The consequences of choosing the freedom road are rewarding but often costly. In 1651 two Baptist preachers, Obadiah Holmes and John Holmes, traveled from Newport, RI to Lynn, MA to visit their Baptist friend, William Witters, who was blind and in prison. Witters made a costly decision that landed him in jail. He was arrested because he held an evening Bible study in his home without prior government consent. For his punishment, Witters was offered a public beating on the Boston Commons or a small, under-the-table, monetary fine. He chose the beating as a witness to his convictions. For years, Witters spoke of the inner peace he had from following the example of his Lord. His friends noted that, until his death, the scars from his flogging bore witness of his Baptist beliefs.

In this series, we’re reviewing some of the convictions that make us a CBF church (Cooperative Baptist Fellowship). We’ve noted that not every group named Baptist is part of our heritage. A while back, I preached in a “Baptist” church. When I read their statement of faith, I thought, “This is certainly not an historic Baptist church - a CBF kind of church.” Some of their beliefs went like this: (1) the pastor is God’s ordained authority in matters of faith and practice, (2) a Bible teacher must sign our approved beliefs and (3) women cannot be ministers or Bible teachers, except for preschool and elementary children. There are real negative consequences that follow those kinds of beliefs. There are positive consequences that follow being in a CBF kind of church that believes that each person has the God-given ability and right to choose for himself or herself in matters of faith and practice - religious freedom. What are some of those consequences? See you next week at this same place where we’ll look some of the consequences of choosing the freedom-approach and being a CBF church. Bill Nichols.