Millions of Christians around the world are becoming aware of an imminent reformation of global proportions within the church. God is changing this revered institution and is making a new collective awareness of an age-old revelation, a corporate spiritual echo that reflects God's desire for the church. In this book, Simson brings to light what God is saying to Christians everywhere. Researched across the globe, he presents the case for the reformation of the church's existence. In a world where the church is being ignored, it is time to bring the church to the people and not the people to the church. Whether it is what we know as church from the last five years or the last five hundred years, no one has truly been able to break free from the structures of the past. Many may see this book as radical, many may see it as a reforming of old ideals but all who read it will be challenged and their priorities refocused in a life-changing way.

In our modern dislocated society many are searching for a church experience that offers true Christian sharing, nurturing, and discipleship, in addition to teaching and worship. For many such people the answer is found in the home church: a small, committed group of often diverse people who meet together in homes to pray, eat, sing, study, and share their lives. The Church Comes Home is a handbook for those interested in home churches. It is both visionary and practical. It describes how home churches can be formed, how they should grow, and how networks of home churches can develop. It examines issues--for example, how to make decisions; how to determine doctrine; how to include children, singles, elders; and how to reach out to the community at large--and offers practical suggestions for their resolution.

Churches have tried all kinds of ways to attract new and younger members - revised vision statements, hipper worship, contemporary music, livelier sermons, bigger and better auditoriums. But there are still so many people who aren't being reached, who don't want to come to church. And the truth is that attendance at church on Sundays does not necessarily transform lives; God's presence in our hearts is what changes us. Leaders and laypeople everywhere are realizing that they need new and more powerful ways to help them spread God's Word. According to international church starter and pastor Neil Cole, if we want to connect with young people and those who are not coming to church, we must go where people congregate. Cole shows readers how to plant the seeds of the Kingdom of God in the places where life happens and where culture is formed - restaurants, bars, coffeehouses, parks, locker rooms,and neighborhoods. Organic Church offers a hands-on guide for demystifying this new model of church and shows the practical aspects of implementing it.

Using original interviews with over thirty missional house churches, J. D. Payne examines the influence of the house church movement on local communities throughout the United States.

This is an exploration of house churches, especially in Poland. The book begins with a review of literature about the "global house church movement" and continues with an article on the early Christian transition from house churches to purpose-built buildings for churches. Next is an article regarding the concept of "sacred space" in relation to house churches. The first half concludes with a chapter on methodology of research for a qualitative interview approach to studying house churches. The thesis then presents a theological method for using the qualitative interviews to develop ecclesiology. Sixteen interviews from thirteen house churches are presented. The thesis continues the theological method by attempting to answer the question "why is it going on" and presents a thematic analysis from the qualitative interviews that includes input from sociological research done in Poland. The thesis concludes by using scriptural and academic sources in conversation with house church interviews from the interviews and global house church literature to present four primary conclusions in a practical-prophetic ecclesiology.

In our changing world how do Christians come together in non-traditional ways? An expert takes a look at some of the most significant gospel-advancing movements and trends to take place in the latter twentieth and twenty-first centuries in the United States. New Christian groups examined include: the Church Growth Movement, Missional Church Movement, Multisite Movement, the rise of church planting networks, the House Church Movement, and the Emerging Church Movement. Readers are introduced to each expression, along with important definitions, history, convictions, and influential leaders. Features include: A close look at non-denominational movements that reach new people for Christ Explanations of how contemporary Christianity is changing Concise guide to non-traditional Christian groups "

How do Christ followers celebrate unity in the midst of diversity? How do we become the people of God in more than name only? A unifying Christ-centeredness demands living out kingdom values and bearing witness to transformation in and through a multitude of cultural manifestations. We struggle to serve, worship, and witness in the midst of this age-old challenge. This collection of perspectives comes from settings where the good news of Jesus has not been the dominant historical norm. All contributors in this volume are practitioners. They have a deep appreciation for the cultural heritage and important moral values found in Buddhist contexts. We believe these chapters hold valuable lessons that speak to all of the family of faith. Here you will find a wide range of topics and approaches that address what it means to become the global body of believers. These can speak to you wherever you are called to participate with God’s work in the world. Christ followers are in the process of becoming what will one day culminate in a huge and startling celebration of people from all of God’s beloved creation. If you are interested in hearing from those discovering what that might look like outside traditional packaging, this book is for you.

Warning: Do not read this book if you enjoy Sunday morning church services! This book is for those believers, be they Catholic, Protestant, Conservatives, Fundamentalists, or Pentecostal/Charismatics who want to utterly abandon it all, from top to bottom, and start over in a way that is a revolutionary, radical departure from all present-day church practices.

The promises of God formed the basis of John Wesley's optimism of grace. Wesley believed God not only could but in fact would fulfill all his promises to bring salvation to the nations; to make new heavens and a new earth; to liberate the whole creation from its bondage to decay (Rom. 8:21). This collection of essays by respected Wesleyan theologian Howard A. Snyder reflects the spirit of Wesley's optimism of grace. The first half of this collection offers an overview of Wesley's theology and practice, particularly with regard to gospel, mission, and culture. Part Two examines the inter-dynamic between church renewal and global mission. The collection also includes Wesleyan appraisals of Clark Pinnock's theology and the ecclesiology of Karl Barth. Howard A. Snyder serves as distinguished professor and chair of Wesley Studies at Tyndale Seminary in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Previously he was professor of history and theology of mission in the E. Stanley Jones School of World Mission and Evangelism at Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky from 1996 to 2006. He has also taught at United Theological Seminary, Dayton, Ohio, and pastored in Chicago and Detroit. He has written numerous books, including " The Problem with Wineskins " (IVP), " The Radical Wesley " (IVP) and, most recently " Populist Saints: B. T. and Ellen Roberts and the Birth of Free Methodism " (Eerdmans). "