A STUDY OF THE

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A STUDY OF THE ORIGINS AND BELIEFS OF THE
MAJOR DENOMINATIONS
The Baptist Church
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The Baptist Church
Introduction and History

• Their origin is cloudy and the Baptists are
  divided on the subject.
• John Smyth organized the first known Baptist
  Church in Holland.
• The first Baptist Church in England was organized
  by Thomas Helwys in 1611 and were called General
  Baptists.
• The Particular Baptists began baptizing by
  immersion in 1641.

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The Baptist Church
Introduction and History

• They suffered many persecutions and were call
  Anabaptists and Cantabaptists.
• The Tolerance Act of Parliament passed in 1689
  gave them religious liberty.
• The Baptists in America did not directly descend
  from their English brethren.
• American Baptists first organized in RI by Roger
  Williams and Ezekiel Holliman.

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The Baptist Church
What Do Baptist Believe About

• The Scriptures and Creeds
• The Bible is inspired by God and is perfect.
• Creeds arent authoritative.
• They prefer to use the word confessions.
• It is these confessions that define what a
  Baptist is and their preferences.

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The Baptist Church
What Do Baptist Believe About

• The Scriptures and Creeds
• What does the Bible say?
• The Bible should be our only authority and guide.
• It tells us what God wants from us to be a
  Christian. Confessions tells us how to be a
  member of that denomination.
• We dont need any book to tell us how to be
  Christian except the Bible.

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The Baptist Church
What Do Baptist Believe About

• God The Father, Son and Holy Spirit
• God reveals Himself as three distinct persons.
• Christ dwells in all believers.
• At the moment of regeneration the Holy Spirit
  baptizes every believer into Christs body.

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The Baptist Church
What Do Baptist Believe About

• God The Father, Son and Holy Spirit
• What does the Bible say?
• The Godhead is made up of three unique
  personalities. (Matt 316-17)
• Christ dwells in us through faith (Eph 317)
• We are not baptized with the Holy Spirit.
• Water baptism causes us to be born again. (Acts
  2216 Rom 64 I Pet 321)

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The Baptist Church
What Do Baptist Believe About

• Man
• Man has free choice.
• Man is not born with sin but as soon as man is
  capable of moral action man will sin and become
  transgressors and are under condemnation.

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The Baptist Church
What Do Baptist Believe About

• Salvation
• Salvation is offered freely to all who accept
  Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour.
• Regeneration the new birth is a change of heart
  wrought by the Holy Spirit through conviction of
  sin.
• The sinner responds in repentance towards God and
  faith in Jesus as Lord.

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The Baptist Church
What Do Baptist Believe About

• Justification
• It is Gods gracious and full acquittal of all
  who repent and believe in Christ.
• Sanctification
• Is the experience by which the believer is set
  apart for Gods purposes.
• Glorification
• Is the final blessed abiding state of the
  redeemed.

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The Baptist Church
What Do Baptist Believe About

• What does the Bible say?
• Salvation does not come at the point of belief
  (James 219).
• Salvation comes when ones sins are washed away
  (Acts 2216).
• Faith is important (Heb 116).
• But faith alone or faith only is dead (James 217)

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The Baptist Church
What Do Baptist Believe About

• Gods Purpose of Grace
• All true believers endure to the end.
• Those whom God accepted will never fall from the
  state of grace.
• Believers may sin but they shall be kept by the
  power of God through faith unto salvation.

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The Baptist Church
What Do Baptist Believe About

• Gods Purpose of Grace
• What does the Bible say?
• We can fall from grace (Gal 54).
• One who has received forgiveness can so sin as to
  be lost (Acts 818-22).
• One who has been saved can then return to a
  worldly life and be eternally lost (II Pet
  220-22)

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The Baptist Church
What Do Baptist Believe About

• The Church
• It is an autonomous local congregation of
  baptized believers.
• Its scriptural officers are pastors and deacons.
• Only men may be pastors.

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The Baptist Church
What Do Baptist Believe About

• The Church
• What does the Bible say?
• Each congregation is to be autonomous.
• Pastors, elders, bishops are the same person
  and always mentioned in the plural when
  referenced to the local church (Titus 15 Acts
  2017, 28)
• Both elders and deacons are to be men (I Tim
  31-13 Titus 15-9)

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The Baptist Church
What Do Baptist Believe About

• Baptism and the Lords Supper
• Baptism is immersion of the believer in water.
• It is a prerequisite to the privileges of church
  membership and the Lords Supper.
• The Lords Supper is a symbolic act memorializing
  the death of the Redeemer.

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The Baptist Church
What Do Baptist Believe About

• Baptism and the Lords Supper
• What does the Bible say?
• Baptism is not a church ordinance.
• It is a command of God (John 1248-50 Matt
  2818-20 Mark 1615-16 Acts 238)

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The Baptist Church
What Do Baptist Believe About

• The Kingdom
• The Kingdom of God includes both His general
  sovereignty over the universe and His particular
  kingship over men who willingly acknowledge Him
  as King.
• Christians ought to pray and labor that the
  kingdom may come.

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The Baptist Church
What Do Baptist Believe About

• The Kingdom
• What does the Bible say?
• God would establish His royal reign during the
  days of the Roman Caesars (Dan 244)
• Micah foretold of One to be ruler in Israel
  (Micah 52)
• Isaiah said the government would be on his
  shoulders (Isaiah 96-7)

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The Baptist Church
What Do Baptist Believe About

• The Kingdom
• What does the Bible say?
• Luke wrote that Jesus would reign over the house
  of Jacob forever (Luke 131-33)
• Matthew quoted Zechariah as saying Behold your
  King is coming (Matt 211-5)
• Jesus claimed all authority had been given to him
  in heaven and on earth (Matt 2818-21)

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The Baptist Church
What Do Baptist Believe About

• The Kingdom
• What does the Bible say?
• God gave Jesus authority over all flesh (John
  171-5)
• Jesus claimed to be King (John 1837)
• Peter affirmed it on Pentecost that God had made
  Him both Lord and Christ (Acts 236)

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The Baptist Church
What Do Baptist Believe About

• The Kingdom
• What does the Bible say?
• This fulfils the prophesy of Jesus in Mark 91
• We are not waiting on Jesus to return and set up
  a 1000 yr reign.
• He will never set foot on earth again (I Thess
  417)

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The Baptist Church
What Do Baptist Believe About

• Cooperation
• Christs people should organize associations and
  conventions as may best secure cooperation for
  the great objects of the Kingdom of God.

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The Baptist Church
What Do Baptist Believe About

• Cooperation
• What does the Bible say?
• It does not mention this type of organization
  between churches.
• Any organization larger than or smaller than the
  local church is not talked about in the Bible and
  is thus unscriptural.

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A STUDY OF THE ORIGINS AND BELIEFS OF THE
MAJOR DENOMINATIONS
Next weeks Lesson The Jehovah Witness