BFM: Cooperation

Introduction

As a child growing up, we almost all were told to “play well with others” and to treat others the way that we want to be treated. We were told to “cooperate” with others. As we got older, this message remained the same, however more and more people began to not follow this message. Many individuals might claim to believe in cooperating, however we only do so whenever we are the ones in control and making the rules. The BFM has some great words regarding cooperation and how cooperation allows the church to minister to far more people than we ever could as isolated, individual churches. Let’s dive into this article (number 14)!

“Christ's people should, as occasion requires, organize such associations and conventions as may best secure cooperation for the great objects of the Kingdom of God. Such organizations have no authority over one another or over the churches. They are voluntary and advisory bodies designed to elicit, combine, and direct the energies of our people in the most effective manner. Members of New Testament churches should cooperate with one another in carrying forward the missionary, educational, and benevolent ministries for the extension of Christ's Kingdom. Christian unity in the New Testament sense is spiritual harmony and voluntary cooperation for common ends by various groups of Christ's people. Cooperation is desirable between the various Christian denominations, when the end to be attained is itself justified, and when such cooperation involves no violation of conscience or compromise of loyalty to Christ and His Word as revealed in the New Testament.”

Galatians 1:6–10 NASB95

6 I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; 7 which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed! 9 As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed! 10 For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ.

1 Corinthians 3:5–8 NASB95

5 What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, even as the Lord gave opportunity to each one. 6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth. 7 So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth. 8 Now he who plants and he who waters are one; but each will receive his own reward according to his own labor.

Philippians 2:1–5 NASB95

1 Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, 2 make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. 3 Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; 4 do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. 5 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,

There are several other passages of Scripture that talk about Cooperation, however the majority of the New Testament focuses more on the spiritual implications of cooperation rather than specific rules and conduct of cooperating with one another. What we are going to do tonight is focus on three key parts of cooperation as Southern Baptists.

We cooperate because of the Great Commission

All throughout the New Testament (especially the book of Acts), we see Christians coming together to share the Gospel and to help provide resources for other people to share the good news on missionary journeys (like Paul and others). We the church in Antioch and Jerusalem come together to discuss important doctrinal matters and we see in church history that there were many important councils and meetings where Christians would meet and discuss the important things that Christians claim to believe in (salvation, scripture and missions come to mind). What we see whenever we examine the life of Baptists is that we have met and formed associations and conventions in order to do things that we would be unable to do as an individual church. As early as the mid 1600s there were Baptist associations in England that met to hold one another accountable in matters of doctrine, missions and fellowship.

What we see in the Southern Baptist Convention is that we follow a “convention” model that helps to support missionary causes and helps to hold churches accountable. We know that other denominations follow a different model (Catholic church), however Southern Baptists have a different approach that helps to define the way that we go about making decisions. We are comprised of churches, not strictly individuals, associations or societies. We have elected messengers from each church, not delegates from the “higher ups” that vote on various topics at the annual SBC meeting in June of each year. The modern SBC is not a church but a convention of churches that come together to be stronger as one than we could ever be apart! This is a message that we see in Scripture and one that we believe in very strongly today as well.

One of the chief reasons that we believe strongly in cooperating between SBC churches is because of the impact it has on missions. We are able to give alongside other SBC churches around the world in order to help support our missionaries. The money that we give helps support nearly 4000 full-time missionaries overseas. We are able to support these men and women because of the resources given by churches around the world. We would never be able to support that many missionaries if we were only giving as individual churches. Because we give as a convention, though, we are able to support a much larger number of missionaries and are in turn able to share the Gospel with even more unreached people. Cooperation is certainly important when it comes to proclaiming the Gospel with the World and fulfilling the Great Commission!

We cooperate freely, not forcefully

Forceful cooperation is not free cooperation, it is fear. The BFM recognizes the voluntary principle among Baptists. This rules out a hierarchy outside the local church. We do not take orders from Rome like the Catholics do. We are autonomous and we are able to make decisions as a local church body. Baptists affirm that all relationships are voluntary. State Conventions, associations and even the SBC possess no authority over the local church. These voluntary groups exist for the sole purpose “to elicit, combine, and direct the energies of our people” - this statement mirrors the original 1845 SBC purpose statement whenever our convention was first founded.

While we recognize that our local church is autonomous and we don’t have to take orders from another church or from another person, we humbly are able to seek out advice on key issues from sister churches and from our denominational leaders. This does not mean that we always agree with one another. One of the distinctives about SBC churches is that we have the ability to disagree on a number of issues and still hold membership in the same convention! This is a wonderful truth because, once again, we are stronger together than we are apart. We are able and called to cooperate with one another, even those whom we might not completely agree with theologically, in order to accomplish the Great Commission. We do this freely, not forcefully. If a church so chooses, they can leave the SBC at anytime. They are not forced to stay - many churches have left over the years due to theological differences. With that said, though, many churches have joined fellowship with the SBC even though they might not agree 100% on theological platforms.

