Matt Schmucker

Do you want to embrace your God-given meekness and majesty? In our time meekness is a glaringly absent characteristic in Christian communities. This is scandalous given that Jesus himself both commanded and exhibited meekness. It is truly remarkable that a defining grace such as meekness is roundly ignored by so many Christians. Too often we prefer the assertive and bold. It should not be so. This book challenges contemporary Christianity by introducing readers to Messianic meekness. Jesus' teaching in the third Beatitude-"Blessed are the meek"-is not a throwaway line in the introduction to the Sermon on the Mount, but a powerful distillation of Old Testament theology. In a world marred with suffering, often because of a lack of meekness, this book offers comfort and confidence found in the promise that the meek inherit the earth. Indeed, it reminds us that the meek will one day rule and reign with the risen Jesus. Meekness leads to majesty, pick up this book to find out how.

Cada iglesia local puede beneficiarse de este recurso til para construir una estructura de liderazgo saludable. Newton y Schmucker demuestran convincentemente que un regreso al patr n del Nuevo Testamento de una pluralidad de ancianos sirve mejor a las necesidades de pastoreo de la iglesia local. Los autores sugieren un proceso viable para mejorar la estructura de liderazgo de la iglesia local y para hacer la transici n a la pluralidad de ancianos. Las historias de diversos l deres de la iglesia proporcionan una narraci n de c mo el liderazgo fiel de ancianos ha fortalecido sus ministerios en una variedad de entornos. Every local church can benefit from this useful resource for building a healthy leadership structure. Newton and Schmucker convincingly demonstrate that a return to the New Testament pattern of elder plurality best serves the shepherding needs of the local church. The authors suggest a workable process for improving a local church's leadership structure and making the transition to elder plurality. Stories of church leaders provide a narrative of how faithful elder leadership has strengthened their ministries in a variety of settings.

Paul and Barnabas made a decisive move toward the end of the first missionary journey: they appointed elders in the churches they had established, entrusting them with responsibility to shepherd the young congregations. The need for faithful shepherding has not changed since that time, yet the leadership structure of most churches no longer follows this model. The authors argue that a return to the New Testament pattern of elder plurality best serves the shepherding needs in a local church. The authors suggest a workable process for improving a local church's leadership structure and making the transition to elder plurality. Along the way, the stories of the authors and other church leaders provide a narrative of how faithful elder leadership has strengthened their ministries. The book also addresses a plan for leadership development in difficult international mission settings. Church leaders will find this a useful resource for building a healthy leadership structure. This book is an extensive revision of the previously-published Elders in Congregational Life, including updates throughout, additional illustrations, and a new chapter addressing how missionaries may effectively apply the New Testament's teaching on elder plurality. 9Marks is a well-known ministry organization dedicated to equipping church leaders with a biblical vision and practical resources.