Book Review | Planting Churches Cross-Culturally: North America and Beyond | David Hesselgrave

Bibliography: Hesselgrave, David J. Planting Churches Cross-Culturally: North America and Beyond.  2^nd edition. (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academics), 2000.

Author information:

David Hesselgrave is a retired professor from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School.  He holds a doctorate from the University of Minnesota in Rhetoric and Public Addresswith a cross-cultural communications emphasis.  He has served both as a pastor (for 5 years) and as a missionary in Japan (for 12 years).  Before retiring in 1991, Hesselgrave taught for nearly three decades.  In addition to Planting Churches Cross-Culturally, he has also written Contextualization, Paradigms in Conflict, and Communicating Christ Cross-Culturally.  Hesselgrave brings to this book both his extensive educational ministry and his research background.

Content Summary:

Hesselgrave’s 317 page work, Planting Churches Cross Culturally, is written to convey the importance of evangelistic church planting and missions. Additionally, it seeks to provide a manual of sorts for doing missions and church planting. Each of the five sections and seventeen chapters is filled with information that builds upon the last.

In part one, Hesselgrave devotes three chapters to ‘The Christian and the Christian Mission’. It is here that Hesselgrave states his intended purpose for the book which is the proclamation of the Gospel and the gathering of believers into the church, which is the heart of the Christian mission, according to Hesselgrave.  Hesselgrave also spends much time emphasizing the need to plan one’s work before working one’s plan.  According to Hesselgrave, “Too often [missions] is undertaken haphazardly and without thinking it through”(p.33),  After all, “God is the greatest planner of all”(p. 33) If God inspired and encouraged men of old to plan, why shouldn’t the church planters and missionaries of today plan for the tasks at hand?  Hesselgrave concludes this section with an emphasis on the strategy on church planting, a strategy which can be found by studying the missionary endeavors of Paul in the Book of Acts.

In part two of Planting Churches Cross-Culturally, Hesselgrave devotes four chapters to his section entitled ‘The Christian Leader and the Christian Message’.  Here Hesselgrave emphasizes the need for solid strategic leadership in the mission as well as the need to carefully analyze and select the right target areas for missions and evangelism.  It is only after the right leaders have been selected and the right target areas have been discovered that the appropriate resources can be deployed.  The church should, as a body dedicated to Christ, deploy all of the resources that are necessary for the church planting endeavor, according to God’s will.

In parts three, four, and five, Hesselgrave devotes ten chapters to the development and discussion of “The Pauline cycle”, which is a biblical synopsis and analysis of the church planting strategies employed by Paul in the Book of Acts.  The Pauline Cycle begins with God’s call on the missionary.  Once the missionary has been commissioned (step one), a potential audience is contacted and surveyed and widespread evangelism is performed in order to form relationships that will lead to further contacts and further relationships (step two).  Once an audience has been contacted, the Gospel should be communicated (step three) as clearly as possible in a way that is relevant to the hearers in the target area or community.  Prayerfully, those who hear the Gospel message will be converted (step four) and the believers will be gathered together (step five) where their faith is then confirmed (step 6) and leaders for that congregation are consecrated (step seven).  Hesselgrave reminds the reader of the importance of the newly planted congregation training and selecting its own pastor and other leaders.  In step eight, once leaders are consecrated, there should be “an amicable withdraw of church planters” and “an orderly transition of leadership in the congregation”; a transition that creates a seamless “continuation of effective ministries that have been undertaken by the pioneer” (p.279). Through church fellowships, the relationships that have previously been established should continue on indefinitely.  Since Christian churches have a common bond in Christ, they should encourage one another and cooperate “in the common cause of evangelism” (step nine, p.279).  In step ten, which is the last step, the sending church is convened so that the missionary – evangelist can be relocated to a new target area, thus beginning the Pauline cycle all over again.  “And so the Pauline cycle has been and will be repeated, on and on, over and over, until Christ comes again and the church militant becomes the church triumphant. Maranatha!” (p. 321).

Evaluation:

Hesselgrave declares in his preface that this book grew out of “fifty years of pioneering and pastoring, reading and researching, and learning and lecturing in company with literally thousands of people who have been my instructors and inspiration in service for Christ and His Church” (p.13). As one reads through this volume, it becomes quite evident that indeed the reader is experiencing Hesselgrave’s experiences, and not just a third-party narrative from a novice in the field. Any doubts as to Hesselgrave’s credentials or qualifications are quickly squashed as one begins to delve into this exciting and exhaustive handbook for church planting.

Planting Churches Cross-Culturally is one of the most extensive books on church planning that this review has ever seen, and certainly the most extensive that he has ever read. His is not just a concise overview, but an exhaustive, extensive, and information filled volume. Most certainly the person who said, “Information is knowledge” had Hesselgrave’s work in mind, for the person who reads this book and retains only a percentage of the information contained within its pages has at his disposal a wealth of knowledge on how to plant a church biblically and practically.

An important strength of Hesselgrave’s work is his dire commitment to remain true to the biblical model for church planting, and for basically anything, for that matter. This is a breath of fresh air in a world where liberal theologians freely offer up opinions that are not substantiated by the Word of God. Since the church’s primary mission is to “proclaim the gospel of Christ and gather believers in to a local church where they can be built up in faith and made effective in service” (p. 17), it’s not only a good idea to follow the biblical model for church planting, it’s crucial. Sadly, many church planting ventures fail to take the biblical revelation into account when planning their task, which often leads to their demise. However, Hesselgrave is committed to leading his readers in a journey that uses the Bible as the primary source of revelation and information for the task of planting church, and he should be commended for this! Why shouldn’t a person interested in church planting look to the Bible for planning and strategy? After all, “it is possible…to extrapolate from the biblical record specific aspects of Paul’s overall strategy and specific methods that can be applied to contemporary situation”(p. 38). Hesselgrave gives further encouragement to go to God’s Word as he states, “In planning for church planting and growth, on the other hand, we have recourse to God’s Word” (p. 39).

Specificity is yet another strong point of Hesselgrave’s book as he discusses the many aspects of church planting and the Pauline cycle. He doesn’t speak in broad, generic, nonspecific terms, but fills each section of his book with practical, specific instructions concerning the topic at hand. For instance, he doesn’t just mention the need to pray, but reinforces that need by wonderfully stating that, “The new is replete with exhortations to prayer….Clearly, the selection of the missionary-evangelist candidates should be bathed in payer. The first deacons were commissioned only after prayer…[Prayer] is the continuing force behind the entire program” (pp. 99-100).  Hesselgrave drives home his points on prayer, and everything else, by reinforcing it in such a way that one cannot offer an argument to his view.

Another strong point, one worthy of mention, is the ‘Relevant Research’ and ‘Practical Reflection’ additions to almost every section in his book. Not only does he bathe each section in relevant Scriptures and appropriate theories that support his theses, he also gives research, sometimes scientific, and practical applications that bring the issue at hand to life. It’s as if Hesselgrave wrote this book with a ‘break out all the stops’ attitude for his readers. For instance, in a section on communication methodologies, Hesselgrave, after making his case for the need for clear, concise, biblically based communication in evangelism and missions, gives research data which supports the idea that personal, one on one, close up communication is not always the ideal way to communicate a message. Likewise, sometimes, as science has proven, a message may be more widely received by the receiver if it is given from a distance, as in a public, or semi-public setting. He follows up this idea with practical reflection which stresses thet need for innovation in communication. “If our abilities to innovate are not exhausted in exploiting the potential of biblical models, we can go on to attempt new methods for communicating Christ” (p.156).

This reviewer could find very little by the way of criticism with this book. One small area of critique would be the amount of time and words that Hesselgrave puts into each segment or section. It seems at time that Hesselgrave could have said the same thing with fewer words, possibly half the words, and yet not lose any substance in his points. The verboseness of his narrative sometimes works against Hesselgrave, causing this reader to lose focus on the point at hand. A more concise narrative on many of his topics could have help the reader to comprehend the subject matter much faster, and quite frankly, could have saved a tree or two (with less pages).

This book is a must-have for anyone who purports to be a serious student of missions and church planting. This is a book that won’t sit on a bookshelf and collect dust. It’s a practical, useful, invaluable tool for anyone who desires to learn all they can about both the need to plant churches and the how-to of planting churches. This book is filled with resource after resource that combines to make a sound survey of biblical church planting. It is a scholarly approach to missions and plating churches, yet is excitingly readable by anyone with a desire to be all they can be in the area of church planting.  It’s about missions….it’s about evangelism….it’s about missional theology….it’s about the church…..it’s about so much more. I recommend that everyone who desires to grow their church read this book. This is one book that the reader will be glad he read.

Key search words: Planting Churches Cross-Culturally, EVAN 550, Liberty University, Evangelism, Church Planting

Book Review | An Unstoppable Force | Erwin McManus

Bibliographical Information: McManus, Erwin Raphael. An Unstoppable Force: Daring to Become the Church God Had in Mind.  (Loveland, Colorado: Group Publishing),  2001.

Author Information: Erwin McManus, originally a citizen of El Salvador, has a passion unlike most for people of all nationalities. After planting a Hispanic church in inner-city Dallas, Texas, McManus then took on the heavy responsibility of leading Los Angeles based Mosaic Church (formerly known as The Church on Brady), an 800 plus member church made of many diverse nationalities, including Hispanics, Asians, and Caucasian and African and Americans. In addition to his role as a Pastor, he serves in many other roles, including husband, father, futurist, artist, cultural leader, church plant adviser, and youth event speaker. A graduate of both the University of North Carolina and Southwestern Theological Seminary, McManus has written many dynamic books, including The Barbarian Way, Chasing Daylight, and Soul Cravings, Wide Awake, and Uprising.

Content Summary:

McManus wastes no time giving his position on the church – it’s an organism, not an organization (McManus, 14). This being the case, the church should be concerned about issues of life and spirituality within the church, not about technicalities and traditions, such as that of running the church’s business meeting according to the Robert’s Rules of Order instead of by “the pattern of the apostolic church” (McManus, 14). In order to be a healthy organism, churches must care for her young, reproduce and prepare the next generation of the body of Christ, and “awaken an apostolic ethos” in the church (McManus, 20).

In the next section, “First Movement”, McManus gives an alarming wakeup call by painting a portrait of what happens as the church fades away into nothing. In His chapter called “Atrophy”, McManus reminds the reader of the far-too-often sad reality that churches waste away from defective nutrition. This is because churches are so concerned with thriving or even surviving that they forget their purpose as the body of Christ – to serve. “The Church must raise her sails and move with the Spirit if we are not to be left behind. It isn’t enough to simply hold on; we must boldly move forward” (McManus, 23).

In the next section, “First Movement”, McManus gives motivation for the church to take those first steps to become the church God had in mind. The church that God had in mind will not run from the culture that is at their back door, they will face it head on. “We’re running scared, and because we are, we’re hitting the cultural obstacles rather than overcoming them”. The church must overcome the cultural obstacles within their community so that they can effectively reach those people who are buried deep below the culture. The church God had in mind will not compromise, but rather will engage in battle to overcome cultural barriers that keep people away from church and keep the church away from people. Once the barriers are removed, great opportunity exists. “The nations are at our front door, we have an opportunity to love our neighbors as ourselves, and the practical application of reconciliation is right across the street” (McManus, 45).

Once the first movements towards becoming the church God had in mind occur, momentum begins to form. From this momentum, the church can find the strength and wherewithal to transform a culture and to not only produce followers of Jesus Christ, but also to be a part of a movement of Jesus Christ. Within this movement, an ethos is found – an ethos that is a “corporate-intense mental state that arises…..[within] the entire community” (McManus, 97). In this state, the entire community feels the same way and everyone has everything in common, much like the first century church.

In the next section, entitled “Third Movement”, McManus discusses many aspects of the healthy, growing church, including one who is engaging a broken world by “passing on the deep teachings of being a disciple of Jesus Christ” (McManus, 131). The church, in order to be the church God had in mind, must use the spiritual gifts God has given to “engage the power of faith, hope, and love” (McManus, 147).

In his last official chapter, the Epilogue withstanding, the church should remember that as they seek to continually reform themselves to reach the ever changing culture, they should prepare for obstacles, discouragement, and resistance. However, with God’s help, the church can indeed move forward to align and realign themselves with God’s purpose. God people should be led, through solid leadership, through “a journey that leads them from a transition to a transformation” (McManus, 198).

