Books are some of the best friends a pastor can have. How to know which friends to have is quite difficult, for as the inspired Preacher said, “Of making many books there is no end” (Ecclesiastes 12:12). So every couple of weeks I suggest three books a pastor should read on a given topic, hoping they will serve his ministry. Check out my past suggestions here.
I’m not sure why it’s taken me so long to get to the topic of ecclesiology, but rest assured, it isn’t because the matter is of little significance. In actuality, few studies in theology are as vital to a pastor’s ministry as study on the purpose, nature, and mission of Christ’s body. Here are three suggestions for reading on the church:
The Church by Edmund Clowney. This is one of the finest entries in IVP’s fine “Contours of Christian Theology Series.” With biblical sensitivity and theological clarity Clowney gives the pastor a solid footing on which proper ecclesiology can stand. His characterization of the local church as “a colony of heaven” is paradigm shaping for membership, discipline, worship, and discipleship. He writes, “The church is called to serve God in three ways: to service him directly in worship; to serve the saints in nurture; and to serve the world in witness” (117). Helpful and illuminating in all the rights ways.
The Glorious Body of Christ by R.B. Kuiper. From 1933-1952 Kuiper was Professor of Practical Theology at Westminster Theological Seminary. The final five years of his labor saw him contribute monthly articles to The Presbyterian Guardian on “The Glory of the Christian Church.” The lectures were first printed as one volume by Banner of Truth in 1966 and the book has yet to go out of print; it’s already been reprinted twice in the 21st century. And for good reason. The chapters are, in my estimation, as precise and concise as you will find in any ecclesiological book. I’ve used this book with interns and pastoral candidates and their feedback has universally been, “I wish I had known about this book. It’s so helpful!”
The Deliberate Church: Building Your Ministry on the Gospel by Mark Dever and Paul Alexander. The Deliberate Church is, for me, one of the finest and most expansive books on practical ecclesiology available today. Divided into three parts (Gathering the Church, When the Church Gathers, and Gathering Elders), the book covers everything from faithful pastoring to membership and discipline to the regulative principle to how a healthy elder meeting is run. Dever views DC as the conclusion to an ecclesiological trilogy that began with 9 Marks of a Healthy Church and Polity. This one is a one-stop shop ot challenge, encourage, and sharpen your ecclesiological convictions.
HONORABLE MENTIONS
The Church of Christ: Vol. 1 & Vol. 2 by James Bannerman. Beeke says, “James Bannerman’s ‘The Church of Christ’ is the most extensive, standard, solid, Reformed treatment of the doctrine of the church that has ever been written.” I can’t say it better.
What is the Mission of the Church? Making Sense of Social Justice, Shalom, and the Great Commission by Kevin DeYoung and Greg Gilbert. A narrow slice of ecclesiology to be sure, but the subject matter is oh so timely.