Church Culture

When Anton LaVey burst onto the San Francisco scene right before the Summer of Love, he parlayed his eerie obsessions into a philosophy and lifestyle that capitalized on a New Age rage. With his signature cape, horn-studded hood, and Ming the Merciless beard, LaVey was a media-savvy provocateur who took what he did seriously, but was always in on the joke. From a spooky old Victorian house, he founded the Church of Satan, where young women squirmed nude on the mantel of his ritual chamber as he delivered a doctrine of self-deification and indulgence.

After Phil Robertson quoted Scripture in an interview with a national magazine, his hit show, Duck Dynasty, put him on “indefinite hiatus.” Phil immediately knew what had happened: he had become a target of cancel culture. Since that time, Phil has spoken out against public shaming, strategic campaigns to get Bible-believing employees fired, and other tactics that are wreaking havoc in our society. In a deeply divided country, with so many bent on condemning and silencing others, Phil calls for us to carry out the unifying message of Jesus Christ.

Cultural Christians in the Early Church, which aims to be both historical and practical, argues that cultural Christians were the rule, rather than the exception, in the early church. Using different categories of sins as its organizing principle, the book considers the challenge of culture to the earliest converts to Christianity, as they struggled to live on mission in the Greco-Roman cultural milieu of the Roman Empire.

As a pastor in Silicon Valley, Jay Kim has experienced the digital church in all its splendor. In Analog Church, he grapples with the ramifications of a digital church, from our worship and experience of Christian community to the way we engage Scripture and sacrament. Could it be that in our efforts to stay relevant in our digital age, we've begun to give away the very thing that our age most desperately needs: transcendence? Could it be that the best way to reach new generations is in fact found in a more timeless path?

More people live in cities now than at any other time in human history, presenting a historic opportunity for Christians to influence the majority of the world. Unfortunately, most Christian literature about the city focuses solely on its problems (crime, homelessness, etc.), rather than providing a comprehensive analysis of the city that informs, instructs, and inspires. Using sociological research and data, urban pastors Justin Buzzard and Stephen Um lay out the vision and rationale for church planting, cultural engagement, and missionary impulses in our world’s cities as they provide a solid foundation for motivation.

In the valley of the Upper Nile, on the bank of the river, is the town of Akhmim, once called Panopolis. In ancient times, Panoplis was the capital of the district. In the town stood remnants of a monastery. The ruins of the temple marked the intellectual life of ancient days. On the lands of the monastery was a graveyard wherein were interred the monks and priests who served there long ago.

From a peak in church attendance in the mid-20th century, Christianity has been on a trajectory of decline in the United States. Today Christianity is viewed negatively, and Christian morality is openly repudiated and viewed as a threat to the new moral order. In Life in the Negative World, author Aaron M. Renn looks at the lessons from Christian cultural engagement over the past 70 years and suggests specific strategies for churches, institutions, and individuals to live faithfully in the "negative" world—a culture opposed to Christian values and teachings.

Satan's transformation from opaque functionary to chief antagonist is one of the most striking features of the development of Jewish theology in the Second Temple Period and beyond. Once no more than an "accuser" testing members of the human community, Satan, along with his demons, is presented by Jewish apocalyptic texts and the New Testament as a main source of evil in the world. In Satan and the Problem of Evil, noted scholar Archie Wright explores this dynamic in both its historical and theological trajectories.

The Apostolic Church: In the Twenty-First Century is a collection of articles and essays on the nature and mission of the church. Written in an accessible style, this book will help both ministers and laypersons understand how to live out their faith in the community we know as the church.

We often view authority as something oppressive, stifling, even fearful. And sometimes—perhaps too often—those impressions bear out in reality. We live in an era of overstepped boundaries and abuse in many fields of life, so that authority has become the enemy.

Alone among the creatures of the world, man suffers a pang both bitter and sweet. It is an ache for the homecoming. The Greeks called it nostalgia. Post-modern man, homeless almost by definition, cannot understand nostalgia. If he is a progressive, dreaming of a utopia to come, he dismisses it contemptuously, eager to bury a past he despises. If he is a reactionary, he sentimentalizes it, dreaming of a lost golden age. In this profound reflection, Anthony Esolen explores the true meaning of nostalgia and its place in the human heart.

Though they may seem to be dividing the country irreparably, today's heated cultural and political battles between right and left, progressives and the Tea Party, religious and secular are far from unprecedented. In this engaging and important work, Stephen Prothero reframes the current debate, viewing it as the latest in a number of flashpoints that have shaped our national identity.

Divided Nation: Cultures in Chaos & A Conflicted Church provides families and their churches biblical mandates to awaken and arise as influencers in today’s turbulent times. As Christian persecution increases, the Body of Christ needs to prepare to take a bold stand. Ken Ham, CEO and founder of Answers in Genesis-US, the highly acclaimed Creation Museum, and the world-renowned Ark Encounter, sounds the call for Reformation bringing God’s people back to the authority of the Word of God beginning in Genesis.

After the release of their groundbreaking book, A Church Called Tov, which recorded the stories of abuse and toxic church cultures at some of the most prominent churches in the United States, New Testament scholar and blogger for Christianity Today Scot McKnight and Laura Barringer heard from a flood of people who had experienced similar instances of abuse. In Pivot, Scot and Laura help churches to implement practices, establish priorities, and cultivate the Kingdom Gospel-centered qualities that form goodness cultures.

Robert Henderson started to explore the question, "what would the seven mountains of culture look like in a reformed state?" There is much talk in the apostolic and prophetic community about reformation and transformation, but sometimes, we don't have a clear vision of what it would actually look like for these spheres of influence to be modeled, shaped, and impacted by believers who carry the kingdom of God into their everyday places of assignment.

Institutions remain essential to human flourishing. They are the means by which communities thrive, individual vocations are fulfilled, and society is changed for the good. As a result, we all need to learn how to work effectively within institutions. That is just what Gordon Smith provides. He unpacks the core of institutional intelligence - the wisdom of working effectively within an organization. At the same time, he explains how team leaders, directors, executives, board members, key stakeholders, and employees can avoid what is often their greatest source of stress on the job,

Designed to help church leaders and pastors, The Quest helps to identify and promote culture change within the church body so that members are equipped and empowered to help expand the Kingdom of God. Practical and powerful, your church will see its impact on your community grow exponentially.

No matter your season of life as a woman, you long to be loved and appreciated. But perhaps most days you're left feeling unseen, unheard, or unknown. Though centuries apart from your life today, the women who knew Jesus faced similar fears and insecurities. Their names aren't etched onto the pages of Scripture, but they are etched into the heart of God. In this book, Paige Allen invites you to take a second look at the life-changing encounters of seven unnamed women who came face-to-face with Jesus in the Bible.

Parents, are you looking for a fun and educational way to introduce your child to the fascinating world of history? Look no further! This captivating audiobook takes young listeners on a thrilling journey through the history of Christianity, all told in easy-to-understand language. Understanding the past helps kids make sense of the world today. This audiobook offers a kid-friendly exploration of how Christianity has shaped our culture and values over the centuries.

In Hitler, God, and the Bible, international evangelist and bestselling author Ray Comfort exposes Adolf Hitler's theology and abuse of religion as a means to seize political power and ultimately instigate World War II and genocide.

This fascinating study mines the depths of Hitler's beliefs and convincingly argues that without Hitler's misuse of Christianity the Third Reich would not have had its legendary rise, resulting in the deaths of more than six million Jews.