Evaluation:

It is evident from the first few pages of An Unstoppable Force: Daring to Become the Church God Had in Mind that McManus is creative, energetic, passionate, and a list of other positive adjectives. He exhibits the enthusiasm necessary to kindle a fire in anyone who genuinely desires to be a part of the church God has in mind. He is a bold visioneer who isn’t afraid to take large, bold steps. He’s proven this with his Texas church plant as well as his move to Mosaic. His book gives his unique, fresh perspective on how to build a church that will impact both the local community and the world. Furthermore, McManus has the goods to back up his vision – his church is impacting both the community and the world as I write this paper.

McManus seemed to have a relevant story and illustration for almost every primary point he made, possibly too many. For every point he made, he had a picture to paint through creative, flashy, culturally relevant words and through illustrations that made sense logically. For example, as he described the church that is afraid to move, thus failing to gain momentum, he paints a picture of himself as a small child, afraid of roller coasters (McManus, 63-63). He discusses his fear of the roller coaster and the five years he spent being afraid of them. Once he overcame that fear, he began to gain momentum incredibly fast, always looking for that next roller coaster ride and he never looked back. The church must get over the fears they have – fears about the changing culture that’s right outside their door. If they can conquer those fears, they too can begin to gain momentum in their church – momentum that will sky rocket their spiritual growth as a congregation and put them on the path to becoming the kind of church God had in mind.

This book was a challenge for this reviewer. The energetic, modernistic vocabulary style was hard for me to follow. Although I cannot quite place the writing style, it seemed a bit New Age or Postmodern – and maybe that was the intention of the author. I had to read and reread many of the sections, yet still did not grasp the entirety of his message. Many of his metaphors, illustrations, and flashy vocabulary simply did not resonate with this reviewer. I often found myself asking, “What is McManus trying to say here?” For instance, on pages 40-41, McManus discusses being “afraid to cross the street”. Yet I was never able to grasp what this figurative language represented in the church growth world. Just what is it that the church is afraid of here? I do not know.

McManus has a tendency, at least in this book, to be a little wordy and vague. Some of his points, though likely present, seem to get lost in the flashy, verbose writing style that McManus has. For instance, on page 54, McManus says that the church “has an opportunity to…. become an expression of the nations coming together and hearing the gospel in their own language”.  Yet he fails to disclose exactly how this will happen. How will the nations come together through the church? What steps are involved in this process? He goes on to give an example of a church coming together in this fashion – Cornerstone Church – yet still fails to describe how he led his church to accomplish this task. This seemed to be a common occurrence throughout his book. He gave instances of success or visions for success, yet did not readily offer the solutions or processes to accomplish these goals. He didn’t offer any ideas for changes that could be made within the local church to achieve the goals that he achieved.

McManus’ uses of modern, New Age terminology seemed to be a hindrance in conveying his message of growth to the church. As a Pastor of a small church in a rural area, I know personally that the churches that need growth the most cannot relate to the modernistic terminology that is prevalent in his book. The book seemed to be more geared towards those who McManus desires to reach, rather than those that he is trying to encourage (IE: the church). This would be like speaking only Spanish to an English speaking community that you wish to teach Spanish. During my first year of Spanish in college, my professor spoke English, so that I could learn the language without complication. McManus should speak English too, so that those of us who need to grow our churches can learn his language without complication. His complicated vocabulary style made his theological conveyances light. I wish he would be heavier in his ecclesiology and light in his terminology. I was expecting a book much deeper in the theology of the church – a book that used that theology to lay a foundation that could be used to grow a church. If a church could be grown on modern vocabulary and terminology, McManus’ book is right on it. However, this isn’t the case.

In fairness to McManus, his book isn’t a step by step manual about how to fill up empty pews in the local rural congregation. McManus’ book is about how a church in a large, multicultural environment can reach people of many different cultures, pull them together in a cohesive unit, and transform themselves into the church God had in mind. McManus’ book exudes with passion, excitement, and vibrant ideas about how a church should be. Although there are many criticisms that can be made of this “New Age” book, the fact remains that this book is filled with many good insights and much wisdom on how to become the church God had in mind. Yes, this book is radical, yet it is also relevant. Both of these traits are needed in the church today if the church is going to engage and penetrate the culture that is awaiting them outside their church doors and around the corner. If you are looking for specific “how-to” concepts, this isn’t the right book. However, if you are looking for a fresh, radical, dynamic look at what the church should look like, then this might be the right book for you.

Liberty University, EVAN 550, Evangelism and Church Planting, Book Review, Critical Book Review: Unstoppable Force.

Book Review | Share Jesus Without Fear | Bill Faye

Dear friends, I would like to say before the onset of this review that I highly recommend this book.Given that 90% of professing Christians never share their faith with non-believers, this book is desperately needed in the church today! Many “intellectuals” are critics of this book, honestly because of its simple, straightforward approach to sharing the Gospel. Buy this book and give it a read. You’ll be surprised at how easy it really is to share your faith with the lost! Again, I highly recommend this book!!

Bibliographical Entry: Fay, William, and Linda Evans Shepherd. Sharing Jesus without Fear. Nashville: B & H Publishing, 1999.

Author information

Bill Fay is both an evangelist and a radio personality. He was the president and CEO of a multi-million-dollar corporation before the Lord took hold of him through a series of life-shattering events. He owned a house of prostitution and other not-so-morally correct businesses, and was hostile towards the Christian faith.

Trials and near-imprisonment brought him to his knees and to a saving relationship with Christ. Since then, it has been his passion to equip others to share the good news of Christ and overcome their fears of evangelism. Fay has witnessed to approximately 25,000 people since becoming a Christian, credentials far more impressive than his authorship or his Denver Seminary degree. Fay currently lives with his family in Englewood, Colorado.

Content Summary

Share Jesus without fear is a no nonsense down-to-earth, practical book about how easy it is to share one’s faith.  Its author, William Fay, had it all.  He was “successful” by the world’s standards and lacked for nothing, or so he thought.  As the leader of a multi-million dollar corporation, Fay thought he would never need God.  However, something happened in his life that would sever his ties from the mob, from his brothel house, and from his life of iniquity.  After an arrest, for running a house of prostitution, a friend who had been witnessing to him over the previous year reached out to him.  Paul and Kathie Grant invited him over for dinner one evening and shared about how the Lord had changed their lives.  Sometime later, after having been arrested for solicitation of prostitution and facing a 6-8 year jail sentence, Fay reached out to his former pastor who had married him and his fourth wife. The rest was history.  Fay immediately began sharing his faith, first witnessing to his daughter that he had not heard from in 23 years.  He then went on to share his faith with officers and detectives who had previously arrested him, and has over the past 20 years shared his faith with more than 25,000 people.  His message is simple; you cannot fail.

Fay begins his book where any book on evangelism should begin.  Chapter 1 is entitled “You can’t fail”.  Whether people are receptive to what one says is irrelevant.  What is important is that one is obedient to God in sharing their faith.  If someone is not receptive, the person sharing their faith has not failed, because “God is sovereign” (p. 3).   Sharing one’s faith has “nothing whatsoever to do with bringing anyone to the Lord.  It has everything to do with obedience. Even if you don’t have the privilege to see someone respond, you have not failed, because you were obedient” (p. 3).

Fay discusses in chapter 2 that as little as 5-10 percent of people in church have shared their faith in the past year (p. 6).  This means that 90-95 percent of people in the church are guilty of the sin of silence.  Fay expounds on the sin of “silence” by boldly stating that “the wound that killed [Jesus] was silence.  No one spoke up for Him.” Likewise, “we deny Jesus by never opening our mouths” to share our faith (p. 6).   Churches that choose not to evangelize will indeed fossilize, says Faye (p. 7).

Fay places the readers of his book into two categories: those who talk “about” the lost and those who talk “to” the lost.  Having a silver fish symbol on your car, or a “Honk if you love Jesus” bumper sticker will not suffice.  Evangelism involves telling one’s friends “how to go from the state of death to the state of life” (p. 8).  It doesn’t matter how new the Christian is, or how old the Christian is – every Christian is ready. Christians need not fear being qualified to share their faith.  Every Christian is qualified by being obedient to God’s command to go and make disciples. According to Fay, it takes an average of 7.6 times of hearing the gospel for a non-believer to respond, and one never knows if, when one shares their faith, if it isn’t the 6.6^th time they’ve heard.  Sharing one’s faith is fundamentally important because “75-90 percent of new believers come to Christ through a friend or acquaintance who explained the good news on a one-to-one basis” (p. 12).

Chapter 3 addresses the biggest reason people give for not sharing their faith.  Whether one feels they have the “gift of evangelism” is irrelevant.  Each Christian is commanded in the Great Commission “to evangelize, to encourage evangelism and to urge evangelism” (p. 15). God has equipped Christians with the strength to share their faith (Phil 4:13) regardless of our gifts, talents, or abilities – whether they realize it or not.  Christians must lay their fears of rejection aside and be obedient to the commands of God.   One need not be afraid because success doesn’t rest within the confines of their actions.  The evangelist will never win someone to Christ.  God may indeed work through someone, despite their fears.  If people reject the message, they are not rejecting the messenger, “they are rejecting Jesus and God’s Word.  Therefore you did not fail in your obedience” (p. 17).  Excuses such as “I’m afraid of what my friends will think”, “I don’t know enough”, “I’m afraid of losing my friends”, and “I don’t know how” are just that – excuses.  Fay vehemently exclaims, “you will have to drop those excuses for not sharing your faith” (p. 27). As Christians learn to disregard those excuses, they experience new levels of joy and new depths in their relationship with God.

In chapters 4, 5, & 6, Fay reaches the heart of his subject matter.  In these chapters, Fay introduces us to his method for reaching the lost with the good news of Jesus Christ.  Fay begins with what he calls “conversation joggers” on page 30.  He uses questions that are like a thermometer to “determine if God is at work and to see if their hearts are open” (p. 30).  Such questions include “What are the biggest problems facing women today?” and “Do you go to church anywhere”? [These and many more optional conversation joggers are found in the handy appendix on page 145-146.] These conversation joggers are lead-in questions to “the five share Jesus questions”.  These include questions such as “Do you have any spiritual beliefs?”, “To you, who is Jesus?”, “Do you think there is a heaven and hell?”, If you died tonight where would you go?”, and “If what you were believing were not true would you want to know?”  These questions are meant to allow the evangelist to share his faith in a non-argumentative fashion without embarking on disagreements of intellect and world religions.  These questions put the evangelist in control without putting the unbeliever on the defensive.  Fay emphasizes that it is important to simply listen while administering these 5 questions.  After all, listening conveys love, and love for God and love for people should be one’s motive for evangelism.  After sharing these 5 questions, Fay encourages the evangelist to share 7 scripture passages with the unbeliever in a unique fashion – by asking the unbeliever to read each of these out loud.  After each passage is read, the person sharing their faith simply says, “What does this say to you?”  Asking this simple question is not a defense or an argument.  The evangelist simply turns the pages and stays out of God’s way.  For this reason, this book could be entitled “Turn pages without fear”. It’s just that simple.  After having shared these Bible passages, the evangelist may, if the opportunity is right, ask the 5 “commitment questions’ such as “Are you a sinner?” and “Do you want forgiveness of sins?”

Fay’s approach is so simple one cannot fail, only be obedient.  The evangelist is in the page turning business, the evangelist doesn’t argue.  Additionally, Fay even tells the evangelist “In love, to please shut up” (p. 64). This is so the Holy Spirit can work in the unbeliever’s heart to convict the person.  The evangelist must remember that “The battle is not with you or me.  The battle is with God and His Word” (p. 64).

Just when one thought Fay’s methodology could not be any simpler, he introduces, “the Why principle” on page 65.  When unbelievers give objections to the 5 commitment questions, simply ask “Why?”  Asking “why” enough may allow the evangelist to filter through the myriad of alleged objections and get to the heart of the unbeliever’s concerns.  He also shares, in chapter 7, steps to take for believers who have accepted Christ as their Lord and Savior.  Additionally in Chapter 8, he goes even further to make the process of evangelism both easy and non-confrontational with his “ready responses to common objections” (p. 81).

