In the formative years of our movement, the Holy Spirit instilled within A. B. Simpson a
passion to reach people with no knowledge of Jesus Christ in his "Jerusalem" and around the
world. That passion still lives in The Alliance today and is our first core value: Lost people
matter to God. He wants them found.
We believe that nothing of lasting value can be done unless it is bathed in prayer. So
passionate in his belief that prayer is the undergirder of all ministry, Alliance founder A.
B. Simpson was compelled to create a prayer league that would focus on the world's
evangelization. He believed that the Prayer Alliance would "prove to be the mightiest force in
the spread of missions." That force still drives The Alliance today. Prayer is the primary
work of God's people.
Everything we have belongs to God. We are only stewards. This core value is intrinsic to the
nature and structure of The Alliance. As Scripture encourages us to remember, it's not the
amount of money we have or how much we give-it's recognizing that everything we have comes
from God (Luke 21:1-4). We teach and practice the blessing and effectiveness of the faith
principle of giving. The issue is not how much to give but how much to keep.
If The Alliance had a "life application" verse, it would be Matthew 28:19: "Therefore go and
make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of
the Holy Spirit"-The Great Commission! But the next verse is equally important: "and teaching
them to obey everything I have commanded you." Knowing and obeying God's Word is fundamental
to all true success.
Completing the Great Commission will require the mobilization of every fully devoted disciple.
In The Christian and Missionary Alliance the first priority of every minister, congregation,
and believer is to work for the evangelization of the world. Healthy churches producing
healthy disciples who are devoted to reaching lost people will hasten the completion of the
Great Commission and the return of Jesus Christ.
The Apostle Paul said, "My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words,
but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that your faith might not rest on men's
wisdom, but on God's power" (1 Corinthians 2:4-5). Without the Holy Spirit's empowerment, we
can accomplish nothing. This is not only the fiber of our being as believers but also the
sixth of our Alliance core values.
For more than a century, Alliance workers have braved harsh and dangerous territory, at great
personal risk, to take the good news of Jesus to a lost world. These workers experienced our
seventh Core Value-Achieving God's purposes involves taking faith-filled risks. This always
involves change. Because of the selfless dedication of Alliance workers who were willing to
lay down their lives for the gospel, entire people groups now know Jesus.