Building Healthy Churches – serie

Church discipline is essential to building a healthy church. So how exactly do we practice church discipline?Jonathan Leeman helps us face the endless variety of circumstances and sins for which no scriptural case study exists, sins that don’t show up on any list and need a biblical framework to be corrected appropriately in love.Here is a contemporary and concise how-to guide that provides a theological framework for understanding and implementing disciplinary measures in the local church, along with several examples of real-life situations and the corresponding responses.

Why should you join a church?Becoming a member of a church is an important, and often neglected, part of the Christian life. Yet the trend these days is one of shunning the practice of organized religion and showing a distaste or fear of commitment, especially of institutions.Jonathan Leeman addresses these issues with a straightforward explanation of what church membership is and why it’s important. Giving the local church its proper due, Leeman has built a compelling case for committing to the local body.

How do you feel about doctrine?Whatever answer comes to mind, this book will not only convince you that sound doctrine is vital for living a godly life, it will also explain the essential role of theology in the life of a healthy church.After all, thinking rightly about God affects everything, from guiding us in practical issues to growing a church’s unity and witness.This short, readable book shows how good theology leads to transformation, life, and joy.

How does the church portray the beauty of Christ?The gospel is a theological message. But this message also creates human beauty—beautiful relationships in our churches, making the glory of Christ visible in the world today.In this timely book, Pastor Ray Ortlund makes the case that gospel doctrine creates a gospel culture. In too many of our churches, it is the beauty of a gospel culture that is the missing piece of the puzzle. But when the gospel is allowed to exert its full power, a church becomes radiant with the glory of Christ.Part of the 9Marks Building Healthy Churches series. Explains the importance of the gospel for cultivating beautiful, fulfilling relationships with other peoplePart of the 9Marks: Building Healthy Churches series, which expands on Mark Dever’s 9 Marks of a Healthy Church

What does effective church leadership look like?In this conversational book, pastor Jeramie Rinne sets forth an easy-to-understand “job description” for elders drawn from the Bible’s teaching on church leadership.Offering practical guidance for new elders and helping church members better understand and support their spiritual leaders, this succinct volume will encourage elders to embrace their calling with grace, wisdom, and clarity of vision.Part of the 9Marks Building Healthy Churches series. Designed as a short, practical, go-to resource for pastors and church leaders so that they can develop effective elders within their churchPromoted at the Together for the Gospel national conferencePublished in association with the 9Marks church networkPart of the 9Marks Building Healthy Churches series, which expands on Mark Dever’s popular book, 9 Marks of a Healthy Church

What makes for good preaching?In this accessible volume—written for preachers and preachers in training—pastor David Helm outlines what must be believed and accomplished to become a faithful expositor of God’s Word.In addition to offering practical, step-by-step guidance for preachers, this short book will equip all of us to recognize good preaching when we hear it.

Evangelism is more than a program.Every few years, churches jump into the latest evangelistic fad. Leaders administrate the new program, and members go on a raid. But picture a church where evangelism is simply part of the culture. Leaders share their faith consistently and openly. Members follow, encouraging one another to make evangelism an ongoing way of life.Such is the way of evangelism presented by this brief and compelling book. No program here. Instead, it just might give your church a new way to live and share the gospel together.

What does it look like to help others become more like Christ?In this concise guide, pastor Mark Dever outlines the who, what, where, when, why, and how of discipling—helping others follow Jesus.Following the pattern found in Scripture, this book explains how disciple-making relationships should function in the context of the local church, teaching us how to cultivate a culture of discipling as a normal part of our everyday lives.Part of the 9Marks Building Healthy Churches series.   Equips Christians to follow Jesus’s command to make disciplesPart of the 9Marks: Building Healthy Churches series, which expands on Mark Dever’s best-selling book Nine Marks of a Healthy Church Useful for small groups or individual studyWritten by a well-known pastor and the president of 9Marks

Who is responsible for global missions?Even though most Christians will never move overseas, the Bible enlists every Christian and every local church in the grand project of global missions. The local church is the engine of world missions. But where should a church begin?Churches don’t need a complicated missions program. They need the Bible and the wisdom to know how to apply it. This book points to Scripture and offers practical steps for training and supporting missionaries, forming international partnerships, sending short-term teams, and engaging the nations both at home and abroad.Part of the 9Marks Building Healthy Churches series. Part of the 9Marks: Building Healthy Churches series, which expands on Mark Dever's popular book Nine Marks of a Healthy Church Written by an experienced missions pastorOffers personal stories to help readers see principles in practiceIncludes a foreword written by David Platt, president of the International Mission Board

How does the church guard against false gospels?Every week, many churches around the world read the Bible but miss the main point—and end up teaching false gospels week in and week out. One of the most important safeguards against this danger is an understanding of biblical theology: reading the Bible in light of its main message, culminating in Jesus Christ.Starting with a framework for understanding the storyline of the Bible and then explaining basic principles for prioritizing the teaching of this message, this book aims to help churches guard the truth of the gospel.Part of the 9Marks Building Healthy Churches series. Provides basic principles for interpreting Scripture to help readers and teachers of the Bible understand it in Christ-centered termsTargets an international audience in response to the growing influence of various heretical doctrines around the worldWritten by two pastors with international experienceWritten for pastors in places where the prosperity gospel and syncretism run rampant

