Description: Christians today debate over whether we should recover Christian culture or abandon any hope of transforming culture. This book reclaims the biblical approach to transformation and social witness by returning to the apostles' own example in the book of Acts and reminding pastors of the Gospel's power to enculturate believers in God's word.
Brief description: Harold L. Senkbeil is author of the award-winning book The Care of Souls: Cultivating a Pastor's Heart (Lexham Press). He is executive director emeritus of Doxology: The Lutheran Center for Spiritual Care. His pastoral experience of nearly five decades includes parish ministry, the seminary classroom, and parachurch leadership.
Review Quotes:
"In an American culture that disapproves of Christianity, strategies for ministry that attempt to be 'relevant' to the culture are bound to fail. Senkbeil and Woodford help us see that this cultural moment merely highlights what has always been true: that clinging to the Word of Christ is not only the God-given means of salvation but the Spirit-given heart of the life of the church in its mission to the world. This little book, itself full of the Word of Christ, may help free pastors to cling to the Word rather than grope for strategies of relevance."
--Phillip Cary, professor of philosophy and scholar-in-residence at the Templeton Honors College, Eastern University, Philadelphia; author of Good News for Anxious Christians and The Meaning of Protestant Theology
"Are you ready for a breath of fresh air amid the cacophony of voices that have dominated the landscape of the church for decades? Are you ready for a biblical framework amid the duplicitous programs that have failed to contextualize the gospel for decades? If so, this delightful little book is for you. With the Acts of the Apostles as our compass, Drs. Senkbeil and Woodford keep church and society in their rightful place. There is much here for the church to ponder--not only how we think and speak theologically, but more importantly how the church lives and breathes the mission given her at this very time. Refreshing."
--Bart Day, president and CEO, Lutheran Church Extension Fund (LCEF)
"Few things are better for the soul than reading Lutherans on the power of God's word. Senkbeil and Woodford's call to pastors and churches to give priority to the living word of the risen Christ in their ministries and liturgies is timely and welcome. Anyone who reads this book will walk away with renewed faith in the gospel, revived commitment to the church, and restored confidence in the Spirit of God rather than the spirit of the age."
--Brad East, associate professor of theology, Abilene Christian University, Texas; author of The Church: A Guide to the People of God
"One consequence of living in a technique-obsessed age that is always chasing fads and 'innovation' is that it is easy to forget basics. Imagine a chef who has mastered an elaborate weird new cooking technique but has forgotten basic knife skills, how to season food properly, and cook on a stove. A great many American Protestant leaders of the past several decades have done something like this: Technological fads and church growth techniques occupy more of our attention than the Word of God. This has resulted in a diminished church which has not been properly formed in 'the culture of the Word.' If you are concerned about these things and seeking direction back toward those forgotten basics, this book will help to guide you back home."
--Jake Meador, editor in chief of Mere Orthodoxy; author of What Are Christians For? and In Search of the Common Good
"God creates through his Word. His Word is about Jesus Christ, causing a society to erupt within the world--a culture wrapped around Christ himself emerging within the surrounding culture through the church's worship. God would have it no other way than his people being born from above by his power to speak spiritual realities into existence. This book will help you marvel again at God's power to work through his Word for all that we need."
--Harrison Perkins, pastor of Oakland Hills Community Church (OPC), Michigan; author of Reformed Covenant Theology
"Senkbeil and Woodford condense their post-Christian pocket-sized ecclesiology into one sentence: 'The word grows by itself--sometimes with spectacular results and sometimes not. But the word always brings the results God wills.' Absolutely so! As they unpack this truth, they free anxious pastors and committed lay people from the siren call of relevance (whether of the progressive or traditionalist variety) and focus them on their main, liberating task: exposing people to the Word so that the Word can do its work."
--Tim Perry, lead pastor, St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church, Steinbach, MB, Canada; author of When Politics Becomes Heresy
"This book cuts like a two-edged sword through the Church's capitulation to cultural trends in the name of mission. Senkbeil and Woodford call us back to a biblically grounded, Christ-centered witness that refuses to compromise. If you care about the Church's future in the West--and long to see it built on faithfulness rather than fads--this book is a must read."
--Bryan Stecker, pastor, Trinity Lutheran Waconia, Minnesota; founder of Lutheran Institute of Theology; host of On The Line