Sermon Tone Analysis

John 5:30-47

Why I Am a Baptist

 

“I can do nothing on my own.

As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just, because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me.

If I alone bear witness about myself, my testimony is not deemed true.

There is another who bears witness about me, and I know that the testimony that he bears about me is true.

You sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth.

Not that the testimony that I receive is from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved.

He was a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light.

But the testimony that I have is greater than that of John.

For the works that the Father has given me to accomplish, the very works that I am doing, bear witness about me that the Father has sent me.

And the Father who sent me has himself borne witness about me.

His voice you have never heard, his form you have never seen, and you do not have his word abiding in you, for you do not believe the one whom he has sent.

You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.

I do not receive glory from people.

But I know that you do not have the love of God within you.

I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not receive me.

If another comes in his own name, you will receive him.

How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God? Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father.

There is one who accuses you: Moses, on whom you have set your hope.

If you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me.

But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my words?”

[1]

 

Several of my fellow elders have addressed this congregation during the past year.

Each was specifically asked to present their reasons for holding Baptist convictions.

Among those who stood before you were a denominational leader and several seasoned pastors within our communion.

I heard some of them as they made an effort to explain their convictions, and I received reports on the message of others.

With one exception, I must say that I still do not know why most of them are Baptists.

A denominational leader chided the congregation and chastised the pastor for being too independent.

He pled with the church to be more co-operative within the denomination.

Another listed benefits of “belonging” to the Baptist Union of Western Canada.

Yet another of my fellow elders presented an energetic and entertaining apologia, which could well have been delivered by any evangelical Christian for belonging to any evangelical denomination.

There was one sterling exception.

Mostly, we received a series of sociological arguments without doctrinal support.

We heard the benefits of denominational membership without reference to doctrine.

Truth compels me to reject any ecclesiastical association without doctrinal foundation.

Mere fellowship is insufficient for religious co-operation.

Missionary enterprise alone is insufficient for extended ecclesiastical co-operation.

The Christian Faith is a doctrinal Faith.

Thus, any association for us as a church that seeks to honour Christ must have a sound doctrinal foundation.

To say that I am a Baptist is to identify myself doctrinally—it is not merely a means of situating myself denominationally.

It is my stated conviction that any Baptist should be able to state the reason for their faith and practise.

Any Baptist should be able to say why they are Baptist, whether they share in the life of one of the more than forty-five Baptist groups within North America, or whether they belong to an independent congregation.

To say one is a Baptist is to aver a doctrinal position unique from other communions.

Ultimately, all ecclesiastical associations are on a doctrinal basis.

Before dealing with the doctrinal issues raised by this theme, I need to tell you that I was not “born” a Baptist.

I was “born again” a child of the Living God and adopted Baptist convictions.

I was not raised in a Baptist church.

I was not induced to become a Baptist out of convenience or through promises of support.

Almost without exception, leaders from within several Baptist denominations have made promises to me and then failed to honour their word.

It is fair to say that I was not led to my Baptist convictions through the veracity of Baptist leaders.

Nevertheless, I confess that I have devoured Baptist preaching, rejoicing in the power of the pulpit exemplified by great contemporary Baptist preachers.

To this day, I thrill to hear great Baptist preaching.

When I was saved, I began to read the Word of God.

As I read that blessed Word, I drafted a list of major doctrines considered to be more or less essential throughout Christendom.

All of these doctrines were at first questionable in my mind since I was so new to the Faith.

As I read the Word of God, I moved each doctrine or practise to a category of “truth” or “fiction” depending upon whether biblical support was present or absent.

Soon, as result of reading the Word of God, I realised that I was a Baptist.

Without seeking to become a Baptist, I held Baptist convictions.

The great Baptist principles—principles which stand as distinctive for Baptists— that I discovered in the Word of God are as follows: the Authority of the Word of God, the Autonomy of the local church, Acceptance of Two Officers within the Church, a Regenerate Church Membership, Maintenance of the Ordinances of Baptism and the Lord’s Table, the Priesthood of the Believer, Individual Soul Liberty, and the Separation of Church and State.

