Not a denomination per se, Independent Baptist churches are Christian churches holding to generally Baptist beliefs, but characterized by being independent from the authority of denominations and ecumenical conventions. However, many Independent Baptist churches belong to fellowships, which are basically denominations but most of the churches remain autonomous and congregationalist in nature and are generally fundamentalist in teaching.

The term Independent Baptist was applied to these unaffiliated churches in the late 1800s and early 1900s when national Baptist denominations and conventions in the United States and England started moving, in the opinion of the now Independent Baptist churches, in the directions of liberalism and humanism. Perceived weakening beliefs in these denominations about core Christian doctrines such as the infallibility of the Bible, the nature of God and Jesus, and separation from worldliness caused the more conservative local churches to react by separating from these denominations. Many joined new denominations that were more conservative in their beliefs. However, many did not join any particular denomination and remained "independent", because of the belief that denominations were not supported in scripture. These local churches then set about establishing more independent Baptist churches.

Common beliefs and practices

Because they are independent, there is considerable

Many Independent Baptist churches support exclusive use of Bible translations based on the Textus Receptus (Received Text) Greek New Testament and the Masoretic ( but non Biblia Hebraica or Leningrad Text) Hebrew Old Testament. These translations include the older Authorized King James Version (KJV) in English and the Reina-Valera (see Bible translation) in Spanish due to the belief that newer Bible versions have various problems in text and translation. (See also: King-James-Only Movement)

Independent Baptist churches are very conservative in their beliefs and styles of worship. They tend to reject many things found in many denominational churches because they consider them to be associated with worldliness and appeal to the flesh. These often include many of the following (the list is not all-inclusive, and depends on the group involved):

• rock and roll and other forms of modern music, including contemporary Christian music,
• certain contemporary dress styles such as pants on women or long hair and earrings on men,
• visiting movie theaters,
• drinking of alcohol,
• use of tobacco,
• use of illegal drugs,
• sex outside of marriage between one man and one woman, such as pre-marital sex, extra-marital sex, and homosexuality, and
• abortion (in some cases, all forms of birth control are opposed).

They tend also to support conservative American politics, with one notable exception--the general consensus opposes school vouchers, on the basis that such vouchers, if accepted

Many Independent Baptist churches have very organized outreach ministries such as weekly "soul winning", where groups go and evangelize areas surrounding the church building and present the Gospel to those that are unsaved. Many churches will also have bus ministries where buses drive to surrounding areas to bring people (mostly children) to the churches' services. Street Preaching (open-air preaching of the Gospel in a public setting such as a park or street corner), prison ministries, and the sending of missionaries or evangelists to other parts of the country or to other countries to start more local churches, are other outreach ministries that an Independent Baptist church may engage in.

Many churches start and maintain their own college. These colleges are usually unaccredited and rely heavily on an "apprentice" approach to education, rather than extensive formal training in ancient languages of the Bible, Systematic Theology, and Hermaneutics.

Since the early 1990's the Independent Baptist movement (usually refered to as Independent Fundamental Baptist, or IFB), has found itself embattled in a series of scandals that have resulted in increasing stratification and fragmentation of the IFB movement. Sexual scandal, public criminal trials of pastors, deacons, and church workers indicted for sexual crimes, financial impropriety, and domestic/child abuse, have increased divisions, accusations, and counter-accusations within the movement. Additonally, controversy over use of the King James Version of the Bible as the sole translation has created deep schism. Most recently, the rise of Calvinism in what has previously been a predominantly Dispensationalist and semi-Arminian religious movement has prompted some IFB church members to resort to the Southern Baptist Convention as a more educated, more stable church environment.

In the last ten years, reformers from within the IFB movement have turned to writing memoirs and exposes of abuse, exploitation, and manipulation within local churches. The outstanding issues that members and former members have identified as culprits in abusive IFB churches are sole eldership, in which the pastor has all authority; lack of accountability of the pastor to any board of colleagues; inadequate education of men in the ministry; and misinterpretation of the Scripture. In early 2004, Phil Johnson of Grace to You ministries, presented a lecture on the demise of Fundamentalism entitled "Dead Right (revised)" . Since then, the rise of a group of scholarly Independent Baptist Fundamentalists, often called "The Young Fundamentalist Movement" (sometimes in derision) has made its presence felt on the internet. Yet the influence of this informal group has not yet been measured, and its effectiveness at recreating Independent Baptist Fundamentalism or reforming it remains an open question.