Biblical Foundations for Baptist Churches - A Review

A quick internet search for churches in your area will likely reveal a wide range of options. Anglican, Roman Catholic, Baptist, non-denominational, Pentecostal, Church of Christ, Presbyterian, and the list goes on. To many Christians, the main questions about these churches are based on a consumeristic mindset: Do they have a youth group for my kids? Will I like the music? How long does the pastor preach? Do the sermons advocate my preferred political views?

It’s not wrong to ask questions about music and ministries, but when these become the primary item of concern rather than the doctrine of the church, it reflects a poverty of discipleship.

A more significant question for church members should be whether the doctrine of the church is consistent with Scripture and whether that doctrine is reflected in the practice and the structures of the church. While Scripture says nothing about a children’s ministry (beyond the call for parents to disciple their children), it does talk about the nature and meaning of baptism and the Lord’s Supper, the Bible does talk about the need for engaging in a local body of believers, and of the proper characteristics of church leaders.

Unfortunately, the core questions about whether or not a local congregation fulfills the scriptural instructions for a local congregation are often considered well after questions of personal preference.

John Hammett’s book, Biblical Foundations for Baptist Churches: A Contemporary Ecclesiology, addresses the primary questions of local churches in general from a specifically Baptist position. The first edition of the volume was published in 2005, with a second edition released in 2019.

Summary

This is a book written for Baptists from a baptistic perspective, but this is a volume that could be helpful for many Christians thinking through Scripture’s teaching on the nature and structure of the church. Hammett begins by asking about the nature of the church. He explores the term ekklesia as it is used in Scripture, how the church was understood through church history (especially with the one, holy, apostolic structure of the creeds) and what that means about the place of local congregations in the life of a believer. He then moves into discussions about the proper members of churches, with a call to return to meaningful church membership, with the practice of discipline, catechism, and a focus on ensuring that the Church is a Christian organization.

Having addressed these more basic questions, Hammett takes up the practical questions of the structure of church government. He argues for congregational rule, the possibility (but not necessity) of plurality of elders, and the importance of deacons as servants within the church rather than as an executive board. Regenerate church members who are truly committed to the local body as a family, rather than as a consumer outlet, are needed to make these structures possible.

Hammett also explores the ministries of the church, which he treats under the headings of teaching, fellowship, worship, service and evangelism. Rather than make biblicist arguments about which ministries are mentioned in Scripture and, in the mind of some, allowable, Hammett considers how the church can fulfill her purpose through specific activities and structures. This section also explores the practice and meaning of both baptism and the Lord’s Supper, which can be contentious issues even within baptistic traditions.

The book closes by considering contemporary issues. This is one of the sections that changed the most between the first and second edition. The emerging church was a bigger issue in 2005, while multi-site churches, the popularity of charismatic theologies, and the adoption of the sexual revolution tend to be bigger concerns in 2019. Hammett also picks up the question of the rapid growth of the global Church, which draws out questions of contextualization, both for those in the West and for those in the global South.

Analysis

The first edition of this book has been a standard reference in many Baptist circles, particularly in the SBC, for the past decade or so. There are no major corrections from the first edition, but the updates in the second edition make it worth purchasing. Hammett has meaningfully addressed many of the debates that have been ongoing since the first edition was released. This is reflected in the notes and bibliography, as well.

This is a book written from a baptistic perspective. It is not particularly polemical, but it is written for an audience of baptistic believers. As a result, a confirmed Presbyterian is unlikely to have his mind changed by Hammett’s book alone. On the other hand, Biblical Foundations for Baptist Churches does honestly engage with the arguments of other denominations to show why, in Hammett’s estimation, the baptistic positions are correct on church practice. This book obviously cannot deal with all arguments comprehensively, but it does seek to fairly represent different practices and makes the case for certain practices that are common among many Baptists throughout history based on biblical principles.

Readers should appreciate Hammett’s even-handedness. The author is not a polemicist. He is trying to convince, obviously, but he does so by careful argumentation and gentle reasoning. In places where there are multiple valid options, Hammett notes that Scripture is not explicit, though he may mention benefits for one direction or another. Biblical Foundations for Baptist Churches is an example of the best forms of argumentation and fair treatment of differing opinions.

Biblical Foundations for Baptist Churches should be required reading for members of pastoral search committees, ministry leaders, deacons, and those seeking to head toward ministry in a Baptist church. It is written in language that is accessible to the average person, so this would be a useful tool for a group study in a local congregation seeking to strengthen its adherence to biblical models for church structures. There is enough difference between the first and second editions, that it would be worthwhile for church leaders to invest in an updated copy, but the positions are essentially the same. This book should be in the church library or on the book table of every Baptist church.

Biblical Foundations for Baptist Churches: A Contemporary Ecclesiology

By Hammett, John S.

