I love my church.

I am part of a visible, local community which cares deeply doctrine.
I am very thankful that every church member desires deeply to live out what we believe.
I praise God that we take the time and effort to carefully discuss how we should run our church.

I love my pastors.

I am part of a body that is shepherded by gifted elders ordained by God.
I am very thankful that every deacon serves the members humbly and self-sacrificially.
I praise God that my church leaders have taught us well in loving God’s Word and living it out daily.

For these very reasons and with this very love for my church and pastors, I smile on the inside and and cry tears of joy for the lengthy yet productive Members Meeting we had last night. Through a long 3 hour discussion and voting process, our congregation approved the Elders’ proposal of Amendments to our Confession of Faith and By-Laws. While there still is varying opinions and beliefs about the belief in whether or not baptism should be a prerequisite to participation in the Lord’s Supper, we will thus vote in April for the removal of that clause from our Confession of Faith and move it to the church By-Laws.

In the doctrinal statement of the Southern Baptist Convention, namely the Baptist Faith & Message (2000), reads as follows in article VII. Baptism and the Lord’s Supper (emphasis mine):

Christian baptism is the immersion of a believer in water in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. It is an act of obedience symbolizing the believer’s faith in a crucified, buried, and risen Saviour, the believer’s death to sin, the burial of the old life, and the resurrection to walk in newness of life in Christ Jesus. It is a testimony to his faith in the final resurrection of the dead. Being a church ordinance, it is prerequisite to the privileges of church membership and to the Lord’s Supper.

In the original 1925 BFM and the subsequent 1963 BFM, Southern Baptists have always (at least since 1925) affirmed that baptism is the prerequisite to (church membership and to) the Lord’s Supper. As far as I know, all our church members affirm Closed Communion, and that is what we practice. And in my humble opinion, Closed Communion is what we should practice as a New Testament Church.

However, at the same time, how that should play out as a test of membership is yet undecided. For currently, it is a test for membership, but possibly, in the near future it may no longer be — for the sake of friendship and fellowship with those who may not necessarily believe in Closed Communion. Nevertheless, the body has spoken, and as a body, we are to the greatest extent possible in humble and happy support of the proposals of our Elders

But still, I myself yet wonder about the function and purpose of our Confession of Faith. Is it solely a general summary statement of our beliefs? (I think so.) And is it also a test of membership, that is, you must firmly believe in these things in order to become a member of our church? (Yes, I also think so.) It just seems contradictory, as one must be an immersed believer by profession in order to become a member of our church (which seems to say that you’d affirm baptism as prerequisite to the Lord’s Supper), but if the Amendment goes through, it would be that such a person would not have to believe in it. Am I not seeing a dichotomy here between doing one thing and possibly believing another? Further, what does it mean for the relationship between Confession of Faith and By-Law, if the Prerequisite is moved to the By-Law. With the Confession to be silent about the Prerequisite (which may possibly seem to say that we don’t believe in Closed Communion) and having our By-Laws include the Prerequisite, are we hence being silent about our beliefs by confession and practicing otherwise as per the By-Laws?

I’m not sure if that last sentence sounded right…. my apologies if I seem confused. For that is clearly the case right now — I’m confused about this whole issue. I don’t intend to air out any personal ecclesiastical or theological laundry here, but rather, I am seeking clarity in advance of the April vote. I want to support my Elders’ leadership, and yet, stay true to my own doctrinal beliefs, which all should be grounded upon Scripture as its rule and standard.

Do pray for me and my church as we pray and ponder over these issues.