Claude King described an important event in the Great
Georgia Revival of 1827 as having occurred at a gathering of the Ocmulgee
Baptist Association at which 4,000 people gathered to hear Adiel Sherwood
preach atop a stump outdoors. There was no church that could seat that kind of
crowd. Nine women had been praying that God would send revival and it was
recorded that the ground was moistened by the tears of the repentant people.
King has written about how in a place called Sandtown, GA, every person of
accountable age was saved under the preaching of Sherwood. The town’s leaders
gathered and said “the name of our town does not adequately reflect who we
are.” And they changed the name of the place to New Born, GA. I love that an
Associational gathering was pivotal in a revival movement that witnessed the
salvation of about 16,000 people in Georgia in a single year.
The Association is the earliest historical expression of
organized ministry cooperation among Baptists in North America. It predates
conventions and mission boards. The cooperative relational bonds experienced in
Associations provided the context for the outworking of the great common
doctrinal confessions among Baptists. The Philadelphia Baptist Association is
the earliest confessional network among Baptists in North America and it
adopted our earliest doctrinal statement. The first name of the Georgia Baptist
Convention was the General Association because it was an extension of three large
associations. BUT, does the fact that Baptist Associations predate the entities
and conventions ensure that they still have meaning and validity now?
I. What is an
Association? In the movie Pirates of
the Caribbean, Captain Jack Sparrow differentiates between what a ship needs and
what a ship is. “That's what a ship is, you know. It's not just a keel and a hull and
sails; that's what a ship needs. Not what a ship is. What the Black Pearl
really is, is freedom.” There is a difference between what an Association
needs and what an Association is. It needs a director and possibly facilities
and property and office equipment and guiding documents … but that’s not what
an Association is. What an Association is, is a network of churches. It’s a
(hopefully) born again constituency of cooperating churches gathered in
congregations. An Association is meaningful Kingdom work being done with and
for people in these churches. I routinely tell the people who gather in our
churches, we have no other reason to exist, but to bless and serve you.
Here are some essential ideas about associations:
1. An association is a network of theologically
similar congregations.
·
That was the original root idea. There was a
realization that intentional connection to people who had overlapping
theological beliefs had tremendous benefit.
2. An association is the expression of (often
localized) Gospel focused relationships.
·
With the emphasis on relationships. Pastors often warn
their members about the danger of isolation, but what about us? We need others,
too. If we don’t have time for some key relationships with other brothers our
lives are out of balance.
3. An association is a resource/helper serving
the needs of local churches.
·
This looks different in each place according
to context*, but here are some obvious areas of concentration:
o Church
strengthening – What does this look like? Peer learning. Prayer. Empathy. Encouragement. Information. Group facilitating with excellent practitioners. Occasional equipping conference help with capable leaders.
o Help in
times of transition – So churches don’t have to re-invent the
wheel. Our denominational polity in the SBC makes transition unnaturally difficult. One of the greatest ministries of an association is serving churches going through leadership transition.
o Equipping
leaders – John Wooten, “It’s what you learn after you know it all that
counts.” Learning is coextensive with leading. This can occur in roundtable discussions and by coaching and mentoring as well as peer learning groups. We are currently partnering with Al Wright, of FBC Waynesboro, GA for a facilitating learning group for pastors. He has 40 years of healthy ministry experiences.
II. What
would be affected if the Association failed? We live in a day of declining, devalued
and destabilized institutions. We are presently witnessing the closing of all 170 Lifeway
stores. The Georgia Baptist Mission Board has laid-off significant numbers of staff since 2009 and they
are still evaluating the best way to align after having dramatic Cooperative Program shortfalls.
Turnover in seminary leadership and in key entity positions is happening with
unprecedented overlap. For several years much has been written about whether or
not Associations have outlived their usefulness. I don’t want to overstate or
exaggerate the importance of the Baptist Association, but I do want to think
about why they came into existence to begin with and what would happen if they
were to go away.
I am also not saying that Associations are totally responsible for
these outcomes, but that in my view, they clearly have an important role:
1.
Theological
clarity – One of the
reasons that people related to each other in Associations was to affect
consistency in understanding and perpetuating deeply held doctrinal truths. I
once had a pastor in his 60s who had been in another denomination his whole
life ask me, “How do I become a Baptist?” I think you have to be one
convictionally. I think if that’s not the case, churches will often be
negatively impacted because our identity is tightly bound up in our commitment
to missionary cooperation. Of course, we are not talking about robotic
uniformity, but one important function of the work done by an Associational Missions Strategist is acting as a
kind of theological vanguard. I think that.
2.
Missional
vibrancy – When
Associations are at their best they influence the priority of missionary
engagement. Churches don’t drift into evangelism do they? They drift into
apathy. Good associational leaders are alongside local churches to encourage
them to fulfill the Great Commission. They do this in how they communicate and
how through their own example they have a fervency to share Christ. Using MissionInsite software, I have
given demographic presentations to churches to help them see the lost in their
communities who might be falling through the cracks.
3.
Relationship
facilitating – I like the
fact that my work helps people know each other who otherwise might not, or
might not as easily. Rick Warren says, “It may seem easy to be holy when no one
else is around to frustrate your preferences, but that is false, untested
holiness. Isolation breeds
deceitfulness.” Our faith life is lived out in the context of meaningful friendships and partnerships.
4.
Ministerial
fitness – I don’t
mean physically. I think the association needs to be involved as an organizing,
connecting help for examining candidates for ordination. I think it’s a task
that ought to include the best a community of believers can bring in terms of
support for making sure of the candidate. I think the presence of someone who
knows the history of a region can head off disaster for churches. Especially
given the current climate related to sexual abuse and moral failure in the
church.
5. Specialized information - My dad used to say, “You can’t beat a
man at his trade.” A good associational leader thinks continuously about issues
that affect local churches in his communities. Ed Stetzer said that an associational
leader is a maven (a trusted expert in a particular field, who seeks to pass timely and
relevant knowledge on to others in the respective field).
6. The most immediate available help – the association is the closest extra
church resource to your local church. I don’t expect pastors to think about
denominational connections all the time (I didn’t), but I do think they should
think about it sometimes. It’s your tribe and your ministry context. It’s like
the Adrian Rogers quip about preferring organized religion to disorganized
religion. Part of the careful ordering of our faith is our intentional
commitment and involvement in meaningful, cooperative ministry partnerships.
III. Why
are pastors so vital?
1. Because pastors are catalytic influencers – A pastor is the lens or the filter through which his congregation discerns the value of
associational connection. It’s a lot easier to be a critic than a constructive
presence. As I got accustomed to visiting churches when I wasn’t preaching I
had to remind myself that I was there as a worshiper and not as a critic.
Keeping this perspective has a transforming affect on my heart and attitude.
2. Because you can directly shape the ministry of
your local association – Jason Lowe, a statistician turned
Associational leader conducted a wide reaching national survey on association
effectiveness. One of the findings was that a pastor’s perceived value of the
association had a direct corollary with his participation in the association.
In other words, his participation typically heightened his appreciation for the
work. He brought his collaborative energy to the collective effort. He moved on
from being a critic to making a creative contribution. I think that’s a
healthier attitude. It’s the kind of contribution we hope for from our
congregants and leaders.
Conclusion - I absolutely believe that associations have something positive to contribute in the current ministry environment. Associations are clusters or networks of like-minded, Gospel centered followers of Jesus trying to put a dent on the spiritual darkness in their collective community. That's a good thing.
*I've written here with my own rural/rurban context in view. Other Associational Leaders are more heavily involved in church planting and other ministries that are specific to their constituents' needs.
Comments