Independent Baptist

Independent Baptist churches (also called Independent Fundamental Baptists or IFB) are Christian congregations that generally hold to fundamentalist or conservative views of Evangelical Christianity and Baptist beliefs, such as believer's baptism, individual soul liberty and the priesthood of all believers.

The Crowne Center at Pensacola Christian College in Pensacola, Florida, an Independent Baptist institution

The term “independent” refers to the doctrinal position of church autonomy and a refusal to join any affiliated Baptist denominations or non-Baptist association, though they usually maintain some sort of fellowship with like-minded churches. As Fundamentalists, these churches are strongly opposed to the ecumenical movement.

Around 3% of the United States adult population belongs to the Independent Baptist movement, half of whom live in the Southern United States.^[1]

History

Further information: Baptists

The modern Independent Baptist movement began in the early 20th century among local Baptist congregations whose members were concerned about the advancement of modernism or theological liberalism into national Baptist denominations in the United States.^[2][3] In response to the concerns, some local Baptist churches separated from their former denominations and re-established their congregations as independent churches. In other cases, the more conservative members of existing churches withdrew from their local congregations and established new independent Baptist churches.^[4] However, earlier churches such as the Metropolitan Tabernacle led by Charles Spurgeon (1834 – 1892) have been also associated with Independent Baptists, as they separated from the British Baptist Union to become a self standing church due to holding more conservative beliefs than the Union.^[5][6]

In the 1930s, Norris organized a group of independent, premillennial Baptist churches into the Premillennial Missionary Baptist Fellowship (later the World Baptist Fellowship)

The World Baptist Fellowship (originally the Premillennial Missionary Baptist Fellowship) is a fundamentalist Independent Baptist organization founded by J. Frank Norris (1877-1952) in Fort Worth, Texas in 1933 based on the idea of a fellowship consisting of independent, premillennial Baptist churches. This was done to combat what he saw as the "modernist" influences within the Southern Baptist Convention. After however a graduate of his seminary, John Birch was shot by Chinese Communists, he began very strongly to preach against Communist influences in the United States, and later urged the United States president Harry Truman to recognize the state of Israel. Later however, major divisions were created within his organization in 1950, leading to a rival group of Independent Baptists led by Beauchamp Vick in Springfield, Missouri.^[7]

Other Independent Baptist organizations that were founded include the General Association of Regular Baptist Churches in 1932 (became independent in 1934), which separated from the Northern Baptist Convention, the Baptist Bible Fellowship International in 1950, the Southwide Baptist Fellowship in 1956, the Fundamental Baptist Fellowship International in 1967, the Independent Baptist Fellowship International in 1984, and the Independent Baptist Fellowship of North America in 1990. Various independent Baptist Bible colleges were also founded.^{[8][9][10][11]} Such organizations were also born outside the United States, notably the Association of Fundamental Baptist Churches in the Philippines.^[12]

In 1934, the major Independent newspaper Sword of the Lord was funded by John R. Rice, who edited the publication until his death on December 29, 1980. At first it was simply the four-page paper of Fundamentalist (later, Galilean) Baptist Church of Dallas, where Rice was the pastor. The paper was handed out on the street, and Rice's daughters and other Sunday school children delivered it door-to-door.^[13] The chief editor of newspaper after Rice's death became Curtis Hutson,^[14] which has been highly controversial among Independent Baptists, as he held to a Free Grace view of salvation, believing that repentance is simply a synonym for belief in Christ. Some Independent Baptists believe that Curtis Hutson changed the original stances of the newspaper held by John R. Rice, while the current chief editor Shelton Smith argued that John R. Rice did not disagree with the soteriological views of Curtis Hutson.^[15][16]

In 1959, Jack Hyles became the pastor of First Baptist Church of Hammond, which became the largest Independent Baptist church of the 20th century. When he arrived, the church had a membership of about seven hundred, many from affluent backgrounds. About a third of the members left the church after hearing Hyles' preaching style, which was very different from that to which they had been accustomed. Hyles then led the church to its status as an independent Baptist church—freeing it from its ties with the American Baptists. Hyles started his bus ministry and soon shepherded the church from a congregation of several hundred to more than 20,000. In the early 1990s a national survey ranked First Baptist as the largest church in the nation, by average weekly attendance figures.^[17][18]

