The first thing I wish to make clear is that Baptists do not teach nor believe that you have to belong to their church to be saved. We do not believe that because we are the oldest church in the world that we hold the keys to the Kingdom of God, and that no one else can preach Jesus.

If you study the history of Baptists you will see at a glance why a Baptist is proud of his heritage. We are not proud in a haughty way, but humbly, because we can go back to the banks of the river Jordan.

After reading this thoroughly there will be no wonder in your mind why we are proud of our heritage, but you will be proud of a group of people, even though you might not be one of us, who made it possible to have today what you now have—RELIGIOUS FREEDOM.

I want you who are Baptists to be able to give an answer for what you are. Ninety per cent of the Baptists are willing to refer to themselves as Protestants. They are ignorant of what Baptists believe and some go so far as to think that the Baptists came from the Roman Catholics.

The church that Jesus built has not always been called a Baptist church. We do know, however, that Jesus built His church while He was here, (Matthew 16:18): "And I say also unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it."

This tells us plainly that the church He built was built while He was on earth and not after He ascended. The point I wish to make clear is that the church Jesus built was not built by the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, but it was empowered on the Day of Pentecost by the Holy Spirit. The people who made up this church that Jesus built

were called, "Christians" (Acts 11:26), "And when he had found him, he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people. And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch."

This name was given to them in mockery by the enemies of Christ at Antioch. The name Baptist was given to us in ridicule and mockery by Pedo-Baptists, opponents of the people who rejected the baptism of babies. A Pedo-Baptist is one who advocates infant baptism. This group of people began under Constantine the Great in 300 A.D. They are not Baptists, but are infant baptizers.

Now we come to a most interesting discovery. Out of the seven hundred some odd isms and beliefs in the world, for everyone you can find the date and the name of their human founder. For instance: Martin Luther founded the Lutheran Church; Henry VIII founded the Episcopal Church; John Wesley founded the Methodist, although he never left the Church of England; John Calvin founded the Presbyterian; Alexander Campbell founded the Disciples, out of which came the Church of Christ and the Christian Church; William Miller founded the Advents, out of which came the Seventh Day Advents, Seventh Day Baptists and the Church of God. On and on we could go.

Now I shall make a startling statement. There is no personality this side of Jesus Christ who is a satisfactory explanation of Baptists. We originated, not at the Reformation, nor in the Dark Ages, nor in any century after the Apostles. It was a group of Baptists who stood with Christ on Mt. Olivet and received their marching orders, "Go into all the world and make disciples." The church in Jerusalem was a Baptist church. Here is a question to be answered, "Is there a personality this side of Jesus Christ who is a satisfactory explanation of Baptists?" If so, give me the name of the founder of the Baptist and the date they were founded and have three historians agree with you, one a Catholic, one a Protestant and one an infidel.

Let us examine the church that Jesus built. First, the New Testament church held to the fact that no one could become a member of it except by baptism (immersion) and that only after they had accepted Christ as their personal Savior (Acts 2:41; 8:12,36-37).

"Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls . . . But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women . . . And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, see, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God."

Second, the New Testament churches were independent churches. They were not told by any other church what they could do. They were directed by the Holy Spirit and the Word of God.

Third, these churches rendered absolute Lordship to Christ. There were no presiding elders, no priests, no pope, no cardinals to lord it over them.

Fourth, they were characterized by the observance of two ordinances: Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. They were merely pictures picturing: BAPTISM—the death, burial and resurrection of Christ; and the LORD’S SUPPER— portraying His death until He comes.

As to the marks of the New Testament church: Let us first define it. It is a local visible body of born-again believers who have been immersed in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and have banded themselves together under the leadership of the Holy Spirit to carry on a visible work and to produce visible results.

I. Where is this visible body of born-again believers located today? Wherever you find a church bearing the marks of the New Testament church. What are these marks and characteristics?

1. The New Testament church acknowledges Christ as the head (Eph. 5:23), "For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the savior of the body."

2. It relies on His atoning sacrifice and resurrection for justification (Rom. 5:11; 1:4), "And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement . . . For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established."

3. It depends on the Holy Spirit for sanctification and leadership (Rom. 15:16; John 16:13), "That I should be the minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, ministering the gospel of God, that the offering up of the Gentiles might be acceptable, being sanctified by the Holy Spirit . . .

Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come."

4. It is a church united in belief of the Gospel, and that Gospel is centered in Christ only (Acts 4:12), "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved."