In Chapter 9, Fay emphasizes the importance of keeping non-Christian friends.  He reminds us that Christ died for unbelievers, He loves them, they desperately need Him, and we were called to be fishers of men.  For this reason, believers need to make non-Christian friends.  If believers isolate themselves from unbelievers, they “will never know the joy of sharing their faith” (p. 114). Fay goes on to say that “God did not call you to hide from the world, He called you to go into the world… we need to go because we cannot make disciples at a distance” (p. 115). Fay offers suggestions on how to make non-Christian friends, with ideas such as meeting neighbors, asking unbelievers for prayer requests, video and story parties, kind deeds, block parties, community service, and reconnecting with people from the past.  All of these are avenues that can provide opportunities for the believer to share one’s faith.

Fay concludes his book with an encouragement to pray for non-believers.  He says, “I encourage you to take time out of your day to pray” (p. 129).  Not only does one pray before, during, and after you share one’s faith with a non-believer, but one also prays that God would open doors and give them opportunities for evangelism.  Believers are to also pray that God would give them love for unbelievers, that unbelievers will see Christ in them, and that, when given the opportunity, the believer will have boldness needed to share their faith.

Fay’s final chapter is a call to action and a reminder that the unbeliever’s eternal life is at stake.  Fay contends that the time is now, and that when one is burdened by God to share their faith, they must respond immediately with obedience, for “God has been preparing this moment before the world began” (p. 143).

Evaluation

Although Fay hammers home the idea that success isn’t measured in the response the unbeliever gives, he nonetheless uses considerably more positive responses from his experiences while sharing his faith. “Almost every example Fay used ended with the unbeliever accepting Christ. If his goal was to encourage believers to share the Gospel regardless the response, then he should have included more examples of unbelievers rejecting the Gospel” (Jared Moore, “An Honest Book Review of Share Jesus Without Fear). A believer could become disheartened and discouraged over the lack of acceptance, given the number of successful attempts portrayed in Fay’s journeys. Fay proclaims on several occasions that the believer is successful only by their obedience, however, “his examples are inconsistently positive if the response is irrelevant” (Jared Moore).

Another negative aspect is Fay’s implication that a definition of sin is not needed (pp. 99-100). Understandably, this is a method that attempts to impress upon the believer that argumentation will not gain results, and correctly so. However, intrinsically speaking, it seems important to at least interject a brief explanation of what sin is, especially given that one or two of the passages the believer is asked to share directly address sin themselves. Unbelievers desperately need to understand what sin is – that it is described in the Bible as transgression of the law of God and rebellion against God. They also need to understand what the penalty for sin is – a feat Fay accomplishes in his method of evangelism.

Believers struggle to share their faith. Some may simply not care, however many do care, but are unable to do so. This book provides the means for those who desire to share their faith to actually do something – to share about the hope that is within them.  The theme of the book is valid and necessary because there are a lot of believers who struggle sharing their faith. His arguments concerning the simplicity and ease of his methodology are foundationally well supported and convincing. Many believers struggle with and can improve upon [their witnessing skills] if they [would] apply the systems in Fay’s book.

The fact that Fay had been radically changed by God was not only a motivational factor in his evangelistic efforts, but serves as a motivation for thousands who will read his book. Fay is proof positive that God can change a person and make that person a new creation. “The personal testimony of Fay serves as one of the primary means of conveying the effectiveness of God’s word being used to convert lost souls”. Fay seeks to convey the important message that, through a few, simple, non-argumentative questions and scripture verses, the power of God’s Word can have an opportunity to change yet more people. No theological debate or lengthy apologetics sessions needed – merely a willing, obedient vessel through which God can work. All it takes to be “successful”, according to Fay’s method, is a willingness to be obedient and a love for both God and the lost.

Fay’s method of evangelism is simple and fail-proof, provided the believer can remember that success does not lie within their efforts.  Fay lays out an easy to follow, step by step, non-argumentative approach to sharing the gospel – an approach that allows the Holy Spirit and the power of Scripture to work.  This is a book that not only equips Christians to share their faith, but also inspires and encourages them.  Every Christian should have a copy of this book in their library.  All Christians can know, through reading this book, that they are indeed qualified to share their faith with even the most intellectual and argumentative unbeliever.  The book and the steps of evangelism are simple to understand, practical, and easy to memorize, making this a great tool for sharing one’s faith and allowing one’s self to be an instrument of God through which God can reach the unbeliever.

As long as believers are obedient and share their faith, they cannot fail. They are merely “page turners” who need to “shut up”, get out of the way, and let the Word and the Holy Spirit work in the unbelievers life!!

Summary of Key Questions and Verses

Questions to gage where the person is at spiritually:

• What are your spiritual beliefs?
• To you, who is Jesus?
• Do you think there is heaven or hell?
• If you died tonight, where would you go?
• If what you believe is not right, would you want to know?

Verses to share with non-believers:

• For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. (Romans 3:23)
• For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23)
• Jesus replied, ” I assure you: Unless someone is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3)  [Why did Jesus come to die?]
• Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. (John 14:6)
• If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,”  and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. With the heart one believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth one confesses, resulting in salvation. (Romans 10:9-10)
• If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9)
• And He died for all so that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for the One who died for them and was raised. (2 Corinthians 5:15)
• Listen! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and have dinner with him, and he with Me. (Revelation 3:20)

Questions to ask the non-believer after sharing the Gospel with them?

• Are you a sinner?
• Do you want forgiveness of your sins?
• Do you believe that Jesus died on the cross for you and rose again on the 3^rd day?
• Are you willing to surrender your life to Jesus and live for Him daily?
• Are you willing to invite Jesus into your life and to submit your life to Him?

Things you want to hear the non-believer say as they pray. You should not pray for the non-believer, but should rather give them an opportunity to pray from their heart. Father, I have sinned against you. I want forgiveness for my sins. I believe Jesus died on the cross for me, and that he rose again on the 3^rd day. I give you my life to do with as you wish. I surrender to you, Lord Jesus. I submit to you are the sovereign Lord of my life and will honor you with my life just as you gave your life for me. Forgive me and make me a new creation. Thank you for the blood that was shed on Calvary for the forgiveness of my sins! In Christ’s name I pray, amen.

Key words: Evangelism, The Great Commission, How to Witness, How to share my faith, church growth, Liberty University, EVAN565.

Through the Book of John | John 1:35-51

Have you decided to follow Jesus?

This is the third day, and already much has happened. We’ve been introduced to Jesus as God in the Flesh, the Word, God, and as the eternal Creator of all things. Our Lord is seen on John’s Gospel as the Giver of Light and Life to everyone who would believe, as the One who was rejected by the very people He came to save. He came to live among men, so that people could behold His glory as the One and Only Son of God.

We were introduced to John the Baptist who was not the Light, but a witness for the Light to help people believe. John told us that although Jesus was born after him, Jesus came before Him, speaking of the eternality of Jesus. John the Baptizer told us that we have received blessing after blessing from this Jesus, and that grace and truth come through Him.

Then the scribes and priests show up, wanting to know who John was. He wasn’t the Christ, he wasn’t Elijah, and he wasn’t the Prophet. He was the one crying out in the wilderness, “Get ready, make your path straight ahead of the King.” John told them that he was baptizing with water, but Someone is coming soon who will baptize with the Spirit of God.

John the Disciple then introduces us to Jesus as the Lamb of God, the One who would give His life as a ransom for our sins, like the Passover Lamb. This Pascal Lamb would shed his very own His blood so that God would Passover us as He administers His judgment. This Lamb would take away the sins of the world, for all who would trust and believe. This is the very same One that John said, “I have seen and testified that He is the Son of God” (John 1:34).

Andrew and Peter Follow Christ, the Messiah

^35Again, the next day, John stood with two of his disciples. ^36And looking at Jesus as He walked, he said, “Behold the Lamb of God!” ^37The two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. ^38Then Jesus turned, and seeing them following, said to them, “What do you seek?” They said to Him, “Rabbi” (which is to say, when translated, Teacher), “where are You staying?” ^39He said to them, “Come and see.” They came and saw where He was staying, and remained with Him that day (now it was about the tenth hour). ^40One of the two who heard John speak, and followed Him, was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. ^41He first found his own brother Simon, and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which is translated, the Christ). ^42And he brought him to Jesus. Now when Jesus looked at him, He said, “You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas” (which is translated, A Stone).

• “With two of his disciples” We know this is Andrew (verse 40) and John the Beloved, through the process of elimination.
• In verses 35 through 37 John the Baptizer sends his disciples off, like a mother bird pushing her little ones out of the nest. “Hey, I’ve taught you all I know about Him, now here He is. Go and follow Him. This is who I have been teaching you about.” John the Baptizer wasn’t concerned with keeping these disciples to himself, as an entourage of sorts; it was about Jesus. He wasn’t looking for people to serve him, he was just pointing the way to Jesus, like we all should. John wanted to decrease so that Jesus could increase (John 3:30). Christianity and church should never be about us or our agendas; it should always be about Jesus Christ and His sacrifice for our salvation. We need more of Jesus and less of ourselves!
• “What do you seek?” We see the first words of Jesus in this Gospel account. Jesus was basically saying to these people, “Do you seek someone to overthrow Rome? Then join the Zealots.” He is also saying to them, “Do you really know what you are looking at? Do you have any idea what following me will be like and cost you?”
• Notice that they called Him “Rabbi”, indicating that they wanted Him to be their teacher, to disciple them. They wanted a close, intimate teacher-pupil relationship with Him where they could submit their lives to Him and His teachings. In calling Him rabbi, they were saying that they wanted something more than a casual relationship with Jesus. What about you, do you want more than just a casual relationship with the King of Kings? Do you desire a close, intimate relationship with the Lord as these disciples did?
• In verse 38 we see that they wanted to know where Christ was staying. In doing so, they didn’t really want to know His address, such as 210 Sumter Street, Oglethorpe, Georgia. No, they were asking, “Where did you come from, and where is your dwelling place?” In other words, “Is there room for us where You are going?”
• In the next verse Jesus invites them to come and see for themselves, and indeed they did indeed. But notice what else they did. They “remained”. They were introduced to Jesus by a friend, John the Baptist. They went to Jesus and Jesus met them where they were. Then Jesus issues an invitation to them to follow Him, and they accept and remain with Him. This was no one-time fad for them. They weren’t just trying something new out to see if they liked it. They were constant, they were steadfast, and they were submitting their lives to the Rabbi. What about you. Will you remain? Many of you have, for many years. I challenge you to continue to remain with Jesus! Be steadfast, immovable, and remain with the Son of God! No one is an authentic follower of the Rabbi if they do not remain in Him.
• “One of the two who heard John speak, and followed Him, was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother” Here we learn the name of the first disciple to follow Jesus, Nathaniel. As soon as he meets Jesus, notice what he does! He immediately introduces this brother Peter to Jesus. In fact, Nathaniel is found often introducing people to Jesus. He introduced the lad with the loaves and fish to Jesus. He introduced the Greeks who wanted to see Jesus to Jesus. But first, he introduces his own brother to the Messiah. Evidently, this was a requirement to be a disciple then, and in fact it still is today. Nathaniel was a personal soul winner and so should we be! He brought people right to Jesus, and so should we. Stop, take a moment, and try and think of the people you have brought to Jesus. Sadly, most Christians can think of no people they have brought to Jesus or even attempted to bring to Jesus.
• “We have found the Messiah” – The Messiah means, “The anointed one.” Prophets, priests, and kings were anointed ones, to some degree, yet Jesus was The Anointed One. To be “anointed” meant that you were set apart for special service for God. Jesus was the Anointed One, because He was set apart for the most special task of all: accomplishing the redemption of God’s people. In this regard, Jesus really should be called Jesus the Christ, because Jesus is His name, and Messiah (Christos in Greek) is His title or office. They probably, however, had in mind the mistaken idea that He would take over as king, but Jesus was virtually saying, “My cross must come before my crown. I have work to do first.” Praise God for that work, and for the sacrifice this wonderful Lamb of God would make on our behalf!
• “You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas” As soon as Simon met Jesus, he had a new name, and a new identity. I believe this is symbolic of the new identity we have in Christ. Second Corinthians 5:17 tells is that if anyone is in Christ, that person is a new creation, the old has passed away. Their old heart is not revitalized or reformed. They get an entirely new heart and new life. This was an important part of the New Covenant God made with Israel, and with the Gentiles as well.  Thus we have a new identity as we become identified with Christ. It must have taken a lot of work to change Peter into a Rock, but Jesus did it eventually. He can transform your life too, if you’ll give him a chance. He can wipe that old nature right out, and give you a new nature that is just like His.

