"A survey of biblical teaching regarding the church, written for African pastors and ministry leaders"--

Equipping a New Generation to Live Out God’s Design This thorough study of the Bible’s teaching on men and women aims to help a new generation of Christians live for Christ in today’s world. Moving beyond other treatments that primarily focus on select passages, this winsome volume traces Scripture’s overarching pattern related to male-female relationships in both the Old and New Testaments. Those interested in careful discussion rather than caustic debate will discover that God’s design is not confining or discriminatory but beautiful, wise, liberating, and good.

This ground-breaking resource challenges and equips Christians to think and act biblically and compassionately in matters of sexuality. Sexual abuse, sex addiction, gender confusion, brokenness, and shame plague today's world, and people are seeking clarity and hope. By contesting long-held cultural paradigms, this book equips you to see how sexuality is rooted in the broader context of God's heart and His work for us on earth. It provides a framework from which to understand the big picture of sexual challenges and wholeness, and helps you recognize that every sexual question is ultimately a spiritual one. It shifts the paradigm from combating sexual problems to confidently proclaiming and modeling the road to sacred sexuality. Instead of arguing with the world about what's right and wrong about sexual choices, this practical resource equips you to share the love and grace of Jesus as you encounter the pain of sexual brokenness--your own or someone else's.

Seeking God’s Design honors the 50th anniversary of The Design. It is focused around a series of audiotaped interviews that Disciples of Christ Historical Society President James Seale conducted from 1989 to 1993 with Disciples leaders who played important roles in Restructure. It provides historical context and offers a series of reflections from key Disciples leaders today, as we honor and critically evaluate the work of our predecessors while looking ahead to the next 50 years of our life as a church. Seeking God’s Design is the first volume of the James and Mary Dudley Seale Series on Disciples and Public Engagement, a partnership between the Disciples of Christ Historical Society and Chalice Press.

In Church Reset: God's Design for So Much More, Jack Wilkie traces the problem back to its roots to show how we've deviated from God's plan and how we can get back on track. How can we stop operating as an organization and start living like a family? How do we stop creating church customers and start making dedicated disciples? How do we abandon man-made strategies and rediscover the power of God's design? Church Reset casts an exciting vision for what Christ's church can be by pointing back to what it was meant to be from the very start.

Claire Smith looks closely at seven key Bible passages about men and women and how they should relate together in God's purposes.

The 20th century saw a transformation in the lives of women in the Western world. From a biblical standpoint, the important "God's Design for Women" discusses how women should respond to these changes and what it means to be a Christian women in the postmodern world.

Pastor Bob Russell shares the ten principles upon which Southeast Christian Church, one of the largest and fastest growing churches in America, was founded. He shares not only the story of one of the most amazing churches in America, but also what your church can become if you follow the principles and allow God to build your church. Can the church truly be the "city on a hill that cannot be hidden" that Jesus talked about in the Sermon on the Mount? Can it grow large enough to attract throngs of seekers and yet be loving enough to care for each individual that comes? Bob Russell, pastor of Southeast Christian Church—one of the largest and fastest growing churches in America—says that it most certainly can. But it can only be done when we are submissive to God's will and allow Him to build that church. In the pages of this far-sighted, uncompromising book, Bob Russell and his son Rusty share the ten principles upon which this remarkable church was founded. Throughout the book, you will see God's mighty power at work in a church that began in 1962 with only 50 members and has now grown to over 14,000 and has become a bustling "city on a hill" whose beaming faith powerfully impacts its community and the world. This book shares not only the story of one of the most amazing churches in America but also the story of what your church can become as you follow these ten time-tested principles and allow God to build your church.

"This is the first book I will recommend to those who want to study what the Scriptures teach about the roles of men and women both in marriage and the church. . . I was amazed at how much wisdom is packed into this short book. Everything in the book is helpful, but the practical application section alone is worth the price of the book." — Thomas R. Schreiner, James Buchanan Harrison Professor of New Testament Interpretation, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary A Biblical Primer on Men and Women in the Church There is much at stake in God making humanity male and female. Created for one another yet distinct from each other, a man and a woman are not interchangeable—they are designed to function according to a divine fittedness. But when this design is misunderstood, ignored, or abused, there are dire consequences. Men and women—in marriage especially, but in the rest of life as well—complement one another. And this biblical truth has enduring, cosmic significance. From start to finish, the biblical storyline—and the design of creation itself—depends upon the distinction between male and female. Men and Women in the Church is about the divinely designed complementarity of men and women as it applies to life in general and especially ministry in the church.

Parents celebrate both the sons and the daughters that God gives them. It's more important than ever to teach those sons and daughters to celebrate who God made them, too. Through this illustrated guide, parents can begin the discussion with both boys and girls about God's wise and beautiful design for them. Wrong ideas about gender identity are lining up to influence our children, and they are no longer too young to learn what it means to be men and women! Sally Michael and Gary Steward partner to bring a male-and-female approach to the topic of gender roles-one that is united together under the authority of God's plan in His Word. Through examples and stories from Scripture, they present this difficult topic delicately and in a way that even the youngest children can understand. Don't leave your children to be confused or ashamed of who they are-help them to rejoice in who God designed them to be! Book jacket.