Answer 3

When Baptists affirm the authority of the New Testament for the faith and order of the church, they are not rejecting or ignoring the general authority of the Old Testament. Baptists agree with all Christians that all of the Scripture—Old and New Testaments alike—is both inspired (God-breathed) and profitable for doctrine, reproof, correction, and instruction in righteousness (2 Tim 3:16). Baptists hold the Old Testament in high esteem indeed.

The Bible, however, is divided into two sections for a reason. In the outworking of God’s plan, anew stage was entered when God the Son was born as a human being, died on the cross, and arose from the dead. Something has changed in the way that God is dealing with the human race.

Baptists insist that the present form of the church is uniquely a New Testament institution. Israel and the church may or may not be one and the same body—Baptists disagree about that point. Even Baptists who believe that Israel was the Old Testament church, however, agree that the form and order of the church changed significantly with the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Even if the church existed in the Old Testament, its pattern of organization and mode of operation were dramatically altered by events that stemmed from the ministry of the Lord Jesus.

Therefore, where should we look to discover what is the church’s nature, mission, and order? Baptists insist that the only textbook on the church is the New Testament. Only the New Testament tells us what the church is. Only the New Testament tells us what the church is supposed to do. Only the New Testament tells us how the church is supposed to be organized. In fact, when Baptists speak about the church, they often specify that it is the “New Testament Church” that they have in mind.

As I have already stated, their emphasis upon the New Testament does not mean that Baptists ignore or depreciate the Old Testament in any way. Many doctrines are revealed in the Old Testament with great clarity. Baptists rely upon the Old Testament to help them understand the nature of God, the depth of human sinfulness, and the necessity of redemption. The church in its present form, however, is not revealed in the Old Testament. The doctrine and order of the church is revealed only in the New.

Baptists are adamant that only the New Testament may be used to establish the doctrine and structure of the church. Thus, Baptists are different from most other Christians because they restrict their doctrine of the church to the New Testament. They also differ from many other Christians in the way that they apply the teachings of the New Testament to church faith and order. Baptists are characterized by the use of the Rule of Prescription or (to use Reformed terminology) the Regulative Principle.

(From “The First Baptist Distinctive, Part Two: New Testament Authority” by Dr. Kevin T. Bauder, Central Baptist Theological Seminary)