The Last Disciple [Hardcover]

Description: In an era of religious mass production, so many church models invest their energies toward gathering a crowd, singing songs, and preaching good sermons. Much of the focus is on the shop window. While this is important, it is not enough. Doing church is not enough. Churches that grow disciples don't simply attract a crowd, they provide a strategic theological basis for what they do, and that requires serious thinking about the methodology of church life. The Last Disciple is a book for those interested, not simply in doing church, but in asking hard questions about why we do what we do. Answers to these hard questions are the very basis of the foundation of the local church's existence. Rather than simply attracting a crowd, have you evaluated why your church does church? Have you ever felt that your church tradition has lost the meaning behind its existence? What would it look like if you recaptured your church's meaning? Is it possible to do this while bridging the relevancy gap of common culture? There will be different answers for different contexts, but this book will give you tools for thinking it through by asking the right questions. Endorsements: Finally, a must-read book on Pentecostal ecclesiology. At a time when Pentecostal churches are attempting to redefine their purpose, Pafford offers a new vision of the vocation of the church. The Last Disciple includes both a thorough study of Pentecostal ecclesiology and a relevant, pragmatic approach to problems that the church faces in a postmodern world. -Dr. Robert Harden Dean of Graduate Studies Southwestern Assemblies of God University The Apostle Paul admonished us to pass the faith along to the next generation (2 Timothy 2:2). From the time he started his ministry in Antioch to the time of his death, he was rarely seen alone. He was always in the process of discipling a young believer. We must adopt as a chief concern of the church the need to pass the faith along to our generation and thl6