Hildreth Archives - B&H Academic

By Andrew Spencer

The Cooperative Program is one of the most effective funding mechanisms for worldwide gospel ministry in the history of Christianity. Annually, autonomous local congregations give millions of dollars to support the advancement of the Great Commission at state, national, and global levels. Hundreds of pastors, missionaries, and lay people graduate from the six Southern Baptist Seminaries each year, better equipped for ministry and less financially burdened that would be possible if millions of people did not give to the Cooperative Program through their local churches. Missionaries go to language school, are transported to the field, and sustained in thousands of international locations because the gifts of small congregations are pooled with those of large ones to enable men and women from any sized church to dedicate their lives to getting the gospel to the ends of the earth.

Some might say the Cooperative Program is a wonder of modern missions. It serves as a catalyst for the spread of the gospel and offers a bright future for engaging the lost with the good news of Jesus Christ. Tragically, sometimes the purpose and fruit of Cooperative Program giving are invisible to people in the local churches. If Southern Baptists are going to continue to function in a collaborative manner to fund gospel ministry in the years to come, we must work diligently to celebrate the positive impact our cooperation can have and explore the shared theology that enables congregations who differ in their understanding of some doctrines to work together to advance the Great Commission.

The SBC has needed an updated simple, brief, and theologically informed case made for continued cooperation for several years. Together on God’s Mission: How Southern Baptists Cooperate to Fulfill the Commission, which released in early 2018, is a resource that fills that need.

Scott Hildreth’s recent book on cooperation in Southern Baptist life offers a concise history of the convention, with an emphasis on the Cooperative Program, and outlines a theological foundation for the ongoing collaboration of SBC churches in advancing God’s mission on earth. In less than one hundred pages, Hildreth significantly updates previous histories of the CP and makes explicit the ecclesiology that has for generations been assumed by cooperating Southern Baptists.

Part One of this volume consists of three chapters. The first chapter of Together on God’s Mission gives an overview of the early history of the Southern Baptist Convention as they shifted from mission society to a convention cooperating in ministry on multiple levels. Chapter Two traces the evolution of the early convention to a robust network of churches joined together to efficiently fund Great Commission activities. The third chapter helpfully informs readers how the Cooperative Program works.

In Part Two Hildreth shifts from history to theology. Chapter Four succinctly outlines a theology of mission. The fifth chapter offers a basic Baptist ecclesiology for cooperation which unites the many autonomous local congregations of the Southern Baptist Convention and enables them to work together with the other churches in the convention. In Chapter Six Hildreth outlines some of the ways the local congregations of the early church—that is, those documented in Scripture—cooperated, pooled funds for ministry, and sent personnel to accomplish the common mission of advancement of the gospel.

Part Three of the volume contains a single chapter. In the seventh chapter, Hildreth summarizes his arguments and offers some proposals for continued cooperation among Southern Baptists in the future. He commends churches to consider the theological implications of the Cooperative Program, evaluate cooperation in broader, non-financial terms, and celebrate the ability to participate in CP giving rather than viewing it as membership dues.

Together on God’s Mission was published by B&H Academic because it contributes to the academic conversation within the SBC about ecclesiology and history. However, the volume is written in plain English, with short chapters, and clear argumentation. These make the volume suitable for a popular audience. This book would be helpful to pastors who are not sure exactly what the Cooperative program does. It will also make a useful resource for prospective members of SBC churches who wonder what makes Southern Baptists distinct and unites them. As tensions continue to simmer over differences in ministry methodology, political persuasions, and doctrinal debates, this book can help recall to mind the good things that keep Southern Baptists working together. Together, the local churches of the Southern Baptist Convention can do a great deal more than we can do working alone.

This is a book that fills a void for the SBC at a time when a call to unity and recognition of the powerful way God has used the Cooperative Program to get the gospel to the ends of the earth. Together on God’s Mission deserves to be read broadly and discussed carefully as the convention marches toward two centuries of cooperative missions.

Andrew J. Spencer is a member of CrossPointe Church in Monroe, MI. He regularly writes at EthicsAndCulture.com.

Together on God’s Mission: How Southern Baptists Cooperate to Fulfill the Great Commission

Scott Hildreth

Description

Together on God’s Mission investigates Southern Baptist history, showing how and why the Southern Baptist Convention came to embrace the vision of a cooperative denomination. It also explores how this vision has shaped denominational identity and structure. This historical study is followed by a discussion of the biblical description of how the mission of God determines the mission of the church. This study shows that God’s mission is not simply furthered by churches working together, but rather that cooperation between churches makes up a key component of God’s mission. Finally, the study concludes that the Southern Baptist Convention is uniquely positioned to enable churches to fully participate in God’s mission to redeem the nations and restore creation from the effects of the Fall.

