Association of Grace Baptist Churches (South East)

Association of Grace Baptist Churches (South East)
Abbreviation	AGBC(SE)
Formation	1871 (as Metropolitan Association of Strict Baptist Churches (M.A.S.B.C.))
Type	Calvinistic Baptist
Legal status	Registered charity
Headquarters	London
Location	62 Bride Street, London N7 8AZ, United Kingdom;
Region served	London and South East England
AGBCSE Secretary	Andrew King
Website	www.gracebaptists.org

The Association of Grace Baptist Churches (South East) (AGBC(SE)) is an association of churches in London and South East England.

As of 2024 there are 70 member churches in the association.^[2] All the members of the association are independent Baptist churches of an evangelical persuasion. All member churches with income of £100k or less are "excepted" charities.^[3]

The association is a registered charity^[1] and is a corporate partner of Affinity.^[4] As part of its work it provides advice and support for its members. It is also involved in lobbying the government on issues important to its members, through its membership of Churches' Legislation Advisory Service (CLAS).^[5]

History

The Association was established in 1871 as the Metropolitan Association of Strict Baptist Churches (MASBC),^[6] an association of 23 Strict Baptist churches. John Stevens, a Baptist minister in London, was noted for his influence in the formation of the association, which was motivated by concern to maintain clear Calvinist doctrines.^[7]

The name "Strict" represented the position that the churches had on a strict or closed communion (also known at the Lord's Table), whereby the churches required all those taking part in this ordinance to be baptised by immersion.^[8] The name "Strict" was, however, often misunderstood and gave the wrong impression to those outside of the churches, and so they later became known as "Grace Baptist" churches. This was reflected in the association's change of name to the current form.

As of 2022 there are 65 member churches in the association.^[2]