City Church

Many pastors struggle to translate their theological beliefs into fruitful ministry in the places they are called to reach. It’s not enough to simply know what to believe (theology), or on the other hand, how to do ministry (methodology) - they need something in between. They need help thinking about ministry in a culture that no longer believes Christianity is a force for good, let alone the source of ultimate revealed truth in the person of Christ.

It’s time to break free from our Sunday-centric, formulaic versions of church and instead architect fresh kingdom ecosystems as an ancient yet new frontier for sustainable mission. The temptation for many church leaders is to take what’s worked elsewhere and use it as a paint-by-number. Yet Jesus showed us a different way. Every word he spoke and everything he did utterly broke the molds, rules, and laws that people had created to confine God and his kingdom.

In Loving the City, bestselling author and pastor Timothy Keller looks at the biblical foundations for contextualizing the gospel as we communicate to the culture in a way that is both respectful and challenging. He articulates the key characteristics of a city vision, showing how the city develops as a theme throughout Scripture, from its anti-God origins, to its strategic importance for mission, to its culmination and redemption in glory.

Our goal as Christians is never simply to build our own tribe. Instead, we seek the peace and prosperity of the city or community in which we live through a gospel movement led by the Holy Spirit, a movement united by the gospel of Jesus Christ, a common mission to reach and serve others, and a commitment to be gracious and generous to those who disagree with you. In Serving a Movement, best-selling author and pastor Timothy Keller looks at the nature of the church’s mission and its relationship to the work of individual Christians in the world.

Don't get mad, get even is advice Jamie Silver takes to heart when she discovers her boyfriend is sleeping with her best friend. What she doesn't bank on is her hateful professor placing her on academic probation and it's all her ex's fault. When his rival, Ryan Sommers, offers her a way to get back into her professor's good books as well as get back at her ex, what's a girl to do? Revenge is a dish best served hot.

Why are homosexual clergymen the biggest homophobes? Why do they hide sexual offenders behind clerical collars? Why do they hate Pope Francis so much? The answers to these and many other questions are what French sociologist F. Martel, looks for in his interviews with the clergymen. His book is a result of an investigation conducted in 30 countries. He finds that the Church has the biggest community of homosexuals in the world.

Charles Dickens was a writer and social critic who created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded as the greatest novelist of the Victorian era. His works enjoyed unprecedented popularity during his lifetime, and by the twentieth century critics and scholars had recognised him as a literary genius. His novels and short stories enjoy lasting popularity. CITY OF LONDON CHURCHES: If the confession that I have often travelled from this Covent Garden lodging of mine on Sundays, should give offence to those who never travel on Sundays.

Christians and other people of good will are longing for a response that can lead the way out of the divisiveness and vitriol of our times. I wrote this book to provide some assistance to listeners to discern a way out of the toxicity in which we live.

Understand the paradigmatic shift that is happening in city ministry around the world - the shift from internal church concern to external community focus - and learn how to live out and lead others in this missional approach.

Are you praying constricted prayers or disruptive ones? Most prayers are constricted ones. They are usually focused on self and envision God as a heavenly caretaker. Disruptive prayers, on the other hand, are powerful, uncommon, and deeply biblical. They focus on God rather than self, seek to advance the kingdom, and submit all things to God. When we pray disruptive prayers, that's when the revolution begins. This book shows you how to equip leaders, fuel kingdom movements, and do real damage to the powers of darkness in the here and now.

It's not enough to plant individual churches in isolation from each other. The spiritual need and opportunity of our cities is too big for any one church to meet alone. Pastors Neil Powell and John James contend that to truly transform a city, the gospel compels us to create localized, collaborative church planting movements. They share lessons learned and principles discovered from their experiences leading a successful citywide movement. The more willing we are to collaborate across denominations and networks, the more effectively we will reach our communities for Jesus.

Liquid Church tells the fascinating story of a New Jersey church that began "on accident" and grew into one of America's 100 fastest-growing churches, with over 5,000 in weekly attendance and more than 2,400 baptisms to date. Their secret? They harnessed the power of six powerful ministry currents sweeping across North America including: special needs, creative communication, ministry mergers, compassionate cause, radical generosity, and leadership development.

More people live in cities now than at any other time in human history, presenting a historic opportunity for Christians to influence the majority of the world. Unfortunately, most Christian literature about the city focuses solely on its problems (crime, homelessness, etc.), rather than providing a comprehensive analysis of the city that informs, instructs, and inspires. Using sociological research and data, urban pastors Justin Buzzard and Stephen Um lay out the vision and rationale for church planting, cultural engagement, and missionary impulses in our world’s cities as they provide a solid foundation for motivation.

The most famous church in Jerusalem for nearly 2,000 years, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, often called the Church of the Resurrection, was built in the era of St. Constantine, and the church as a structure has no history separable from the city of Jerusalem and its environs. It is venerated as being on the site where Jesus was crucified and buried, and naturally, making it a crucial pilgrimage site for Christians, and it is now the home of the Greek Orthodox Jerusalem Patriarchate.

Developing the Puritans' understanding of religious freedom, Jesse Johnson shows how Christ's followers have reasoned through this tension in past centuries, and he identifies biblical principles for navigating government restrictions in the future. Johnson reminds his listeners that God made government with a purpose, and that purpose makes the world livable for believers. So sit back, and let Johnson take you on a tour of what the Bible teaches about government, and why we should be more like Daniel, by recognizing the limits on our obedience to earthly authorities.

All Helena really wants is a better life for her 12-year-old son, Luke. To do that, she needs to get him into a good school, which isn’t easy to do when you are a single mother and a Catholic in a near-future United States where there is no more separation between church and state. States, even neighborhoods, are divided along religious lines, and Helena faces discrimination everywhere she goes. Adam, a teenager from her congregation, convinces Helena to leave everything behind and take him and her son across the new American landscape to New Secular City.

Falling in love with your best friend sucks—especially when they don't love you back. Liv needs help and Bryn is determined to give it to her. After a night out ends in a whole lot of embarrassment for Liv, she is faced with the fact that she might need some assistance in getting over her best friend and roommate, Jamie. When Bryn is forced to temporarily move in with Jamie and Liv, a night of drinking results in a possibly disastrous deal: All of Liv's decisions are now in Bryn's hands. The goal? Operation fall-out-of-love.