Endorsements

“When Southern Baptists voluntarily work in partnership through the Cooperative ministries of the SBC, we are following a pattern found in Scripture. It is a pattern that allows us truly to do more together than we could ever do apart. It is pattern that is biblically justified, theologically sound and practically wise. It involves the sacrificial giving of our financial resources to be sure, but it is so much more than this. This is the argument my colleague and friend Scott Hildreth makes in Together on God’s Mission: How Southern Baptists Cooperate to Fulfill the Great Commission. He is quite successful in his assignment.”
—Daniel L. Akin, president, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary

“The cooperative partnership of Southern Baptists may not be perfect but it is proven and profound. In Together on God’s Mission, Scott Hildreth provides a timely resource that not only advocates for the financial wisdom of the Southern Baptists’ Cooperative Program but also advances the theological foundation of this cooperative partnership for a new generation. As an experienced missionary and seminary professor, Hildreth provides a concise and helpful orientation of how churches unite to form a mighty Great Commission coalition as they join together on God’s mission.”
—Brian Autry, executive director, SBC of Virginia

“From their earliest days, Baptist churches have cooperated together for the sake of kingdom priorities such as missions, education, and public engagement. As Southern Baptists, we cooperate through our structures and strategy, which are linked together in the Cooperative Program. Every generation brings new challenges and fresh opportunities, and as this happens, pastors and other leaders need to be reminded anew of the importance of gospel-centered cooperation among churches of ‘like faith and order’ (as old-fashioned Baptists used to say). To that end, Scott Hildreth has written a book for such a time as this. Together on God’s Mission gives us the perfect combination of Baptist history, sound biblical exegesis, missional theology, and constructive application.”
—Nathan A. Finn, dean, School of Theology and Missions, and professor of Christian thought and tradition, Union University

“Scott Hildreth has done Southern Baptists a great service by providing this book. Of particular help, in my mind, is his commitment to help the SBC ground their partnership in theology rather than pragmatics. If you are Southern Baptist and care about cooperative mission, you should read this book.”
—Micah Fries, senior pastor, Brainerd Baptist Church, Chattanooga, TN

“The perfect primer for getting your mind around the Cooperative Program—its unique opportunities, current challenges and the way forward. Dr. Hildreth brings to this book an understanding that comes from years of working ‘inside’ the system and the passion from having depended on the Cooperative Program while he served on the front lines of global missions.”
—J.D. Greear, pastor, The Summit Church, Raleigh-Durham, NC

“In this informative book, Scott Hildreth shares from the rich knowledge he has gained as an IMB missionary and a professor of missions at a Southern Baptist seminary. With a succinct overview of how the Southern Baptist Convention came into being and grew to become the strongest Protestant missionary force in existence, Hildreth champions the benefit of a missions funding system that Southern Baptists know as the Cooperative Program. Together on God’s Mission explains why cooperation and personal involvement in missions is the heartbeat of who Southern Baptists have been and still remain. Hildreth’s work also reveals how those who hold to Baptist distinctives along with their personal convictions can work together in fulfilling the Great Commission. He reminds us that we can function most effectively in reaching the nations when we seek unity under our common statement of faith and around our common cooperative vision. Readers will benefit greatly from Hildreth’s book, whether or not they grew up in a Southern Baptist church.”
—Milton A. Hollifield Jr., executive director-treasurer, Baptist State Convention of North Carolina

“In the backward horizon of the Southern Baptist Convention, we can see dark clouds of human sin, but we can also see the lightning of God’s grace. In Together on God’s Mission, Scott Hildreth shows us how to spot such grace, and how to respond with gratitude. The book will help a new generation of Baptist Christians learn from our past in order to forge a future of cooperation for mission.”
—Russell Moore, president, The Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention

“I am always excited when I read a resource that accurately portrays the ‘better side’ of Southern Baptists as we try to cooperate together. Scott Hildreth does a great job of doing just that in this book. Strong scriptural foundations of Cooperative Program ministry are presented. An accurate, historical rendering of how Cooperative Program came about is included in this new work. My prayer is that Southern Baptists will continue to see this as yet another great resource to help people know about the gift that God gave us many years ago— the Cooperative Program. As we approach the 100th anniversary of the Cooperative Program, I pray that generations yet to come will see it as a truly great tool to assist us in fulfilling the Great Commission.”
—Frank Page, president and CEO, Executive Committee of the Southern Baptist Convention

“In Together on God’s Mission, Scott Hildreth demonstrates that our convention priorities and our Cooperative Program are not only practical, they are biblical. This book tells the story of the development of Southern Baptist cooperation and shows how our structure and vision fits within God’s global mission. It is well researched and accessible. I commend this book as a valuable tool for students, missionaries, pastors, as well as the masses of Southern Baptists across our convention who are called to share in God’s mission of making disciples of all nations.”
—Ed Stetzer, Billy Graham Professor of Church, Mission, and Evangelism, and executive director of The Billy Graham Center for Evangelism, Wheaton College.