When Alabama Baptists give and serve through the Cooperative Program, we are not simply pooling resources; we are living out a profoundly biblical pattern given throughout Scripture.
From the earliest pages of the Bible, we see that God never intended His people to live, serve or make decisions on their own. Rather, He calls us to walk together in unity (Eph. 4:3), by the power of His Spirit (Gal. 5:25), to discern His will together (Acts 15:28), and to join our hands in advancing the mission of His Gospel – by grace through faith in His name (Eph. 2:8).
Alabama Baptists’ commitment to this biblical model is what drives our ongoing and faithful cooperation through the Cooperative Program today as well as for the past 100 years.
Cooperation in Decision-Making
The story of God’s people throughout redemptive history shows repeatedly that important decisions are never left to one individual alone. The mission of God is too vast, His wisdom too unsearchable and His church too glorious for one individual or congregation to steward alone.
Cooperation in leadership and discernment has been God’s design from the beginning. When we pray, give and serve through the Cooperative Program, we are walking in the footsteps of God’s people who have always advanced His Kingdom by cooperating in God’s mission by faith.
In Exodus, Moses attempted to judge all the cases of Israel by himself, but the burden was overwhelming. Through Jethro’s counsel and the Lord’s providence, Moses learned that leadership must be shared. This principle was confirmed by God in Numbers 11:16–17 when He instructed Moses to gather 70 elders and promised, “They shall bear the burden of the people with you, so that you may not bear it yourself alone.”
Leadership in God’s Kingdom was never designed to rest on one man’s shoulders; it was to be distributed among many so that God alone would be exalted as the true King of His people.
The early church continued in this God-ordained pattern. In Acts 1, when Judas’s replacement was chosen, it was not Peter acting independently but the whole company of about 120 disciples who discerned God’s will under the Spirit’s guidance. Later, in Acts 6, when the daily distribution to widows caused division, “the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples” to participate in the solution. The entire congregation chose seven men full of the Spirit, and the apostles laid hands on them. The result was Spirit-wrought unity, and Luke notes, “the word of God continued to increase.” In Acts 13:1–3, while the church at Antioch was gathered in worship and fasting, the Spirit spoke and the entire church obeyed, sending out Barnabas and Saul.
Even the great apostle Paul didn’t launch into God’s mission by personal initiative; he was sent by the Spirit through the discernment and cooperation of the local church.
Theologically, the need for cooperation within the church rests on the doctrine of the church as the body of Christ. In 1 Corinthians, Paul reminds us that “the body does not consist of one member but of many.” Each member is necessary, none can say to another, “I have no need of you,” and together they form one body under Christ the head.
This means that decision-making, stewardship, mission and ministry are not designed to be carried out in isolation but in Spirit-empowered cooperation so that Christ receives all the glory.
Cooperation in Financial Stewardship
Financial cooperation is a biblical pattern woven into God’s redemptive purposes. From the earliest days of the church, the Spirit directed God’s people to share their resources to build Christ’s body and display God’s glory.
Paul organized a collection for the believers in Jerusalem and the churches of Macedonia, Achaia, Corinth and Galatia participated together as one body for the sake of the Gospel as an expression of koinonia, fellowship in Christ by which the churches displayed their oneness in Him. Paul says it is a grace of God (2 Cor. 8:1) and a harvest of righteousness (2 Cor. 9:10). Cooperation of the churches in giving was itself a work of God’s grace.
In Philippians, Paul recalls their repeated gifts to sustain him in his mission. By supporting him in the advance of the Gospel among the nations and strengthening churches. Their giving was “a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God” (Phil. 4:18).
In 2 Corinthians 8:19–23, the apostle of Christ Jesus ensured accountability by sending representatives “appointed by the churches” to accompany the offering. This safeguarded the witness of the Gospel and reminded the churches that financial stewardship is valued and worshipful worship before God.
Cooperation in Mission
Mission is never a solo effort. It is God’s work before it is ours. The Lord of the harvest sends His laborers into His field (Matt. 9:38), and He has ordained them to go together. When Jesus sent out His disciples in Luke 10:1, He sent them two by two.
The apostle Paul almost never ministered alone. From Barnabas to Silas, from Timothy to Luke, his service to Christ was marked by teams, demonstrating that Gospel work flourishes through cooperation. His letters reflect this Kingdom partnership and co-laboring. He thanks the Philippians for their “partnership in the Gospel from the first day until now” (Phil. 1:5) and greets more than two dozen coworkers by name in Romans 16.
