Characteristics of the Modern Baptist Church

After being involved with Baptist churches for over 20 years I have made some observations. Being an Independent Baptist attending the same Independent Baptist church for over 20 years gives me some credentials to make these observations. Understand that I love the Independent Baptists and have chosen to align myself with them for I believe a BALANCED Independent Baptist church is the most scripture work around these days, in my worthless opinion. Despite this we have our issues we need to deal with. The list is not positive – I could list the positives but the purpose here is to point out the areas needing work. I attend a small work and my preacher has been seeking to wean us from these characteristics for years and is still plowing up the ground.

Again, GENERALLY speaking not all are guilty of all – some more than others. If none of the below applies then praise God for your church! If your church wrestles with some of the below then I trust God will lead you out of them.

Now, lets get on with the show!

1. By placing such an emphasis on soul winning (a good thing) in the preaching services many saints are suffering from spiritual malnutrition.
2. By trying to involve families with so many programs and activities during the week at church the families don’t have time to be families in their own homes where the real growth and practical outworking is to take place.
3. By trying to build big works to bring in people they compromise and lean towards worldly methods to build those big works.
4. By placing an emphasis on building big works they lose the concept of building “big” spiritual lives in their people.
5. By placing such an emphasis on world missions (a good thing) sometimes they forget the workplace and their own neighborhoods are the best mission fields.
6. By placing such emphasis on preacher led churches with large paid staffs the people in the pew think that the paid staff and the preacher are to the do most of the work of the ministry and not themselves thus the work suffers.
7. By seeking to distance their church services from the errors and false experiences of the charismatic churches the Baptist services have gone to the extreme where their services lack the excitement and the praise a corporate worship service should have.
8. By having so many children’s programs and children services during the main services families become separated during the main worship services so again the family suffers.
9. By placing such an emphasis on separation (a good thing today) many (especially Independent Baptist) have become somewhat legalistic and have forgotten the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free from the law.
10. 9. By seeking to place an emphasis on sound doctrine the heart gets left out.

Now, these are a few that come to mind. Again, not all churches are guilty. Some are more infested than others. I know this sounds negative but if we expect to be what God has called us to be then we need cleansing. I remind you – my own church has been guilty of the above and still is but we are striving to work these issues out with the aid of a preacher who is concerned for his people and the work of the ministry.

May God bless