Church History · 1609

The First Baptist Church

In 1609 English exiles led by John Smyth and Thomas Helwys formed the first Baptist church in Amsterdam. Helwys brought it to London in 1612 and pleaded with King James for religious freedom, and Roger Williams started the first Baptist church in America in 1638.

Read it in the Bible: Acts 8:36-38 Romans 6:3-4 Romans 14:10-12 1 Peter 2:9

The first Baptist church began in Amsterdam in 1609, when a group of English exiles led by John Smyth and Thomas Helwys decided that baptism belonged only to people who personally believed in Christ. In 1612 Helwys led some of them back to England and founded the first Baptist church on English soil, just outside London. That same year he wrote a bold plea to King James for religious freedom for everyone. In America, Roger Williams helped start the first Baptist church in Providence, Rhode Island, in 1638. Today Baptists are one of the largest Protestant families in the world.

Who Was John Smyth?

John Smyth was a Church of England priest who became a Separatist. Separatists believed the Church of England was too far gone to fix, so they left it to form free churches of committed believers. That was illegal in England. Smyth led a Separatist church in Gainsborough, and Thomas Helwys, a lawyer and gentleman, was one of its leaders. Around 1608 they fled to Amsterdam, where the Dutch allowed more freedom.

How Did the First Baptist Church Begin?

In Amsterdam, Smyth kept reading his New Testament and asking questions. If the church is made of believers, he reasoned, then baptism should be for believers too. In 1609 he baptized himself by pouring water, then baptized Helwys and the rest of the congregation. People nicknamed him the self baptizer.

As they traveled along the road and came to some water, the eunuch said, “Look, here is water! What is there to prevent me from being baptized?” Acts 8:36

Smyth soon came to doubt that he had the right to baptize himself and tried to join a group of Dutch Mennonites. Helwys disagreed. He believed their little church was a true church and did not need anyone else's approval. The two men parted ways. Smyth died of illness in 1612.

Who Was Thomas Helwys?

Helwys decided that running from persecution was wrong, so in 1612 he took a small group back to England. They started a church at Spitalfields, just outside London, the first Baptist church in England.

That year he published a book called A Short Declaration of the Mystery of Iniquity. In it he argued for something almost unheard of. He said the king had no power over people's souls, and that people of every faith, even those he believed were wrong, should be free to worship without being punished by the government. He sent a copy to King James with a handwritten note inside the cover. It said the king is a mortal man and not God, and so has no power over the immortal souls of his subjects.

That did not go over well. Helwys was thrown into Newgate Prison and died there, probably around 1616. But his ideas outlived him.

So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God. Romans 14:12

What Are General and Particular Baptists?

The churches that came from Helwys were called General Baptists, because they believed Christ died for all people in general. That is an Arminian view. In the 1630s a second group arose in London from Calvinist Separatists. They were called Particular Baptists, because they believed Christ died for the particular people God chose. By the 1640s both groups baptized by immersion, dipping the whole body under water, as a picture of burial and resurrection with Christ. That is still the Baptist way.

We were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may walk in newness of life. Romans 6:4

Who Started the First Baptist Church in America?

Roger Williams was a young Puritan minister who came to Massachusetts in 1631. He taught that the government should not punish people for religious beliefs, and that land should be bought fairly from the Native peoples. The Massachusetts leaders banished him in 1635. In early 1636 he escaped through the winter snow and was helped by the Narragansett people, from whom he got land for a new settlement. He named it Providence, thanking God's care.

In 1638 Williams and a few others formed a Baptist church in Providence, now known as the First Baptist Church in America. Ezekiel Holliman baptized Williams, and Williams then baptized the others. Funny enough, Williams stayed a Baptist for only a few months before deciding no church on earth was quite right. But the church he helped start is still there. Rhode Island became a haven of religious freedom, welcoming Baptists, Quakers and Jews.

What Do Baptists Believe?

Baptists are a diverse family, but most share a few core beliefs:

The Bible is the final authority for faith and life.
Believer's baptism by immersion, after a personal confession of faith in Jesus.
The local church governs itself, with members voting on its decisions.
Soul freedom. Every person must answer to God, and no government should force faith.
The priesthood of all believers. Every Christian can come straight to God through Christ.

Baptists are related to the Anabaptists in their view of baptism, and early English Baptists had contact with Dutch Mennonites. But most historians see Baptists as growing mainly out of English Separatism.

Why It Matters for You Today

Thomas Helwys went to prison so that people could follow their conscience before God. Many countries now protect religious freedom, and Baptists were some of its earliest and strongest champions. Whether or not you are a Baptist, you can thank him. And you can take seriously what he believed most. Faith in Jesus is a personal decision no one else can make for you.

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Questions People Ask

When was the first Baptist church founded?

The first Baptist church was formed in Amsterdam in 1609 by English Separatists led by John Smyth and Thomas Helwys. In 1612 Helwys founded the first Baptist church in England at Spitalfields, near London.

Who was the founder of the Baptist church?

John Smyth and Thomas Helwys are considered the founders of the Baptist movement. Smyth led the first baptism of believers in 1609, and Helwys brought the movement to England in 1612.

What was the first Baptist church in America?

The First Baptist Church in America was founded in Providence, Rhode Island, in 1638 by Roger Williams and others. Williams had been banished from Massachusetts for his views on religious freedom.

What is the difference between Baptists and Anabaptists?

Both practice believer's baptism, and there was early contact between them. But Baptists came mainly from English Separatism in the 1600s, while Anabaptists began in Switzerland in 1525 and include Mennonites and Amish, who usually also hold to pacifism.

Sources

← The Douay Rheims Catholic Bible The King James Bible →

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