Primitive Baptists and Creedalism
UN 1689 - Sodium cyanide is a poisonous compound with the formula NaCN. It is a white, water-soluble solid.
As a Primitive Baptist, I am often asked regarding my adherence to various historical creeds of the Christian faith. Many assert that apart from affirming the Second London Confession of 1689, or the Fulton Confession of 1900, one cannot be considered an "Old Baptist." But is one's claim to being an Old Baptist beholden to one's allegiance to the historic creeds of the last few centuries?
Baptist Confessions
Clearly these documents contain much with which I agree. However, I personally would not sign either of these creeds, if for no other reason than the fact that I don't think there is anyone more capable of expressing what I personally believe the bible teaches in the form of a written creed than I am. That may sound arrogant, but that is not my intent. I believe this statement is true of every Christian. Only an individual can state what THEY personally believe the scriptures teach. If they cannot express what they believe in that way, then their understanding and expression is insufficient to broker in the domain of written creeds. In order for one to be able to comprehensively assess a written creed, one must possess the depth of understanding required to write that creed. Moreover, they must also understand precisely what the author intended. Apart from both of these, one's affirmation of a historical creed is little more than an affirmation of something that one DOES NOT understand - which is no affirmation at all. This provocative statement should stir-up God's people to know the scriptures better than they do and to be able to defend what they claim to believe using scripture, rather than using historical creeds as a theological lean-to.
EVERY WORD THAT PROCEEDETH FROM THE MOUTH OF GOD
A fundamental tenet of Old Baptist theology is that, “the bible is the sole rule of faith and practice.” Ironically, this statement is a paraphrase of the following core, biblical affirmations
”But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” (Matthew 4:4)
”All scripture is 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, throughly furnished unto all good works.” (II Timothy 3:16-17)
Those bible quotes are the core, authoritative truths of the word of God that ALL Christians should affirm. They take precedent over our oft-stated summarization, no matter how valid or accurate we may regard that summarization to be.
I have at times been accused of evading a question because I would not affirm or utilize the Second London Confession, preferring instead to use only direct scripture references in support of my beliefs. It is a sad state of affairs when a Baptist is accused of evading a question because he uses scripture rather than the confession du jour to support his beliefs. The idea that one must pledge allegiance to a light revision of Presbyterianism in order to be considered a true "Old Baptist" is novel to say the least. This idea is obliterated by the recognition that there were "Old Baptists" prior to these confessions and thus no affirmation of these confessions was required to make them "Old Baptists."
FORMAL CREEDALISM
I would encourage everyone to read the short essay, Calvinism is a Red Herring. While it is specifically speaking of "Calvinism," the same precept applies equally to both “Formal Creedalism” and “Primitive Baptistism.” Indeed, proving that someone is in lock-step with some earlier, written creed or traditional practice does PRECISELY NOTHING to prove that one’s position is in keeping with the teachings of scripture. It is an abysmal waste of time that sidesteps the core issue of biblical truth. The question that all Christians should ask themselves is this:
If the bible is the inspired, inerrant, and preserved word of God,
is it able to throughly furnish us unto all good works as it claims?
The answer is to that question is obvious to any bible believing disciple (II Timothy 3:16-17). No historical creed, no matter how well stated or accurate we believe it to be, is required to supply what God’s people need. The word of God alone is sufficient. I submit that the degree to which that simple affirmation makes one uncomfortable measures one’s unbelief with respect to the absolute authority of scripture.
- Elder Daniel Samons