“Baptists are their best when they cooperate.”
Who said that? Actually, this statement has been reflected by just about everyone
who seriously studies the life and work of Baptists.
“Baptists are their best when they cooperate.”
Who said that? Actually, this statement has been reflected by just about everyone
who seriously studies the life and work of Baptists. Perhaps the student of
Baptist history who most recently reflected this thought is Jimmy Draper who
is President of Lifeway Christian Resources. He reached this conclusion personally
as he considered the history of Baptists.
Baptists cooperate because they want to cooperate. The nature of some other
denominations includes church and denominational structures that make cooperation
an essential requirement. For instance, there is no local Catholic church unless
that church operates as an extension of the church in Rome and is ultimately
ruled by Rome.
Baptists, on the other hand, do not “have” to do anything structurally
beyond their local church. No “higher-ups” can tell a Baptist church
or Baptists what to do. Some say even God has difficulty telling some what to
do! The emphasis in Baptist polity is upon the self-rule of the local church
and the freedom of the individual.
But Baptists have known they cannot do all that needs to be done acting alone.
Since their beginning, local congregations of Baptists have cooperated with
other congregations to accomplish more in Kingdom work. Baptists have maintained
their local church autonomy while sticking together with other congregations
to accomplish more.
When the first Baptist congregations were established in England, they needed
a strong sense of cooperation for fellowship and encouragement in the face of
persecution. By the time the Southern Baptist Convention was established in
1845, local congregations were still a relatively small group of mostly scattered
rural members. They gained a sense of identity and strength as they cooperated
in associational, state and national areas.
Southern Baptists were determined to maintain their fierce commitment to individual
and congregational freedom under God while joining hands with other Baptists
to multiply their Kingdom efforts. Former president of the Baptist Sunday School
Board (now Lifeway Christian Resources) James Sullivan seems to capture the
essence of this miracle of independence/cooperation by calling it a rope of
sand. This rope of sand was so effective that almost without outside notice
the Southern Baptist Convention became a highly effective evangelistic, church
growth, educational and missionary-sending denomination. The tangible fuel of
this engine was the Cooperative Program, a unified method of giving that studies
of Baptist history call a true gift from God.
When Southern Baptist deacon/Sunday school teacher Jimmy Carter burst on the
national scene in 1976 as the Democratic nominee for the office of President,
the nation awoke to the realization that Southern Baptists had without its notice
become the largest non-Catholic denomination in the nation.
The Southern Baptist Convention has continued to grow, even when other mainline
denominations have experienced decline. Cooperative Program gifts from Louisiana
Baptist Convention churches and the Southern Baptist Convention have continued
a healthy growth through good and bad economic times.
During decades of struggle, Baptists found cooperation not a requirement, but
an essential. Now, blessed with unparalleled success, cooperation through associations,
state conventions and a national denomination for some Baptists and Baptist
church is seen as one option among many. Just when Southern Baptists have the
potential to be used by God in an exceedingly significant manner, there is a
temptation for some to move away from cooperation. What outside forces were
not able to do, could now be done from forces within.
In the last decade, events have unfolded that in previous days would have been
unmentionable if not unthinkable. In two states, there are now two state organizations
relating to the Southern Baptist Convention. These state conventions vie for
the support of the same churches. In at least one significant area, there are
two Southern Baptist associations vying for support from the same churches.
There is a national organization that to this point, refuses to call itself
a separate denomination enlisting Southern Baptists to send their mission money
to support their missionary, education and social programs.
In the midst of this embryonic fraying of the seams of cooperation in some
areas of Southern Baptist life, Louisiana Baptists have overwhelmingly stayed
focused on the cooperation that God has used to bring us this far. The diversity
of Louisiana Baptists has been an asset and a blessing through the years. Louisiana
Baptists traditionally accepted geographical, cultural, economic status, educational
and theological differences as part of the necessary ingredients of the gumbo
that is Louisiana Baptists.
In a day when so many groups urge Southern Baptist churches to use their mission
money for non-Southern Baptist causes, we will do well to remember what God
has used to bring us to our present state. Before supporting other causes, Louisiana
Baptists will do well to evaluate the total picture of other causes compared
to what they can support through the Louisiana Baptist Convention and the Cooperative
Program. Because human beings are involved, the Louisiana Baptist Convention
and the Southern Baptist Convention are not perfect. But for generations, God
has used these organizations and methods of support to further His Kingdom as
few people ever dreamed possible. This channel is tested and proven by generations
of accomplishment, and it still offers the most bang for the missionary buck.
Period.
Wonderful ministries are performed by Louisiana Baptists, in Louisiana, by
people who stick together and accomplish more. The Baptist Message staff wants
not only to report these ministries, but to add an additional reminder that
when we stick together, we accomplish more. We have developed a small logo or
arrangement of word and symbol to put on stories that make the point of what
working together accomplishes. When you see the symbol located in this editorial,
you will know you can read about what God is doing among people who stick together.
This also means if churches or individuals from different churches are working
together to further Gods cause, or if a ministry is supported by Cooperative
Program funds at some level, we want to know about it. And, we want to share
that story with Louisiana Baptists to remind us that when we stick together,
we do accomplish more.