Expert: Rev. Robert Woods - 9/15/2006

Question
Hi. I am currently locked in an endless circle of trying to choose who is write between the Baptist church and the Church of Christ. I was wandering if you could shed some light on the subject. As odd as it may seem I am currently attending both at various times. I have done and currently am studying to find which one I feel is most right. The problem I am running into is I agree what some of what one teaches and some of what the other teaches. I have been confused for a while, but I want to do what God wants me to do. Any help you could give would be appreciated. And please show in the Bible. No disrespect, but your words mean nothing with out the bible backing them up. Thanks!

Answer
BLessings and thank you for your question.

This is a hard quesiton to answer for a couple of reasons.  First of all, there are so many different types of Baptist churches.  For instance, my church is Baptist but we are Charismatic, Conservative, Evangelical, but not Fundamental.  Also, there are several different churches that call themselves the "Church of Christ" including: the church of Chirst, the United Church of Christ, and the Church of God in Christ.  If you would like a more detailed answer, then I would need to know what kind of Baptist Church you attend and what type of Church of Christ you attend.

In General, let's talk about baptists:'
In the US, Baptist constitute 27 groupings and their total membership is about 30 million.  Baptist churches are completely independent, yet bound together by an amazing common allegiance to principles and doctrines.  They claim no founder but Christ, and often claim they have been preaching since John the Baptist.  When the Reformation began in the 16th century, scattered Baptist groups in Europe advocated doctrines that eventually united them.  As the left wing of the Reformation, they were called ANA-Baptists ("to baptize again"), because they immersed (dunked) those who had been baptized in infancy.  They held to a literal application of the Bible, were communal and pacifistic, and opposed capital punishment, taking oaths in court, and the holding of public office. They insisted upon the complete separation of church and state.  Undergoing persecution for their then - radical views, they spread all over Europe.  In Holland a group of Mennonites, followers of the former Anabaptist leader Menno Simons, were teaching Anabaptist principles and took in  a group of British refugees undergoing persecution under James I.  One of their leaders, John Smyth, completely accepted the teaching of the Mennonites.  Smyth and his followers were rebaptized, became Anabaptists, and organized the first English Baptist church in 1609.  However, they remained English and refused to take on all the accoutrements of the Mennonites.  As persecution waned, the English Baptists went back across the channel and began a Baptist church in London.  Although they spread, they divided again, this time over the theology of the Atonement.  The General Baptist churches held that Jesus Christ died for everyone, while others held to the teachings of the Particular Baptist church - following the teachings of John Calvin - that salvation was only for those predestined by God.  The first Particular (British) Baptist Church had its beginning in 1638.  A third group, Immersion Baptist, broke away and in 1644 produced a confession of faith that is still in use by many.  For the first time, these Christians were popularly known as Baptists.  In 1631 Roger Williams went to America, and although he was not a Baptist, established a Baptist church at Providence, RI.  In 1814 Baptists organized the General Missionary Convention of the Baptist Denomination in the United States of America for Foreign Missions.  This step marked the first real denominational consciousness and united the Baptists.  They formed a society for publication as well as for missions and education.  In 1845 came the major split.  Southerners seceded from the union over the issue of slavery and state’s rights, and formed the Southern Baptist Convention to carry on the work of their churches.  What was left of the General Missionary Convention formed the Northern Baptist Convention which changed its name to American Baptists Churches USA. The two have remained separated ever since.  Baptists generally agree upon the Bible as the inspired Word of God, the supremacy of Jesus Christ, inherent freedom of individuals to approach God for themselves, salvation by faith through God's grace, two sacraments (called ordinances) of Baptism (adult only immersion) and the Lord's Supper, the independence of the local church, the church as a group of regenerated believers, complete separation of church and state, the immortality of the soul, and the ultimate triumph of God's kingdom.  Because Baptists have had freedom of expression in the pulpit and pew, they are quite democratic.  This means that liberal and conservative doctrines can be preached freely because each church is autonomous.  Local churches license and ordain candidates for the Ministry.

Baptists believe in one and only one living and true God. He is an omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscience, spiritual, and personal being. He is the creator and ruler of the universe.  To God we owe all our heart, mind, soul, and strength.   The Eternal God reveals himself to us as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit with distinct personal attributes.

