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If churches are the dwelling place of God’s spirit, why are so many built around the strategies of man? Eager for growth, leaders can be lured by entertaining new schemes, forgetting doctrinal truth as their driving force. Churches must humbly lean on the sufficiency of God’s word. How to Build a Healthy Church challenges leaders to evaluate their motivations for ministry and provides examples of healthy, deliberate leadership. This is more than a step-by-step plan to mimic; it’s a biblical blueprint for pastors, elders, and anyone committed to the church’s vitality.

The most widely-used text of the last 25 years in its discipline, Systematic Theology by Wayne Grudem has been thoroughly revised and expanded for the first time while retaining the features that have made it the standard in its field: Clear explanations, an emphasis on each doctrine’s scriptural basis, and practical applications to daily life. Volume 1 of 2.

The enduring influence of the Catholic Church has many sources, but in the first half of the 19th century, the foundations upon which the church had rested were shaken. For many people, liberalism in the guise of liberty, equality, and fraternity was the quintessence of the evils that shook those foundations. At the Vatican Council of 1869-1870, the church made an effort to set things right by defining the doctrine of papal infallibility. Author John W. O'Malley draws us into the bitter controversies over papal infallibility that at one point seemed destined to rend the church in two.

In the middle of the 12th Century an unknown Christian sect emerged in southern France. They claimed to be the sole successors of the original Church of Jesus Christ. They called themselves Cathars. Despite their sincere belief, the Cathars were deemed by the Roman Church to oppose several of their fundamental principles of Christianity. Because of these unorthodox practices the Cathars were outlawed by the Church of Rome, and sentenced to a merciless extinction.

Every church is driven by some controlling force: tradition, finances, programs, events, personalities, or even the building itself. But author and pastor Dr. Rick Warren, the founder of Saddleback Valley Community Church in California, believes that a church can only be truly healthy if it becomes "purpose-driven," built around the 5 goals Jesus stated in the New Testament.

Centuries on, what the Reformation was and what it accomplished remain deeply contentious. Peter Marshall's sweeping new history argues that 16th-century England was a society neither desperate for nor allergic to change, but one open to ideas of "reform" in various competing guises. This engaging history reveals what was really at stake in the overthrow of Catholic culture and the reshaping of the English Church.

In this short, accessible account of the Eastern Orthodox Church, John McGuckin begins by tackling the question "What is the Church?" His answer is a clear, historically and theologically rooted portrait of what the Church is for Orthodox Christianity and how it differs from Western Christians' expectations.

Church historians have long known and appreciated Christianity's global history. Until recently, however, introductory textbooks on the history of Christianity focused almost exclusively on Europe and North America. Robert Bruce Mullins's A Short World History of Christianity, by contrast, offers a panoramic picture of the history of Christianity in its Western and non-Western expressions.

The history of African American Christianity is one of the determined faith of a people driven to pursue spiritual and social uplift for themselves and others to God's glory. Yet stories of faithful Black Christians have often been forgotten or minimized. The dynamic witness of the Black church in the United States is an essential part of Christian history that must be heard and dependably retold. In this book, Walter R. Strickland II does just that through a theological-intellectual history highlighting the ways theology has formed and motivated Black Christianity across the centuries.

Short, Accessible Guide to Biblical Theology Helps Churches Avoid Heretical Doctrine.

The Church today has lost its way. We've pursued the wrong priorities, put our hope in personalities, and elevated popularity over spiritual maturity. And it's not just the Church that's lost; we are too. As culture wars rage and competing voices argue, many Christians are left asking a basic question, What's a Christian, anyway? But there's hope. The church has been here before, and our spiritual ancestors crafted a powerful resource to help us find our way: the Nicene Creed.

Pope Leo XIV is the first and most comprehensive introduction to the 267th occupant of the Chair of Saint Peter and the global challenges he faces as he succeeds Pope Francis as Bishop of Rome. This book is the culmination of years of research and planning from sources in multiple languages and countries.

Theological Education demonstrates how churches and seminaries can cooperate through a competency-based learning approach to ministry preparation-that is, competency-based theological education (CBTE). CBTE focuses on the mutual mission of the church and theological education: developing followers of Christ who flourish in their vocations.

The potential of a team of God-inspired, talented, committed people is boundless. But without resilience—including the savvy and skill to get up again (and again) when the going gets tough—teams simply cannot thrive or lead well. Resilience is what sets great leaders and teams apart from those that literally fall apart. It's what's missing when great organizations lose steam.

Multilingual Church is more than a guide; it's a groundbreaking invitation to reflect Christ's universal love. Downie equips church leaders with the resources they need to adapt and thrive in an ever-changing, multilingual landscape. Are you ready to transform your congregation? The path starts here, united in faith across languages.

JEANNE GUYON is Christianity's best-known and most influential woman in church history. Her autobiography has moved the hearts of believers for three centuries. Even today, in France, she is one of the greatest figures of French history. Guyon's influence reached the court of Louis XIV. Jealousy ensued, and she was imprisoned in the infamous Bastille. For most of her life she suffered persecution at the hands of the church, because she believed all Christians could have a rich prayer life. Perhaps John Wesley summed it up best: "Guyon is the greatest Christian to rise since the first century.

