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2020 Outreach Magazine Resource of the Year ('Also Recommended,'Church)Is a church just something we create to serve our purposes or to maintain old traditions? Or is it something more vital, more meaningful, and more powerful? This can be hard to believe when we look at what happens in any one congregation or denomination. Certainly not all churches act like Jesus in the world, and many individual churches in the West are dying. When it's so easy to be confused, frustrated, or simply apathetic about the church, how should we understand its purpose today?In this appealing introduction to the nature of the local church, set in the context of Christian history and global diversity, historian and missionary Scott Sunquist shows us the church in motion. Why Church? clarifies the two primary purposes of the church—worship and witness—and unpacks what the church is (and ought to be) using five movements of worship:come togetherstand to praise Godkneel to confesssit to listen to the Word of Godgo out into the worldPacked with stories and insights from experiences in churches around the world, this book explores cultural contextualization, the meaning of conversion, worship in both personal and communal aspects, and how mission combines telling the good news with being good news as a community.From Fuller Theological Seminary's renowned church-planting program, this primer is well suited to leaders and their core teams to read together and share with new attenders as they catch the spirit of the dynamic gathering that is the local church.

Asia is the birthplace of Christianity. If Christianity is not usually seen as an Asian religion, that is because the history of Christianity in Asia has long been a difficult one. Whereas Christianity in the West received royal support, Asian Christianity has led a more nomadic and exilic existence. Today it is the least Christianized region of the world.Scott W. Sunquist is a recognized expert on the history of the Christian faith in Asia. Over the years he has published and spoken frequently on this theme. Explorations in Asian Christianity gathers his key writings on the topic and organizes them into four main categories: surveys that look at Asian Christianity in broad perspective, historical investigations that look at how Christianity shapes our understanding of history and historiography, missiological studies that look closely at issues of place, and finally essays on theological education.Topics explored in this volume includeEcumenism in AsiaThe cruciform nature of ChristianityA missiology of placeThe Christian view of timeGlobal migrationExplorations in Asian Christianity sheds light on one of the most important but least well-known areas in Christian history.Missiological Engagements charts interdisciplinary and innovative trajectories in the history, theology, and practice of Christian mission, featuring contributions by leading thinkers from both the Euro-American West and the majority world whose missiological scholarship bridges church, academy, and society.

Hearts Minds Bookstore's Best Books of 2015, TheologyToward the end of the twentieth century, Lesslie Newbigin offered a penetrating analysis of the challenges of pluralism that confronted a Western culture and society reeling from the dissolution of Christendom. His enormous influence has been felt ever since. Newbigin (1909-1998) was a longtime Church of Scotland missionary to India and later General Secretary of the International Missionary Council and Associate General Secretary of the World Council of Churches.The first installment in the Missiological Engagements series, the essays in this volume explore three aspects of Newbigin?s legacy. First, they assess the impact of his 1989 book, Gospel in a Pluralist Society, on Christian mission and evangelism in the West. Second, they critically analyze the nature of Western pluralism in its many dimensions to discern how Christianity can proclaim good news for today. Finally, the contributors discuss the influence of Newbigin's work on the field of missiology. By looking backward, this volume recommends and advances a vision for Christian witness in the pluralistic world of the twenty-first century.Contributions from leading missiologists and theologians, including:William BurrowsJohn FlettVeli-Matti KärkkäinenEsther MeekWilbert ShenkMissiological Engagements charts interdisciplinary and innovative trajectories in the history, theology, and practice of Christian mission, featuring contributions by leading thinkers from both the Euro-American West and the majority world whose missiological scholarship bridges church, academy, and society.

A respected scholar of world Christianity helps students understand contemporary Christian mission historically, biblically, and theologically.

A respected scholar of world Christianity helps students understand contemporary Christian mission historically, biblically, and theologically.