浸信會信徒的自由與責任：受訓

The Freedom and Responsibility of the Baptist Individual to Engage in Training

Robert E. JOHNSON

The six articles in this series address two major themes: (1) the priesthood of all believers (articles one, two, and three) and (2) Baptist polity and community life (articles four, five, and six). Article one explores the first theme by examining a few elements integral to a theology of the priesthood of all believers and applying that to the need of each believer for training. Two fundamental principles are established: (1) while the priesthood of all believers means that the Baptist as an individual is free to live out his or her relationship with God and not become a slave to the convictions of another believer, (2) he or she has responsibilities in how that freedom is employed. This responsibility includes learning from others (article one), serving others (article two), and living as a witness (article three). Article one asserts that in the Baptist tradition training for responsible discipleship historically has included four major dimensions: (1) training in moral decision-making as followers of Jesus Christ, (2) training in the reading, contextual interpretation, and contextual application of the Bible for Christian living, (3) training in discerning, interpreting, and applying the lessons of collective Christian (and also the specifically Baptist) experiences, and (4) training in appropriate use of the broad body of human study, research, and insight related to the complex issues of the world in which we live.