Philip and Nathanael Follow Christ, the King of Israel

^43The following day Jesus wanted to go to Galilee, and He found Philip and said to him, “Follow Me.” ^44Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. ^45Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” ^46And Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” ^47Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward Him, and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!” ^48Nathanael said to Him, “How do You know me?” Jesus answered and said to him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” ^49Nathanael answered and said to Him, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!”

• “He found Philip and said to him, “Follow Me.”” Earlier (verse 35 to 42) we saw that sometimes people come to Jesus through other people. Here we see that sometimes Jesus deals with a person directly. Andrew and John the Beloved learned about Jesus from John the Baptizer. Peter and James came to Christ because of their brothers’ witnessing (Andrew and John the Beloved). Nathaniel (Bartholomew) came to Christ because a friend cared enough to share Jesus with Him. But Philip came to Christ because Jesus went to Galilee looking for him. “Each person’s experience is different because God uses various means to bring sinners to the Savior” (Warren Wiersbe, Be Alive, p. 30). God works differently in each person’s life, but we can rest assured that He does work. Is he working in your life right now?
• He told Philip, “Follow me!” This is an emphatic command, not an option. We are, as disciples, to follow Him as He leads us. Are you following Him today, or are you following your own lead? Won’t you submit to Him and His will for your life and follow wherever He may lead? You’ll be so very glad you did.
• “We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph” Nathaniel came to Christ because a friend (Phillip) cared enough to share the Gospel with Him. Philip basically said to him, “This is the One that Moses and the Prophets wrote about,” indicating that Jesus isn’t just in the prophetic books, he’s found everywhere in the Old Testament.
• “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.”” Nathaniel knew that to be from Nazareth meant that you were frowned upon and looked down on. Nazareth was a small, poverty stricken town and its residents were considered poor, lowly people. Philip, instead of arguing against Nathanael’s prejudice, simply ignores it and invites him to meet Jesus for himself. He answered Nathaniel the same way Jesus answered John and Andrew, “Come and see for yourself.” Ultimately, we can’t simply take someone’s word about Jesus. We must see and experience Him for ourselves. Just like the John the Baptist, we must behold Jesus.
• “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you” Jesus, as the omnipotent Creator of the universe, knew all about Nathaniel. This convinced Nathaniel that Jesus was indeed the Son of God and the King of Israel. If Nathaniel had any doubts previously, Jesus’ declaration cleared them all up.  Nathaniel had all the proof he needed. This person that Philip introduced him to was indeed the Messiah, the One who would take away the sins of the world.

Jesus as the Son of Man

^50Jesus answered and said to him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” ^51And He said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, hereafter you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.”

• “You will see greater things than these” Here Jesus was basically saying, “Listen you haven’t seen anything yet. There is much better things to come.” The same is true with us. Our spiritual walks should get better and better as we get closer to Jesus and walk with Him. The quality of our spiritual lives and walk with Jesus only gets better with each passing day. Even after we have known Him for five, ten, or even twenty years, there are still much greater things in store, culminating with life eternal with the Creator of the universe. If you are walking with Jesus, through their will be trials, there will be better days ahead. Jesus promised us so.
• “Son of Man” Jesus referred to himself as the Son of Man, a favorite term of His that He used more than eighty times. “This title emphasized his humanity and suffering as well as the perfection [deity] of his human nature” (Kenneth O. Gangel, John, Holman New Testament Commentary; p.18).
  • “The idea behind this phrase is not ‘the perfect man’ or ‘the ideal man’ or ‘the common man.’ Instead, it is a reference to Daniel 7:13-14, where the King of Glory coming to judge the world is called the Son of Man.  Jesus used this title often because in His day, it was a Messianic title free from political and nationalistic sentiment. When a Jewish person of that time heard ‘King’ or ‘Christ’ they often thought of a political or military savior.” [ David Guzik] Jesus wanted them to understand that one day He would come back on the clouds of heaven to judge the ungodly. But for now, He is just looking of people to follow Him. For now, He has another purpose in mind besides ruling on a throne. For now, His purpose is clear: to redeem God’s people from their sins.

Gleanings from John

Like John the Baptizer, Christians should always stay humble and Christ-centered (Christocentirc). It should never be about us or our agendas. It should always be about Jesus Christ and His sacrifice for our salvation. We must decrease so He can increase. Our purposes and desires should play a submissive position to Christ and His will for our lives. Christ and His plan for our lies should always have the preeminent position in our lives.

Remember, John and Andrew called our Lord, “Rabbi”. This signified that they wanted a closer, intimate student-teacher relationship with Jesus. What about us, do we want more than just a casual relationship with the King of Kings. We should always desire to draw closer to our Lord.

John and Andrew remained with Jesus. What about you. Will you remain? Many of you have, for many years, and should be commended for this. I challenge you to continue to remain with Jesus Be steadfast, immovable, and remain with the Son of God. No one is an authentic follower of the Rabbi if they do not remain in Him.

Nathaniel was a soul winner. Evidently, this was a requirement to be a disciple then, and it still is today. Nathaniel was a personal soul winner and so should we be! He brought people right to Jesus, and so should we. Sadly, statistic show that as much as 90% of evangelical Christians will never share their faith. What about you. Do you have the zeal and enthusiasm for winning lost souls that Nathaniel did?

It must have taken a lot of work to change Peter into “a Rock,” but Jesus did it. He can transform your life too, if you will give him a chance. He can wipe that old nature right out, and give you a new nature that is just like His. He can make you a new creation and give you a new identity in Him.

Two times we heard, “Come and see” (verses 39 and 46). Ultimately, we can’t just take someone’s word about Jesus. We must “come and see” and experience Him for ourselves. Just like the John the Baptist, we must behold Jesus. No one can help us experience Jesus. We must ourselves get to know Him personally.

If you are walking with Jesus, though there will be trials, there will be better days ahead. The best is yet to come. We will see greater things both here in this world as we draw closer to Him and in Heaven as we spend eternity worshiping our Lord. Imagine Heaven’s spender as we behold the Lamb of God and the Word. We will see greater things than these!

In this passage we have met five men who decided to follow Jesus. Andrew and John came to Jesus because of the preaching of a witness for the Light, John the Baptizer. Peter came to Jesus because of the witness of his brother. Phillip came to Jesus as a result of the direct call of Jesus. Nathaniel came to Jesus through Philip as he overcame personal prejudices by a personal encounter with Jesus. Regardless of how they came to Jesus, they did come. They all decided to follow Jesus. What about you? Have you decided to follow Jesus? We are, as disciples to follow Him as he leads us. Are you following Him today? Or are you following your own lead?

Why did God choose Ezra to bring Spiritual Reform to the people of Israel?

God chose a scribe, priest, and scholar named Ezra to lead the nation to spiritual reform for several reasons. First, he was a student of the Scriptures, and was dedicated to studying God’s Word – not just to studying it, but to living it. Ezra would not have been qualified to lead God’s people had he only possessed a knowledge of the Word. He was a man of wisdom, also, for he took that knowledge and applied it to his daily life, putting the Word into practice as a “doer” of the Word, and not just a hearer. Ezra 7:9-10 says that Ezra devoted himself to the study of the Word of God. He didn’t study the latest theology books, or the latest theological journals, he went straight to the Source – the Word of God. He was qualified to lead the people in reforms, and thus called by God, because he studied and applied the Word to his life – thus “experiencing” the Word.

Another reason God chose Ezra is because Ezra didn’t just study the Word, he “observed” it too. This means that he was a “doer” of what he learned, practicing and applying it to every facet of his life. He was willing to abide by the Word, and he honored and respected it. Paul said in Philippians 4:9, “Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me – put it into practice”. This is exactly what Ezra did – whatever he learned through God’s Word, or heard from God, or saw through revelation from God, he put that into practice!

Ezra wasn’t just committed to learning God’s Word through study, nor was he only committed to observing God’s Word. He wasn’t satisfied with only those two activities. He was also committed to teaching God’s Word to others. He took responsibility to pass along what he both learned and observed in his life. He was a devoted leader and teacher, and had enough concern for the people of God that he desired they know and understand what he himself had learned from the Word. Ezra was the type of man who would have never been satisfied with a light study of the Word, and would not have been satisfied with keeping for himself the great truths of God he gleaned from Scriptures. As Gregory said, “what a teacher knows he must teach”. This was, no doubt, Ezra’s motto as well. This is why he was just the right candidate to lead God’s people in spiritual reforms, and was called by God to do so.

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DSMN 601, Ministry of Teaching, Liberty University, DSMN discussion posts, Ezra

Book Review | Planting Growing Churches for the 21st Century

Bibliographical Information: Malphurs, Aubrey.  Planting Growing Churches for the 21st Century.  Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Books, 2000.

Author Information:

Dr. Aubrey Malphurs is the founder and president of the Malphurs Group, a company that provides consulting services such as coaching, leadership development, training, and strategic planning to churches, non-profits and other organizations to help them overcome company or ministry challenges. Dr. Malphurs is an award-winning prolific author of more than 20 books on strategic planning, leadership development, church planting and organizational strategies. Dr. Malphurs is also a Professor of Pastoral Ministries at Dallas Theological Seminary in Dallas, Texas.

Dr. Malphurs possess many credentials that qualify him as the author of Planting Churches for the 21^st Century. Dr. Malphurs planted his first church in 1972. He has also pastored two churches in Dallas, Texas, while teaching at Dallas Seminary. In 1997, he resigned from Pastoral ministry to devote his time to teaching and to the leadership of The Malphurs Group. Malphurs has spoken and consulted in many nations around the world, including Russia, England, Philippines, Finland, Latvia, Germany, Holland, Switzerland and France. He has also consulted a wide variety of denominational organizations across the country.

Content Summary:

As Malphurs says at the onset of his book, “It is the nature of a living organism to grow. If it is not growing, something is wrong” (Malphurs, 9). Such is the case with many of the churches in America today – they are not growing. The answer to this problem, then, is to either revitalize the churches that are not growing or to plant new, vibrant churches, or both. What is great about Malphurs book is that even though it is primarily a book on church planting, he devotes the first few sections to church growth and revitalization.

Malphurs’ book of 430 pages is tightly wrapped into three sections containing 13 chapters, in addition to a 30 page church planter’s workbook, numerous appendices, end notes and an index.  Malphurs has literally left no stone unturned with approximately 1000 headings and subheadings throughout his informative and exhaustive volume on church planting.

The first part of Planting Churches for the 21^st Century is entitled “The Preparation for Church Planting”.  It contains four chapters that lead the reader through steps necessary to “prepare the soil before planting the seed” (Malphurs, 17).  This section of the book covers four foundational “seed issues” that are necessary beginning points for anyone who desires to plant a new church.  Malphurs begins with the all-important task of defining what church planting is – a step so basic that many might overlook it.  Yet without a definition people might misunderstand what church planting really is and more importantly they might misunderstand the biblical model and mandate for church planting.  Malphurs defines church planting as “an exhausting but exciting venture of new faith that involves the planned process of beginning and growing new churches, based on Jesus’ promises and in obedience to His great commission” (Malphurs16). After defining what a church plant is, Malphurs moves on to giving several reasons for planting churches including the sad reality that, “of the approximately 350,000 churches in America, 4 out of 5 are either at a plateau or declining” (Malphurs, 32). From there Malphurs covers funding issues for the church, reminding the reader of Jesus’ promises about provisions and various methods which can be used to fund a new church plant.  Malphurs also covers in this section some important need-to-know information so that incorrect assumptions held by the church planter don’t sabotage the development of the new church plant.

In part two entitled “The Personnel of Church Planting” Malphurs covers leadership practices and skills, qualifications for the church planter, as well as many other things.  In this section Malphurs discusses the need for personal assessment by the church planter so that they might discover their divine design as well as their personal ministry direction.  He also gives multiple criterions for those wishing to be in ministry.  Those criterions include godly character, passion, temperament, a strong family life, as well as spiritual gifts (Malphurs, 84).

