CHURCH HISTORY II
LECTURE 46
ECUMENISM – BAPTISTS II
1 Cor 1:10 Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.
The universal body of Christ hereticks strongly denounce any ‘divisions’ amongst Christendom because of these verses. Those that do not go along with them, the militant fundamentalists, are causing schisms and divisions ‘contrary to the Word of God’, and must be stopped. We ‘independent’ Baptists are guilty of this in their eyes.
Of course, the context is a local church body, Corinth, and the body of Christ, the church, is none other than a local, visible, assembly of Scripturally baptized believers called out to do the Lord’s work according to the New Testament.
The danger lies here for much of Christendom to turn on the fundamentalists and actually aid in our destruction (helping government).
John 17:21 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
The modern ecumenical movement has taken John 17:21 as one of its theme verses, claiming that the unity for which Christ prayed is an ecumenical unity of professing Christians which must set aside their ‘petty doctrinal differences’. The context of John 17 destroys this myth, for the chapter deals with that one church body in Jerusalem that Jesus Christ had started, not all of Christendom. The context of verse 21 points at oneness in order for blessings in soulwinning. Verse 17 clarifies that this oneness or unity is based on truth and not a unity based on being called Christian: “Sanctify them through thy truth; thy word is truth”.
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The following is an article by Steven Harmon, Professor at Gardner-Webb University, entitled ‘Baptist "Receptive Ecumenism"
in the Evangelical Baptist Church of Georgia’
Yesterday evening I had the privilege of dining with Archbishop Malkhaz Songulashvili of the Evangelical Baptist Church of Georgia (yes, they have an archbishop) at the Eagle and Child Pub in Oxford (the pub where C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkien, and other members of the "Inklings" literary discussion group met regularly).
[Here is what Professor Harmon gleaned from his meeting]
The congregations of the Evangelical Baptist Church of Georgia represent a fascinating case study in ‘Baptist receptive ecumenism’ that includes striking forms of liturgical as well as ecclesiological reception. In a culture that is historically Eastern Orthodox, the Evangelical Baptist Church of Georgia has maintained “belief in believer’s baptism, autonomy of the local church, freedom of conscience and religious liberty,” while adopting an ecclesial structure that is a hybrid of congregational and episcopal governance with a threefold ministry of bishops, presbyters, and deacons. In this structure the local congregations are autonomous in relation to one another and to the structure of the Evangelical Baptist Church of Georgia, but they are presided over by a bishop, whose office is a “symbol of unity” with the “responsibility...to provide spiritual guidance to the whole church as prophet, preacher, and teacher of the Gospel.” The ministers of the Evangelical Baptist Church wear Orthodox vestments and employ the Orthodox use of the sign of the cross, incense, and icons in their worship services. The Church sponsors monastic orders for men and women and a school of iconography. As their archbishop puts it, they “technically should be considered a Reformed Orthodox Church. On the one hand,” he says, “we are committed to the principles of the European Radical Reformation, and on the other hand we hold to our own Orthodox legacy.” In other words, they have received the gifts of the Orthodox tradition and incorporated them into their Baptist pattern of faith and practice.
These aspects of ecumenical reception of gifts from the Eastern Orthodox tradition cannot be attributed merely to the influence of living in an Orthodox culture. They are the fruit of intentional ecumenical engagement between Georgian Baptists and their Orthodox neighbors, and it was not easy for these Baptists whose historical identity was formed in contradistinction to Orthodox identity to decide together to receive these gifts as a community.
Ecumenical reception was also not a one-way street, for the Orthodox Church in Georgia also identified gifts in the Baptist tradition which they believed would strengthen Orthodox faith and practice, including the importance of the proclamation of the word and the relation of baptism to the church's practice of making disciples.
Other Baptists and other Christians have much to learn from this little-known communion and its quest to embody the unity Christ wills for his church in this particular place. I look forward to reading the future publications by which Archbishop Songulashvili and others will document this fascinating and encouraging story.
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{The following is an article in ‘Baptist Life’ (found on www.sbcimpact.org) by Pastor Dave Miller,
entitled “Why I Have Become an Ecumenical Baptist”}
[I included this so that one can better understand the mind of a Baptist Pastor who becomes ecumenical]
‘I grew up in solid, Bible-preaching, Dispensational churches in which the word ecumenical was among the dirtiest of words, describing the one-world church that would come in the last days, a church which unites by denying doctrine and rejecting the gospel of Christ. I suspect that it is precisely for its value as an insult that the word has been used to describe people who have rejected the Baptist Identity view of things and have argued for a “bigger tent” for Southern Baptist fellowship. [Pastor Miller has gotten a bad flavor in his mouth from the strong ‘anti-ecumenical’ spirit of the more fundamentalist Baptist upbringing he had; this can happen… and we Pastors need to be careful to make sure that our flock understands to love the other Christians outside of our belief system, but not to necessarily hold hands with them and make them our best buddies. They are brothers (if they are truly saved), but might be somewhat ‘erring brothers’.]
I am going to willingly embrace the term. I have always tended to be dogmatic and only wanted to fellowship with people who believed like me, worshiped like me, and did church like me. In the mid-90’s God took me on a journey of personal revival (through the ministry of Henry Blackaby). As a result of that, I also developed an appreciation for the universal Body of Christ. I realized that there is a great big world outside of the SBC. There are people preaching the same gospel, worshiping the same Lord and serving the same eternal purposes as we are.
[This often happens where a Pastor has a ‘journey’, goes to some conference, reads some book, starts watching some online preacher, and they radically change their world (and Bible) view. Also, you can see where the universal ecclesiology is the main driver of this ecumenical mindset. Oh do be careful my dear Baptist…]
So, I have come to embrace the term “Ecumenical Baptist” – that is, if you let me clarify the term, just a little.
