But the potential to complete the Jesus mission lies within each of us, as we learn to reproduce our faith as individuals and as reproducing churches.

    As a result, churches today are filled with people who believe they are Christians . . . but aren’t. We want to be disciples as long as doing so does not intrude on our lifestyles, our preferences, our comforts, and even our religion.Revealing a biblical picture of what it means to truly be a Christian, Follow Me explores the gravity of what we must forsake in this world, as well as the indescribable joy and deep satisfaction to be found when we live for Christ.The call to follow Jesus is not simply an invitation to pray a prayer; it’s a summons to lose your life—and to find new life in him. This book will show you what such life actually looks like.

      Todd Wagner invites readers to experience the adventure, goodness, and fullness of life that God has intended for humankind from the beginning of time and especially today through His provision through His people. Weekly meetings of mostly bored adults who regularly attend services have nothing to do with God’s vision for His people. Wagner paints the picture of a perfect Father’s intention to bring His people into an adventurous life full of authentic relationships, powerful transformation, and seemingly impossible significance and meaning.

    Part of the 9Marks Building Healthy Churches series.

    The missionary call is a vital part of the life of every follower of Jesus Christ and, therefore, the church. But the effective discipleship of all nations requires a solid biblical, historical, and practical foundation. Therefore, the study of missiology demands the effective application of biblical studies, theology, and history. This text brings the rich heritage of evangelical missiology founded on conservative theology to a twenty-first century audience passionate for the proclamation of the gospel. Introduction to Global Missions brings the authors’ decades of combined missionary and teaching experience to a survey text appropriate for college or seminary classroom. The book is divided into four sections and thirteen chapters. The text begins with the biblical and theological foundations of Christian missions, including a biblical theology of missions. Before moving to the practical and strategic issues of twenty-first century missions, the authors consider the historical development of missions with a view toward providing a basis for contemporary strategies. A final foundational set of chapters addresses the impact of cultures on the communication of the gospel. The remainder of the text deals with key issues and opportunities in missions, including church planting, missions in the local church, and strategies for disciple-making. Introduction to Global Missions provides a foundation for readers to consider their own missionary call, whether as a full-time field missionary or a church member on short-term projects. No matter their role, Great Commission Christians need a framework for doing missions well.

     We search for our calling in careers, hobbies, and even ministries, but Christians actually know their calling from birth. We are all called into God's community and onto his mission. There is no greater calling. Once we are in Christ, we are no longer orphans. Everyone has a place in the people of God. But how do you live out that calling? What does it look like to be God's new community? How can we fulfill our role in his mission? In Called Together, Jonathan Dodson and Brad Watson help us discover what it means to be a people made for community and mission. Through reflection on the foundational concepts of gospel, community, and mission, it will help you form healthy missional communities. Filled with practical guidance for leaders and everyday people, it will guide you into a deeper and more deliberate experience of being the church together.

    Paul David Tripp and Timothy S. Lane collaborate to expose the heart issues at stake and help people to make real, lasting change. These answers, the authors assert, lie in appropriating the fullness of the grace and freedom of Jesus in new ways that offer radically more hope than conventional models.

    But they have been poorly equipped with methods that are no longer effective in today's post-Christian world. As a result, many people become frustrated, blame themselves, and simply give up. Evangelism in a Skeptical World is a textbook on evangelism that is ideal for the church or the classroom to equip Christians with the principles and skills they need to tell the unbelievable news about Jesus to friends in a skeptical world.Many of the older principles and methods of evangelism in the twentieth century no longer work effectively today. In a post-Christian, post-churched, post-reached world we need new methods to communicate the timeless message of the gospel in culturally relevant ways. Dr. Chan combines the theological and biblical insights of classic evangelistic training with the latest insights from missiology on contextualization, cultural hermeneutics, and storytelling. Every chapter is illustrated with real-world examples drawn from over fifteen years of evangelistic ministry. These are methods that really work - with university students, urban workers, and professionals - getting past the defensive posture that people have toward Christianity so they can seriously consider the claims of Jesus Christ.Field-tested and filled with unique, fresh, and creative insights, this book will equip you to share the gospel in today's world and help as many people as possible hear the good news about Jesus.

    Frustration in Christian work often results when efforts are not evaluated with biblical perspective. Like many in Christian service, Kent and Barbara Hughes struggled with defining success. Based on their experiences, "Liberating Ministry from the Success Syndrome" is for anyone in ministry facing the disappointment of unmet expectations. As the authors recount the biblical lessons that turned their life around, others will learn to reexamine their understanding of success in light of Scripture.

