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Christians have long differed with one another on both the meaning and the practice of water baptism. Using the classic Counterpoints forum of presentation-critique-response, this insightful book explores four prominent views of baptism held by different branches of Protestantism: Baptist, Christian Church/Church of Christ, Lutheran, and Reformed.

Why does church government matter? In this book, Guy Prentiss Waters offers a brief and accessible introduction to Presbyterianism that shows how a well-ordered church fosters Christian lives lived well. In making the case that church government is critical to Christian discipleship, Waters presents an overview of the nature of the church (the body and its member) and its structures of authority (officers, assemblies, and ordination). He concludes by answering common questions people raise about church government.

Dear. Precious. Lovely. The Bible describes the church in extraordinary ways, even using beautiful poetry and metaphors. How does this compare to how Christians today describe the church? Unfortunately, many believers focus more on its mission, structure, or specific programs than on its inherent beauty. It's time to spark a renewed affection for the church. In The Loveliest Place, Dustin Benge urges Christians to see the holy assembly of God's redeemed people in all its eternal beauty.

Have you taken the Lord’s Supper without understanding what it means? Do you wonder about its relevance to your Christian life? This ordinance doesn’t have to be mysterious. Pastor Aubrey Sequeira shares five ways the Lord’s Supper enriches the church as it invites believers to look backward (remembrance), outward (togetherness), upward (spiritual nourishment), inward (reflection), and forward (anticipation).

Believers display the greatness of God’s kingdom to a hostile world when we selflessly serve each other and those around us. In this short audiobook, Matthew Emadi explains the vital roles we play within the church. Through acts of service including hospitality, ministry, and evangelism, we bless our communities and long to hear Jesus one day say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

After his resurrection, the Lord Jesus revealed how his suffering, glory, and mission plan for the nations are in fact central to the biblical story of redemption. After Emmaus shows how Christology and missiology are integrally connected throughout Scripture, especially in the teaching of Jesus and the apostles. Brian Tabb explains what Luke 24:46-47 reveals about God’s messianic promises in the Old Testament, their fulfillment in the New Testament, and the purpose of the church.

Neither "everything's fine" nor "burn it all down", Stringer offers a thoughtful appreciation of evangelicalism's history, identity, and strengths, but also lament for its blind spots, toxic brokenness, and complicity with injustice. From this complicated space, we can move forward with informed vision rather than resignation and with hope for our future together.

In this short audiobook, Matt Smethurst makes the case that deacons are model servants called to meet tangible needs, organize and mobilize acts of service, preserve the unity of the flock, and support the ministry of the elders. Clearing away common misconceptions, Smethurst offers practical guidance for deploying deacons and helping churches to flourish.

Unlike previous generations that had to stay put, today we have unprecedented access to a lifestyle of mobility. We can explore and bounce from place to place, never settling down or making anywhere home. While it feels freeing to be able to try something new whenever we want - whether it's a new job, a new city, a new group of friends, or even a new church - somewhere along the way, we discover we're missing something. We may be paying our bills and have a roof over our heads, but we're lonely and unfulfilled, disconnected and unsatisfied.

A pastor is called to be a shepherd of God’s people in the local church. The gift of a godly pastor cannot be overemphasized — but the task of finding a faithful pastor is daunting. In this audiobook, seasoned pastor Mark Dever offers clear, biblical insight to churches in search of new leadership by providing six characteristics to look for in a new pastor, along with 11 suggestions of strategies to implement during the search process.

Many of us have questions about what it means to live as a Christian in the context of a local church. You may even catch yourself asking: If I believe in Jesus, why do I need to join a church? To put it simply, when you are saved from your sin, you are saved into a community characterized by fellowship and accountability.

Does the phrase church discipline sound like an oxymoron? The church’s message is about grace, we reason, while discipline feels like the opposite of grace. In fact, Jesus taught his disciples to practice church discipline because it’s one way congregations grow in holiness and imitate God’s own love. In this audiobook, Jonathan Leeman presents biblical answers to questions about the nature and application of church discipline, conveying that Scripture presents church discipline as both loving and necessary.

Originally written in 1656 and endorsed by generations of leading pastors as an essential book on the work of ministry, this abridged version of The Reformed Pastor presents the best of Richard Baxter’s timeless advice in simple, modern language that’s more accessible to a new generation of church leaders.

Beginning with the biblical basics, Jeff Lockyer walks listeners through the underlying theology and practical application of how Southridge Community Church has approached ministry for nearly a quarter century. While providing a fresh approach to ministry, the book stimulates how to think - not what to think. It's written by a local church practitioner for local church practitioners.

How have so many Christian leaders and institutions been lured by toxic and abusive power? Why are so many Christians tempted to chase worldly success and status? Because, according to Jamin Goggin and Kyle Strobel, rather than seeking kingdom power embodied by Jesus, we have embraced a form of power that is antithetical to the cross. Christians have succumbed to the temptations of power and forgotten Jesus’ seemingly contradictory path to power - first giving it up.

While God certainly cares for your deepest needs, Skye Jethani wants you to know that prayer is so much more than a two-way transaction with a heavenly vending machine. Jesus didn’t pray like that. And with a pastor’s heart, Skye wants to take you deeper into what Jesus, the lover of your soul, had to say about talking with God.

With traces of humor scattered with incredible insight, Darren Stott shares his search to find the secrets to sustain revivals. In the history of the church, we have seen revivals come and go, but in his latest audiobook, Carve, he reveals six key disciplines to enable churches to preserve revivals and change communities. The disciplines are expectations, preparation, communication, collaboration, celebration, and evaluation. This audiobook is for those who are seriously vested and rooted in a community that values the moving of the spirit.

Do you have a nagging feeling that something’s missing from your church experience? You’re not alone. And it’s time to discover a better way. Church-reform advocate and Bible scholar Peter DeHaan, PhD, is a strong proponent of meaningful Christian community. In Jesus’s Broken Church, he uses Scripture to guide us into right practices and away from the off-track customs that most every church adheres to. The problem is that today’s church follows an Old Testament model.

Imagine local churches filled with people from all cultures, generations, hues, and backgrounds - each one a true cross-section of its own neighborhood or city demographics. Imagine these churches enjoying rich fellowship internally, providing substantive ministry externally, and attracting a not-yet-believing world to the promise of the gospel. That would be a church like heaven on Earth. And Beard believes any local congregation can attain this. This audiobook provides theology, story, and practical insights for how your church can be that kind of remarkable.

Uncovering the Myth of Spiritual Covering is adapted from a chapter of the widely disseminated book, Charismatic Captivation - Authoritarian Abuse & Psychological Enslavement in Neo-Pentecostal Churches. That book exposes the widespread problem of authoritarian abuse that has been flourishing virtually unabated for decades since it was first infused into the very fabric, foundation, and functions of the Charismatic/Neo-Pentecostal church during the false movement known as the Discipleship/Shepherding Movement (1970-77).