How Does Understanding Conversion Shape Ministry?The way a church operates says a lot about how they believe people are saved. When a church truly embraces the Bible's teaching on conversion, they will call people to repentance and faith—not just one-time decisions, therapeutic healings, or moral lifestyles. This short book was written to help churches rightly understand the difference that a biblical doctrine of conversion should make for teaching, evangelism, discipling, membership, and every other facet of the life of a local church. Part of the 9Marks Building Healthy Churches series.   Shows the relationship between our doctrine of conversion and practice of ministry in the local churchPart of the 9Marks: Building Healthy Churches series, which expands on Mark Dever’s best-selling book Nine Marks of a Healthy Church Useful for small groups or individual study

What is the role of corporate prayer in the church?Prayer is as necessary to the Christian as breathing is to the human body—but it often doesn’t come quite as naturally. In fact, prayer in the church often gets subtly pushed to the side in favor of pragmatic practices that promise tangible results.This book focuses on the necessity of regular prayer as a central practice in the local church—awakening us to the need and blessing of corporate prayer by examining what Jesus taught about prayer, how the first Christians approached prayer, and how to prioritize prayer in our congregations. Part of the 9Marks Building Healthy Churches series, which expands on Mark Dever’s popular book Nine Marks of a Healthy Church Examines Jesus’s teaching on prayer and how the first Christians approached prayer in the local churchEmphasizes the blessing of prayer in our personal lives and in the life of a local churchIncludes an appendix that offers advice to pastors and other leaders whose responsibility it is to lead the church in prayer

How Can Deacons Mobilize Service in the Church?Deacons are essential to a church’s health—yet confusion abounds regarding their biblical job description. What’s their God-given role in a local congregation and how do they relate to the church’s overall mission?In this short book, 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.Download eighteen free sample questions for deacon candidates. Part of the 9Marks Building Healthy Churches series, which expands on Mark Dever’s popular book Nine Marks of a Healthy Church Examines the role deacons play in the churchIncludes an appendix on women serving as deaconsProvides sample questions for deacon candidates

The Complete 15-Volume SeriesWhen it comes to building a healthy church, there are many factors to consider—membership, evangelism, biblical theology, and more. Building Healthy Churches (15-Volume Set) edited by Mark Dever and Jonathan Leeman provides introductions for the basic biblical commands regarding the local church. Each of the 15 short, readable books is useful for any pastor or church leader seeking more information on the marks of a healthy church. Written for laypeople as well as ministry leadersConcise and accessible for individual or group useHelps readers grasp basic biblical commands regarding the local churchExcellent resource for church membership classes

Key Traits of a Healthy Church to Develop within the Local BodyWhat is an ideal church, and how can you tell? How does it look different from other churches? More importantly, how does it act differently, especially in society? Many of us aren’t sure how to answer those questions, even though we probably have some preconceived ideas. This book answers those questions and many more.Author Mark Dever seeks to help believers recognize the key characteristics of a healthy church: expositional preaching, biblical theology, and a right understanding of the gospel. Dever then calls us to develop those characteristics in our own churches. By following the example of New Testament authors and addressing all members of the church, pastors and laity alike, Dever challenges all believers to do their part in maintaining the local church. Part of the 9Marks Building Healthy Churches series, What Is a Healthy Church? offers timeless truths and practical principles to help each of us fulfill our God-given roles in the body of Christ. Offers an Ideal Church Model: Encourages pastors and members to implement healthy church qualities within their local bodyWritten by Mark Dever: Pastor, bestselling author, and president of 9MarksFrom 9Marks: Other titles in the Building Healthy Churches series include Church Discipline; Deacons; and Church Membership Replaces ISBN 978-1-58134-937-5

Pastor and Author Thabiti M. Anyabwile Empowers Readers to Actively Contribute to the Vitality of the Local ChurchGod wants Christians to experience the local church as a home more profoundly wonderful and meaningful than any other place on earth. To achieve this, all believers should play an active, intentional role in the body of Christ. But what does it mean to be a healthy church member?In this 9Marks guide, pastor Thabiti Anyabwile studies God’s word to show readers how they can labor for the health of their church. Covering 10 essential topics—including evangelism, discipleship, self-discipline, and prayer—he demonstrates how contributing to the mission of the local church also helps readers experience profound spiritual growth in their own lives.  An Essential Guide on Church Membership and Participation: Helps Christians understand their individual roles in building a healthy churchWritten by Thabiti M. Anyabwile: Pastor, author, and council member for the Gospel CoalitionFrom 9Marks: Other titles include What Is a Healthy Church?; Why Trust the Bible?; and Is God Really Sovereign? Replaces ISBN 978-1-4335-0212-5