5. It is a church meeting together for worship.

6. It is a missionary church. "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen" (Matthew 28:19,20).

II. Let us examine thoroughly these marks.

1. Christ, the head of’ the New Testament church. "And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him that filleth all in all" (Eph. 1:22,23). We find here four things: (1) Christ, the head of the church; (2) Christ to be head over all things to the church; (3) The church is the body; (4) As His body the church expresses His completion of His fullness. Now since Christ is the head of the church which means that He is the ruler -that would exclude anyone else. For example, the pope who sits in Rome says that he is the head of the church and that he is Christ’s representative here on earth. Now, if we turn to the Scriptures we know that the only representative that Christ has on earth is the Holy Spirit. When Jesus ascended He promised that if they would go to Jerusalem and pray, that they would receive the Comforter. On the day of Pentecost the Holy Spirit came down upon the whole body of believers, and He is the only representative that Jesus has on this earth today. So this kills the idea of the pope of Rome being the head of the church. The only head of the local church that Jesus built is Christ Himself.

2. The New Testament church relies on the atoning sacrifice of Christ and His resurrection for justification. As we studied in Rom. 5:11 and 1:4, the New Testament church does not depend upon (1) Salvation by works; (2) Salvation by baptism; (3) Salvation by church membership; (4) Salvation by observance of the Lord’s Supper. The New Testament church depends entirely upon the blood of Jesus Christ to wash away the sins of a lost person, and His resurrection for justification.

3. The New Testament church depends upon the Holy Spirit for sanctification, leadership and regeneration. (1) Now, when a soul comes to Christ, he is regenerated by the Holy Spirit, "The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit," (John 3:8). (2) That soul is also sanctified by the Holy Spirit, Rom. 15:16. (3) That soul is led by the Holy Spirit John 16:13.

The Holy Spirit is the administrator of the church that Jesus built. The administration is not delegated into the hands of any group of individuals or anyone of human origin. The only administrator the New Testament church acknowledges is the one that Jesus sent to take His place on earth, namely, the Holy Spirit.

4. There was NOT sprinkling. Sprinkling did not come until 1311 A.D.

5. There was NOT open communion. There was only one church and that was the New Testament church that observed communion with Christ and they were baptized born-again believers who bore all the marks of the New Testament church as mentioned. They did not invite the Pharisees nor the Sadducees nor the other members of the temple to come in, even though those members said they believed in God.

6. There was NOT an episcopal form of organization. There was no one at the head of that church who was a king or who held any temporal power.

7. There was NOT celibacy among the preachers. That means, the preachers of the New Testament church married. We have the records of where Jesus went in and healed the mother of Simon Peter’s wife of a fever, "And when Jesus was come into Peter’s house, he saw his wife’s mother laid, and sick of a fever" (Matt. 8:14).

8. There was NOT priestly confession. The only confession that a child of God makes is to God in the name of Christ. We read that in First John 1:9: "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

9. There was NOT a pope, bishop, or ruling elder. There were bishops in the sense that pastors were called bishops, but not in the sense as used among Protestants today.

ARE THERE NEW TESTAMENT CHURCHES IN THE WORLD TODAY? Certainly! Christ said, "On this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18). Now, if He said that, that church is still here.

HOW ARE THEY TO BE FOUND? Two ways: (1) Is there a denomination in the world today without human origin? (2) Is there a denomination in the world today with the same characteristics as the New Testament church? The only churches in the world today without human origins are Baptist churches. All others are identified.

It is of more importance to identify our churches today with those of the first century than it is to trace the history through the centuries.

There are millions of Baptists in the world. What makes them so strong? Because they are the freest denomination in all this world. Our heritage places a great responsibility upon us.

We must live our life so that we shall not bring dishonor on the name that stands as the symbol of freedom, Christ and New Testament truth. We must not stand by with silence when we see other Baptists bringing reproach upon that heritage, and do nothing about it. Even though a Baptist church is a local governing body of its own and is not ruled over by anyone except the majority of its own members, when one deviates from the teachings of the New Testament we should look upon it as having left the teachings, beliefs and heritage of Baptists, even though it may bear the name.

We have survived since the days of Christ because we have been true to the Word of God. For these 1900 years we have been carrying out the Great Commission we accepted from Jesus on Mt. Olivet.

As long as we remain true to the New Testament and faithfully carry out the work which Christ outlined for us, we can rest assured that "The gates of hell can not prevail against us."

When one of these churches ceases to do that which Christ has commanded, it will become the symbol of power and evangelism that is past, and be a picture of spiritual depravity and filled with demon possessed leaders proclaiming a Social Gospel and meaning no more to the lives of the people they contact than does Jesus mean to a hottentot.

May God help us to stand true to the Word of God and not go around with head held high in pride because we are Baptists, but may we go around humbly with bowed heads before God, praying that we shall ever hold high the standards of Christ and the Gospel which we were commanded to carry around the world, a Gospel centered in One Person - JESUS CHRIST.