Cooperation in Church-to-Church Relationships
The New Testament shows clear examples of local churches cooperating with one another under God’s providence. In Acts 11, when famine struck Judea, the church at Antioch sent aid to their brothers and sisters in Jerusalem. This was a tangible expression of the unity of Christ’s body.
We also see this grace-enabled cooperation in Paul’s instructions to the Colossian and Laodicean churches (Col. 4:15–16). He urged them to exchange his letters and to greet one another in the Lord, enabling both congregations to be built up in Christ (Col. 2:6-7).
This displayed God’s design for His churches to be united in sound doctrine (Titus 1:9), mutually edified through the ministry of the Word (2 Tim. 3:16–17) and knit together in love under the headship of Christ (Eph. 4:15–16). As they submitted to the same authoritative teaching, their unity was strengthened, and their obedience to Christ was enriched.
In all these examples, churches acted as members of one body, united under Christ the Head (Eph. 4:15–16) and scattered to the nations. They trusted one another, bore burdens together and joined in advancing the mission of God.
The Cooperative Program Today
Like the New Testament churches, Alabama Baptists give generously and freely, by faith, so others may be strengthened and Christ’s name exalted. Like Paul’s missionary teams, we believe that the Gospel advances when the body of Christ labors side by side, in accordance with the Scriptures.
This cooperative effort funds theological education so future leaders will be grounded in the Word of God and equipped to shepherd faithfully. Through six seminaries supported by the Cooperative Program, men and women are trained in sound doctrine, prepared to preach Christ and sent out to serve His church in spirit and in truth.
The Cooperative Program supports church planting and revitalization in Alabama, the planting of churches in growing urban centers, university towns, and unreached people groups moving into our state. These new churches, rooted in Scripture and committed to the Great Commission, become outposts of light in dark places, bearing witness that Christ is building His church even in a world as upside down as ours (Matthew 16:18). Your giving also supports planting and revitalization across North America through the North American Mission Board (NAMB).
At the same time, the Cooperative Program helps sustain International Mission Board (IMB) missionaries who carry the Good News of the Kingdom to the nations. Whether in the bustling cities of Asia, the remote villages of Africa or the growing cityscapes of Europe and Latin America, missionaries proclaim Christ crucified and risen, planting seeds of the Gospel where the name of Jesus has never been heard (Romans 15:20–21). Alabama Baptists can say with confidence that we are part of this global advance – not as spectators but as participants.
Closer to home, cooperative giving supports Alabama Baptist Disaster Relief. When hurricanes, tornadoes, floods or fires strike, volunteers of the Yellow Shirt Army are often among the first to arrive, providing meals, clearing debris, offering counseling and sharing the hope of Christ.
Ministries such as the Alabama Baptist Children’s Homes & Family Ministries demonstrate the love of Christ by caring for vulnerable children and strengthening families. Through the Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions, your giving fuels evangelism efforts, collegiate ministries, prison ministries, and compassion outreach to the poor and marginalized in our own communities.
In every case, the principle is the same: When the people of God walk together in unity, the reach of the Gospel extends further than any one church could take it. No single congregation can train all the leaders, plant all the churches, send all the missionaries or meet all the needs. But when united under the Lordship of Christ and empowered by His Spirit, the body of Christ can accomplish together what would be impossible in isolation (1 Corinthians 12:12–27).
Why We Cooperate
Why do we cooperate? Because it is biblical.
This is who we are as Alabama Baptists: a people united by faith, guided by Scripture and empowered by the Spirit to labor together for the glory of Christ among the nations.
By uniting our resources and our efforts through the Cooperative Program, Alabama Baptists ensure that churches are planted, missionaries are sent, the hurting are served with the love of Christ and the Gospel of the Kingdom is proclaimed – right here at home in our dear Alabama.
We cooperate because Christ is worthy of all blessing and honor and glory (Rev. 5:13). We cooperate because the Spirit of the Living God binds us together as one body, called to one mission. And we cooperate because the Father’s glory will cover the earth as the waters cover the sea (Hab. 2:14), just as He promised it would before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4).
Together, by grace and for the sake of His name, we give, we pray, we send and we serve, until that glorious day every tribe and tongue rejoices before the throne of the Lamb (Rev. 7:9).
Jake Rogers serves as a Cooperative Program ambassador for the Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions and is a member of Harvestfield Baptist Church, Rainbow City.