Within the within the 21st century, some Independent Baptists voices have noticed a shift within some younger Independent Baptists, particularly in their approach to separatism and their approach to theology.^[19] Paul Chappell notes that especially Independent Baptists from the Generation Y tend to emphasize theological knowledge and avoid the more rigid forms of the doctrine of separation.^[20] Although at the same time, the very radical New Independent Fundamental Baptist (New IFB) movement emerged out of the Independent Baptist movement, founded by Steven Anderson, who gained prominence online. However, mainstream Independent Baptist leaders have criticized the New IFB for its doctrinal positions, many of which are rejected by the broader Independent Baptist community today.^[21]

Beliefs

Denominational beliefs are strictly Baptist. As Christian fundamentalists, they believe in the inspiration and inerrancy of the Bible, and great emphasis is also placed on a literal-historical interpretation of scripture. Other common beliefs include separation of church and state, young Earth creationism, cessationism, and dispensationalism,^[22][23][24] and opposition to theological liberalism, ecumenism, Catholicism, the Charismatic movement, the ordination of women pastors, homosexuality, and evolution.^[25][26]

Fundamentalism

As Christian Fundamentalists, Independent Baptists are opposed both to Liberal Christianity and Neo-Evangelicalism (which is particularly associated with Billy Graham). Independent Baptists believe that Neo-Evangelicalism errs by failing to practice separation sufficiently, rejecting its perceived Ecumenical attitudes in some modern Evangelical circles.^[27]

King James Onlyism

The title page to the 1611 first edition of the authorized version of the Bible. Independent Baptists generally believe in different forms of King James Onlyism

Many Independent Baptist churches adhere to only using the King James Version of the Bible, a position known as “King James Onlyism”.^[28][29] The Independent Baptist David Cloud, drawing on the arguments of Edward Hills, asserts that the King James Version should not be viewed simply as a translation of the Greek and Hebrew texts. Instead, he regards it as an independent edition of the Textus Receptus itself, rendered in English rather than Greek, and providentially preserved as the purest form of the Textus Receptus.^[30] The King James Only position was also advocated by notable Independent Baptist pastors such as Jack Hyles and Lester Roloff, who maintained that the King James Bible has perfectly preserved the Word of God.^[31][32][33] Similarly, Jack Chick, who was best known for his comic tracts, also advocated a King James Only position.^[34] A more extreme form of King James Onlyism was developed by Peter Ruckman, who argued that the KJV constitutes "new revelation" or “advanced revelation” and superior to the original Greek and Hebrew manuscripts.^[35] However, some Independent Baptists like John R. Rice, Curtis Hutson, Lee Roberson, R. L. Hymers Jr., and others took a more moderate position in arguing that although the King James Bible is preferable to most modern translations because of its manuscript tradition, it is not inspired and should not be considered perfect.^[36][37]

Independent Baptists who tolerate newer versions accept that there are disagreements on textual issues but feel that the most important issue is what the KJV translators themselves fought for, that the common man should have the Bible in his common language.^{[37][38][39][40][41]}

Among Independent Baptist institutions which rejects King James Onlyism is Detroit Baptist Theological Seminary. The institution treats the original manuscripts of the Bible as the inerrant Word of God,^[42] a position that places it in opposition to the King-James-Only Movement. King-James-Only adherents have criticized DBTS (together with Bob Jones University and other institutions, including Central Baptist Theological Seminary) for playing an influential role in convincing some Independent Baptist groups to adopt modern Bible translations.^{[43][44][45][46]}

Soteriology

Soteriologically, Independent Baptists overwhelmingly believe in salvation by grace through faith alone and eternal security, but they may differ slightly from each other on other positions. Some align with Free Grace theology, such as Jack Hyles,^[47] Curtis Hutson,^[48] Ernest Pickering,^[49] Shelton Smith,^[50] and Peter Ruckman.^[51] Others, including R. L. Hymers Jr.^[52] and David Cloud,^[53] believe true repentance is abandoning sins and that salvation changes how a person lives, however, they reject requiring a lost sinner to make Jesus Christ “Lord” of their entire life. There are also some Independent Baptists who espouse Lordship salvation and a few may even embrace moderate Calvinistic views.^[54] Independent Baptists often emphasize the distinction between law and gospel, a concept famously illustrated in Lester Roloff's sermon, "Dr. Law and Dr. Grace." In this sermon, Roloff described the law as revealing humanity's sins and exposing their inability to attain righteousness through their own works. This understanding, he explained, serves to guide individuals toward grace, where they can find forgiveness and redemption.^[55]

The Mercy Seat, illustration from the 1890 Holman Bible. Independent Baptists often believe that Jesus took his blood to a heavenly mercy seat.

