Journal: Southeastern Theological Review
Volume: STR 08:2 (Fall 2017)
Article: Baptist Identity As Reformational Identity
Author: Nathan A. Finn

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Baptist Identity As Reformational Identity1

Nathan A. Finn

Union University

This essay contributes to contemporary discussions of Southern Baptist identity by offering a reformational exposition of core Baptist distinctives. It draws upon both Scripture and Reformation theology and emphases, especially the five solas and the priesthood of all believers. The essay represents a partial, preliminary exercise in retrieval theology for the sake of renewing contemporary Southern Baptist identity, though much of what is argued can also be applied to other Baptist groups. The purpose of the essay is to contribute to the ongoing renewal of Southern Baptist identity in the aftermath of the “conservative resurgence” that took place from 1979 to 2000, an important task in an increasingly post-denominational age.

Key Words: baptism, Baptist distinctives, Baptist identity, priesthood of all believers, Reformation, regenerate church membership, sola fide, sola gratia, sola Scriptura, solus Christus

Introduction

For as long as there have been Baptists, there have been writings about Baptist identity. Baptists have been debating and refining their identity ever since the founding of the earliest Baptist churches in the seventeenth century. Baptists have always written confessions of faith to distinguish their beliefs from other movements around them. They have drafted church covenants that identified their congregations as free communities of disciples rather than parishes of an established church. And they have written hundreds of treatises about their identity, reflecting upon Baptist distinctives as a form of “confessional theology.”2

What is true of Baptists in general is true of Southern Baptists in particular. William Estep suggests that, “the Southern Baptist historical experience can best be understood as a search for identity.”3 Most of the

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internal controversies Southern Baptists have experienced boil down to debates about Baptist identity.4 Southern Baptists publish a steady stream of books and essays about their identity, while seminaries and universities host periodic conferences on the topic. The nature of Baptist identity remains a pressing issue for Southern Baptists in a post-denominational age.

This essay contributes to contemporary discussions of Southern Baptist identity by offering a reformational exposition of core Baptist distinctives, drawing upon both Scripture an...

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