The final section of the book is entitled “The Process of Church Planting.”  This section is by far the largest section of the book spanning more than 140 pages (not including the workbook, appendices and notes).  In this section Malphurs gets to the meat of the topic, which is how to go about planting a church.  In this section Malphurs uses a process that closely mirrors the Pauline cycle.  Malphurs’ process of church planting begins with conception, then development, then the birth stage as the church is actually planted, followed by the growth stage, which is then followed by a stage of maturity as well as a reproduction stage.  This lifecycle of the church closely mirrors the human lifecycle and thus lends itself to a clear understanding of the church planting process that is difficult to misunderstand.  In this section Malphurs touches on some vitally important ideas on church planting including the idea that prayer is actually the first step in church planting. “Before we attempt to plant a church anywhere, it is imperative that we spend hours on our knees in prayer.  In fact it would be wise for church planters to recruit personal intercessors to make up an intercessory prayer team who will pray for them” (Malphurs, 118).  He also stresses the importance of identifying and communicating a set of core values and a mission statement.  After the church is conceived and development begins, the church planter must know when the time has come to birth the church.  According to Malphurs a church that is birthed with a congregation of 50 or more is three times more likely to succeed (Malphurs, 188).  As the church grows and matures they must continually focus on the Great Commission of evangelizing, as well as pursuing and edifying the lost (Malphurs, 216).  Throughout this section Malphurs covers many topics such as the selection of a meeting place, leadership skills, staff issues, assimilation and growth, and the importance of reproduction.

The last 165 pages include many tools to aid those endeavoring to begin the noble task of planting a new church.  These tools include a church planter’s workbook which is “designed to help you implement the material in this book and plant a church planting church” (Malphurs, 265).  This worksheet includes fund-raising, budgeting, ministry design, leadership concepts, mission statements, strategies, the gathering of core groups, and many other topics. The appendices include topics such as a well mobilized lay army, a culturally relevant ministry, authentic worship, biblical evangelism, and much more.

Evaluation

Malphurs book, Planting Growing Churches for the 21^st Century, is more than just a book about church planting. It is an exhaustive encyclopedia on the preparation, personnel, and process of church planting. Yet Malphurs’ book goes much deeper than just these broad topics of church planting, giving practical wisdom, advice, and instructions to anyone wishing to begin a church plant. As was said earlier, Malphurs has left no stone unturned with this all-inclusive volume on how to successfully plant a church.

This book is packed with so much information that it requires multiple reads just to scratch the surface. It is evident from the wealth of information contained within the pages of this book that Malphurs has done his homework, and that he is indeed passionate about planting churches. His book is easier to read, more exciting, and filled with much more information that similar works, such as Planting Churches Cross-Culturally by David J. Hesselgrave or Starting a New Church: The Church Planter’s Guide to Success by Ralph Moore.  This work is not just a how-to guide on church planting; it serves as an encouragement and motivator to those who are praying and seeking direction from the Lord. I, myself, experienced a thousand ideas as I turned through the pages, filling up all the margins with many of them. I was inspired in many ways and in many levels as I read through the pages of this book, unable to put it down.

Malphurs brilliantly reminds his readers that church planting does not end with church planting. In other words, just because a church is itself a church plant, this in no way negates this church’s responsibility to then plant another church. No church is exempt from the responsibility of planting more churches. In fact, Malphurs believes that any church can plant a new church, regardless of size or resources, and that it is the responsibly of all churches to “encourage and equip individual Christians and churches to seed American soil with relevant, significant Great Commission works that will assault and crash through the gates of Hades. (Malphurs, 263)” Malphurs is to be commended for holding such an honorable, important cause so dear and near to his heart.

Malphurs use of the organic metaphors is great, and it drives home his point well. Malphurs likens the church planting process to planting a tree or growing other things (Malphurs, 28-30)  – a reminder that the church is not an organization, but an organism that should be treated as living, breathing, and life-giving. He also likens the church to a parent who gives birth to a child (Malphurs, 245-246), reminding the reader that just as people go through a natural life cycle that includes reproduction, so too should the church which is also alive. The church has a life of its own, and as a church with a life, it is responsible to grow, mature, and give birth. These types of illustrations help the reader to see clearly the natural cycle that should be followed by the church.

Malphurs doesn’t just give his opinion on the weighty issues that have led to the decline of the church, and doesn’t lightly throw out the idea that new church plants are needed. Instead, Malphurs backs up most all of his claims with solid statistical data that is difficult to refute. For example, Malphurs indicates that as much as 80% of the growth a church experiences is from transfer growth, where members simply move their membership from one church to another (Malphurs, 64). This means that very little growth is from new converts. Yet another involves the success of church plants. Malphurs purports that the success rate of church plants is tripled when the plant starts with a core group of 50 or more. And finally, surveys suggest that the number one reason that people join a local congregation is because the congregation has made them feel accepted. All three of these points are very important in the church planning and church growth processes. These are just a sample of the sheer volume of statistics, numbers, research, and ideas that are included in this wonderful resource.

There wasn’t much that this reviewer disliked about Malphurs work on church planting. However, I did have a concern with one small part of the book – the issue of meeting places (Malphurs, 197-199). After making some very good suggestions about places to meet, such as gymnasiums, schools, theaters, a storefront, bank buildings, coffee shops, restaurants, and parachurch facilities, Malphurs makes a couple of suggestions that seem to not fit with the otherwise great suggestions. The first one seemed a little strange. He suggested that new church plants meet in a funeral home (Malphurs, 199). He admits this may serve as the perfect excuse for the nonbeliever to use for not attending, yet he still offers it as a suggestion, leaving this reviewer to wonder why he would even make the suggestion in the first place. Another suggestion that he makes is that new churches consider meeting in pubs (Malphurs, 199). Although this reviewer believes in culturally relevant, progressive ideas that will serve to draw people into church, this is taking it a bit too far. This would only serve to tarnish the witness of the new church plant leaders and members, and will leave those members scarred within the community, and will diminish the effectiveness of their ministry from its onset. I was quite surprised Malphurs could be so on point in so many areas, yet make a suggestion such as this.

While I concede that this book is not a book on evangelism, this reviewer would have still liked to have seen more of an emphasis on evangelism. Malphurs mentions that adding believers and unbelievers should be done from the onset of the ministry, so that it is interwoven into the fabric of the ministry (Malphurs, 182). Yet Malphurs, oddly enough, spends very little time giving training and instruction on evangelism. Although I  realize there are many great volumes available on evangelism, Malphurs had a great opportunity to give insights on evangelism from a new church plant perspective, such as special outreach events for new churches that could serve as an open door to evangelism. Malphurs dedicates only a few pages to evangelism, and that is very basic.

There is no denying that Aubrey Malphurs has a passion unparalleled by most when it comes to evangelism. His 425 page volume is packed with useful, practical wisdom from a well-qualified author. Malphurs book is full of ideas that will encourage and motivate anyone who is prayerfully considering planting a church. If Malphurs had stopped at the 265 pages mark and left out all of the “extras”, it would have still be an excellent, well-rounded volume on church planting. However, he didn’t. Malphurs included valuable resources at the end that will aid anyone who is serious about fulfilling the Great Commission through church planting. This book can be described in several ways: encyclopedia of church planting information, motivating, encouraging, inspirational, informative, and so much more! I would highly recommend this book to anyone considering the noble, honorable process of church planting.

Key search words: Planting Growing Churches for the 21st Century, Liberty University, Evan 550, Evangelism and Church Planting

Through the Book of John | John 1:19-34

THE WITNESS AND THE LAMB OF GOD

^19Now this is the testimony of John [the Baptist], when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” ^20 He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.” ^21And they asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?”  And he answered, “No.” ^22Then they said to him, “Who are you, that we may give an answer to those who sent us? What do you say about yourself?”

• Similar accounts of this passage can be found in Matthew 3:1–12, Mark 1:2–8, and Luke 3:3–16.
• We previously learned that Jesus is God, and that He created the universe. We learned that He is light and life, and that no one has either life or light without Jesus. We also learned that everything was created by and for Jesus Christ (see also Colossians 1:15-17). Jesus our Lord is the eternal Creator of the universe.
• Now we’ll learn a little more about this “witness” for the Light, John the Baptist. Remember, any time the name “John” appears in the Book of John, it is referring to John the Baptist. John the Beloved, the author of this book, humbly omits his name from the record, wanting only for God to increase (See John 3:30).
• This section begins the narratives of this great book. In the prologue (John 1:1-18), we were introduced to Jesus and His office as Creator and Eternal God. Now John begins the story of Jesus’ life, which begins not as an infant, as do Matthew and Luke, but as an adult, beginning with His ministry.
• The Jews hear Jesus preaching, though we are not told precisely how they heard that He was preaching, and they want to know who He is. They send worship leaders and temple assistants to inquire about this. They know what the Old Testament says about a coming Messiah. They know what the Old Testament says about a coming Elijah (Malachi 4:5). They know what the Old Testament says about a coming prophet (Deuteronomy 18:15-18). They get right down to business, no small talk: “Are you either of these people?” John says emphatically, “No, I am not. I am only a witness for the man who is all of these things and more”.
• They were evidently paranoid and suspicious of anything out of the norm. John did not conform to the normal idea of a priest. He did not conform to the normal idea of a preacher. This is why the Pharisees were very doubtful of Him. They were afraid of change, and that’s precisely what Jesus came to do. “The church always runs the danger of condemning a new way just because it is new. In one sense there is hardly any institution in the world which resents change so much as the church does. It has often rejected a great teacher and often refused some great adventure simply because it suspected all things new” (William Barclay, The Gospel of John, Volume 1, page 77). The rejection of a new thing caused the demise of the religious establishment of the day, and the rejection of new things has caused the decline of the church today, as we cleave to our traditions. Look at what Jesus told the Pharisees as they resisted change and attempted to hold on to their traditions: “For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do. And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition” (Mark 7:8-9).Christians resist change more than anyone else, it seems. Maybe they inherited this from the Pharisees, as they resisted anything that would challenge the ecclesiastical system of the day. Jesus came bearing change, and the leaders of the day would have no part in it. Even today, as some cutting edge leaders attempt to lead their church into the 21^st century, older traditional members resist change that could revitalize and rejuvenate their church.

^23He said: “I am ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Make straight the way of the Lord,” ’ as the prophet Isaiah said.”

• We learned in the first few verses of this blessed Gospel that Jesus is God in the flesh. Here we learn that John is the voice of God in the flesh. John the Baptist is God’s word spoken, not God’s word incarnate, as Jesus is. “John was God’s word spoken, not God’s word incarnate; indeed, he was like a nameless voicebox that announced God’s call for people to prepare themselves by repentance and immersion in water for the appearance of the Lord” (Beauford H. Bryant, John: The College Press NIV commentary).
• “Make straight the way of the Lord”: Ancient Israel wasn’t made up of smooth, paved roads such as we have today. The roads and paths were rough and rocky. If a dignitary or person of royalty were coming through the area, they would take the time to get the roads perfectly straight and smooth to provide smooth, comfortable, pleasant passage for the person of royalty. John is saying here, “You better get your roads smooth because the King of Kings is coming through.” John was sent to tell people to ensure their lives were right before Jesus came. He was sent with tools (the proclamation of the Gospel and baptism) to tell people that they need to examine themselves, repent, and be baptized. They need to “make straight the way.” We all need to make straight the way of the Lord in our lives, preparing for the Lord’s imminent return, living our lives as though Christ could return at any moment, because indeed, Christ could return at any moment.
• John was a spiritual Elijah of sorts because he was telling people to repent and get their lives right, and was straight forward with it. We need more men today who will be “spiritual Elijahs”, boldly telling people to get right without beating around the bush or watering down the Gospel. We need men who will proclaim to the people that they must make straight the way of the Lord in their lives before it’s too late, because once the Lord comes back to rapture His children and bring them home to glory, it’s too late. And John was what all preachers should be, just a voice, wanting no glory for themselves, simply pointing the way – boldly, I might add.

