Baptist Distinctives

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Baptist Distinctives

Baptist churches have always tried to communicate what makes a Baptist church different from other churches. Many Baptists believe that their “distinctives” are founded in the early New Testament churches, and can be defined over the course of history in about 8 or 9 areas.

Here is the list of Baptist Distinctives* that are foundational to Compass College and Seminary.

  • The Bible as the soul authority for faith and practice
  • A saved and baptized by immersion church membership
  • The autonomy of the local church
  • The priesthood of all believers
  • The soul liberty of the individual
  • Immersion and the Lord’s Supper as the only two ordinances of the church.
  • Separation of Church and State
  • Ethical and Ecclesiastical Separation

 

Compass College and Seminary understands the importance of promoting the distinctives that have long been associated with Baptists who have modeled their local churches after the New Testament Church.

Compass believes that a proper New Testament Church will hold to these distinctives and teach them to future generations so that God is glorified and His order is maintained in local churches until His Son returns for us in the clouds!

* The above distinctives were outlined in this manner by Dr. Richard Weeks to create a list of Baptist Distinctives that were not forced into an acrostic, but that flowed from the Scriptures.

Additional Distinctives

There are some additional distinctives that set apart Compass College and Seminary from other Bible colleges and seminaries.

  • Biblical – Compass will utilize a literal, grammatical-historical interpretation of Scripture as the foundation for its studies.
  • Dispensational – Compass utilizes a dispensational hermeneutic, will instruct students on the errors of Reformed Theology, and will encourage students to “rightly divide the word of truth.”
  • Evangelical and Mission minded – Compass is dedicated to raising up soul winners for Christ, not only for their local communities but to all countries around the world.
  • Local Church emphasis – Compass believes that the local church is God’s plan for the age to carry out the revelation of the Great Commission to all parts of the world. Our dedication to the local church is foundational to all that we will teach.
  • Separation from worldliness and ecclesiastical error – Compass is dedicated to teaching students to seek holiness and to avoid the errors of other theological systems and movements.

Our desire at Compass College and Seminary is to raise up leaders for tomorrow, with a focus on Scholarship, Discipleship, Statesmanship, and Leadership for the challenges ahead. Instructing students on the importance of these distinctives will be a constant theme throughout their studies.