The Ohio Independent Baptist, May 1969

• lll ssociations by Rev. Meade Armstrong Associate Professor of Bible - Cedarville College \) Jt'ltl"l ,, ,ti 11 ..,, ' l1c, rd n n11111cr ti , '('C t,1 11 1111e hr1 t1an tr tl1~r .1, ... ~t, hur 'h i i ndepcnd– 'nc: · \\ 1cl1Lt1t t ,,ping t c n 1der L'l' ta\.~,, tl1,1t ~1r ,r1, l,ed. thi~ br ther 1111 , ta1'.~r1I , , .1 "t1n1c" th,1t hi t1n·af– f11I,1 ·e'-i ~httrL11 ha n1e qt1alit) 1 r d, .1nt,1~\; that ht1r h "I \vhich are ~ f('llo,, t1ip~11ng in cl Bil1l1cal a cia- t tun are 111i 1 ng. A cttlall)', tlze trr, t Jz i. e.rocrl,· r/1e opposite. The unaffili- • :tteJ ht1r h i mi ing the bl ing th, t n1 , . ,, ell r ult fr m a ound 8 1bli al fello,, hip \.\, ith ther churches 1f lik.e faith. The)· are al o mi ing the opp r tt1nity of adding to the ~1rengthening effect f a larger fa ith– ful \\ itne and te timony· in the r,·i"e of J e L Chri t. 1 he courage of Baptist hi tory er, e as ttpport for thi premise. ociation of Bible-believing New Te tam nt cht1rches were prevalent amon!? numerous "Anabaptist groups' ' ...... on the continent prior to the appear- ance of Bapti t group among English- peaking people. The e ex.i ted in the remote areas of ome European na– tions in the upper reaches of the r i, ,er alle)' and the mountains. 1 th local chur ·h. Th e as iation n1ad a la ting c ntribt1tion to the Bapti t te timony by drawing up and i1t1bli t1ing onf e ion of Faith. The nfe ion revealed the depend nee f the e Bapti t group upon the Bible a the ba i or ground of 1heir faith and polity. The onf e ion of 1644, 1677 and 1689 are generally regarded as con i tent tatements of rthe faith and practice of the early Engli h Baptist te timony. The London Association, formed in 1704, was typical of several As ociations which had been formed from 1624 down to the end of the 17th century. The English Baptists made ignificant contribution to the American Bapti t testimony. A sociations of English Baptist churche were formed in the seven– ree nth century. The General Baptist preferred a strong central organiza– tion more like the denominational con, 1 ention organization, while the P artjcular Baptist insi ted upon a loo e organization in which there \\ a an interchange of correspondence and the holding of fellowship meet– ings, but little control of churches. The Particular Bapti ts fe]t that this t}·pe of a sociation was essential to the preservation of the sovereignty The American Baptist Associations were formed in all parts of the country. By 1800 there were 48 such groups. Typical of these was the Philadelph,ia Ass·ociation, formed in 1707. Thi As ociation included Bap– ti t churches of Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, MaryJand and Virginia, as well as Pennsylvania. It adopted the London Confession in 1742. The Ph,iladelphia Association was modeled after that of Particular Baptists of En·glaod. It ought to give aid to the local churches, but avoided any infringement upon the local church sovereignty. H. C. Vedder makes this comment ,regarding the Philadelphia Association: "Its adoption of ,a strongly Cal– vinistic Confession in 1742 ( or pos- ibly earlier) was a rturoing point in the history of American Baptists, as it ensured the prevalence of tha:t type of theo 1 logy. Up to th.is time the Arminian Baptists had I 10 MAY, 1969, Capsules of Life The great living lessons taught by Christ ,n His parables used the common. everyday experiences of life. Hts illustrat ions and aptness of apphcat100 came from the heart that sought only good for the listener and you the reader of today. The accounts of missionary bravery and true 1nc1dents in the lives of exper ienced Christians character ize the li terature we publish for you . Our take-home papers are planned to cover a broad area of Christian experience. Your church can 011ly benefi t from the reading of these f ine papers: FOR MOMMY AND ME, PR!~ARY PA~ COURAGE, CHALLENGE, CONQUEST. ~;~~1 :~~~!ee Regular Baptist Press 1800 Oakton Boulev a rd • De Plaines, Ill. 60018 Rev. Armstrong been the tronger in New England, and the colonies oif New York and New Jer ey, and it was at one time probably that rthey would control the development of ,the denomina– tion. It was the Philadelphia As– sociation that turned the tide, and decided the course of American B·apti t history. The Association speedily became the leading body among American Baptists a position it has not wholly lost to this day. Pretty much everything good in our history, from 1700 to 1850, may be traced to its initia– tive or active cooperation.,, The services of this Association to fellowshipping churches is well de– fined by Robert Torbet: 'A reading of the minutes from year to year indicates that the various churches relied upon the Association for advice and even for the settlement of disputes. At times it acted in the capacity of a council for ordination. To its dis– cretion was left the disciplining of minis,ters. The Associattion was par– ticular) y careful to examine the - credentials of itinerant preachers and ,to warn the churches of such as were imposters. In addition to • • • queries concernm·g commuruon, baptism, church membership, ordi– nation, the place of women in the church, and the propriety of using musical instrumen1s in the service, there were presented for consider– ation questions pertaining to the relations of a member to Free Masonry, to other Prote~ant groups, to gambling, and to slavery. U ually, the matter was the subject for counsel and advice, but the decision was left to the discretion of the local church. In a very real sense this organization played an important part in helping Baptists to adjust themselves to changing (Continued on page No. 15) THE OHIO JNDEPENDENT BAPTIST