William Thornton is the intrepid SBC Plodder.
See how you do on this very simple, embarrassingly easy quiz on the Cooperative Program. I’ll make it multiple choice with a few true-false questions so that my SBC colleagues have a good chance of getting answers right by guessing.
1. The Cooperative Program is how many years old?
a. 168, it was started when the SBC was founded in 1845.
b. 88, it was started during the evolution controversies in 1925.
c. 58, it was started during the grand, boom years of SBC growth, 1955.
d. 34, it was started when the Conservative Resurgence began in 1979.
2. Who does most of the promotion for the Cooperative Program?
a. The SBC Executive Committee, since it is an umbrella funding plan best promoted through our national headquarters in Nashville.
b. Our two mission boards, North American and International, since they receive the largest SBC share of the revenues.
c. State conventions, since they collect the money.
d. Associations, since they are closest to the churches.
3. The largest share of Cooperative Program money goes to:
a. International Mission Board
b. North American Mission Board
c. State conventions
d. Executive Committee
4. The average percentage of a church’s undesignated offerings that is given through the Cooperative Program is:
a. 10.6
b. 8.2
c. 5.4
d. 2.7
5. Over the years, the Cooperative Program has:
a. Changed regularly as conditions have warranted
b. Been rather fixed but flexible enough to adjust to new church realities.
c. Been mostly rigid and unflexible.
d. Been extremely rigid with very little change in allocation formulas.
6. The percentages given by the churches of most SBC presidents over the last 34 years is:
a. 10% or more, considerably above the average and exemplary for the SBC
b. 8-10%, above average for SBC churches
c. 5-6%, about the SBC average
d. below 5%, less than the SBC average
7. True or False: The Cooperative Program is dying
8. True or False: Most SBC pastors are unhappy with the Cooperative Program
9. True or False: The Cooperative Program provides most of the funding for our SBC entities
10. True or False: Since the adoption of the CP, giving in the SBC has been cooperative as opposed to societal.
11. True or False: The Cooperative Program will continue to decline as a percentage of church offering plate dollars.
OK, let’s see how you do.