Origin of Baptist Movement

Tuesday 16 November 2010 Origin of Baptist Movement , a talk by Gary Auker 1Origin of Baptist Movement , a talk by Gary Auker 1

Origin of Baptist Movement

A talk by Gary Auker

to

Springfield Park Baptist Church

on

Tuesday 16th November 2010



Assyrian

(0.6 million)

Protestantism

(670 million)

followers Oriental Orthodoxy

(82 million)

Eastern Orthodoxy (228 million)

followers

Catholicism

(1200 million)

followers

Branched off c. 431 AD

Branched o

ff c. 4

51 AD

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D

Branched off c. 1517 AD

Major Traditions in the Christian Family Tree

Christian Tradition influence today = 2,180 million (33% of World Population)

Catholic church split with at least2 Popes at the same timebetween (1378 – 1417 AD)

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1274 AD

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1438 AD



• The Baptist Church is part of the Protestant tradition of the Church

• The term Protestant originates from the declaration or protest against theEdict of Speyer (1529 AD) which was to enforce the 1521 AD Edit of Wormsbanning Luther’s teachings.

• Martin Luther started the break with the Catholic church in 1517 AD that wouldlead to the Protestant Reformation.

• Luther strongly disputed the claim in Catholicism at the time that freedomfrom God's punishment for sin could be purchased with money.

• The declaration was presented to the Reichstag (Governing Assembly) at Speyer in Germany on 19th April 1529 AD .

Tuesday 16 November 2010 Origin of Baptist Movement , a talk by Gary Auker 4Tuesday 16 November 2010 Origin of Baptist Movement , a talk by Gary Auker 4


Martin Luther

(1483 –1546 AD)

• Luther nailed his Ninety-Five Theses to the

door of All Saints' Church in Wittenberg,

German on 31 October 1517 AD.

• Luther’s 95 Theses are widely regarded as

the beginning of the Protestant Reformation All Saints' Church in Wittenberg



Martin Luther (1521 AD) defending his 95 theses at the Assembly of Worms in Germany.

The Assembly was presided by Emperor Charles V . The resulting Edict of Worms forbid Luther’s

teachings & would later be used to convict the exiled Englishman William Tyndale

who was burnt at the stake near Brussels, Belgium in 1536 AD for heresy.

Town of Worms over the Rhine in Germany



The Baptist Church came from the bringing together of 2 other

Protestant Church movements:

• The 16th Century English Separatists

• The 16th Century German & Dutch Anabaptists



• Magisterial Reformation accepted interdependence of church & secular authorities.

• Radical Reformation rejected any secular authority over the Church.

2000 AD

Development of Protestantism over the last 500 yearsAnabaptists

1500 AD 1600 AD 1700 AD 1800 AD 1900 AD

Methodists

Lutherans

Anglicans

Puritans / Separatists

Pietism

Congregationalists

Baptists

Presbyterians

Reformed Churches

Pentecostalism

Calvinism

Adventists

Holiness Movement

Ma

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Ra

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Strict Baptists

Brethren



The European Anabaptists



Thomas Müntzer

(ca. 1488 – 1525 AD)

• Müntzer believed and taught of the "living word of God"

(i.e., continued revelation and prophecy),

the banning of infant baptism, and that the wine and

bread of the Eucharist were only emblems of Jesus Christ's

sacrifice.

• Because of his position on infant baptism, Müntzer ranks

as one of the founders of the Anabaptists (Re-Baptisers).

• Müntzer was more radical than Luther rejecting any

secular authority over the church.

• Müntzer stated, "These villainous and treacherous parsons

are of no use to the church in even the slightest manner, for

they deny the voice of the bridegroom, which is a truly

certain sign that they are a pack of devils.”

• In distinction to Luther, Müntzer believed good works

were required in addition to faith to become righteous.

• Müntzer was leader of German Peasant Revolt was captured ,

tortured & made to recant before he was beheaded.



Menno Simmons ( 1496 – 1561 AD)

Anabaptist from Friesland

a province of Holland

• He was ordained as a Roman Catholic priest

in 1515 or 1516 at Utrecht, Holland.

