The 1689 Reformed Baptist Collegiate Fellowship is a campus ministry organized by Cornerstone Church of Orlando for the purpose of teaching and encouraging college students as they seek to follow the Lord Jesus Christ during their college career.  Our goal is to strengthen these young men and women to persevere steadfast in their faith, to serve in the local church, and to be a bold witness for Christ on campus.

"1689" is a reference to the Baptist Confession of Faith that was adopted at the London General Assembly of Particular Baptist Churches in the year 1689.  The "1689 London Baptist Confession of Faith" was quickly adopted by Baptists all over England and Wales before it crossed the Atlantic to become the theological standard for most Baptist churches in the American Colonies.   "The 1689" as it is often called, best summarizes what Baptists have believed the Bible to teach and it best summarizes the doctrinal convictions of those who lead "The 1689 RBCF."

The reformed theology represented by the "1689 London Baptist Confession of Faith" is rooted in the historic truths of orthodox Christianity taught in the Bible and recovered during the protestant reformation.  Reformed Baptists further uphold the New Testament witness to a gathered church of genuine believers practicing the baptism of only those who have placed faith in Jesus Christ and give evidence of a credible profession.  For more of what defines reformed theology, keep reading!

Baptists have historically believed on the basis of the New Testament that only believers should be baptized, and those believers should be baptized by immersion rather than by sprinkling.

1. The Greek word baptizō means to "dip" or "immerse."  It does not mean "sprinkle."
2. Immersion best represents the symbolism in Romans 6:1-4 of being buried with Christ in baptism, and being raised to walk in newness of resurrection life.
3. The early church practiced the baptism of believers by immersion.  John the Baptist clearly baptized by immersion in the Jordan River.  Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch "went down into the water" (Acts 8:38).
4. The practice is rooted in a baptist understanding of covenant theology.

Although there are several other Baptist distinctives, Baptists are those who only baptize believers and only baptize them by immersion.