Baptists Believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God.  Jesus was begotten of the father before all the ages. Because we are sinners and had no hope of salvation, Jesus obediently came from the heaven.  He was made flesh by God through the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary.  Jesus perfectly revealed and did the will of God.  He took upon himself the demands and necessities of human nature without sin.  He honored God in every way.  He was crucified, suffered, and died for us.  Jesus was buried and was resurrection on the third day.  He ascended into heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of God.  He is the mediator, partaking of the nature of God and man.  He will return again in power and glory to judge the world. He now dwells in all believers as the living and ever present Lord.  

Baptists Believe in the Holy Spirit of God. The Holy Spirit exalts Christ, convicts us of sin, fills the believer, and calls us to the Savior.  The Spirit helps us to interpret Scripture and comforts believers.  The Holy Spirit gives us all manner of spiritual gifts to be used in obedience to the Father and service to the church.  The Spirit seals the believer unto the day of final redemption and empowers the believer in worship, gifts, evangelism, prayer, and service to God.

Baptists Believe that the Holy Bible is the word of God that was written by men.  It was divinely inspired (God breathed) and is a record of God’s revelation of Himself to us.  The Bible tells us of the relationship between God and man since creation.  It instructs us on the principles by which God judges us.  The Bible is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in right living, so that we who belong to God may be proficient and equipped for every good work.  The Bible is without error but must always be taken as a whole and in its context.  The Bible is also a tool in which the Holy Spirit can speak to us.

The Church is an institutional instrument of the Lord Jesus Christ.  It is a local body of baptized believers who are associated by covenant in the faith and fellowship of Christ’s Gospel.  The church observes and is committed to the ordinances and teachings of Christ. It should exercise all of the Gifts of the Spirit within the body as the Holy Spirit chooses to give.  The church is an autonomous body which operates through democratic process under Christ’s Lordship.  It has scriptural officers and members who are equally responsible.  The church of Christ also speaks of the whole Body of Christ which includes all redeemed believers throughout the ages.

The First day of the week is the Lord’s day.  It is a scriptural time to worship God.  Worship is a time of Active Celebration of God by those who believe in Him.  Worship is a participatory event not a spectator event.  Worship is Praise, Sacrifice, Celebration, Proclamation, Exaltation, and Thanksgiving to God.  It includes the singing of songs, hymns, and spiritual songs.  It includes giving back to God, humbling ourselves before God, testifying of what God has done, prayer, and hearing the Word of God with direction from the Holy Spirit.


Baptists believe that one day, in God’s own time, Jesus Christ will come again and usher in the end times.  According to Jesus’ promise recorded in scripture, He will return personally and visible in glory to the earth.  The dead in Christ will rise first and all believers will join him in the air.   The unrighteous will be consigned to Hell, the place of everlasting punishment.

Baptists believe it is the duty and privilege of every follower of Christ to make disciples of all peoples.  We are to love one another, just as God loved us when we were unlovable.  The church is to support both individually and communally the missionary effort in our community and through our denomination throughout the world.  It is the duty of every child of God to seek constantly to win the lost to Christ by personal effort and lifestyle.  

Baptists believe that Christ’s people should be organized to cooperate together to further the kingdom of God.  This cooperation should be voluntary and should have no authority over one another or its member churches.  This cooperation should be maintained as long as the larger denomination stands for the same doctrine and purposes of the local church.

Members of the Church should also cooperate with the larger ecumenical body of Christ to elicit, combine, and direct the energies of God’s peoples in the most effective manner.  Christian unity is spiritual harmony and voluntary cooperation for the Kingdom of God without compromise of loyalty to Christ and His word.

Churches of Christ, conservative body of evangelical Protestants in the United States. Its founders were originally members of what is now the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) who gradually withdrew from that body following the Civil War. They objected to the use of musical instruments in the church and to the introduction of new titles and more power for the pastors. They were first listed as a group separate from the Disciples of Christ in the U.S. census of religious bodies of 1906. Each church is entirely self-governing. The Bible, especially the New Testament, is considered its complete and sufficient authority. They have about 1.8 million members (1997) in the United States and Canada.