The Anabaptist Vision

Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them inthe name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe allthings that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

Matthew 28:18-20

Biblically Centered. Distinctively Baptist.

On 21 January 1525, a small group of unlettered, counter-cultural Radicals plodded through the snow and came together in a small home in Zurich, Switzerland. These young men, brought together by the unction of the HolySpirit, came to a decision to reestablish the pattern of a New Testament church, a choice that would ultimately cost them their lives. After an intense time of prayer, one of their leaders, a young evangelist by the name of George Blaurock, arose and, as one account bore witness, “Besought Conrad Grebel for God’s sake to baptize him with the true Christian baptism upon his faith and knowledge” (Estep,The Anabaptist Story, 14).

Like incalculable believer’s before them, this group was tagged with the name, Anabaptist, a term of derision mocking their decision to be baptized a second time. The world and even religious leaders misunderstood their intent was not simply to reject infant baptism as unbiblical, but to establish a Believer’s church which was patterned after the Scripture. They were following God’s Word that one, in order to live a life of grace and victory, must first be saved and then baptized.

Yet, the world not only misunderstood their intent, they underestimated their legacy. This small band of ostracized Christians changed the world by trusting God’s Word and sharing Christ with a lost and dying humanity. The Great Commission of Matthew 28, in its entirety, was their life verse.  They declared that salvation came only to those who professed their faith in Christ (John 3:1-17; Acts 4:12). Centuries ahead of their time, they defended the biblical principle of complete religious liberty (Matt. 13:24-30).  In every aspect of their lives, they held to the inerrance and sufficiency of Scripture (2 Tim. 3:16-17).  Now, nearly 500 years later, we are their debtors, and this institution, Truett-McConnell College, will stand firmly on the shoulders of these giants, carrying forth the same vision.