^24Now those who were sent were from the Pharisees. ^25And they asked him, saying, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?” ^26John answered them, saying, “I baptize with water, but there stands One among you whom you do not know. ^27 It is He who, coming after me, is preferred before me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose.” ^28These things were done in Bethabara [Bethany] beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

• “Why then do you baptize?” They misunderstood Isaiah 52:15, which says, “So shall he [the messiah] sprinkle many nations”. They thought the messiah would sprinkle with water, but Isaiah was really talking about the Messiah sprinkling many with the Holy Spirit He would release (John 1:33). This is why they wanted to know why he was baptizing if he wasn’t the messiah.
• To the Jews, the baptism they practiced up to that point was a ceremonial washing, reserved for the proselytes converting to Judaism. “An Israelite was never baptized; he was God’s already and did not need to be washed. But Gentiles had to be washed in baptism. John was making Israelites do what only Gentiles had to do. He was suggesting that the chosen people had to be cleansed. That was indeed precisely what John believed” (William Barclay , The Gospel of John: Volume , 79).
• So the Jews misunderstand why he is baptizing, thinking he is the Messiah, who really doesn’t baptize with water, but with the Spirit, as we learn in the other Gospels. Then we have John baptizing Jews, not Gentiles, to tell them to get ready for the Messiah.
• “Whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose” John says not only am I not the Messiah, I’m not even worthy to untie his shoes. Among Rabbis and their disciples, there was a teacher-student relationship that had the potential for abuse. “It was entirely possible that a Rabbi might expect unreasonable service from their disciples. One of the things which was considered “too low” for a Rabbi to expect from his disciples was the untying of the Rabbi’s sandal strap. John says he is unworthy to do even this” (David Guzik).
• First John the apostle teaches us about humbleness because he never mentions his name. Now John the Baptist exemplifies the same characteristic, teaching us about the importance of being humble. Sometimes we lose sight of our humbleness. We get a little learned in the word, or we get a prominent place in ministry, or a better job, or a position in the community, and it goes to our head. John says, “Stay humble, because we aren’t even good enough to be a slave to Jesus Christ.” John knew he was just the one preparing the way. He was willing to decrease so that Jesus could increase (John 3:30), as we’ll hear more about later. God, give us all enough grace to forget about ourselves and our own agendas that we might remember Christ only. It’s not about us!

^29The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! ^30This is He of whom I said, ‘After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was before me.’ ^31I did not know Him; but that He should be revealed to Israel, therefore I came baptizing with water.”

• John’s witness of Christ’s baptism is also recorded in Matthew 3:13–17, Mark 1:9–11, and Luke 3:21, 22.
• This is day two in the Gospel of John. Jesus had already been baptized, showing the approval of the father, and had been tempted by Satan, showing his ability to withstand temptation and trials. He was ready to begin his 3 ½ year ministry that would change the world.
• “Behold! The Lamb of God” This is one of the most powerful statements about Jesus in the entire Bible.  What John specifically meant is up for interpretation, at least to some degree. John could have had one or all of several things in mind when he made this declaration of our Lord.
  • First, he may have been thinking of the Passover Lamb, since the Passover wasn’t far off (see John 2). This was a time when the Jews thought back 1,500 years to the time of the Exodus. The night before the first Passover they were instructed to slay a pascal lamb and to place the blood of the slain lamb on the lentil of every home, protecting the Jewish children from the Angel of Death (see Exodus 12). The angel would Passover each door with this blood on it, according to the instructions of the Lord. The blood of the Passover lamb delivered the Israelites in Egypt from death, and “it may be that John was saying: ‘There is the one true Sacrifice who can deliver you from death’”( William Barclay , The Gospel of John: Volume , 81). Barclay was, of course, referring to our Lord Jesus. Paul, too, thought of Jesus as the Passover Lamb, according to First Corinthians 5:7. There is a deliverance that only Jesus Christ can win for us, and He won this deliverance as our very own sacrificial Pascal Lamb, the one and only Lamb of God who indeed takes away the sins of the world. What about you? Do you have the blood of the Lamb figuratively sprinkled over the doorpost of your heart, protecting you from judgment? I hope so. Tomorrow may be too late. There is no better time than right now to accept the free sacrificial gift of the Lamb.
  • Second, remember that John was the son of Elizabeth, Mary’s cousin, and Zachariah. He knew all about the temple and its practices, as the son of a Levite. Every morning and every evening, according to Exodus 29, a lamb was to be offered for the remission of sins. Maybe John is telling them that the Man they see coming is going to do away with all the animal sacrifices, once for all.  Hebrews 9:12 says, “Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.” It may be that John is saying, “In the Temple a lamb is offered every night and every morning for the sins of the people; but this Jesus is the only sacrifice which can deliver men from sin” William Barclay , The Gospel of John: Volume , 81).
  • Thirdly, maybe John had in mind the prophet’s words, Isaiah 53:7, “He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth. Like a lamb led to the slaughter and like a sheep silent before her shearers, He did not open His mouth”. Isaiah spoke of One who would suffer greatly to redeem His people and free them from the judgment they so justly deserve. Maybe John is saying, “Your prophets dreamed of the One who was to love and suffer and die for the people; that One is come.”
  • It is most likely John the Beloved had all three in mind as he made this powerful declaration of our Lord. He will be the final Pascal Lamb needed to cause God to pass over those who so deserve God’s judgment, He will be the one to take the place of the animals sacrificed for the remission of the people’s sins in the Temple, and He would be the one who would suffer greatly to redeem His own people from the bondage of sin. He is all this and so very much more. He is our Lord, and that’s reason to shout for joy and celebrate!
• “^I did not know Him” John knew who Jesus was, because they were cousins, yet He did not know that Jesus was the One until that moment, when God revealed it to Him. The Light came on for John, and he realized Jesus was the Savior. Imagine what John must have been thinking as Jesus was approaching from a distance and God told him, “That’s the One, John. That’s Him.” Has there been a moment for you, like John, when you realized not just who Jesus was, but what Jesus is? Is he you Savior, your Messiah, your King? If not, you can know Him today!

^32And John bore witness, saying, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him. ^33I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘Upon whom you see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ ^34And I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God.”

• We know from the other Gospels that this point where John the Baptizer saw the spirit descending like a dove is the baptism of Jesus. Here we learn that God had given John a direct revelation, telling him that when he saw a dove descending he would know this was the Son of God in the flesh.
• John experienced, or beheld Him, and then testified about Him. He didn’t just learn about Him or experience Him, he did something with what he learned and experienced. After he had seen, he testified. He did not remain silent. How about you? Have you seen the Lamb of God? Have you met Him? Have you experienced or beheld Him? If so, have you also testified about Him before others?
• We need men who will boldly proclaim that people must make straight the way of the Lord in their lives before it’s too late, for once the Lord comes back to rapture His children and bring them home to glory, it’s too late. John did this boldly, but was what all preachers should be, just a voice, wanting no glory, simply pointing the way.
• What about you? Do you have the blood of the Lamb ceremonially and figuratively sprinkled over the doorpost of your heart, protecting you from judgment, allowing God’s judgment to pass over you? I hope so. Tomorrow may be too late.
• Has there been a moment for you, like John, when you realized not just who Jesus was, but what Jesus is? Is he your Savior, your Messiah, your King? If not, you can know Him today! He stands ready to meet you where you are (Revelation 3:20).

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Key words: The Book of John, Commentary on John, Sermon notes on John, The Gospel of John, John, Background to the Book of John.

Book Review | Breakout Churches | Thom Rainer

Bibliographical information: Rainer, Tom S. Breakout Churches; Discover How to Make the Leap. (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2005).

Author Information:

Tom Rainer is the current president and CEO of LifeWay Christian Resources out of Nashville, TN.  Before coming to LifeWay, Dr. Rainer was a professor at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary for twelve years, and was the founding dean of the Billy Graham School of Missions, Evangelism, and church growth there at SBTS.  Dr. Rainer speaks at hundreds of Christian venues each year and previously led the Rainer Group, which provided church growth and help insights to hundreds upon hundreds of churches and organizations.  Dr. Rainer has written twenty-two books to date including Essential Church, Surprising Insights from the Un-Churched, and The Unexpected Journey.  Dr. Rainer is married to Nellie Jo and they have three grown sons, Sam, Art, and Jess.

Content Summary:

Breakout Churches is a result of an examination of more than 50,000 churches, in an effort to find what he calls “breakout churches.”  This research was conducted by The Rainer Group, Rainer’s consulting firm.  With the help of a research team of thirteen gifted individuals, Rainer went through great strides to find churches that broke out of mediocrity to become great churches.  Rainer and his staff began with 52,333 churches, and, after their initial screening, trimmed that number to 1,936 churches.  Of the nearly 2,000 churches that were selected only 831 supplied the needed data to be evaluated by the research team.  Only 211 of those churches met the initial criteria of reporting a decline followed by a breakout, which was then followed by a period of growth, and only seventeen of these reported a decline followed by a breakout followed by a period of growth, all under the same pastoral leadership. Four churches did not meet the screening criteria and were thus eliminated (p. 215).  What remained were thirteen churches that broke out from mediocrity to greatness.  From these thirteen churches, much can be learned about church growth, health, and spiritual leadership.

Rainer begins his first chapter with an eye opening statement, “It is a sin to be good if God has called us to be great” (p.15). This first sentence is an excellent indicator of what the next 235 pages will be like – in God’s house good is simply not good enough. In fact, he quotes Jim Collins by saying that, “Good is the enemy of great” (p. 15). Rainer gives the criteria used to uncover thirteen “Breakout Churches” churches who understood that good is the enemy of great.  The church must have at least 26 conversions annually. The church must have an annual conversion ratio of 20:1. The church must have experienced a decline for several years prior to a breakout year. The church must have sustained new growth for several years. Additionally, the church must have experienced the slump reversal and breakout all under the same pastor (p. 21). Rainer then discusses what he calls the Chrysalis Factor(s) that led to the transformation of the churches.  The Chrysalis factor helped “to identify as clearly as possible the events, patterns, plans, strategies, crises, and other factors that took place when a church made the transition to greatness” (p. 24). Rainer then discuses briefly the six major components of the Chrysalis factor which are the basis for the subsequent chapters of his book.

In the next two chapters, Rainer discusses leadership characteristics that were common among all thirteen breakout churches.  Leaders of breakout churches understood their calling, led their congregation to look beyond themselves, were passionate and bold, and were “legacy leaders”, meaning that they were “quick to give ministry to others and let them take credit for their work” (p. 44).  These leaders exhibited confident humility and were not afraid to accept responsibility when things did not go right.  Additionally, they “expressed an intense love for the members of their congregation” (p. 62).

In chapter four, Rainer discusses one of the crucial events that led these churches from mediocrity to greatness, called the ABC moment.  Churches must be aware that something is wrong in their ministry, must have a strong belief that God can turn the situation around, and must endure the painful crisis that takes place once the change begins.  Once the ABC moment has occurred, churches must then go through the phenomenon called the “Who-What simultrack” (p. 92) where they get “the right infrastructure and the right people in place” (p. 108).  In chapter six, entitled “The VIP factor”, Rainer indicates that an interesting characteristic of breakout churches was that these churches “simply do not seek to discover their vision” (p. 111). These churches care about a vision but they focused on their spiritual gifts, their passions, and their community’s needs, and allowed their vision to discover them” (p. 113).

In the next chapter, the title says it all: “A Culture of Excellence”.  Breakout churches, unlike many other churches, focused on just a few things and did those things well.  They believe that “anything attempted for God should be done with excellence” (p. 131).  The desire for excellence among breakout churches “was always biblically and theologically driven.  They sought to do their best for the Savior they served” (p. 144).

The last characteristic of breakout churches is discussed in chapter eight, entitled “Innovation Accelerators.”  They adopted innovation slowly after scrutiny and deliberation, yet they were not afraid to innovate as long as it was in line with the vision of their ministry.  Breakout churches made certain that any innovation they adopted would enhance their vision.

In chapter nine Rainer writes about the “Big Mo”. The Big Mo is the result of all of the six components of the breakout churches.  After applying these characteristics, these churches experienced momentum which can only be accredited to a sovereign and omnipotent God.  This momentum occurred because of the churches’ faithfulness in applying the six components or characteristics of breakout churches and “because of the power of a great God” (p. 198).  This Big Mo is a time “when one success builds upon another” and is what seems to be “an inexplicable momentum” in the church (p. 182).