Most Independent Baptists strongly believe that the literal shedding of blood on the cross was a central part of Christ’s atoning work, rejecting the view that the Biblical references to blood are intended as metaphors for death and instead emphasize the literal and physical aspect. Many also teach that after his resurrection, Jesus presented his blood on the heavenly mercy seat, often considering the literal blood of Christ as the object of faith for salvation in the New Testament.^{[56][57][58][59]} This position is in direct contrast to the position mostly associated with Robert Thieme (1918 – 2009), who rejected the bleeding of Christ as a part of the propitiation, and John F. MacArthur has also stated similar views.^[57]: 261 Independent Baptists such as Hymers Jr. have emphasized that due to the unity of the person of Christ in his two natures, the blood of Jesus can also be called the blood of God.^[60]

Some Independent Baptists adhere to the Sinner’s prayer, which is a prayer of confession to God by an unbeliever who has the desire to be saved, and they see reciting such a prayer as the moment defining one’s salvation. However, others such as David Cloud have criticized the sinner’s prayer as leading to inauthentic conversions and calling it “quick prayerism”.^[61] The claim that prayer is necessary to be saved was also critiqued by Jack Hyles in a sermon named 'Fundamentalist Heresy'.^[62]

Independent Baptists tend to reject atonement theories such as the governmental theory and the moral influence theory, but instead believe that Jesus' substitutionary bloody death paid the penalty of sin.^{[57]: 254-261}

Doctrine of separation

Further information: Doctrine of separation

Independent Baptists usually believe that members of a church should be separate from worldliness or “the world” and not have association with those who are “of the world” (unbelievers),^[63] however, different Independent Baptists vary in what to them constitutes separation in specific areas.^[64]

Service at Iloilo Baptist Church, Iloilo City, Philippines.

Additionally, there is a distinction between first and second degree separation. Independent Baptists want to live in a way that is distinct from the typical lifestyle of the world (first degree). Some would claim that not only should one separate from the world, but also from those christians who will not separate themselves from the world (second degree), and believe that christians who are tied up with the things of “the world” are themselves guilty of apostasy for their failure to adequately separate. The more rigid second degree separation was opposed by John R. Rice and Curtis Hutson, however it was affirmed by Jack Hyles.^{[65][66][67][68]} Among Independent Baptists, Paul Chappell has also warned of being "hyper-separated", arguing that separation and collaboration needs to be taken with a balance.^[69]

A few Independent Baptists believe in the more rigid so-called "third degree separation", which is the belief that one needs to separate from fellow Independent Baptists who do not practice secondary separation.^[70]

Ecclesiology

Many Independent Baptists adhere to some form of "Baptist successionism" (or Baptist perpetuity), the belief that Baptists trace their origins through a lineage of Christians dating back to the Apostles with medieval groups cited as pre-Reformation representatives of Baptist principles.^[57] Thus, as a consequence Independendent Baptists tend to view themselves as distinct from Protestantism.^[71]

Baptist successionism as laid out by James Milton Carroll. Other sects are sometimes included in the theory

Some proponents of Baptist successionism take this further by embracing Landmarkism or "Baptist bride theology", the view that only Baptist churches constitute the body or bride of Christ and that only Baptists will be raptured and partake in the marriage supper of the Lamb. They also claim that the Baptist Church began with John the Baptist or Jesus himself. However, this perspective is not universally accepted within the Independent Baptist movement and has been criticized for denying the universal body of Christ comprising all true believers.^[72][73][74]

Independent Baptists reject the ordination of women pastors and deacons in a local New Testament church according to the Apostle Paul’s writings in 1 Timothy 2, Titus, and 1 Corinthians 14.^[75]

Many Independent Baptists believe that according to 1 Timothy 3:2 and Titus 1:6-7 a pastor cannot be divorced, however, some reject this interpretation.^[76] Peter Ruckman argued that being "blameless" has nothing to do with divorce because he believed that a pastor can be remarried to one wife and that the Apostle Paul is mainly addressing polygamy in those passages.^[77]

Baptist churches that adhere to fundamentalism often call themselves “Independent Baptist Church", "Bible Baptist Church", or "Fundamental Baptist Church" to demonstrate their membership in the movement.^[78][79]