• Menno Simmons came from a poor background.

• Around 1526 or 1527, questions surrounding the

doctrine of transubstantiation caused

Menno Simons to begin a serious and in-depth

search of the Holy Scriptures, which he confessed

he had not previously studied, even being a priest.

• Menno Simons rejected the Catholic Church

and the priesthood on 12 January 1536,

casting his lot with the Anabaptists.

• His followers became known as Mennonites.



The English Separatists


Origin of Baptist Movement• Separatists separated from the Church of England and formed

independent congregations in 16th century.

• Most called for a return to the simple teachings and practicesof the Bible.

3) the church should be governed by its membersand not by bishops.

• The Gainsborough church grew so rapidly that the large size of thegathering made it dangerous to meet so sister congregation started .

• Smyth and his congregation believed:

1) the Bible, not creeds or church tradition, should be the guide for faith and practice,

2) the church should be comprised only of believers,

• John Smyth became leader of a Separatist congregationin Gainsborough, Lincolnshire around 1606.

John Smyth

(1570 – 1612 AD)



Exiled English Separatist in Holland



• The other congregation was formed at

Scrooby Manor and they elected JohnRobinson as pastor. By 1608 AD bothcongregations had fled to Holland toescape persecution in England.

• Robinson's congregation settled for a time in Leyden. Among them were William Bradford and William Brewsterwho in 1620 led some members of thecongregation and others to set sail for

America on the ship Mayflower.

Some of the Scrooby Manor

Congregation would laterset sail for AMERICA on the

Ship MAYFLOWER in 1620 AD

• These "Pilgrims" were the founders of theCongregational church in America.



Smyth's congregation settled in Amsterdam. Among

his congregation was Thomas Helwys. In Amsterdam the group came in contact with Dutch Mennonites who taught believer's baptism and advocated religious liberty. Smyth soon became convinced that infant baptism was invalid and that only believers

(people who make a personal profession of faith in Christ) should be baptized.

John Smyth

(1570 – 1612 AD)

• Smyth and the bulk of his congregation remained in Hollandand eventually united with Frisian-Waterlander Mennonites.

• In 1608/09 Smyth baptized himself and then

baptized the other members of his congregation.



Return to England to start the

Baptist Movement



• King James 1st had Helwys thrown into Newgate

Prison, where he died by 1616 AD.

• Thomas Helwys was born into a wealthy family.

He studied & became a lawyer. He befriended Separatist

John Smyth in Lincolnshire & exiled in Holland.

• On returning from exile in Holland Thomas Helwys,

founded the 1st Baptist church in Spitalfields, London

with a congregation of 12 in 1612 AD.

He published A Short declaration of the mystery of

iniquity, one of the first books to call for religious liberty.

• Helwys wrote “The King is a mortal man and

not God, therefore has no power over immortal

souls of his subjects.”

Thomas Helwys

(c.1575 – c.1616 AD)

• Thomas Helwys rejected extreme Calvinism in favour of

Arminianism (all people have free will to choose or reject God).


Origin of Baptist MovementAnabaptist

The Amish, Hutterites, Mennonites,

• Believer's Baptism

• Baptism is to be administered to believers only.

• Symbolism of Holy Communion

• Communion is a memorial of the death of Christ

and transubstantiation does not occur.

• Restricted Communion'

The bread and wine should be broken with

baptized believers only.

• Religious Separation

Christians should be separated from the world.

• Separation of church and state

• Christians should not make an oath, accept the

office of magistrate, exercise self-defense or go

to war.

Baptists

* Soul freedom: the soul is capable of making

decisions in matters of faith without coercion or

compulsion by any larger religious or civil body

* Church freedom: freedom of the local church

from outside interference, whether government

or civilian

* Bible freedom: the individual is free to interpret

the Bible for himself or herself,

* Religious freedom: the individual is free to

choose whether to practice their religion,

another religion, or no religion; Separation of

church and state is often called the "civil

corollary" of religious freedom



Hyper-Calvinism splits the Baptists


Origin of Baptist Movement5 points of Calvinism abbreviated to TULIP

French theologian Jean Cauvin

also known as John Calvin

(1509 – 1564 AD)

T: This usually stands for "Total depravity:" means sin has

extended to all parts of every person's being:

"his thinking, his emotions and his will."