To be certain, the text before us does not present all eight of these great distinctives that mark us as Baptists, but several great doctrines are presented which suffice to present strong reasons for adherence to Baptist principles.

Join me in study of the interaction of the Master with religious unbelievers.

I am a Baptist Because Baptists Believe the Word of God.

You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about Me.  Above all else, Baptists are a people of the Book.

We baptise by immersion for no other reason than that it is commanded in the Book.

Even if we were unable to read the text in the original language we would nevertheless understand that baptism is intended to portray [see *1 Peter 3:21, 22*] the burial and resurrection of Christ as the one baptised identifies with Him [cf.

*Romans 6:1-11*].

As Baptists, we cannot go beyond the Book in Faith and practise, but neither may we do less than that which is required by the Book.

We Baptists believe in the autonomy of the local congregation.

Where did we learn of that doctrine?

We believe that those who come to faith should be baptised following their confession and that the baptism they receive should be by immersion.

Where did we learn of that truth?

We believe in the separation of church and state, insisting that the ideal political condition is that represented by a free church in a free state.

From where did we receive such convictions?

These convictions, and every conviction we hold are because we Baptists are a people of the Book.

We hold the Bible to be the Word of God—inerrant and infallible—a perfect rule of faith and practise.

In faith and practise, we go no further than the Bible leads us, but we dare do no less than that to which the Word of God calls us.

We have determined that the preaching of the Word will be central in our worship simply because we realise that as a people of the Book, we need to hear what the Living God is saying as His Spirit speaks through His written Word.

Some may object that this confession of reliance upon the Word of God is not unique to Baptists, and I will gladly concede the point.

We rejoice in each evangelical church that makes this same confession.

However, we are unapologetic in insisting that historically this was a position that distinguished us as Baptist.

Firm adherence to this doctrinal persuasion led our forefathers to resist every pressure to emulate the assorted religious societies that sought to employ the state in advancing their religious goals.

It was this firm belief in the authority of the Scriptures which led our forefathers to resist the push to consider baptism as a means of salvation, and thus because of our confidence in the written Word we refused to baptise our infants.

We Baptists are who we are today primarily because of our absolute confidence in the authority of the written Word of God.

Isn’t it amazing that we have held to this position throughout the long years despite the opposition of the majority of religious societies?

Isn’t it wonderful that today many other religions and churches join us in making a similar confession?

We do not live in the dim past, however, but rather we yet hold that we are obligated to examine our faith and our practise in light of this written Word.

We cannot yield on the issue of membership, allowing the unbaptised to unite as fellow members.

We cannot yield on the issue of baptism as the symbol of faith in the Crucified and Risen Son of God.

Neither can we move one millimetre from our insistence that God has given us this Word as the sole rule of faith and practise.

Ultimately, we adhere to this position of submission to the written Word of God because we believe the Book is divine.

It is divine in its origin and it is divine in its preservation and it is divine in its intent.

In the text, Jesus was confronted by the religious leaders of His day.

The Lord pointed to the multiple witnesses to His Person.

First, he spoke of His own witness [*vv.

30, 31*].

Then, He pointed to the witness of John the Baptist, whom the leaders recognised as a popular figure despite refusing to believe his message [*v.

33*].

Next, Jesus pointed to the works that He had performed in their presence [*v.

36*].

These miraculous works were in addition to the witness of the Father Himself [*v.

37*].

Finally, the Master stated that the Scriptures themselves—the Old Testament as the religious leaders knew it, and especially the writings of Moses— testified to Him [*v.

39*].

Later, Jesus would add that the testimony of the Holy Spirit [*John 15:26*] and the testimony of individual believers [*John 15:27*] demonstrated the reality of His origin and His being.

While Jesus spoke of the multiplied witnesses to His Person and His work, the message this day is focused on the testimony of Scripture.