Worship music

Most Independent Baptist churches exclusively use traditional worship during their services, however, there are some that have a mixture of traditional and contemporary worship styles. Many Independent Baptists such as Jack Hyles, Jack Chick, Paul Chappell, David Cloud, Ernest Pickering, and Spencer Smith have criticized and rejected the use of contemporary Christian music.^[80][81][82] Such leaders argue that styles such as rock and pop music are overly emotional, entertainment-focused, and man-centered, making them unsuitable for use in services. According to them, biblical principles should guide Christians to use hymns rather than CCM, which they feel lacks the reverence and theological depth appropriate for worship.^[83]

Views on Alcohol

Further information: Christian views on alcohol

Independent Baptists hold that the Bible forbids partaking of alcohol (wine) altogether and argue that some alleged alcoholic drinks in the Bible are only medicinal uses of alcohol. They also argue that wine in the Bible can also refer to non-alcoholic beverages such as unfermented grape juice, and for this reason the context must determine which meaning is required. In passages where beverages are viewed negatively, Independent Baptists understand them to mean fermented wine, and where they are viewed positively, they understand them to mean unfermented wine.^[84][85] According to this view, they believe that the wine in the Last Supper could not have been fermented, because they believe that the fermentation of wine is similar to the fermentation of bread through yeast, which they view as a symbol of sin. Thus Independent Baptists have argued that such wine cannot symbolize the blood of Christ.^{[86]: 688 [87]}

Other issues

Most Independent Baptists adhere to a pre-tribulation view of the rapture,^[88][89] although a minority subscribe to mid-tribulation or post-tribulation interpretations.^[90][91] The movement encompasses a range of theological and ideological perspectives, with notable variation on issues such as Calvinism,^[92] expressions of patriotism,^[93][94] belief in certain conspiracy theories, dispensational salvation,^[95][96][97] interpretations of biblical accounts involving giants, and details on the relationships between the persons of the trinity, such as the classical trinitarian doctrine of the eternal generation of the Son,^[57][98] among other views

Regarding creation, Independent Baptists typically align with either Young Earth Creationism^[99] or Gap Creationism, a form of Old Earth Creationism that accommodates an ancient universe while maintaining a literal reading of Genesis.^{[100][101][102]} While the majority reject modern flat Earth beliefs,^{[103][104][105]} a very small subset affirms geocentric creationism that retains a spherical Earth but places it at the center of the cosmos.^{[106][107][108][109]}

In terms of Christology, Independent Baptists tend to uphold orthodox theological positions and affirm the historic condemnations of heresies such as Monophysitism, Nestorianism, Apollinarianism, and Monothelitism.^[110] Nevertheless, a few within the movement have questioned whether Monothelitism should be classified as heretical.^[86]: 238

Relationships to other Christians

Validity of Baptisms

Independent Baptists are generally divided into two main groups: Open Baptists and Closed Baptists. Open Baptists accept baptisms performed by any Christian group, provided the baptism was conducted by immersion and administered to a professing believer. In contrast, Closed Baptists recognize only baptisms conducted within Baptist churches as valid. While the open view is more widespread in modern times, Landmarkist Independent Baptists continue to reject non-Baptist baptisms as illegitimate, even if done by immersion.^{[57]: 667-675}

Non-Denominationalism

Ernest Pickering (1928–2000), a prominent Independent Baptist author, voiced concern over the trend among some Baptists to abandon their denominational identity in favor of a nondenominational label. Although he acknowledged that many sincere Christians exist outside Fundamentalist Baptist circles and personally rejected Landmarkist theology, Pickering warned that discarding the Baptist name often indicates a drift away from core Baptist convictions. He argued that such moves undermine unity among Baptist, fundamentalist, and separatist churches and open the door to ecumenical compromises. Pickering urged Baptists to preserve their distinct identity in order to maintain their theological and ecclesiastical integrity.^[111]

Thiemism

Independent Baptists are highly opposed to the doctrines and the movement of Robert Thieme (1918 – 2009), and have called for the necessity of separation from Robert Thieme's teaching, particularly due to his teachings on issues such as the atonement which Independent Baptists view as major issues.^[112]

New Independent Fundamental Baptists

Independent Baptists such as David Cloud have been highly critical of the New Independent Fundamental Baptist movement started by Steven Anderson, viewing it as heretical. Cloud has argued that their views such as that Jesus paid for sins by burning in hell and that homosexuals cannot be saved are in error, associating their imprecatory prayers for people such as Obama to be cultic.^[113]

