Barry Whitworth: Cooperative Program solved dilemma of competing and overlapping funding appeals

When the Southern Baptist Convention was founded, all its related entities sought financial support, often resulting in competing and overlapping appeals to churches. But then... the idea for cooperative ministry was born.

February 17, 2021
Barry Whitworth

Hello, BRN Family! It’s good to be with you today!

Southern Baptists began in 1845 with one primary focus – “to reach all nations for Christ.” Initially, the various entities within the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) sought their own support from the churches with special appeals and offerings.

And you can just imagine the ensuing competition between entities and the fatigue churches must have felt by repeated and overlapping appeals for support.

Barry Whitworth: Cooperative Program solved dilemma of competing and overlapping funding appeals from BRN on Vimeo.

But, in 1919, wise SBC leaders came up with a new plan, called the “75 Million Campaign,” which sought to raise $75 million over five years to support ALL of the missions and ministries of the SBC and of the individual state conventions. This successfully led to the development of the Cooperative Program in 1925.

The Cooperative Program allowed the SBC to exercise better financial stewardship while providing a stronger support system for SBC ministries. That meant, church members who gave a tithe or offering to their churches (and churches who gave to the state convention through the Cooperative Program) could reach people in their region all the way to the ends of the earth!

And even today, your one check or online giving transaction to your church can touch communities in Pennsylvania/South Jersey and in Africa and Asia. It can support seminary students and missionaries who are called to take the gospel here in our vast region, throughout our nation, and oceans away! Do you realize that your generous offering can bring the gospel to hungry people in Philadelphia and to Canada and to Egypt?

The Cooperative Program is the financial fuel for reaching every person in every town, every city, every state and every nation with the gospel of Jesus Christ!

Thank you for giving!

Perhaps you’d like to tell others about the Cooperative Program? If so, we’d love for you to serve as a CP Ambassador to help raise awareness and help tell the story of the great things your church is able to accomplish through cooperative ministry. The average church member has very little understanding of what the Cooperative Program is and how it works. With your voice, church members themselves will become CP champions.

Interested? Learn more at www.brnunited.org/cpambassador. As always, we thank you for your partnership in the Gospel!

Barry Whitworth

Barry has been in ministry for over 30 years, serving as a mission pastor, associate pastor, church planter, pastor, interim pastor, transitional pastor and planter, church planting strategist, lead church planting catalyst, church planting director, and now executive director.

Before his calling as Executive Director of the Baptist Resource Network in February 2017, he was a church planting missionary and served the Multiplying Churches Team Leader for the BRN.