Church Ministry

In the course of his work as a vicar, Dave Tomlinson meets lots of people who describe themselves as 'not good enough' to be Christians, thinking that faith involves going to church a lot or believing in a list of strange things or following certain rules. But being a Christian isn't about any of that - and actually, following Jesus is a lot easier, and more fun, than most people think....

There is a growing movement among young Christians returning to historic, creedal, and liturgical reflections of Christianity. Filled with stories illustrating the joy young adults have found in these ancient expressions of Christianity, Winfield Bevins introduces practices and principles that help the church engage our postmodern world.

A right understanding of honor is vital to healthy churches. It’s a word that’s mentioned hundreds of times throughout the Bible. But what does honor really look like for us in everyday church life? Who should we honor, and how? Adam Ramsey brings a fresh understanding of true honor in our churches. He paints a vision of an honoring church that captivates your mind and heart—a church that shines brightly in the community because of the way its members value and respect each other and their leaders and, above all else, bring honor to God.

Is it time for your church to go multisite? How do you know if it's the right solution for your congregation? MultiChurch brings clarity to the multisite movement and assembles the lessons it has learned over the past 15 years. Combining insights from multisite church pastor Brad House and Christian theology professor Gregg Allison, this book will help anyone interested in multiplying gospel-centered churches to effectively evaluate and develop the best multisite model for their own church context.

You've probably noticed.... Churches aren't growing. Young adults are walking away. Volunteers are hard to recruit. Leaders are burning out. And the culture is changing faster than ever before. There's no doubt the church is in a moment in history for which few church leaders are prepared. You can look for answers, but the right response depends on having the right conversation. In Lasting Impact, Carey Nieuwhof leads you and your team through seven conversations that will help your church grow and have a lasting impact.

We are living in historic times. Not since the Civil Rights Movement of the '60s has our country been as vigorously engaged in the reconciliation conversation. There is a great opportunity right now for culture to change, to be a more perfect union. However, it cannot be done without the church, because the faith of the people is more powerful than any law government can enact.

From the Azusa Street Revival, which began in 1906, a movement has grown to bring more people to Jesus than any other movement in history. While secularism continues to be on the rise in today's society, many areas of the world still experience church growth, thanks to Pentecostal-Charismatic Christians. But the Pentecostal-Charismatic church is also plagued with sexual immorality, financial corruption, doctrinal error, personal flakiness, spiritual gullibility, prophetic abuse, and more. In many ways the state of the church today is not too different from how it was long ago.

In this provocative new contribution to public theology, world-renowned theologian Miroslav Volf (named "America's New Public Intellectual" by Scot McKnight on his Jesus Creed blog) and Matthew Croasmun explain that the intellectual tools needed to rescue us from our present malaise and meet our new cultural challenge are the tools of theology. A renewal of theology is crucial to help us articulate compelling visions of the good life, find our way through the maze of contested questions of value, and answer the fundamental question of what makes life worth living.

In this new audiobook, Hall makes the airtight case that America's Founders were not deists; that they did not create a "godless" Constitution; that even Jefferson and Madison did not want a high wall separating church and state; that most Founders believed the government should encourage Christianity; and that they embraced a robust understanding of religious liberty for biblical and theological reasons. In addition, Hall explains why and how the Founders' views are absolutely relevant today.

Researchers have uncovered the following three trends: First, distrust of institutions, including the church, is at an all-time high. Second, young people raised in the church are leaving at alarming rates and not returning. Third, loneliness and social isolation are at pandemic levels. What’s the connection? It appears that an entire generation is starving for the very thing the church is called to provide but has chosen to look for it elsewhere. Why is this happening?

Compiled with the intent to improve the preaching standards in churches at the time and to increase pastoral understanding of Christianity, Homilies is a comprehensive overview of Christian theology, the history and impact of the Reformation, and daily applications of faith and doctrine. The sermons included here dive into the issues and questions of salvation, Christian living, justification by faith, the weight of sin, and many more impactful themes and ideals.

While many churches talk about discerning calling and engaging in mission, very few are structured to make this their ministry focus. Underground Church is a new vision for the church rooted in its biblical mission to share the love of God and serve the poor. Sanders explores how to make structural changes, how to think about leadership, how to fund ministries, and how to truly engage people in God's mission. Filled with creative insights, he explains what it means to center the mission of the church around the callings of individuals to outward ministry.

World-renowned pollster George Barna has the numbers, and they indicate a revolution is already taking place within the Church - one that will impact every believer in America. Committed, born-again Christians are exiting the established Church in massive numbers. Why are they leaving? Where are they going? And what does this mean for the future of the Church?

The Color of Compromise takes listeners on a historical journey: from America's early colonial days through slavery and the Civil War, covering the tragedy of Jim Crow laws and the victories of the Civil Rights era, to today's Black Lives Matter movement. Author Jemar Tisby reveals the obvious - and the far more subtle - ways the American church has compromised what the Bible teaches about human dignity and equality.

The joy and vigor coming from a collective strength, intelligence, and skill in the community of leaders not only brings greater potency but better yields for your ministry. What would it be like to see this kind of healthy leadership reproduced into the second, third, and fourth generation, on multiple strands?

The American workplace exhibits a growing imbalance when it comes to human identity. Leaders are frequently defined in the absence of their critical social identifiers, but the exclusion of these identifiers is a mistake and ignores essential physical, cultural, and spiritual realities. Rather than abandoning an individual's social identities, the ones we choose and the ones we do not, Leading While Black draws on the lived experiences of executive-level leaders of the Christian faith and Black identity, and offers a testament to the power of a living God in the social fabric of public life.

Many church people and leaders feel like exiles in their own land. We are facing tremendous challenges. And, just as for those who came before us, the challenges are also opportunities. If we adapt to our new environment, as people and as the body of Christ. Gardens in the Desert offers local and denominational church leaders a practical, inspired scripture-rooted vision for how we can do this—how we can become God's church now for God's intended future. Michael Adam Beck and Ken Carter draw from Jeremiah 29 to provide wise guidance for leaders and churches seeking to adapt and thrive.

How can pastors become resilient in a rapidly changing world? Is it possible to love well and lead faithfully? In the wake of crises that have exposed and accelerated massive cultural shifts, we see more clearly the seismic shifts of post-Christendom, the surging storms of a new paganism and pluralism, and the scattered debris of the cultural aftermath. Drawing on new research from the Barna Group, scripture, and church history, Glenn Packiam addresses some of the most pressing questions for today's leaders.

The principal crime of the human race, the highest guilt charged upon the world, the whole procuring cause of judgment, is idolatry. Do you inquire whom he has slain? If it contributes ought to the aggravation of the indictment, no stranger nor personal enemy, but his own self. By what snares? Those of his error. By what weapon? The offense done to God. By how many blows? As many as are his idolatries.

If you’ve lost your identity to belong to a Christian group, this book is for you. Joining, staying, and leaving a Christian cult is a complex and confusing process. Most people do not understand that they have joined or been born into a cult or high-control Christian church because these churches offer a dependable, tight-knit community and a place to belong. Because the need to belong is primal, we are susceptible to joining groups exploiting this need.