The Emerging Church
By Bruce Larson and Larry Osborne
Waco, Tex., Word Books [1970] 160 p.

Authors: Osborne is an ordained Presbyterian minister with a BD from McCormick Theological Seminary. He is Executive Director at Faith at Work. Larson is an ordained Presbyterian minister with a BD from Princeton Theological Seminary. He is President of Faith at Work.
(from the flap of the 1970 book...likely changed :-) ...I may update it later)

Organization: The book is divided into five parts, each having two chapters. Part one, Defining Goals, challenges churches to weed out inadequate goals and develop authentic goals. Part two, Discovering Resources, challenges churches to move from secondary resources like size, location, building, and leadership to primary resources like divinity and humanity. Part three, Developing Strategy, challenges churches to set aside strategies devised for immediate needs or historical nostalgia, and to develop strategies that recruit, train, and equip spiritual pioneers. Part four, Discerning Opportunities, challenges churches to seek diligently for opportunities to speak and to consider carefully the stories of other churches and adjust accordingly. Part five, Dreaming Dreams, challenges churches to nurture their capacity for change and to look forward to what God is doing and how the church might participate.

Intention: To challenge churches to discover the “new thing” God is doing and find their own “authentic form, life-style, and purpose” within it.

Tag: books