Summary: Phil A Newton and Matt Schmucker explore the role of elders in the church through personal experience, historical evidence, contemporary support and the biblical text itself.
Review: Once again I find myself in a book that came along just at the right time. In the church I serve it is a public matter that the Administration Team is reworking our constitution. One of the major changes we are moving toward is having a plurality of elders.
Elders in the Life of the Church is a timely and helpful guidebook toward this transition.
It is written largely for a Baptist audience, which tends to have a single elder (pastor) and perhaps a deacon board which functions as both an elder board and deacon/servants.
Newton and Schmucker explore the biblical evidence for a plurality of elders leading the church very well. They also point to the difficulties of transitioning from a single elder model, and help their readers navigate some of those problems.
Furthermore, I appreciated their balanced approach. They are not making a call in this book to get rid of the senior pastor, but instead for the senior pastor to be joined in his duties by godly persons who will lead the church with him.
I found many of their keen insights timely for my own transitional process. They give practical guidelines for this transitional process. They even go as far to give a script for the ordaining/installation of new elders (as well as a charge to the congregation)!
Overall, this book will be useful for persons who need a robust look at elder plurality in the New Testament. It will also be useful for churches trying to transition into the biblical model.
Rating: 5/5 (I Loved It!)
Find it at Kregel here.
Find it at Amazon here.
Review: Once again I find myself in a book that came along just at the right time. In the church I serve it is a public matter that the Administration Team is reworking our constitution. One of the major changes we are moving toward is having a plurality of elders.
Elders in the Life of the Church is a timely and helpful guidebook toward this transition.
It is written largely for a Baptist audience, which tends to have a single elder (pastor) and perhaps a deacon board which functions as both an elder board and deacon/servants.
Newton and Schmucker explore the biblical evidence for a plurality of elders leading the church very well. They also point to the difficulties of transitioning from a single elder model, and help their readers navigate some of those problems.
Furthermore, I appreciated their balanced approach. They are not making a call in this book to get rid of the senior pastor, but instead for the senior pastor to be joined in his duties by godly persons who will lead the church with him.
I found many of their keen insights timely for my own transitional process. They give practical guidelines for this transitional process. They even go as far to give a script for the ordaining/installation of new elders (as well as a charge to the congregation)!
Overall, this book will be useful for persons who need a robust look at elder plurality in the New Testament. It will also be useful for churches trying to transition into the biblical model.
Rating: 5/5 (I Loved It!)
Find it at Kregel here.
Find it at Amazon here.
Note: I received a physical copy of this book for free in exchange for an unbiased review.
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