Leadership Training Part 3 - Theology 1

In an earlier post, I listed some of the articles that the men read on gospel foundations. In another post, I listed some resources that we use for understanding how the church ministers in its particular context in such a way that it is faithful to her biblical mission. In this post, I am listing some of the resources we use to understand sound theology. Of course, our primary text is Scripture, but God also has given the gift of teachers to the church. So, we use a variety of other biblically saturated resources as well. Here are a few:

1. The Westminster Confession of Faith (alone with the Larger and Shorter Catechism). Officers in the Presbyterian Church in America take a vow to “sincerely receive and adopt” these confessional documents “as containing the system of doctrine taught in the Holy Scriptures.”

2. Concise Theology by J. I. Packer. The title says it all. This is a collection of short articles on a wide range of theological topics. It is easy to read and saturated with Scripture proofs.

3. "Why Use Creeds or Doctrinal Statements?" by John Frame. In this article (which I can't find on the web), Dr. Frame explains why it is not enough simply to say, "We believe the Bible." Creeds and doctrinal statements are helpful for clarity.

4. Here are a few articles related to our understanding of Scripture:
a. The Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy
b. The Cambridge Declaration
What About Prophecy and Tongues Today? by Richard Gaffin
c. Ten Basic Facts about the New Testament Canon by Michael Kruger
1. “The New Testament Books are the Earliest Christian Writings We Possess”
2. “Apocryphal Writings Are All Written in the Second Century or Later”
3.“The New Testament Books Are Unique Because They Are Apostolic Books”
4."Some NT Writers Quote Other NT Writers as Scripture”
5.“The Four Gospels are Well Established by the End of the Second Century”
6.“At the End of the Second Century, the Muratorian Fragment lists 22 of Our 27 NT Books”
7.“Early Christians Often Used Non-Canonical Writings”
8.“The NT Canon Was Not Decided at Nicea—Nor Any Other Church Council”
9. “Christians Did Disagree about the Canonicity of Some NT Books”
10. “Early Christians Believed that Canonical Books Were Self-Authenticating”

5. Here is the PCA's position on the doctrine of creation. Related to this, here is an interesting article on science and faith.

I will continue this list of resources in future posts.

The Mission of the Church - Make Disciples.

Every church has (or should have) the same mission. Jesus gave it to us. He said, "Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you, and, behold I am with you, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:19-20).

At Village Seven, the elders have sought to define what this means specifically for our church. We have summarized it in this mission statement:

To make, equip and deploy disciples who live out and proclaim the gospel through word and deed in Colorado Springs, the West and the World.

In this statement, we define "make disciples" as leading people from unbelief to belief in the power of the Holy Spirit. We define an equipped disciple as one who is prepared to engage with his heart, head, and hands in God's mission (for more on what it means to be an Equipped Disciple, see this post).  To deploy disciples means to help people actually engage in God's mission.

This raises the question, how do we seek to make, equip, and deploy disciples? I will address in later posts how we seek to equip and deploy disciples. Below is our strategy for making disciples (leading people from unbelief to belief).

1.    Equip God’s people to share the gospel in word and deed where they live, work, and play.

2.    Proclaim the gospel to our community in both word and deed.

3.    Create opportunities for our people to invest in and invite un-churched people to places where they can be exposed to God’s Word and God’s people.

4.    Provide ministries addressing areas of brokenness.

5.    Connect newcomers to the church so they are enfolded into membership and receive the shepherding and equipping necessary to be part of God’s mission.

6.    Create an environment of authenticity in relationships.

Leadership Training Part 2 - The Church and Her Mission

At Village Seven, we take leadership development seriously. Men who may be called to serve as elders or deacons go through 9 months of classroom instruction as well as a one year apprenticeship. In an earlier post, I listed some of the articles that the men read on gospel foundations. Here, I am listing some of the resources that we use for understanding how the church ministers in its particular context in such a way that it is faithful to her biblical mission. In my opinion, no one has been more thoughtful or theological in his thinking on this subject than Tim Keller. As a result, most of the resources have been produced by him.

Center Church by Tim Keller. For some, this might read like a textbook, but it is incredibly rich. In this book, Keller not only lays out his philosophy of ministry, but gives leaders the tools for developing their own.  I found the Kindle version hard to read. This is one that you will want to read in print. There are video discussions of most of these chapters on Vimeo.

How Do Word and Deed Ministry Fit Together? by Tim Keller. The title of this article says it all. Very helpful for those in leadership.

Missional Church by Tim Keller. Keller wrote this article years ago, long before he wrotes Center Church. I found it very helpful.

Reading Scripture Missionally by Christopher Wright. Unfortunately, I cannot find a link to this article online. However, Wright has written several books along this theme. In this article, he shows that the mission of the God is not ancillary to the mission of the people of God, but is seen throughout Scripture.

Insourcing by Randy Pope. Randy shows how equipping disciples for mission is key to the church's mission.

The Burden of Change by John Frame. This is a short article on how and why church leaders must be change agents.