Southern Baptists

Many influential Independent Baptists originally separated from the Southern Baptist convention, especially due to different convictions on the topic of separation, Bible versions and ecclesiology. Many in the IFB movement have been critical of the more centralized governance of the Southern Baptist Convention, instead preferring fully Independent church structure. Particularly differentiating Independent Baptists today from the Southern Baptists is the distinction between Fundamentalism and Neo-Evangelicalism, as although both espouse Conservative views, they differ on the topic of separation.^[114][115] However, some Independent Baptists still wish to maintain close ties to the Southern Baptist convention.^[116]

Social, moral and cultural issues

Entertainment

Independent Baptists are sometimes skeptical of things such as television and professional sports, believing that modern entertainment is often too "wordly". Nevertheless, some Independent Baptists are more lenient on entertainment, which has drawn criticism from other Independent Baptist writers such as David W Cloud, who believes that they have fallen into allowing wordliness in the name of joy.^[117][118]

Euthanasia

Independent Baptists believe Euthanasia to be sinful, believing it to contradict the command to not kill. They believe that euthanasia takes away opportunities from people to be saved by believing in the blood of Christ or earn rewards, which God has given them.^[119]

Sexuality

Independent Baptists believe that homosexuality is sinful. They believe that marriage is only biblically allowed between one man and woman, that sexual relations outside marriage are sinful, and often believe that a person's sexual orientation can be changed.^[120] However, they believe that homosexuals can be saved still by the atonement of Jesus Christ.^[121] In distinction, the New Independent Fundamental Baptist movement created by Steven Anderson differs from this view, believing that homosexuals cannot be saved and should be subject to capital punishment.^[122][123]

Sexual abuse

In 2018, an investigation by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram identified 412 abuse allegations in 187 independent fundamental Baptist (IFB) churches and institutions across the United States and Canada, with some cases reaching as far back as the 1970s.^[124][125] In November 2023, Investigation Discovery released Let Us Prey: A Ministry of Scandals, a 4 part documentary, highlighting sexual abuse and cover up within the Independent Baptist movement.^[126]

Independent Baptist authors have responded to sexual abuse scandals in various ways. Shelton Smith (who is the current editor of the newspaper Sword of the Lord) has argued that while Independent Baptists need to take allegations seriously, he has still expressed scepticism on the cases of cover up happening in large scale within the Independent Baptist movement.^[127] Some Independent Baptists such as David Cloud have instead reacted to these allegations by arguing that they are only common in certain segments of the Independent Baptist movement. David Cloud in response stated that other Independent Baptists already attempted to deal with these cases in the 1980s and 1990s.^[128] To this, the Independent Baptist author Paul Chappell also made a statement that Independent Baptists need to have an increased compassion for those who have been victims of abuse, and critiqued those Independent Baptist who did not want to openly discuss the issue, although he rejected the claim that those cases of abuse charecterize a majority of the movement.^[129]

Notable individuals associated with Independent Baptists

• Ben M. Bogard (1868 – 1951)
• John Roach Straton (1875 – 1929)
• J. Frank Norris (1877 – 1952)
• Mordecai Ham (1877 – 1961)
• John R. Rice (1895 – 1980)
• Robert T. Ketcham (1889 – 1978)
• George Beauchamp Vick (1901–1975)
• David Otis Fuller (1903 – 1988)
• Lee Roberson (1909 – 2007)
• Lester Roloff (1914 – 1982)
• Oliver B. Greene (1915 – 1976)
• George W. Dollar (1917–2006)
• John Birch (1918 – 1945)
• Peter Ruckman (1921 – 2016)
• Robert Sumner (1922 – 2016)
• Maze Jackson (1923–1996)
• Jack Chick (1924 – 2016)
• Jack Hyles (1926 – 2001)
• John A. Stormer (1928 – 2018)
• Ernest Pickering (1928 – 2000)
• Rolland D. McCune (1934 – 2019)
• Curtis Hutson (1934 – 1995)
• Gérard Dagon (1936 – 2011)
• R. L. Hymers Jr. (born 1941)
• Shelton Smith (born 1942)
• Michael Pearl (born 1945)
• Gerardus D. Bouw (1945-2023)
• Clarence Sexton (1948 – 2023)
• David W. Cloud (born 1949)
• Chuck Baldwin (born 1952)
• Kent Hovind (born 1953)
• Paul Chappell (born 1962)
• Gary Click (born 1965)

See also

• American Baptist Association
• Association of Independent Methodists
• Baptist International Missions, Inc.
• Baptist Missionary Association of America
• IFCA International
• Landmarkism
• List of Independent Baptist higher education institutions
• Southwide Baptist Fellowship