KANSAS CITY – Two faculty members at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary have released a new book that offers a concise and readable introduction to the cooperative work of Southern Baptists.
Better Together: You, Your Church, and the Cooperative Program by Robert J. Matz and John Mark Yeats, is designed for individual or group study. In seven easy-to-read chapters, each of which closes with challenging discussion questions, the book shows why Southern Baptists are passionate about working together to change the world.
Matz is assistant professor of Christian studies at the seminary, and he pastors a local SBC church. Yeats is dean of students and associate professor of church history.
Better Together “ought to be must-reading for all Southern Baptists,” said Jason Allen, president of Midwestern. “Yeats and Matz make a compelling case why every congregation should give sacrificially through the Cooperative Program and, as they do, how the world can be more effectively reached for Christ.”
John Yeats, executive director of the Missouri Baptist Convention, called Better Together “a much-needed, accurate, simple resource for participants in Southern Baptist churches. It is also a superb primer for those who are brand new to a local Southern Baptist church or for church leaders in evangelical congregations wondering who Southern Baptists are.”
Each chapter describes one facet of Southern Baptist life.
Chapter One addresses the unique purpose of the autonomous local church. Chapter Two describes the value of cooperative ministries through associations and state or regional conventions.
Chapter Three shows how local churches can change a nation through the church-planting and relief-sending ministries of the North American Mission Board. Chapter Four highlights the work of the International Mission Board, which spreads the gospel, starts new churches, and meets physical needs in dozens of nations around the world.
Chapter Five explains how the work of LifeWay Christian Resources, as well as Southern Baptist universities and seminaries, enables cooperating churches to change the future. Chapter Six demonstrates how the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission serves as a voice for believers and the Southern Baptist Convention as they work together to impact a declining Western culture.
Finally, in Chapter Seven, readers see how the structure of the SBC upholds the Baptist distinctives of the priesthood of the believer, the autonomy of the local church, and the value of voluntary cooperation.
Better Together is available in print and Kindle editions at Amazon.com. The MBC’s John Yeats highly recommends the book for congregational or small-group study this summer or fall.
In fact, he is offering to share the cost with participating churches. The MBC is holding a limited quantity of the books and is offering them at $5 apiece plus shipping for orders of 10 or more.
To place an order, send an email to cdowell@mobaptist.org or call 573.636.0400 ext. 303.