Showing titles in Discipleship

"And if someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it. But do this in a gentle and respectful way" (1 Peter 3:15-16, NLT). This book demonstrates again and again that talking about God is simple when we commit ourselves first to loving and listening to our friends. For people who are intimidated or fatigued by the idea of talking about matters of faith, Talking About God offers story after gripping story about faith conversations that avoid cliché and combativeness.

The world is fractured. Tensions are high, patience is low, and goodwill is hard to come by. In The Genius of One, author and pastor Greg Holder reminds us of the high value Jesus and his early followers placed on community and offers guidance for how to see and relate to one another in emotionally and spiritually healthy ways so that we, the church, can fulfill Jesus' prayer for us and model a better way of loving one another in a fractured world.

Doug Logan pastors in Camden, NJ, a city of great need where God is doing great things. Amid drug abuse, gang violence, and extreme poverty, God is using Doug and Epiphany Fellowship to rewrite broken stories and bring life to the block. With teachings from Scripture and powerful stories from his urban context, Doug will help you change the story on your own block, wherever that may be. If you are a pastor trying to mobilize your church, or a Christian trying to live with purpose, this theology of missions will help.

A virus has been spreading across America. Chances are you've already been infected without even realizing it. The virus is made up of dangerous ideas - worldviews that don't reflect Jesus and biblical living. According to a recent Barna study, less than one in five practicing Christians has a biblical worldview. Idea viruses - stemming from secularism, Marxism, postmodernism, new spirituality, and Islam - are rampant in our churches today. But don't give up - there is hope!

We are story-making people. We love reading stories - and we love hearing the personal stories of others. We need stories, or narratives, to make sense of our world. And those stories shape our lives. What is the story you have been told about the Gospel? About God? About the Christian life? About Jesus? About the cross? About yourself? About heaven?

When people live in community moved by the gospel and marked by the Spirit, great things happen. They commit to one another. They grieve together, sing together, eat, pray, and play together. They love, serve, honor, encourage, and provide for each other gladly. And they live on mission together.

In True Discipleship William MacDonald highlights some principles of New Testament discipleship and challenges every genuine Christian believer. He makes clear that nothing less than an all-out commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ is required of us. The savior seeks those who will give him first place in their lives.

Too many discipleship books are written for clean, perfect people who know all the right Sunday school answers. The Imperfect Disciple is for the rest of us—people who screw up, people who are weary, people who are wondering if it's safe to say what they're really thinking. For the believer who is tired of quasi-spiritual lifehacks being passed off as true, down-and-dirty discipleship, here is a discipleship book that isn't afraid to be honest about the mess we call real life.

In One, Riggs shows listeners that when Jesus offered himself up in our place, he was not only purchasing our salvation but also setting an example for us to follow. She helps listeners understand that they are secure in God's inexhaustible love, making them free to love others lavishly—not just in what they do but in what they say, what they don't say, what they will endure, and what they will forgive.

The second in Joe Thorn's series on the confession, nature, and expression of the church, The Character of the Church explores what the church is fundamentally like. Useful for training in membership classes, discipleship groups, and elder boards, The Character of the Church is at once theological, practical, and experiential. Listeners will be not simply informed but led to a deeper appreciation of the church of God.

The third in Joe Thorn's three-book series on the confession, nature, and expression of the Church, The Life of the Church explores what the church does because of who it is. Useful for training in membership class, discipleship groups, and elder boards—and even for devotional reading—The Life of the Church is at once theological, practical, and experiential. Listeners will not simply be informed, but led to a deeper conviction about their role in the body of Christ.

The first in Joe Thorn's three book series on the confession, nature, and expression of the Church, The Heart of the Church explores the center of the Church's life and identity: the gospel. Useful for training in membership classes, discipleship groups, and elder boards - The Heart of the Church is at once theological, practical, and experiential. Listeners will not simply be informed, but led to believe in, rejoice in, and be transformed by the truth of God for his gathered people.

Pastor and cofounder of the Bethel School of Ministry Kris Vallotton walks Christians through the profound process of discovering their true identity and experiencing the wonder of their kingdom purposes. Christians are often told that they were born with a purpose that reaches beyond their...

We all feel that pull to make a difference in the world - to reach out more, champion the gospel, help those in need - but we also feel busy. How can we balance the responsibilities we already have with our desire to be salt and light? One answer is hospitality. Gospel-centered hospitality is the gift that gives back - as we open our lives up to others, we receive in heaping measures. And since most people are more likely to step into a living room than a sanctuary, hospitality is a strategic way to reach out.

The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and the Tree of Life represent the basic conflict between the powers of darkness and the Kingdom of God. There Were Two Trees in the Garden is a study of the fundamental differences between these two trees and how they still affect our lives today.

God wants to put a face on giving--and the face he has in mind is not yours, but his. What if you could take something out of your pocket today that would make God wonderfully personal and absolutely real to someone who, only minutes earlier, had been secretly calling out to God for help, for an...

Christianity has tended to focus on right beliefs and right choices as the keys for personal growth. But biblical evidence and modern brain science show that our character is shaped more by whom we love than what we believe. Through conversations he had with Dallas Willard at the Heart and Soul Conference shortly before Dallas' death, Jim Wilder shows how we can train our brains to relate to God based on joyful, mutual attachment - which leads to emotional and spiritual maturity as our identity and character are formed by our relationship with God.

In 40 Questions About the Great Commission, scholars Daniel Akin, Benjamin Merkle, and George Robinson unpack the meaning, history, theology, and practical applications of Jesus' command to go and make disciples. Ideal for personal or group study, this volume will reignite your passion for evangelism while answering key questions like: Where do we stand in relation to fulfilling the Great Commission?; how do baptism and teaching relate to the Great Commission?; and more.

Missionary, theologian, and religious genius, Paul is one of the most powerful human personalities in the history of the Church. E. P. Sanders, an influential Pauline scholar, analyzes the fundamental beliefs and vigorous contradictions in Paul's thought, discovering a philosophy that is less of a monolithic system than the apostle's convictions would seem to suggest.

College: A four-year (or more!) window of time where a student can become and accomplish all that God has for them. This book will help you do just that as you discover a vision for your life, the kind of personal and spiritual foundation you need to build, and practical ways to share your faith, disciple others, and impact the world for Jesus Christ. This is a new and completely revised edition of The Fuel and the Flame, originally published in 2003.