Journal: Journal for Baptist Theology & Ministry
Volume: JBTM 02:1 (Spring 2004)
Article: Baptist Ecclesiology: A Faithful Application Of New Testament Principles
Author: Daryl C. Cornett

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JBTM 2:1 (Spring 2004) p. 22

Baptist Ecclesiology: A Faithful Application
Of New Testament Principles

Daryl C. Cornett

Assistant Professor of Church History
Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary
2216 Germantown Rd S. Germantown, TN 38138

Introduction

Baptists are at an identity crossroads. A strong, distinct Baptist identity primarily remains in the memories of senior adult pastors and laymen. The vast majority of my generation in their late thirties and early forties are at a loss to understand any emphasis at all on being Baptist. This loss of appreciation for the Baptist heritage by Baptists is deeper and more fundamental than the removing of the name Baptist from church signs or bookstores. These actions are symptomatic of a pervasive condition within Baptist life; we are suffering from a self-induced denominational myopia. Most Baptists don’t know their own heritage, and they cannot articulate what is unique and important about being Baptist. What has caused this condition? The cause is probably a culmination of various trends during the twentieth century, such as the complete loss of church discipline, theological liberalism, the church growth movement, pragmatism, the mega-church phenomenon, and post-modernity. All of these have contributed to a de-emphasis and de-valuing of Baptist distinctiveness and its importance to the Gospel.

JBTM 2:1 (Spring 2004) p. 23

Recent publications evidence an awakening of sorts in Baptist life to this present denominational identity crisis.1 The specific crisis that has worked to bring about this recent flurry of activity is that more and more Baptist pastors and congregations have either implemented or are currently entertaining the idea of employing elders (ruling or leading) in addition to the traditional offices of pastors and deacons. This has served as the splash of cold water on the face of a theologically slumbering denomination. Baptist pastors and leaders are asking interesting questions about church polity. Many are wondering if an emphasis on Baptist identity is adverse to effective evangelism and church growth. Some are struggling with the historic differences between congregational and presbyterian church polities. Many are sincerely seeking to discern what the New Testament teaches concerning the polity of the local church.

This essay seeks to address these issues by examining the historical and biblical differences between the Baptist and Presbyterian traditions. After a brief overview of ecclesiological development in Christian history, this discussion narrows to these two differing Protestant groups for two reasons. First, an exhaustive examination of all the various Protestant traditions would be o...

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