Leading Change by John Kotter. This book is the standard text on how to lead change in an organization. Those in officer training are not required to read the book, but we do review the outline of it. A good summary of the book can be found here.

Leadership and Church Size Dynamics by Tim Keller. Church size affects how a church operates. Since Village Seven is a large church (at least by PCA standards). This is important to understand for those coming from smaller churches.

No Man Left Behind by Pat Morley and David Delk. We do not use this book in our Officer Training, but we have used it with our staff and other leaders. The book is not just about how to minister to men, but how to develop sustainable ministries. It provides a very helpful model.

Great Books on Knowing God

All of us have a tendency to fashion God in our own image. The result is that we worship a god of our own creation rather than the God who is really there. The truth is, the real God is far greater than any idol of our making. Without knowledge of this true God, our faith will be weak, our worship tepid, and our spiritual growth stunted.

The antidote to this false worship is knowledge of the true God, or, as Francis Schaeffer put it, The God Who Is There. The way we come to know this true God is through His own revelation in both Scripture and nature. Yet, we do not need to embark on this journey alone. One of the gifts God has given to His church are teachers who can open up the Scriptures to us in order to give us a greater glimpse of who God is.

Here are some of my favorite books that will help you come to know more about the great God we worship.

The God You Can Know by Dan Dehaan. This is a relatively short, easy to read book and is a wonderful introduction to the character of God.

A Heart for God by Sinclair Ferguson. This is another short, easy to read book that is rich in its description of God and His character.

Knowing God by J. I. Packer. This is a bit longer than the two above, but is one the greatest Christian books of the 20th century. Once you read it, you will want to reread it again and again.

The Holiness of God by R. C. Sproul. As the title says, this book focuses on one attribute of God, His holiness. It is both very readable and very profound.

Summer Reading - Defending the Faith

In 1 Peter 3:15, we are told that we should always be prepared to give an answer for the hope that is within us. Today, we are bombarded with questions about the truthfulness of Christianity. These books will help you answer questions that you and your friends are asking.

The Reason for God by Tim Keller. Keller deals with questions like "There Can't Be Just One True Religion?" "How Could a Good God Allow Suffering?" "How Can A Loving God Send People to Hell?" and "Science Has Disproven Christianity."

A Shot of Faith to the Head by Mitch Stokes. The subtitle says it all: "Be a Confident Believer in an Age of Cranky Atheist." Like Keller (but with a different approach) Stokes also deals with the relationship of faith and science. Yet, this book is much broader than that. He also deals with the problem of evidence and the role of faith.

Tactics: A Game Plan for Discussing Your Christian Convictions by Greg Koukl. This book focuses on the practical ways you can engage with unbelievers.

What is an Equipped Disciple?

Our mission at Village Seven is to make, equip and deploy disciples who live out and proclaim the gospel through word and deed in Colorado Springs, the West and the World.

To guide is in our mission, the elders developed this definition of an equipped disciple:

“Equipped disciples” are those who are prepared to engage with their Hearts, Heads and Hands in God’s mission.

Heart

• They love God and respond to His grace through regular worship and fellowship with God through regular practices of the means of grace.

• They love other believers as fellow heirs in Christ and express that love in service, encouragement and blessing toward other believers.

• They love the lost and regularly express that love by reaching out to unbelievers in word and deed where they live, work and play.

Head

• They know and are familiar with the Scriptures and understand how all of the Scriptures testify to God’s plan of redemption through Jesus Christ. 

• They know the basic truths of the Christian faith and can discern truth from error. 

• They know a biblical view of all of life to include self, others, home, work, culture and community

Hands

• They share their faith in Jesus Christ and seek opportunities to connect where they live, work and play. 

• They share their various gifts with generosity. They serve inside and outside the church by sharing and exercising their spiritual gifts and talents. They share of their earthly wealth and possessions with their local church, other believers and the world in need. 

• They share their lives with others by participating in Christian community and openly living all aspects of their lives in fellowship with other believers.

Recommended Articles - Gospel Foundations

At Village Seven, we spend a great deal of time and effort training men to serve as elders and deacons. Our officers go through nine months of classroom training usually followed by a one year apprenticeship. Much of what we study would be of benefit to all church members. So, over the next few weeks, I will post some of the articles that men in the training read. This week's post focuses on the Centrality of the Gospel.

Gospel Centered Sanctification by Jerry Bridges. Whenever anyone asks me my view on sanctification, this is the article that I give them.

The Centrality of the Gospel by Tim Keller. In this article, Keller shows how the gospel renews every dimension of our lives.

Martin Luther's Preface to His Commentary on Galatians. Tim Keller has edited this a bit. This short article sums up what it means to live in line with the gospel.

The Gospel Centered Life. This is not an article, but a Bible study curriculum. It does a great job of outlining how to grow more and more in Christ-likeness.

All of Life is Repentance by Tim Keller. Very, very helpful on what repentance is and how to do it.