    In many churches, the primary objective of the church discipleship of people into mature followers of Jesus has been outsourced to programs and large-scale efforts to train and teach. But is that happening? Are people growing in spiritual depth and missional determination?Twenty-five years ago, the leaders of Randy Pope s rapidly growing church took serious stock of their own spiritual development and realized all of them had benefitted from a personal discipleship relationship that had helped them grow in their faith and discover where God was calling them to service. As a church, they decided to make personal discipleship their do-or-die aim: applying one person s real life to another s to accomplish something far bigger than that single life. Perimeter calls their approach life-on-life missional discipleship and Insourcing tells their story.Randy Pope writes for church leaders who recognize the value of discipleship and need practical ideas for reorienting church ministries around personal discipleship. Readers will be encouraged that a wide scale personal discipleship program is attainable for any church."

    We are concerned with being relevant to the culture and ultimately growing at a steady rate. While these issues are certainly legitimate, they also create a danger that our churches will be shaped more by these extrabiblical goals than by the biblical mandate of God. Utilizing the Scriptures, theology, and Baptist history, this comprehensive work addresses all aspects of the church--both theological and practical.

    A much-needed look at sharing Christ with unbelievers, based not on the techniques of guerrilla hard-sell tactics, but on engaging questions and caring interaction. Filled with humor and stories, this book provides a challenging yet encouraging look at evangelism in our world today. This volume argues that asking questions and starting meaningful conversations is a far better method for sharing faith than prepared lectures or statements. It gives advice on what people need to hear in response to the world around them.Author was raised Jewish and has a unique, rabbinical outlook on evangelismEncouraging and usefulEasy-to-read, conversational styleStudy guide at the end to aid in teaching and discussion

    Oscar Thompson's classic book on evangelism, Thompson shows Christians how to spread the love and good news of Christ by building and repairing personal relationships. Too often the only kind of evangelism encouraged is the preaching to strangers, anonymous crowds, and foreign countries. This book hits readers where they live, teaching them that the most effective way to witness is through a simple plan of meeting the needs of close family first, then friends, and then all others.Published post-humously, this book is a living testament of the brilliance of Oscar Thompson and his innovative method. It will be a perfect guide to lifestyle evangelism for church study groups, conferences, and the classroom.

    The time has come for us to honestly name the ways we are different and similar so that we can serve together in unity, grace and trust.Women in ministry experience unique challenges in their church settings which continue to hinder their vocational, professional, and personal success. Women in ministry need a trusted and comprehensive resource not only to be able to survive but to thrive in their places of call. She provides theoretical, theological, and practical frameworks and strategies for flourishing as a woman in ministry and engages critical reflection on the practice of ministry in light of current feminist theory, biblical interpretation, and experience.Covering everything from biblical arguments for and against women in the church to what not to wear, this book offers background information and tools for negotiating the many and varied issues that woman in ministry face, including leadership, the authority and office of the clergy, and structures and power in the church. A trusted and comprehensive resource for women in ministry, equipping them to thrive in their places of call, and for the men who serve alongside them. "For women in ministry, one 'a-ha' moment after another spills from the pages of this book. Decades after ordination opened for women in mainline churches, the struggle for acceptance and equality goes on. This is an important book which narrates the deep costs of sexism and imagines a new form of women's leadership rooted and grounded in authentic love and genuine hospitality. In telling the truth about persistent sexism in the church, Karoline Lewis, paradoxically, blesses her readers with hope. This hope emerges in naming the challenges for women leaders and then pointing the way forward." - Leanne Van Dyk, President and Professor of Theology, Columbia Theological Seminary, Decatur, GA

    Portland is among the most unchurched and politically progressive cities in the nation. With its unique edge—from a popular television show dedicated to its eccentricity to hosting the country’s largest naked bike ride—you wouldn’t expect Portland to be home to one of the most successful partnerships between local government and area churches. But it is.In 2007, Kevin Palau and a few dozen pastors approached Portland’s mayor and posed the question: How can we serve you with no strings attached? Officials identified five initial areas of need—hunger, homelessness, healthcare, the environment, and public schools—and so began a partnership, CityServe, between the city and a band of churches seeking to live out the gospel message. Since then, the CityServe model has spread like wildfire, inspiring communities across the country to take up the cause in their own cities.Unlikely not only tells the story of the inception of CityServe, but also challenges readers to evaluate their understanding of the gospel. Today’s church finds itself torn between social justice and direct proclamation. Unlikely proposes a both/and scenario, showing how the gospel can truly penetrate a region—through word and deed.CityServe is proof that when differences can be put aside for a worthy cause, real change can be attained, and unlikely beauty is born.