What ultimately matters when it comes to cooperation is that we acknowledge that we are different but we serve the same God. Whenever we approach our spiritual lives with this mindset, suddenly a host of potential barriers fall to the ground and we are able to continue to meet the needs of those around us and proclaim the Gospel to the lost!

We are free to disagree with the President of the SBC on issues like Calvinism and eschatology, however we can still cooperate with him and other Baptists who we have disagreements with. This is a distinctive thing when it comes to religious life. Many people get into camps that are argumentative with the opposing camp. We can still be this way as Baptists, however one of the strengths of our convention is that we are able to come together, cooperate with one another and continue the work of the Kingdom even though we don’t agree on everything. This is certainly a good thing!

We cooperate within reason with other denominations

One of the knocks on Christians is that we don’t always agree with one another and sometimes our disagreements become public and a hinderance on our ministry. These are certainly unfortunate events, however there are definitely some reasons that we cannot cooperate with every “denomination” out there! An example of this is the National Council of Churches (NCC) has tried to unite all churches in the world under the banner of “unity”. There are all sorts of denominations under the NCC umbrella. Lutherans, Orthodox, Presbyterians, United Methodists, and 30+ other denominations. One of the things that this group tries to “sell” is that we need to be unified! This is certainly true, however the SBC is a voluntary convention of churches - therefore the SBC cannot force each local church to join such a group.

You might not think that this is a big deal, however if the SBC were to join this group, we would be affiliated with denominations that we have many key theological differences with. We can be apart of missions teams and even worship with our brothers and sisters of other denominations, however joining in membership with people who view Jesus Christ differently than how we do would violate our conscience and has led to the SBC rejecting such an invitation.

Cooperation is certainly important, however it cannot be the most important thing that we are known for as a convention and as a local church. We should cooperate with other denominations to do things that help our communities! One of the most interesting things that I was a part of at FBC Ozark was called “day of giving”. This event started as a day in which people in the community could come and get back to school clothing, however it has grown over the last 3 years to include things like haircuts, food, school supplies and more! From a church standpoint, one of the most interesting things about day of giving is the fact that this is a multiple church effort. The event is hosted at FBC Ozark, however there are 4 churches that come together to help the community (even the Ozark school district is involved in this event). This is an example of intra-denominational involvement that is great for the church and the community as it helps us reach the lost in a way that the church might not be able to do as a single local church.

Our church is involved in several of these things as well! We help local pregnancy care centers and homeless shelters that are also aided by other Christian denominations. These are great things that we should cooperate with our Christian brothers and sisters with as well. With that said, though, there is a difference between joining membership with another denomination and coming alongside another denomination in order to do a missions project. Cooperation should be the goal to share the Gospel, however the local church must measure the goal in light of the core essentials of the Gospel. An example, if there were a very liberal Christian church (one that denied the divinity of Jesus or the inerrancy of Scripture) that wanted to partner along with us for Vacation Bible School, we would have to prayerfully consider what such a partnership would look like. Cooperation might not be the best course of action as a church because their doctrine is so far removed from ours. This does not mean that we call them bad names (like heretics) to their face, however we can respectfully decline such a partnership.

One of the greatest examples of cooperation in Southern Baptist Convention life is the “cooperative program”. This program was adopted in 1925 as E.Y. Mullins (President of Southern Seminary and the SBC) helped lead this charge. The cooperative program helps to provide funds for the state convention where an approved percentage is retained for the state convention’s use and the remainder is sent to the Executive committee of the SBC in Nashville, Tennessee and then given among the national programs (International Mission Board, North American Mission Board and the Southern Baptist Seminaries). The cooperative program has been a tremendous thing for the SBC and has allowed us to help train up future pastors (through the 6 SBC seminaries) at a fraction of the cost compared to other seminaries. A SBC member who attends a SBC seminary pays roughly 50% of the amount they would pay as a non-SBC member. This is certainly a great thing for students and churches alike. The cooperative program has also helped fund the various SBC mission boards and aided in advancing the Gospel to the nations.

Conclusion

Cooperation is something that many people are taught at a young age but slowly becomes something that is more difficult to put to practice. We are quick to seek authority and slow to cooperate with others in some situations. The key in cooperation is the Gospel. We are stronger together than we are apart. With that said, though, we must be sure to not compromise our doctrine in the name of “cooperation”. We cannot do things for the sake of doing things if they are against our conscience as Baptists.

As we continue to go through the BFM in the coming weeks, it is my hope and prayer that we will strive to cooperate with those whom we might disagree with. This does not mean that we have to magically get along and agree with everyone with everything, however it does mean that we put aside some of our little differences in the name of magnifying the name of Jesus to the nations and putting first the Kingdom of God rather than our own opinions and views.

Let’s pray