Hoyt Chastain, President’s Message, April 1963
This message was given at the Landmark Missionary Baptist Church, Sacramento, California Cooperative Association Meeting.
Text .. Eph. 3:21 –
Hoyt ChastainUnto Him be glory in the Church by Christ Jesus, throughout all ages, world without end.
In the church is the place to glorify God. God has ordained that we are to honor Him in this world through His church. Whatsoever we do it must be for the honor and glory of God. The object of ALL CHURCH WORK IS TO GLORIFY GOD.
HOW DO BAPTISTS GLORIFY GOD?
1. They stand for morality.
Clean living is the fruit of a Christian life. The moral standards of any community are raised when a Baptist church is organized in it. Baptists preach against the sins of the flesh and hold before the world the kind of life that the Christians of the first century presented. When folks are saved the moral side is elevated.
2. They stand for spirituality.
There are many mistaken ideas in the religious world concerning the teaching of spirituality. Spirituality does not mean that you can cry a lot. One who is spiritual will follow the teachings of the Word of God. I have known many persons that will cry at the preaching of the Word but will not pay any attention to its doctrines. Observing the Word is spirituality; it is not emotionalism.
3. They stand for separation between the church and the world.
It is alright for the church to be in the world but when the world gets into the church, it is in the wrong place. Our Lord expects us to be a separate people. If the world cannot tell the difference between itself and us we are not living for the Lord, We MUST crucify the flesh with the lusts thereof. God has given us His method of mission work; this we are to follow. He has given us his method of church government; this we MUST follow. A life that is consecrated to the Lord will desire to know God’s ways and methods for service.
4. They stand for separation of church and state.
Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and unto God the things that are God’s. It is not the business of the church to run the government. It is not the business of the State to run the church. Union of the Church and State has brought many heartaches to the Lord’s people. Many lives have been taken because of the same. Backus, in a letter to George Washington, said something not to be forgotten: “The most dangerous man is a clergyman armed with the powers of government. ”
President Ulysses S. Grant, 1868, said – “Keep the church and State separate.”
5. They stand for a divine ecclesiasticism. They are not of human origin. They came from God.
Baptists have no human head. All of the denominations of the world can trace their beginning to some human head. This isn’t so with the Baptists. The first Baptist came from God. John 1:6 The Bible and History furnish proof of Baptist origin.
6. They stand for pure ordinances. The ordinances are for Christians, to be administered by the churches.
Baptism, immersion of the body in water is the biblical method. The Supper to be given to members of the local church. (No intercommunion).
7. They stand for equality in the membership. No bosses. Christ is the Head and the church the body. Each church absolutely independent.
Baptist believe that the local church is a sovereign body. She is a self governing body. Baptists believe in associating with each other in mission work, benevolent and Christian education. Baptists are also INTERDEPENDENT. The relationship of one church to another is essential for the well being of the local church.
8. They stand for progressive benevolence in caring for the poor and helpless, and in sending the Gospel to the lost.
Baptists are quick to come to the assistance of the poor, the orphans and sending the Gospel to a lost and dying world. Their chief concern is to seek and save the lost.
9. They stand for God’s Word as their Law, and an unquestioning obedience to all its requirements.
The final SAY with a Baptist is, “is it taught in the Bible?” Baptists are not willing to accept tradition or the words of the ancient fathers in matters of Faith and Practice. The Bible is the RULE. Now I commend you to THE WORD.