I can hear a couple of the more exclusionary Baptists saying, “So, are you saying that doctrine doesn’t matter?” Of course not. I am passionate about my doctrine. I exposit God’s Word carefully every week. I am conservative, a convictional Baptist, and committed to living a biblically faithful life.
I am not ecumenical in the traditional usage of the word. There are people I will not fellowship with.
[It is interesting that this SBC Pastor is concerned that some of his fellow SBC Pastors might feel he is ‘too ecumenical’, so he tries to redefine the word some. Basically, he is saying that he is a conservative, Bible-based ecumenical.]
Here’s what I believe. Jesus died to redeem a people for himself. 1 Corinthians 12:13 says “we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body and given one Spirit to drink.” We are all part of the same body. We must continue to seek the truth of God’s Word, but we can do so in a way that recognizes the value and beauty of the greater body of Christ. I want to be as accepting of the greater body of Christ as I can be without comprising my essential beliefs.
[As I have said before, the number 1 passage that the ecumenicists go to is this one in 1 Corinthians. This is why it is paramount to have a firm understanding of its meaning.]
For these reasons I am (with qualifications) embracing the term “ecumenical Baptist.”
1) Because I want to focus on biblical essentials, not on petty exclusion.
Even among gospel-faithful Christians, there are still significant differences. There is still a place for denominational distinctives. But the same principle applies. We should only divide where clear biblical principles are at stake. We may call paedobaptists family, but we don’t have to share a house with them. We are fully convinced that the Bible teaches baptism by immersion of believers only, so we practice that.
But is there any New Testament teaching on the doctrinal vetting of the baptizer – the one performing the baptism? I can’t find it.
There is a big job to be done and petty exclusionism is not going to help.
[I am (without qualifications) embracing that I am an ‘anti-ecumenical Baptist’! What is considered ‘petty’? Baptism? Hardly. I found where it matters on who baptizes you…just study John the Baptist’s baptizing Jesus Christ. What else is petty? Which Bible one uses for truth? The definition of a church? The mission of a church? Holiness standards? Eternal security? These surely are not ‘petty’ issues. Yet, these issues are what we are accused of being ‘petty exclusionists’ on by our more liberal, Catholic-leaning brethren.]
2) Because I want to honor the passionate prayer of Jesus.
In John 17, Jesus pours out his heart to the Father the night before his death. In this prayer, we see the heart of our Savior. In verse 11, Jesus prays, “Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one.” The night before he would face Calvary, Jesus’ passion was to see the disciples, and those who would come after them, unified. He was dying for one Body. It is the heart of Jesus that we should be one.
Our goal should be as unified as we can possibly be with as many people as we can be unified with. Only if someone denies the gospel should we exclude them from Christian fellowship. And our denominational tent should be as big as we can possibly make it without sacrificing our soul. In baseball, the tie goes to the runner. In our convention, the tie should always go to unity. Why break fellowship when it is not necessary?
[This passage in John 17 is the number two most used passage to support the ecumenical movement’s rationale. The context was a local body of believers, i.e. a church body. And, even if it was a universal plea by Jesus, He surely wouldn’t want us to set aside His teachings for the sake of ‘oneness’!]
3) Because I recognize the universal nature of the church.
Exclusionary Baptists talk a lot about ecclesiology. However, I am not convinced that the ecclesiology they promote is based on the Bible as much as it is based on theological tradition. For instance, they often emphasize the local church congregation over the “universal church.” Some have gone so far as to deny the existence of a universal church, for others, it is just an emphasis.
I do not consider myself an expert in matters of ecclesiology. But, here is what I believe as a result of my study of God’s Word. I think there is only one church in any city. Sioux City has one church – it meets in different places, worships in different styles and has different levels of fidelity to the teachings of God’s Word. But there is only one church. Can someone show me where the Word of God ever recognizes more than one church in any locality?
[It sounds as though he doesn’t really understand the argument that the local-church preachers have; this is typical amongst pro-ecumenicists… they will berate us, but they don’t understand us…they don’t try to understand us. He makes an interesting point about only 1 church per locale; I like this….in a non-universal sense, of course.]
4) Because I want to honor God’s Word.
I have not become an ecumenical Baptist because I lost my passion for the Word of God. Just the opposite, I think it is the clear teaching of the Word. It is in giving honor to my brothers and sisters in Christ, and only dividing when absolutely necessary, that I obey God.
I challenge you to open your Bible to any page in Paul’s writings to the church. I would wager that you would find a significant teaching about Christian unity on that page.
If we believe the inerrant Bible, shouldn’t we practice what it says about Christian unity?
[Does he actually believe in an ‘inerrant Bible’? Maybe he does. He is right on track here, except that he misinterprets ecclesiology. The context of the Pauline Epistles is (in general) local churches. Paul was telling these individual churches to stay unified. Amen! I agree! But, he wasn’t telling all Christians to get unified.
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{Ecumenical/Interfaith Dialogue and Ministry: Are Baptists Ready for the Excitement?
By John M. Finley, Senior Minister, First Baptist Church, Savannah, Georgia.}
In the four centuries since the founding of their first congregation, Baptists have experienced both negative and positive relationships with other Christians and other world religions. Arising in the aftermath of the English Reformation, early Baptists were opposed to many beliefs and practices of Roman Catholics, Anglicans, and even Puritan believers. With respect to Jews, Baptists were often as prejudiced as their European contemporaries, while at the same time largely isolated from other religions and uninterested in them. Many such negative attitudes passed to the New World.