Buy on Amazon

NOTE: I received a gratis copy of this volume from the publisher with no expectation of a positive review.

Revitalize: A Book for Every Church Leader

While I was working on my MDiv, I was regularly surprised by the lack of men who were eager to become pastors in the local church. Even in my seminary classes, most of my fellow students were more eager to lead worship, work in parachurch ministries, or lead a youth group than to be the senior pastor of a church. Among those that actively desired to be pastors, most either wanted to get called by a healthy, growing church or plant their own.

The one job no one ever expressed any interest in was taking a position at a dying church and attempting to revitalize it. Much better, most argued, to let the sick churches die and plant new ones. This idea was supported by the real statistic that church plants tend to be more effective at reaching the lost. On the other hand, other statistics argue in favor of revitalization: billions of dollars in buildings and other assets simply waiting to be sold off when the last member of a dying church kicks the bucket and millions of people, many spiritually dead, sitting in the pews of those buildings thinking their meager giving and occasional participation in church life count for something with God.

Had it not been for the time I spent at FBC Durham under the supervision of Andy Davis, I might have ended up in the same boat. However, instead of rejecting the idea of church revitalization, I heard his story of God’s renewal of FBC Durham and met many who had walked with Davis through the process. It is that experience and vision for the renewal of a once-healthy local church that invigorates this recent volume from Baker Books.

Summary

Revitalize is divided into seventeen chapters. Each brief chapter focuses on a particular element of a holistic vision of church revitalization with bulleted points of practical advice related to the contents of the chapter. The first chapter emphasizes Christ’s zeal for revitalizing his church; this is not simply a quixotic mission of a man on a reclamation effort. Davis opens up with an overview of the book, which introduces each of the remaining chapters. Chapter Two continues on the introductory vein, outlining the nature of a healthy church, justification for revitalization, and the signs a church needs revitalized.

Chapter Three begins the practical portion of the volume. Davis exhorts his readers to embrace Christ’s ownership of the church; the church does not belong to the pastor or the congregation.  This attitude makes the rest of the volume possible. In the fourth chapter, Davis emphasizes the need for personal holiness and a proper view of the holiness of God. Chapter Five calls the pastor to find strength in God, not to attempt to win a victory through self-effort. The sixth chapter underscores the need to depend on Scripture for church renewal rather than a mysterious cocktail of programs.

In Chapter Seven Davis highlights the centrality of personal and congregational prayer to turn a church around. The eighth chapter explains the need for a clear vision of what a revitalized church should look like. Chapter Nine makes a case for personal humility in dealing with opponents of revitalization; Davis is clear that a proud pastor may win the battle, but miss the point in reclaiming a church. The tenth chapter calls the pastor to be courageous, even as he is humble. Patience is also a necessary virtue, as Davis notes in Chapter Eleven, so that significant capital is not spend making minor changes to the detriment of the greater revitalization project.

In the twelfth chapter Davis provides some advice on how to discern between big issues and little issues, which is essential if patience is to avoid becoming tolerance of evil. Chapter Thirteen exhorts the reader to fight discouragement, which is a real possibility in the face of human and satanic resistance.  The fourteenth chapter surveys the need to raise up additional men as leaders in the church to assist in the revitalization process and move the church forward in the future. Chapter Fifteen encourages the revitalizing pastor to be flexible with worship, but also to help keep the church up to date. In the sixteenth chapter, Davis hits one of his favorite topics, the two infinite journeys, which refers to inward holiness and outward obedience, both being markers of spiritual maturity. Chapter Seventeen is a brief conclusion pointing to the eventual renewal of all things, of which local church revitalization is a part.

Analysis and Conclusion

Every church needs revitalization, so this is a book for every pastor and church leader. The steps Davis outlines to help bring back a church to health are the ones every local congregation needs to do to stay healthy. This is the sort of well-reasoned, thoughtful volume that every aspiring pastor ought to read.

Davis strikes the right balance between recounting his own experience, drawing out important truths from Scripture, and providing practical steps. Church revitalization is not method-driven, it is Scripture driven. However, there are certain methods that will lend themselves to a higher probability of success.

Above all, this volume is an encouragement for the pastor or leadership team of the local church. Over and over Davis reminds his readers that a church that rejects Scripture is not rejecting the pastor, but God himself. None of this work can be done apart from the special work of God. These refrains run through the pages of Revitalize, exhorting the reader to continue striving in Christ and trusting in the work God is doing without becoming discouraged. Davis himself stands as evidence there is hope on the other side.

Revitalize: Biblical Keys to Helping Your Church Come Alive Again

$9.51

By Andrew M. Davis

Buy on Amazon

Note: I was provided a gratis copy of this volume by the publisher with no expectation of a positive review.