Church Stuff

These articles are about various church ideas, and the book reviews are about topics associated with church-type things.

Barnabas Ministry Articles

Church Leadership, Ideas and Structure
Church Concepts (44k)
Primary church structures, church divisions, large churches vs. small churches.

The Eldership: A Noble Task (32k)
The work and qualifications of the eldership

The Fallacy of Christian One True Wayism (29k)
The problem with one-true-wayism and some thoughts about solutions.

Financial Support for Full-Time Workers (55k)
Study in the New Testament on the topic of compensation for ministers

The 'IN' Crowd: Ministering With Introverts in Mind (from the Christian Standard)
Link to article published by the Christian Standard on-line in January, 2006.

The Institutional Church
Just what is the institutional church for, anyway?

Introducing the Emerging Church (10k)
Organizational Models for Christian Training (14k)
Hierarchical discipling based upon the Jethro paradigm and New Testament example.

Small Groups in the Church (2k)
Study notes concerning healthy small groups in a large church.

Statistics and Christianity (18k)
A discussion of the pros and cons of utilizing statistics in the church and in one's spiritual life.

Thoughts on Followership (25k)
Healthy and spiritual patterns of followership.

Thoughts on Primitivism (16k)
Perspectives on "restoring the early church."

Why I'm a "Revolutionary"  (12k)
One man's thoughts on the being a "revolutionary" (as used by George Barna in the book of the same name).


Worship and Church Assembly


The Assembly (51k)
General discussion of meetings of the church in the New Testament era. (Taken from Chapter 7 of "Keeping The Faith").

The Role of Women in the Assembly (28k)
A discussion of passages relating to the role of women in the assembly.

Worship, Service and Sacrifice (23k)
General discussion worship, service and sacrifice in the context of meetings of the church in the New Testament era. (Taken from  Appendix Aof "Keeping The Faith").


Barnabas Book Reviews
Church Leadership, Ideas and Structure
A New Kind of Christian: A Tale of Two Friends on a Spiritual Journey (7k)
Brian D. McLaren
(Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA, 2001). 192 pages.

Becoming Conversant with the Emerging Church (10k)
D.A. Carson (Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI. 2005.)

Confessions of a Reformission Rev.- Hard Lessons From an Emerging, Missional Church  (20k)
Mark Driscoll
(Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI. 2006.)

The Connecting Church: Beyond Small Groups to Authentic Community (28k)
Randy Frazee
Zondervan (Grand Rapids, MI., 2001)

Dining with the Devil: The Megachurch Movement Flirts with Modernity (13k)
By Os Guinness (Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, MI, 1993)

Firestorm: Preventing and Overcoming Church Conflicts (10k)
Ron Susek (Baker Books, Grand Rapids, MI. 1999). 253 pages

The Habits of Highly Effective Churches (2k)
George Barna (Regal/Gospel Light, Ventura, CA. 1999.)

The Jesus Proposal: A Theological Framework for Maintaining the Unity of the Body of Christ (14k)
Rubel Shelly and John York (Leafwood Publishers, Siloam Springs, AR 2003. 219 pages, hardback). A proposal for Christian unity in the twenty-first century.

The Purpose Driven Church: Growth Without Compromising Your Message & Mission (8k)
Rick Warren (Zondervan Publishers, Grand Rapids, MI. 1995.)  400 pages.

Radical Restoration (5k)
F. LaGard Smith (Cotswold Publishing, Nashville, TN. 2001. 316 pages).  A fresh look at the "restoration" paradigm for today.

Reclaiming God's Original Intent for the Church  (5k)
Wes Roberts and Glenn Marshall
(NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO, 2004). 191 pages.

Revolution (15k)
George Barna (Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, IL. 2005.)

Two Views on Women in Ministry
James R. Beck, Craig L. Blomberg General Editors. Contributors Craig S. Keener, Linda L. Belleville, Thomas R. Schreiner, Ann L. Bowman. Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, MI. 2001.

Velvet Elvis: Repainting the Christian Faith (13k)
Rob Bell
(Zondervan, Grand Rapids, MI, 2005). 208 pages.

Willow Creek Seeker Services: Evaluating a New Way of Doing Church
G. A. Pritchard (Baker Books, Colorado Springs, CO. 1996.) 334 pages.


Worship and Church Assembly

The Worship Maze: Finding a Style to Fit Your Church (5k)
Paul Basden, Intervarsity Press, Downers Grove, IL. 1999.

Pagan Christianity: The Origins of Our Modern Church Practices, Revised and Updated (16k)
By Frank Viola and George Barna, Barna/Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. Carol Stream, IL 2008.

Worship Evangelism: Inviting Unbelievers into the Presence of God (7k)
Sally Morgenthaler, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, MI. 1999.