History: The Heritage of Our Baptist Faith

given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.*1 (II Timothy 3:16; Psalm 119:130; Isaiah 8:20; II Peter 1:19-21) Baptist people have never accepted creed as final authority. Whenever Baptists declare a statement of doctrine it is based upon what they believe the Bible to teach. The Bible is not interpreted by a creed, but it becomes the foundation of our creed. Our people have always believed that the divine revelation is sufficient. In the realm of faith and practice, nothing else can serve as a substitute. No theory, no scientific discovery or human wisdom can take the place of this Biblical authority. Even though it is not possible to trace the Baptist heritage clearly back to such Pre-Reformation groups as the Montanists, Novations, Donatists, Pauli - cians or the Albigenses, there is evidence to believe that these people accepted the Bible as the final authority for faith and willingly suffered for it. Gibbon, in “The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire11 , Volume 5, Page 398, says of the Paulicians who lived in the latter half of the seventh century, “They protested against the tyranny of Rome and embraced the Bible as the rule of faith and purified their creed from all the versions of gnostic theology." The Albigenses who lived in the 12th and 13th centuries also were people who put the Book of God ahead of the Pope of Rome. They did not leave any of their writings because they were so extremely persecuted, but the Encyclopedia Brittanica, Volume 1, page 528 says of them: "What is certain is that above all, they formed an anti­ sacerdotal party in permanent opposition to the Roman church and raised a continued protest against the corruption of the clergy of their time. They also rejected infant baptism and were condemned for it at the Council of Toulouse in A.D. 1119. They were persecuted for these beliefs and pronouncements. The Inquisition oppressed them and they eventually became more and more scattered, hiding in the forests and mountains, and only meeting occasionally." As a Biblical people, Baptists have also been able to trace their heritage back to the principles of scripture. Though there have been many groups holding some of the Baptist distinct!ves, it is unlikely that one could prove that there