Expert: Cooper P. Abrams III - 11/17/2004

Question
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Followup To
Question -
What are the major differences and likenesses of southern baptists as compared to independent baptists?
Answer -
Hi Sherry,
    I am extremely busy now and will be for a few days...would it be okay if I responded to your question around Tuesday....?  Lots of difficulties here including my son's home burnt down.....
    Thanks for your patience.
Cooper Abrams

Answer
Hi Sherry,
   Thanks for your patience and for your good question.  I hope the following with be helpful.

What are the main differences between Southern and Independent Baptists?

  1. Independent Baptists do not have a national headquarters or convention.  Each Independent Baptist church governs itself following the New Testament example of church polity and has no outside authority over it.   They fellowship with other Independent Baptist churches but have no formal associations or conventions. Each Independent Baptist church is an autonomous body.   

  Southern Baptist are members of the national Southern Baptist Convention  which publishes their literature, runs their collective missions program, and sets recommended positions on doctrinal issues and other matters for their churches.   They also are members of a State SBC as well as local SBC Associations.  Their position is that they are autonomous churches, however they tend to follow the positions established in their Conventions and delegate their missions programs outside of their local congregation.

  2. Independent Baptists by congregational rule handle its own financial affairs including its support of missions.  
  Southern Baptists are expected to send a percentage of its income to the Cooperative Program and support of this program is a basis for fellowship.

  3. Most Independent Baptists consider themselves to be fundamentalists, whereas Southern Baptist tend to be evangelicals or conservatives.         

  4. Each Independent Baptist church directs its own missions program and has a direct involvement with the missionaries its supports.    A missionary will visit the church and present his field and calling.  This is called “deputation.”  The church them prays and if led of the Lord will support that missionary monthly for a certainly amount.   The money is sent to the sending church or missions board of the missionary and generally from 90-100% goes to the missionary.  Mission boards seen as supporting organizations are supported by various churches directly.      Missionaries are not “sent” by mission boards, but rather by their local church.   Independent Baptists missionaries send regular,  mostly bi-monthly,  newsletters to each of their supporting churches keeping them informed of their progress and needs and personally reports to the church about ever four years.   There is a growing number of missionaries whose local church is not only their sending agency, but their mission board also.   

  Southern Baptists, through their state and national Cooperative Programs delegate their missions responsibility to their convention's missions boards.   They send in a percentage of their income to the Cooperative Program which runs a huge organization, with sends and supports their missionaries.    The local church's only involvement in missions is in sending in the funds and their only contact with missionaries is through their literature and occasional missions conferences.    In reality the local SBC church has little or no input into what their missionaries or their missions boards do with their money.    Approximately 80% of the funds sent to the Cooperative program goes to administrative costs of the Convention leaving only 20% spent on actual missions.     This compares with the 90-100% of missions monies of Independent church which goes directly to missions.     

  5.  In the past several decades Southern Baptist churches have moved increasing towards liberalism.    This translates into the unbiblical practice of having women deacons and pastors, ecumenicalism, contemporary music, worldliness and a lack of biblical separation.

  Most Independent Baptists have remained biblical in these areas rejecting these practices as being unscriptural.   It most be said however, that there are few Independent churches that are moving in direction the Southern Baptists have taken.

  The basic difference is that as fundamentalists,  most Independent Baptist churches strictly adhere to the teachings of the New Testament in their faith and practice and remain separated from liberalism, ecumenicalism and worldliness.    

  It should be stated that there are many biblically sound SBC churches who seek to honor and serve the Lord, but they are becoming the minority within their Convention.

  FYI:   I was raised, saved, and call to preach in SBC churches.   However, I decided that because of the many liberal and unbiblical practices I personally saw, that I would leave and I became an Independent Baptist.

    If you have further questions or comments please write.
Cooper Abrams
http://bible-truth.org