In this book, Henri Nouwen combines creative case studies of ministry with stories from diverse cultures and religious traditions in preparing a new model for ministry. Weaving keen cultural analysis with his psychological and religious insights, Nouwen has come up with a balanced and creative theology of service that begins with the realization of fundamental woundedness in human nature. Emphasizing that which is in humanity common to both minister and believer, this woundedness can serve as a source of strength and healing when counseling others.

Nothing is new or original in Christianity. That is the important thesis demonstrated in Christianity Before Christ. The least important features, as well as the most important components, were all well developed in cultures that flourished before the time that Christ is alleged to have walked the parched paths of Roman Palestine.

What if we're missing something? The New Testament describes a vibrant church--empowered by the Holy Spirit with supernatural gifts of manifestation, service, and leadership--which turned the known world upside down within three generations. But as the freedom of the operation of the Holy Spirit waned and post-apostolic leaders consolidated power within hierarchical systems, that missional momentum was truncated.

Throughout the modern era, Galileo Galilei has been presented as a victim of cruel torture of conscience, theological narrow-mindedness, and ecclesiastical harassment typical of a dark, closed-minded Church. Frequently portrayed as such in theaters due to prevailing political ideologies, the story of Galileo points to the long-held tension between “science and faith,” “technology and ethics,” and “progress and the Church.” The story of the real Galileo, however, which has not been told—until now—is sure to rock the established narrative.

Through accessible insights, The Earth Will Be Filled explores how the theme of glory can deepen your understanding of Scripture, offering you a meaningful way to reflect on God's majesty and presence. This book is an invitation to immerse yourself in the awe of God's glory. Step into the richness and wonder of God's glory with The Earth Will Be Filled, and discover how glory permeates Scripture and invites us into a life-transforming response.

The church in America is getting smaller and smaller. Each year average church attendance decreases, while the number of Americans who identify as no religious affiliation increases. Even traditionally Christian areas, such as the Bible Belt, are seeing the same trends as the rest of the nation. America is not alone in experiencing these trends. Western Europe, once a strong Christian continent, is also going the same way. What is the cause of the decline of Christianity in America as well as Western Europe?

This is a story of a God who relentlessly pursues. This is a story that reveals what the church does not often do well regarding sexual sin or identity struggles. More importantly, it’s a story of how the church can be far better—equipped to live in love and truth through strength and compassion; inviting broken people into genuine and growing relationships with Jesus and His authentic community. The church can become a vibrant, well-prepared “teaching hospital” for all the issues and brokenness embraced today by hurting people craving belonging and purpose–love and meaning.

Christianity is the most enduring and influential legacy of the ancient world, and its emergence the single most transformative development in Western history. Even the increasing number in the West today who have abandoned the faith of their forebears, and dismiss all religion as pointless superstition, remain recognisably its heirs. Seen close-up, the division between a sceptic and a believer may seem unbridgeable.

The smoke clears. The world watches. A name is announced. A man steps forward and the earth’s gaze falls upon him. We have a Pope! And his name is Leo XIV. But who is this 266th successor to St. Peter? What is the former Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost’s vision for the Church, and what impact will his papacy have on Catholics and on the world? Veteran Catholic journalist and historian Matthew Bunson offers the first authoritative portrait of the new Holy Father.

We've seen the news stories and heard the rumors. Maybe we ourselves have been hurt by a narcissistic church leader. It's easy to throw the term around and diagnose others from afar. But what is narcissism, really? And how does it infiltrate the church?

In this book, which is based on new landmark research from the Fuller Youth Institute and combines in-depth interviews with data from 1,200 diverse teenagers, Kara Powell and Brad M. Griffin offer pastors, youth leaders, mentors, and parents practical and proven conversations and connections that help teenagers answer their three biggest questions and reach their full potential.

In any study of the principles, and procedure of prayer, of its activities and enterprises, first place, must, of necessity, be given to faith. It is the initial quality in the heart of any man who essays to talk to the Unseen. He must, out of sheer helplessness, stretch forth hands of faith. He must believe, where he cannot prove. In the ultimate issue, prayer is simply faith, claiming its natural yet marvelous prerogatives - faith taking possession of its illimitable inheritance. True godliness is just as true, steady, and persevering in the realm of faith as it is in the province of prayer. Moreover: when faith ceases to pray, it ceases to live. Faith does the impossible because it brings God to undertake for us, and nothing is impossible with God.

We can't get away from the principle of reaping what we sow. If we sow good seed, we anticipate a great harvest. But if we sow weeds, we'll harvest no more than we sowed. The same is true spiritually and practically. If we want a reward in heaven, we must live for Christ. On the other hand, if we lie, cheat, swear, steal, get drunk, use drugs, or otherwise fulfill the lusts of the flesh, the reality is we'll pay the consequences both now and in eternity. No matter how much society tries to convince us otherwise, this law has proven to be true without fail.

If it's good, it must be God. Right? These days the terms good and God seem synonymous. We believe that what's generally accepted as good must be in line with God's will. Generosity, humility, justice - good. Selfishness, arrogance, cruelty - evil. The distinction seems pretty straightforward. But is that all there is to it? This audiobook will do more than ask you to change your behavior. It will empower you to engage with God on a level that will change every aspect of your life.