Full Description
This highly readable investigation of the early church explores the revolutionary nature, dynamics, and effects of the earliest Christian communities. It introduces readers to the cultural setting of the house churches of biblical times, examines the apostle Paul's vision of life in the Christian church, and explores how the New Testament model of community applies to Christian practice today. Updated and revised throughout, this 40th-anniversary edition incorporates recent research, updates the bibliography, and adds a new fictional narrative that depicts the life and times of the early church.
Contents
Contents
Preface to the Third Edition
Preface to the Second Edition
Preface to the First Edition
Introduction
1. The Sociocultural and Religious Settings
2. The Gospel of Other-Directed
Freedom
3. Church in Family Business Residences
4. Church as Present Heavenly Reality
5. The Community as a Loving Household
6. The Community as an Organic Harmony
7. Mutual Learning and Testing of Faith
8. Common Meals and Signs of Fellowship
9. The Sharing of Gifts and Ministry
10. The Interplay of Grace and Order
11. Unity and Diversity among the Members
12. The Contribution of Women in Church
13. Abolishing Religious Distinctions between Members
14. Defining Leadership by Function, Not Position
15. The Role of Visiting Missioners
16. The Link between Mission and Church
17. The Nature of Paul's Authority
18. The Exercise of Paul's Influence
Conclusion
Appendix 1: The Drift of the Pastorals
Appendix 2: Going to Church in the First Century
Glossary
Indexes
