Associational Baptist missions have ‘amazing influence’

Associational Baptist missions have ‘amazing influence’

Three hundred years and more than 1,000 associations later, Baptists have witnessed the great influence of associations, said church historian Timothy George, dean of Beeson Divinity School at Samford University.

"It was the associations that developed the first confessions of faith, benevolence ministries and missions [emphases]," he said. In fact, missionary William Carey must have understood the importance of associations because he addressed associational leaders in 1792 about missions.

"Associations had an amazing influence on church planting and in establishing the first Baptist college (now Brown University)," George said. "They also served as points of communication and … dealt with doctrinal matters, serving to educate the people and bring about order and cooperation."

Since the establishment of Philadelphia Baptist Association in 1707, associations have increased more than 1,000 percent to where we are today:

Nationally: 1,192 associations and more than 44,000 churches

Alabama: 75 associations and more than 3,200 churches (TAB)