progenitors. They fought the good fight for
truth and religious freedom, which is often taken for granted today. Is it any wonder that so many Baptists today
cannot even explain what a Baptist is, or where the Baptists came from?
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