Independent Baptist

Independent Baptist churches (also referred to as Independent Fundamental Baptist, or IFB) are Christian churches holding to generally Baptist beliefs. Like all Baptists they are characterized by being independent from the authority of denominations and church councils. However, the reason for the distinction, "independent," is that they eschew even the Baptist conventions or associations in which other Baptist churches participate (although many Independent Baptist churches do belong to fellowships). They remain autonomous and congregationalist in nature and are generally fundamentalist in teaching. The IFB movement is not a denomination per se, but there are similarities that run throughout most Independent Baptist churches.

History

The term Independent Baptist was applied to these unaffiliated churches in the late 1800s and early 1900s when national Baptist denominations and conventions in the United States and England started modernising and liberalising. Perceived weakening beliefs in these denominations about core Christian doctrines such as the infallibility of the Bible, the nature of God and Jesus, and separation from worldliness caused the more conservative local churches to react by separating from these denominations. Some joined new denominations that were more conservative in their beliefs while others did not join any particular denomination and remained "independent". These local churches often set about establishing other Independent Baptist churches.

King James Bible

Many Independent Baptist churches support exclusive use of Bible translations based on the Textus Receptus (Received Text) Greek New Testament and the Masoretic (but non Biblia Hebraica or Leningrad Text) Hebrew Old Testament. These translations include the Authorized King James Version (KJV) in English and the Reina-Valera 1909 Version in Spanish due to the belief that newer Bible versions have various problems in text and translation.

See also: King-James-Only Movement

Beliefs

Independent Baptist churches are very conservative in their beliefs and styles of worship. They tend to reject many things found in many denominational churches because they believe in the doctrine of separation; based on the command to "be ye separate." They often exclude many of the following (the list is not all-inclusive, and depends on the group involved):

• rock and roll and other forms of modern music, including contemporary Christian music,
• certain contemporary dress styles such as pants on women or long hair and earrings on men (In Deuteronomy it shows where men are not to wear the apparel of women and vice versa).
• visiting movie theaters,
• drinking of alcohol,
• use of tobacco,
• sex outside of marriage between one man and one woman, such as pre-marital sex, extra-marital sex, and homosexuality (In Romans Chapter 1 it states homesexuality is not natural and is an abomination), and
• abortion (in some (rare) cases, all forms of birth control are opposed).

They tend also to support conservative American politics, with one notable exception—the general consensus opposes school vouchers, on the basis that such vouchers, if accepted by church-operated schools, would allow the government a "foothold" into the teachings and practices of the individual church and give it authority to dictate what could and could not be taught.

Outreach

Many Independent Baptist churches have very organized outreach ministries such as weekly "soul winning," in which groups go and evangelize areas surrounding the church building. Many churches will also have “bus ministries”, in which volunteers drive church buses or vans to surrounding areas to bring people (mostly children) to the church's services. A few still practice "street preaching," the open-air preaching of the Gospel in a public setting such as a park or street corner, though this is very rare. Like many other types of churches, Independent Baptist churches often have prison ministries and send missions or evangelists to other parts of the country or to other countries to start more local churches. [This is done in accordance with Matthew 28 verses 19 & 20. "19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen."]

Many churches start and maintain their own bible colleges. These colleges are usually unaccredited and rely heavily on an "apprentice" approach to education, rather than extensive formal training in ancient languages of the Bible, systematic theology, and hermeneutics.

Current developments

In the early 1990's, several prominent Independent Baptist works found themselves caught up in a series of scandals which affected member morale as well as public perception of their ministry methods. Sexual scandal, public criminal trials of pastors, deacons, and church workers indicted for sexual crimes, financial impropriety, and domestic/child abuse, all increased divisions, accusations, and counter-accusations within the movement. Additionally, controversy over use of the King James Version of the Bible has created deep schism. Most recently, the rise of Calvinism in what had been a predominantly Dispensationalist and semi-Arminian religious movement has prompted some IFB church members to resort to denominations such as the Southern Baptist Convention for a more stable church environment.

In the last ten years reformers from within the IFB movement have turned to writing memoirs and exposés of abuse, exploitation, and manipulation within local churches. The outstanding issues that members and former members have identified as culprits in abusive IFB churches are sole eldership, in which the pastor has all authority; lack of accountability of the pastor to any board of colleagues; inadequate education of men in the ministry; and misinterpretation of Scripture.

Colleges and institutes

Ambassador Baptist College, Lattimore, North Carolina – [1] Arlington Baptist College, Arlington, Texas – [2] Atlantic Baptist Bible College, Chester, Virginia - [3] Baptist College of America, Kokomo, Indiana – [4] Biblical School of World Evangelism, Milford, Ohio - [5] Bob Jones University, Greenville, South Carolina - [6] Boston Baptist College, Boston, Massachusetts - [7] Calvary Baptist Bible College, Carolina, Puerto Rico - [8] Chesapeake Baptist College, Severn, Maryland – [9] Champion Baptist College, Hot Springs, Arkansas – [10] Commonwealth Baptist College, Lexington, Kentucky - [11] Crown College, Powell, Tennessee – [12] Fairhaven Baptist College, Chesterton, Indiana – [13] Faithway Baptist College, Ajax, Ontario – [14] Genesee Valley Baptist Institute and Seminary, Penfield, New York - [15] Golden State Baptist College, Santa Clara, California – [16] Grace Baptist College, Gaylord, Michigan – [17] Heartland Baptist Bible College, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma - [18] Hyles-Anderson College, Lake County, Indiana – [19] Illinois Baptist College, Washington, Illinois - [20] Independent Baptist College, Fort Worth, Texas – [21]

Indiana Baptist College, Greenwood, Indiana – [22] International Baptist College, Tempe, Arizona - [23] Landmark Baptist College, Haines City, Florida – [24] Maranatha Baptist Bible College, Watertown, Wisconsin – [25] Maryland Baptist Bible College, Elkton, Maryland – [26] Massillon Baptist College, Massillon, Ohio – [27] Midwestern Baptist College, Pontiac, Michigan – [28] Northland Baptist Bible College, Dunbar, Wisconsin - [29] Oklahoma Baptist College, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma - [30] Pensacola Christian College, Pensacola, Florida - [31] Piedmont Baptist College, Winston-Salem, North Carolina – [32] Providence Baptist College, Elgin, Illinois – [33] Puerto Rico Baptist College, Bayamón, Puerto Rico - [34] Shawnee Baptist College, Louisville, Kentucky – [35] Tabernacle Baptist College, Greenville, South Carolina – [36] Tennessee Temple University, Chattanooga, Tennessee – [37] Texas Baptist College, Longview, Texas – [38] Trinity Baptist College, Jacksonville, Florida – [39] Tri-State Baptist College, Walls, Mississippi (near Memphis) – [40] Victory Baptist College, North Augusta, South Carolina – [41] West Coast Baptist College, Lancaster, California -[42]

External links

• Why Be a Baptist - historical and doctrinal information on Independent Baptists
• A Brief Survey Of Independent Fundamental Baptist Churches - by Cooper Abrams
• Plains Baptist Challenger - an independent Baptist periodical
• The Sword of the Lord - an independent Baptist publication
• BIMI, an Independent Baptist mission board
• IFB 1000 (List of the top Independent Baptist websites)
• Independent Baptist Articles
• The Case For Independent Baptist Churches from pbministries.org
• iFBPreaching.com IFB Mp3 Sermons for FREE Download
• Fundamental Baptist Churches - What They are and What is Their History
• Born2Serve Ministries - an IFB Ministry