Rainer closes the book with chapter ten which is entitled “To Become a Breakout Church.”  Here Rainer reviews many of the key characteristics and insights previously discussed, and pours his heart out for the reader to see.  “There is little doubt that many American churches are sick.  The documentation I provided earlier certainly paints that picture” (p. 187). Rainer calls his readers to be the godly leaders that Christ has called them to be by having a “Christ-like spirit” (p. 191).

Evaluation:

The first strength of this book is, undoubtedly, its success in achieving its goals. Breakout Churches accomplished the goal it set out to accomplish, which is to “offer specific examples and principles to help [a church] become more effective”, and also to “reveal the process of becoming a breakout church and the factors that lead to this spiritual metamorphosis” (back cover). This book has done this and so much more. With more than 3,500 churches dying each year, Rainer’s book is very much needed. The state of the church today is in crisis mode, and Rainer’s book gives accurate, helpful insight from some churches that are doing church right. This book offers 252 pages of wisdom, research, insight, and stories of how church can succeed when so many other churches around them are plateaued or dying. This book is a breath of fresh air and reminds the reader that there is indeed hope for the church today. From the first page, the reader can ascertain that this book comes out of the love and passion that Rainer has for the church and its health and growth. His desire is to see all churches reach the point of breakout.

Another strength of this book lies in the candidness and honesty of the author. The author does not paint a rosy picture at every corner and pretend that all went well with his research and findings. This adds to the credit of both the author and the book. From the onset of the book (p. 16), the author talks of the difficulties he had in finding adequate data and results to use in his book. The author candidly admits, “I questioned my sanity at enduring this project from start to finish” (p. 34). However, in the end, it was well worth it for both the writer and the reader. “The lessons we learned”, says the author, “are priceless” (p. 16). The lessons the readers have learned and continue to learn from this book are priceless and are vital for the health and longevity of the local church.

Even the additions to this book, such as the appendices and end notes are unusually valuable. The author first addresses about twenty of the most likely questions a reader will still have once finished with the book, many of which this reviewer still had. He gives thorough but concise answers to each question before moving to the next appendix where he gives the reader insight into the intricacies of the selection process. This helps the reader feel as though they are a part of the process themselves, and gives them a sort of “behind the scenes” look at the development of the book. Another valuable tool is a short synopsis of information on each church, which summarizes nicely much of the information previously stated concerning each church. Whereas throughout the book the information on each church is divulged in pieces, the appendix on the churches (Appendix D) gives the complete picture on each church, including background and pastor information. As if these appendices were not enough, Rainer and his team developed a spiritual inventory of sorts to help churches assess themselves in light of the traits that helped the breakout churches leap to greatness. This assessment can act as a barometer to help churches identify their areas of weakness and help them develop an action plan to be on their way to the point of breakout.

One of the strongest aspects of Rainer’s book lies in what the book is not. It is not a “ten-step secret to unlocking the keys to church growth” type of book that promises growth after reading a book. It isn’t like many other church growth books on the market that gives ten steps to this or forty days to this. Rainer says, honestly and humbly, and with great integrity, that “I do not want to suggest that we have discovered some neat formulaic approach for leading churches to greatness. A sovereign God and the Holy Spirit are not instruments subject to manipulation by humans” (p. 27), Rainer makes it clear that his book is about discovering insights as to how God is working in the church, and is not a ten-step guaranteed fix for any church. Ultimately, only Christ can build His church, and Rainer’s thesis and book supports that idea.

One small area of weakness is the amount of references to Jim Collin’s book, Good to Great. Admittedly, the author disclosed at the onset of the book that his work was structurally based upon the work of Jim Collins, and that he would borrow from Collins’ work. However, it appeared to this author that too much time was spent quoting or referring to Collin’s work. Reading Rainer’s book was in many ways like reading Collins’ book. Less frequent mentions of Collins’ would have made Rainer’s work a bit more unique, and would have allowed Rainer’s ideas to stand on their own merit. Though Rainer’s research is all his, the content structure of this book too closely resembles Collins’ book and appears to be a “Christianizing” of an existing secular book. Rainer’s research and even his ideas are new and revealing, yet such strong ties to Collins’ work seem to diminish the uniqueness of Rainer’s work somewhat. Fewer references to Collins’ work would have served Rainer better and would have lent more originality to his work.

Breakout Churches is an incredible journey into the lives of thirteen great churches. Rainer takes his readers on this journey, from the lowest point of the church to the spiritual high point of breakout so that the reader can glean insight into those areas where churches were doing ministry and church right. This book has many great lessons not just for churches, but for pastors, deacons, and the laity. This book supports the idea that, aside from the sovereign work of God, church growth is deliberate and that God does reward those who seek to live their lives and direct their churches under His will. This book is for anyone who is serious about church growth, spiritual development, and the overall health of the Body of Christ. It is the prayer of this review that many people will read and digest the contents of this book so that they may know and experience those things that can take a church from good to great.

Personal Application and Reflection

As I read this book, one of the first realizations I came to was the importance of my own spiritual health for the growth and health of my church. It is easy to see the church as a corporate body, but difficult to see one’s self specifically as an important, vital part of the body. As a pastor, this book instilled within me the importance of sound doctrine and biblical wisdom as I lead. Though God is sovereign and can build His church as He pleases with or without me, God has chosen to use me to help build His church. In doing so, God has charged me with tending first to my own spiritual health before I can become concerned with the corporate spiritual health of our church. I must study God’s Word like never before, be willing to take risks, be willing to lead the church in ministry beyond the walls of the church, and focus on the basics of Christian ministry, such as preaching, teaching, and prayer. I play a more important role in the health of my church than I could have ever imagined. Rainer states that a lack of “legacy leaders” in the church is one of the reasons why church attendance is down in America (p. 45). This is a weighty responsibility that every pastor must take seriously.

Another personal application that is important to me as the Pastor of a small church is that there is much more to church than simply trying to survive. The fact that eighty percent of churches in America are in decline is staggering, and to make matters worse, my church is one of those churches. Churches such as mine have been in survival mode for so long that it appears we have forgotten about the basics of ministry and Christian service and evangelism, and are rather trying to find creative ideas to increase the number of visitors or members in our church. In other words, we are focused on the problem or the symptoms, and not the solution or diagnosis. Rainer’s book pulls the curtain back so churches can begin to think in terms of a solution. Myself, or any pastor or church leader for that matter, can take these ten traits and work from there to determine where they are spiritually.

I take away from this book a saying that I will never forget: “It is a sin to be good if God has called you to be great” (p. 34). In my ministry I must always strive to exemplify those biblical principles that will take me and my church to greatness. This book has encouraged me to always exemplify Colossians 3:17 in my ministry, which states, “And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him”. I can no longer show signs that I am addicted to mediocrity (p.71) in either my personal spiritual life or in the spiritual life of my church. I must strive for excellence in all things (p. 131) and glorify God by being both theologically and biblically driven (p. 132). I recommend this book highly!

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Key search words: Evan 660, Liberty University Evangelism 660, Thom Rainer, Breakout Churches book report and critique, church growth.

Through the Book of John | John 1:1-18

THE DEITY AND ETERNALITY OF JESUS THE WORD

¹In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ^2 He was in the beginning with God.

• Many people have written many lengthy discourses on this verse, one of the most notable in the Bible, and a key verse for the early church’s battle against heresies. Even today, cults such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses do everything in their power to alter these verses to make them say something other than what they plainly say.
  • “However, these two verses can be summed up in three simple, yet profound ways:  [Jesus Christ] was (1) in the beginning: He was (2) with God: He (3) was God” (The Gospel According to St. John Introduction and Notes on the Authorized Version, Greek Text and Revised Version, page 2).
• The fact that He was “in the beginning” is important, and squashes the ridiculous, heretical ideas of the Mormons, the Jehovah’s Witnesses, and any other heretical infidels. “John marks the beginning of Jesus’ life as an event that took place before the beginning of eternity. ‘In the beginning was the Word’—not ‘at the beginning,’ not ‘from the beginning,’ but ‘in the beginning,’ Jesus was already there” (Jon Courson, Jon Courson’s Application Commentary, page 435). So don’t let those Saturday morning visitors (Jehovah’s Witnesses) show up on your doorstep and tell you any different.
• “In the beginning was the Word”: There never was a time when Christ did not exist because the word “was” is in the Greek imperfect tense, which means “was continuing.” In fact, the entire first verse bears this sense. “In the beginning was continuing the Word, and the Word was continuing with God, and the Word was continually God.” Or as [someone] accurately (though ungrammatically) concluded, “Jesus always was wasing!” That is precisely it. Jesus Christ is preexistent. He always was continuing” (R. Kent Hughes, John: That You May Believe, page 16).
• “And the word was with God” should be read in the Greek as “The Word was continually towards God”. As verse two tells us, He was there in the beginning. He has always been with God, and has always been God.  To disbelieve this is to disbelieve the Book of John and the entire Bible.
• The fact that He was called “The Word” tells us that there is no doubt that He is God. The Jews used terms such as the “The Word” or the “Word of Life” to refer to God, to keep His sacred name Yahweh holy and undefiled. They felt that God’s name was to holy to even speak, so that used alternative names for Him. To the Jew, there was no question: When John used “The Word” he was calling Jesus Yahweh, the Eternal God!

^3All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. ^4In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. ^5And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

• If verses 1-3 left any questions about who Jesus was, verse 4 settles it once and for all. He is the One who created all things, and without Him, none of us would be here today, just as Colossians Chapter 1 says!
• Paul wrote of Christ, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation; because by Him everything was created, in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities – all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and by Him all things hold together.” (Colossians 1:15-17, HCSB).
• Paul also wrote, “Yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things, and we for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and we through Him.”  (1 Corinthians 8:6)
• This means that each of us owe our very existence to Him. Do we spend time in prayer thanking Him for our lives and thanking Him for creating us? We owe Him thanks for our lives as our creator. We owe him thanks for everything in our lives! Take a moment today to thank Him for your life.
• As a matter of fact, life is most important to us. Without life, we are, well, dead. But in Jesus, verse 4 says, we have life. And we have light too. There are two things men are afraid of, it seems, death and darkness. I personally am afraid of both. Jesus has the cure for both of them! He has life, and He has light. He IS life and He IS light! Here’s the hard truth for the day, if you do not have Christ, you have no light, and not life. You are living a dead, dark life. Let the light of the world light your world, won’t you?
• “The darkness did not comprehend.”: Light in the Bible is always an emblem of God and Christ. Darkness is sometimes an emblem of sin, death, tragedy, and evil. The darkness of the world, or the evil of the world, and the rulers of this Dark Age will not overcome Christ. There is going to be a battle one day. A battle where ultimately Christ will overcome evil and darkness once and for all. Praise God I am on the winning side. Are you?

^6There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. ^7This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe. ^8He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.

• “A man” is talking about John the Baptist, not John the writer of this book. Luke tells us a lot about John the Baptist, but John the Beloved seems to only be concerned with his function and purpose – his function as a witness about the Light. John is not the light, or even Elijah, but is simply a witness of the Light.
• The word “witness” is the Greek word “martureo” and is closely associated with the word “martyr”, which is “martus” in Greek. The words both have the same root word in Greek and are sometimes used interchangeably, since a real witness for Christ is willing to be a martyr for Crist. John uses this word “witness” (martueo) an astounding 31 times in his book, emphasizing the importance of being a witness for Christ. Of course, we know John the Baptist was a faithful witness/martyr, as he was beheaded for the sake of the Gospel. (Matt 14:1-12)
  • We serve the same purpose as John, to be a witness for Christ. Yet we are fortunate in that we are not called to be martyred. We are to be witnesses of the Light. How many friends do we have that are in darkness, yet we never share the light with them? How many friends do we have that are dead in their sins, yet we never share life with them? Sadly, 90% of evangelical Christians never share the Light and Life with those they know. What about you. Are you the witness for the Light that God has called you to be?

^9That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world. ^10He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. ^11He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him.

