Resources
The books listed here are either free to download or can be purchase by going to the link provided. All documents are free to download.
Click on the + sign next to the title to find the links to download or purchase.
| Title & Author | Language | Links | Tags | |
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Laity by R. Paul Stevens From the Book of Everyday Christianity |
Sample George Bernard Shaw once said that every profession is a conspiracy against the laity. But there is a problem with this cynical remark when it is applied to the church. It is pointless to launch a conspiracy against something that no longer exists. The New Testament does not reveal two peoples: the professional clergy (those who are superior, gifted and powerful) and the laity (those who are inferior, untrained and powerless). Rather there is one people: the laity (in Greek laos), which includes the leaders. Moreover the leaders, like the led, are first and foremost members of the laity and share the exquisite honor of the people of God (1 Peter 2:9-10). Indeed the cultivation of professionalism by leaders of the church is incongruous with the essentially amateur nature of all Christian ministry. It is the work of love (as the root meaning of amateur indicates). To recover a biblical perspective on the people of God, we may need to abolish the words laity and clergy. We may also need to reinvent a way of expressing the dignity and duty of the ordinary Christian. In preparation for this we must first examine the biblical data, then reflect theologically on the identity and vocation of the people of God and finally consider what this all means. |
English | Download full article (pdf) | |
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Clergy by R. Paul Stevens From the Complete Book of Everyday Christianity |
Sample In common speech clergy is a term used to describe a religious official, certain members of a religious order or a pastoral leader of a church or denomination. Its counterpart is laity—the untrained, uneducated, common members of the church. This two-people approach to the church is anachronistic and unbiblical (see Laity). We look in vain in the Bible for laypersons in the sense of untrained, unequipped and not-called. Those words available in the ancient world to describe laypeople (in the common sense)—laikos and idiōtēs—were never used by inspired writers to describe Christians. Instead we are introduced to the whole people of God—designated by the word laos (the people)—who including leaders together are the true ministers. The Greek word for clergy (klēros) is used to describe the dignity and appointment of all the people to ministry. So paradoxically the church has no laypeople in the usual sense of that word and yet is full of clergy in the original meaning of that word. |
English | Download full article (pdf) | |
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Calling/Vocation by R. Paul Stevens From the Complete Book of Everyday Christianity |
Sample The English word vocation comes from the Latin vocatio, which means “calling”; they are the same thing, though this is not obvious to the people who use these words. Experiencing and living by a calling provides a fundamental orientation to everyday life. But most of the world today has strayed from this and defines calling as a self-chosen career, usually a professional one that involves keeping appropriate standards and norms. The fact that many people speak of their jobs as their “vocation” while pastors and missionaries speak of “being called” shows how inadequately we have grasped the universal call of God to every Christian. As Os Guinness says, calling means that our lives are so lived as a summons of Christ that the expression of our personalities and the exercise of our spiritual gifts and natural talents are given direction and power precisely because they are not done for themselves, our families, our businesses or even humankind but for the Lord, who will hold us accountable for them. A calling in Scripture is neither limited to nor equated with work. Moreover, a calling is to someone, not to something or somewhere. This last statement is sublimely significant but missed in this postvocational world. |
English | Download full article (pdf) |
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| Joy at Work Bible Study Companion by Brad Smith |
 Book Description: Back in the Garden, work was fun. Yet, in today’s fallen world, joy and work are rarely used in the same sentence. But God really does intend for us to find joy in our work. Join Raymond Bakke, Brad Smith, and Bill Hendricks as they explore what the Bible says about the purpose of business and our right to a joyful workplace. No matter where you spend those 50 or 60 hours during the week—whether it’s in business, government, or the nonprofit sector; in church, at home, or anywhere else—God intends for you to find joy in your work. This 10-week study accompanies Joy at Work, a book by Dennis W. Bakke, co-founder and CEO of AES, a worldwide energy giant with 40,000 employees in 31 countries. Shaped by his faith, Bakke recounts his quest to create the most fun workplace ever—using principles established in the Garden. This study provides the biblical map that he used as he charted and led that journey. Starting with the Genesis record of creation and moving through Revelation, this Bible study supplements Joy at Work with: Biblical readings that unveil the principles behind each chapter in Joy at Work A synthesis of theological principles Reflective questions to prepare readers for small-group discussion Questions for small-group discussion Guidelines for immediate and long-term application for business and nonprofit leaders at all levels of corporations and organizations. The Joy at Work experience has the power to profoundly change your workplace and your life. |
English | Free to Download | |
| Joy at Work Bible Study Companion (Russian) by Anatoliy Glukhovskyy |
Book Description: The Joy at Work Bible Study Companion by Raymond Bakke, William Hendricks, and Brad Smith has been translated to Russian by Dr Anatoliy Glukovskyy |
Russian | Free to Download (1.6MB) | |
| Joy at Work (Russian) by Anatoliy Glukhovskyy |
 Book Description: This is the e-book (pdf version) of Joy at Work by Dennis Bakke, translated into Russian by Anatole Glukhovskyy |
Russian | Free to Download (1.5MB) | |
| The Decision Maker by Dennis Bakke |
 Book Description: Who makes the important decisions in your organization? Strategy, product development, budgeting, compensation—such key decisions typically are made by company leaders. That’s what bosses are for, right? But maybe the boss isn’t the best person to make the call. |
English | Free to Download |
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| Theology of The Child by Lena Crouso |
Document Description: This article is part of a paper for a BGU course in Manila by Rev. Dr. Lena Crouso SAMPLE:The Theology of “The Child”
The Trinitarian Plan and Promise for Children: A Biblical Narrative
Introductory Statement
Children are a gift from God…this is the declarative truth put forth in Psalm 127:3. The specificity of this verse is not as a treatise to the actual procreation and reproduction, but rather as a reatise for why humanity comes into being only because of “multiplying” and that when babies are born, humanity is reflecting God’s good creation. This is further affirmed in the understanding that the Triune God’s intention has always been to grow through fruitful multiplication, His created beings, made in His image, over and over again as He declares in genesis, to make humans in “our image”, bearing out God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.
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English | Download full article (pdf) |
| Title & Author | Language | Links | Tags | |
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| God and Work - Theology of work - Marketplace Ministry 101 by John Fryters |
 Book Description: This is a curriculum of Theology of Work and Marketplace Ministry developed by Dr. John Fryters for the Indigenous People.
ISBN # 9781626970267
This book is free to download. Comments from those who download would be appreciated. Pastor John Fryters can be reached at campus@inet2000.com |
English | Download this curriculum |