U: This stands for "Unconditional Election." This is the

concept of predestination: that God has divided

humanity into two groups. One group is "the elected”

the other is damned to Hell. God made this selection

before the universe was created, and thus before any

humans existed.

L: This stands for "Limited atonement" or "Particular

Redemption." This is the belief that Jesus did not die to save

all humans. He only died for the sake of specific sins of those

sinners who are saved.

I: This stands for "Irresistible Grace:" This is the belief that

every human whom God has elected will inevitably come to a

knowledge of God. The elect cannot resist the call.

P: This stands for "Perseverance of the saints:" This is the

"Once saved, always saved" belief . A person cannot be unsaved.



What is Arminianism?It is a system of theological beliefs first

advocated by a break-away group of Dutch

Calvinists, under Jacob Hermann Arminius.

Calvinists, who follow John Calvin's

theology, and Arminians, who follow

Arminius, believe that the Bible supports

their belief systems, and can quote biblical

passages in support of their stands.

Dutch Theologian

Jacob Hermann Arminius

(1560 – 1609 AD)



• During the 1630s, Baptists split into two groups: the General and Particular Baptists.

• General" Baptists followed the doctrines of Smyth and Helwys. They believed in free

will rather than the Calvinist doctrine of predestination taught by the Presbyterians.

• However, Particular (Strict) Baptists practised stricter regulation of their congregations

and accepted Calvin's doctrine of predestination.

• General Baptists were challenged by the emergence in London of John Spilsbury's

Calvinist "Particular" Baptist congregation in 1638.



The Glorious Revolution of 1688 AD

& the

Act of Toleration of 1689 AD



• The “Act of Toleration” was an act of

the English Parliament passed in1689giving religious freedom to Baptists, &Reformed Church but preventedCatholics from holding office for thenext 100 years.

William III (William of Orange)

• The Glorious Revolution of 1688, was the overthrow of Catholic King James II ofEngland by a union of Parliamentarians with an invading army of 21,000 men ledby the Protestant Dutch Head of State William III of Orange-Nassau.



The Prince of Preachers



Essex boy born Kelvedon in 1834 AD

Charles Haddon Spurgeon

(1834 – 1892 AD)

• Spurgeon was a Strict Baptist Preacher

• Spurgeon know as the Prince of Preachers

• Spurgeon would sometimes preach10 times a week in different places

• Many of his sermons were transcribedinto different languages.

• Spurgeon preached to around 10 millionpeople in his lifetime.



The Baptist Union of Great Britain



• The basis of fellowship in the Baptist Union is

a three-part "Declaration of Principle" stating belief in

Jesus, Christian baptism, and world evangelisation.

• The Baptist Union of Great Britain today consists of about

2,150 churches with a total membership of almost 140,000 individuals.

• When the Baptist Union was founded in 1813,

it was a Particular (Strict) Baptist organisation.

Baptist Union of

Great Britain

• In 1833, it was restructured to allow for membership

of General Baptists.

• General and Particular Baptist work was united

in the Baptist Union in 1891.



Talk summary

• The Baptists Church formed out of both English Separatists & European Anabaptists following the Protestant Reformation

• Baptists are on the radical wing of the reformation since theyrefused to accept Kings or Queens were the head of the Churchonly Christ is the head of the Church.

• John Smyth & Thomas Helwyn are considered the foundersof the Baptists whilst in exile in Holland in 1609 AD.

• Thomas Helwyn returned to England to start the 1st BaptistChurch in London in 1612 AD

• English Baptists will be celebrating 400th anniversary in 2012 AD



This talk & others by Gary Auker can be found @:

www.springfieldparkchurch.co.uk/events.asp



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