• Jesus isn’t a fake Light, like Allah, Mohamed, Joseph Smith, Buddah, etc. He is the real deal, the true Light, John says.
• “The true Light which gives light to every man.”: Notice something very important here. Many say that Jesus only died for certain people (known as “Limited Atonement”), and that those who are unsaved have no hope of salvation because Christ did not die for them. But verse 9 says that Jesus gives light to every man (or literally all men). This means that every man has the opportunity to receive the Light. Yet we know that the gate is narrow, and many will reject the Light. The offer is there, but many will not receive Him. They reject the offer of the Light that is available to all men. Reformed theology says you can’t reject God, He is irresistible. But this verse clearly says that God, in His sovereignty, offered the Light, but didn’t force the Light upon man. Each man must make His own decision to receive the Light or reject the Light.
• “The world did not know Him.”: Verse 10 says that the people did not recognize their own Creator. They rejected and despised Him. They acted as if they did not know Him. People do the same thing today, although Romans 1:18-20 says they do know about Him. People are without excuse. They know about God, but they do not know Him personally. What about you? Are you rejecting Him? Are you rejected Him in the sense that you are not walking with Him daily?

¹²But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: ^13who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

• Again, some say that only those “elected” to receive Christ can do so (the inaccurate doctrine of Limited Atonement). John says here that anyone who will receive Jesus into their hearts and lives has the right to become children of God. All one has to do is believe. Remember, the word “believe” (pisteuō in Greek) is used 98 times in this book (nearly half of the New Testament usages of the word). Believe, believe, believe – that’s John’s message. Anyone who believes has the right to become a child of God.
• “Who were born…of God”: If you receive Him, it is of God. Your salvation happens because of what God purposed to happen on the cross. It isn’t anything you do in your flesh; it’s a free gift of God. (See Ephesians 2:8-9).
• “As many as received Him”: Many today attempt to teach that “receiving God” is not biblical because God choses and receives us. But here we see that receiving God is absolutely biblical. God does choose us, but we must choose Him as well. Receiving God is absolutely a biblical concept and you should never be ashamed to ask someone to “receive Him.”

^14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. ^15 John bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.’ ” ^16 And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. ^17 For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. ^18 No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.

• The Word, who is Jesus, came, born of a virgin, and “tabernacled” among us. It’s so hard to believe that the God of earth and glory would take the time to come to earth, to live amongst sin, disease, wickedness, trauma, persecution, and torture just for me, and just for you. How unworthy we are that the eternal Creator of the Universe would give up His place in glory to live among us and die for us.
• Yet he did, because John said “we beheld His glory”, that is the apostles, over five hundred eye witnesses, and many others who actually saw and experienced him, they all beheld His glory. They experienced him, not just saw him. Take a moment to ask yourself if you have experienced Jesus today? When is the last time you really experienced Jesus? Do you experience Him every day? Do you walk with Him, and talk with Him, along life’s narrow way. You should! Because He is full of grace and truth, and he wants to give both grace and truth to you today. You will never find grace or truth apart from our Lord Jesus Christ.
• John says that not only have “we”, the Apostles, beheld Him, but that John the Baptist did. After John saw and beheld Him, he bore witness of Him and cried out,” John the Baptist cried out that Jesus was before him. Wait a minute, don’t we know from Luke chapters 1 and 2 that John the Baptist was first to be born, months before his cousin Jesus? Yes, but John is telling us that Jesus is eternal, and was from the very beginning in existence. In this case, Jesus is first. He is preeminent and eternally God.
• “And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace”: Here John is saying, I believe, “We Christians here at this time have beheld, we have experience, we have partaken of His grace, mercy, forgiveness, love. Brothers and Sisters, Jesus is the full package”. The Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB) renders a much better translation of this passage when it says, “Indeed, we have all received grace after grace from His fullness.” Through the fullness of Christ Jesus we have received blessing after blessing so richly, even though we do not deserve them.
• “The law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ”: Christ is not like the rigid Law of the Old Testament that could never save someone. He is Jesus, the one to bring us God’s unmerited favor. Both grace and truth come through Him, not through meticulous obedience to an Old Testament ritualistic system. This idea is so simple, yet so hard for many to accept. People feel as though they have to do something to earn salvation, but grace and truth come only through our Lord and Savior.
• “No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him”: This tells us that while no one has seen God, they have “seen of” God, so to speak, through His only Son. John says that no one has seen God, yet many have seen God indirectly because “Jesus, the Word, is the perfect declaration of the unseen God. The Father and the Son belong to the same family, and Jesus has declared the nature of the unseen God to man. We don’t have to wonder about the nature and personality of God. Jesus has declared it with both His teaching and His life” (David Guzik, Enduring Word).

PERSONAL APPLICATION FOR REFLECTION

Remember that John wrote one of the most specular books in all of the Bile, yet never mentioned His name. He wasn’t concerned with furthering his notoriety of with making his name a household name. Are we like the beloved Disciple, wanting all the attention to go on Jesus. Or is it about us? Do we pray as John did, “He must increase, I must decrease” (John 3:30)? Or are we self-centered and egocentric? John was Christocentric, are you?

Remember that John is a book that serves as a barometer to indicate just how deep our faith us. What about you, how deep is your faith. Hopefully it will deepen day by day as you go through this wonderful, deeply Christocentric book. Are you examining yourself regularly to make you are growing in the Lord. Use this book to help you do just that.

John 1:3 says all things were made through Jesus. This means that each of us owe our very existence to Him, the sovereign Creator of the Universe. Do we spend time, in our prayers, just thanking Him for our lives? This is basic, yet we often forget that we owe him thanks for our lives as our Creator. We owe Him thanks for everything in our lives. May we praise Him today for being our Creator.

John 1:4 says Jesus is the Light and the Life. If you do not have Christ, you have no light, and you have no life. You are living a dead, dark life. Let the light of the world light your world, won’t you? If you haven’t surrendered your life to Him as the Lord over your life, you should do so today. Without Him, life is lonely, dead, and dark, and you have no hope of eternal life.

Remember John was called to be a witness for the Light. We serve the same purpose as John, yet thankfully we are not called to be martyred. We are to be witnesses of the Light in our everyday lives. How many friends do you have that are in darkness? Do you share the Light with them? How many friends do you have that are dead in their sins? Do you share Life with them? Sadly, 90% of Christians never share the Light and Life with the people around them. Do you?

John 1:11 says that Jesus own people rejected Him. Are you rejecting Him? Are you rejected Him in the sense that you are not walking with Him daily, even though you are a Christian? Rejected His salvation isn’t the only way people can reject Him. People reject Jesus’ call on their lives every day. Are you submitted to the will of Christ in every aspect of your life, or are you rejecting Jesus just as His own people did?

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Key words: The Book of John, Commentary on John, Sermon notes on John, The Gospel of John, John, Background to the Book of John.

Through the Book of John | Introduction to the Book of John

INTRODUCTION TO THE BOOK OF JOHN

I must say that this is one of the most exciting things I have ever done. I am preaching through the Book of John, verse by verse. This book has blessed me so much that I thought I’d share my sermon notes with you. Stay tuned….I’ll be posting more each week!!

I love the story of two little boys watching grandmother read the Bible. Danny asked, “Why does grandmother read the Bible so much?” His brother David answered, “I think she’s cramming for her finals.”  There is so much truth and knowledge in the book of John that we’re going to feel as though we are cramming for finals as we work our way through this wonderful book!

A pastor had been disturbed by a person who was a fast reader. “We shall now read the Twenty-third Psalm in unison,” he announced. “Will the lady who is always by the still waters, while the rest of us are in `green pastures, please wait a minute until we catch up?”(PastorLife.com Sermon illustrations).  We should be like this Pastor and take our time and savor every single chapter, verse, and word! We want to take our time and carefully study all 21 chapters, all 879, and all 15,635 words of John’s account of the Gospel of our Lord (Statistics courtesy of Catholic Resources at www. catholic – resources . org).

We must ask the question, “Why four Gospels?” Well actually, there really are not four Gospels. There is really only one Gospel with four views, sides, or perspectives. Here’s how I think of the four Gospel accounts. Our church recently completed VBS (Hero Headquarters, June 2010). If you were to survey four of our members about VBS, you would get four varying accounts that overlap some, but have differences in them as well. Although the four accounts from the four church members differ, one would never assert that our church conducted four different Vacation Bible Schools, would they? AT our VBS, some may have experienced things that others didn’t, yet we only had one VBS. The same applies to the “four-fold single Gospel”. Different writers experienced different things and penned them down for us under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. So remember, it’s only ONE GOSPEL with four perspectives.

So what’s this Gospel account about? More than 50 years ago, the New Testament scholar Merrill C. Tenney entitled his commentary on the Fourth Gospel, “John, The Gospel of Belief”. This is so very true. This is the Gospel of belief. It is a Gospel that a lost person can read to really, really know Jesus. It’s where every New Christian should begin. This book will strengthen your faith and deepen your belief in Christ as God Almighty, the Creator of the Universe.

We must also ask, “Who wrote this book?” This book was written by John, the brother of James (commonly referred to as John the Beloved). His family had a fishing business in Galilee, centered around the Sea of Galilee. John the Beloved was a part of Jesus’ inner circle, with Peter and James. What we know about John comes from the other Gospel accounts, as John wrote very little about himself in his own Gospel account. We know that John had a temper, and was called the “Son of Thunder”. This is John was became angry at some Samaritans who wouldn’t lend a bed to Jesus (See Luke 9:51-55). John and his brother appear to have been ambitious, at least early in their relationship with Jesus. In Matthew 20:20-28 they had their mother ask if they could be first in Jesus’ kingdom. We know John was humble. John refers to himself as “the disciple whom Jesus loved” 5 times (John 13:23; 19:26; 21:7, 20, 24), yet he never mentioned his name. This tells us that he was not concerned with drawing attention to himself. He wanted all the focus on Jesus, the eternal son of God. We do well to exemplify this characteristic in our lives. Do we want all the attention on Jesus, or is really all about us? May we pray as John did, “Lord, may you increase, and may I decrease.”

When was this Gospel written? Most conservative commentators agree with the Gospel account was written somewhere between 85 AD and 95 AD, at the end of the 1^st century, just after John became the Bishop at Ephesus. This means that John the Beloved would have most likely written this account after his exile on Patmos, which is where he was when he wrote the Book of Revelation.

To whom was this Gospel account written? Matthew was written to the Jews, as is evident by the words he uses and the imagery in his book. Mark was written to the Romans. Luke was written to the Gentiles, since Luke himself was a Gentile. But the Book of John was written to the WORLD, not just a chosen few (See John 3:16).

Why was the Gospel account written? When you look at the Book of John in relationship to the other book of the Bible, the others seem to be a historical narrative, telling what Jesus did and giving historical facts. However, this book is a book about who Jesus is! This book is a deeply theological (about God and the teachings of God) and Christological (the study of Christ) book. John tells us near the end of his Gospel account why this book was written. “Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of His disciples that are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may believe Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and by believing you may have life in His name (John 20:30-31). John, then, wrote this book so people would believe in Jesus. In fact, “the key word in the Gospel of John is ‘believe’ (pisteuō), which occurs 98 times” (John F. Walvoord, “The Bible Knowledge Commentary”, 2:270).

It has been said that the Gospel of John is “a pool in which a child may wade and an elephant my swim” (David Guzik, Enduring Word Media). This is a book that was not only written to the lost, as was mentioned earlier, it was also written to the saved, to deepen their faith in Christ as the Messiah. You cannot read this book without having your faith deepened. This is a book that not only will deepen your faith, it serves as a barometer to see just how deep our faith us. What about you, how deep is your faith. May this book serve as a personal barometer in your life as we go through all 879 verses of belief.  It is my prayer that your faith will be greatly deepened as your study each every one of the 15,635 words in this great book!

On a final note of introduction, you can’t read this book without knowing more and more about Christ and His role as the eternal Son of God. This is a book that speaks heavily of the eternality of Jesus, and is what I like to call “the Jehovah’s Witnesses Nightmare”. “From the manifestation of the Word in chapter 1, to the post-resurrection appearance to the disciples in chapter 21, we find John emphasizing over and over again the excellence and eternality of the Son of God” (Kenneth O. Gangel, Holman New Testament Commentary: John, page 1). Through the lens of this book we see that Jesus is the Christ, the eternal Living Word and God Almighty in the Flesh – nothing less!

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Key words: The Book of John, Commentary on John, Sermon notes on John, The Gospel of John, John, Background to the Book of John.