The principle of RELIGIOUS LIBERTY, namely, that no individual should be coerced either by the State or by any secular, ecclesiastical or religious group in matters of faith. The right of private conscience is to be respected. For each believer this means the right to interpret the Scriptures responsibly and to act in the light of his conscience.
- Our baptist principles
- The direct lordship of Christ
- The church
- Believer’s baptism
- The congregational principle
- The priesthood of all believers
- Religious liberty
I have been walking the church through our seven Baptist Principles. You can find them on our website here: (https://www.benonibaptistchurch.com/our-baptist-principles). We as Baptists share many areas of our faith with other members of the Christian Church. The Trinity. The deity of Christ. The authority of Scripture. The atonement. The resurrection. But there are areas of principle and practice where Baptists are different. These distinctives arise out of our understanding of the Scriptures.
Now, you may wonder why I keep returning to these principles. The principles that relate to the constitutional update are done. We have covered the direct lordship of Christ, the church, believer’s baptism, the congregational principle, and the priesthood of all believers. But I want to finish the rest of the principles because I want us to know who we are. Why we are. And so, today I am writing on religious liberty.
In 1612, a Baptist named Thomas Helwys wrote a short pamphlet. He called it The Mystery of Iniquity. In it, he said something that no one said out loud in those days. He said the king of England had no right to rule over the conscience of his subjects. The king could govern their bodies. He could tax them. He could punish crime. But he could not command their faith. For that “treason,” Helwys was thrown into Newgate Prison. He died there. But he planted a seed. That seed became religious liberty. Helwys understood something. Faith must be free, or it is not faith.
The Bible is clear on this. The gospel is an appeal, not a coercion. Paul writes, We are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God (2 Corinthians 5:20). Ambassadors do not invade. They do not threaten. They appeal. Jesus Himself told Pilate, My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting (John 18:36). Christ’s kingdom advances by the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. Not by the swords of the state.
This principle does not directly shape our constitution the way the congregational principle does. But it shapes everything else. It protects our ability to be an elder-led, congregationally accountable church. Because the state does not control us, we are free to appoint our own elders. To preach difficult truths. To practise church discipline. To amend our constitution according to Scripture, not according to government approval.
But religious liberty is not just about the church as an institution. It is about you. Your conscience. I have written before about unity in diversity, about how we stand together with different views on non-essentials. That post was really about religious liberty lived out in the pew. The right to interpret Scripture responsibly. The right to act in the light of your conscience. Not as a lone wolf, but as a member of this body.
So here is the balance. You are free. No one can coerce your faith. Not the state. Not a bishop. Not even your pastor. But your freedom is not a license to believe anything you want. It is the freedom to obey Christ as you understand His Word. And that Word binds your conscience. You are free from human tyranny. You are not free from the lordship of Christ.
Here is the question I leave with you. Will you use your liberty as a cover‑up for sin? Or will you use it to serve God with a clear conscience? Will you stand firm when the world tells you to keep your faith private? Will you grant to others the same freedom you claim for yourself? Religious liberty is not just a political idea. It is a spiritual conviction. It flows from the direct lordship of Christ. And it ends not in isolation, but in love. We are free, so that we might freely serve.
This is our conviction. This is our protection. And this is our calling.