Total Church: A Radical Reshaping Around Gospel and Community

I began reading this book having already heard Steve Timmis speak (via podcast) and already having an idea of what the authors were proposing. However, I had no idea that within a week I would be recommending this book to everyone I know. I may not agree with every single claim or proposition, but the thesis of this book is so strong and needed, that even if I disagreed with many of the particulars, I would still recommend this book. However, since I concur with the vast majority of the details, I truly cannot help but herald the need for this book in our local churches. IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THIS BOOK, THEN STOP READING MY REVIEW AND GO READ THIS BOOK. The thesis can be found on the cover of the book as the subtitle: A Radical Reshaping around Gospel and Community. They propose that "church" should be focused on the Gospel and should be done in the context of community. As they state: "This book argues that two key principles should shape the way we "do church": gospel and community. Christians are called to a dual fidelity: fidelity to the core content of the gospel and fidelity to the primary context of a believing community. Whether we are thinking about evangelism, social involvement, pastoral care, apologetics, discipleship, or teaching, the content is consistently the Christian gospel, and the context is consistently the Christian community. What we do is always defined by the gospel, and the context is always our belonging in the church. Our identity as Christians is defined by the gospel and community." This idea seems commonsensical as you read the New Testament, but the Western Church has lost this shape and reshaped itself primarily around the mold of programs, meetings, and buildings. The wake up call of these authors needs to be heeded by the American church. Another theme that runs throughout this book is missional living in our communities. They challenge all Christians to live as missionaries in their communities, because God has sovereignly placed each one of us in our exact location. This missional living means doing the same cultural exegesis, lifestyle sacrifice, and community invasion that a foreign missionary undertakes. Many stories from members of their church are included to support their claims and lend credibility to this model (although, they would hate that I just called it a model). These stories not only prove that this way of "doing church" is more than simply an idealistic model, but also put flesh on the principles espoused throughout the book. I could find a few minor details that I disagree with or find concerning, but those instances were few, far between, and ultimately overshadowed the grand message of this book. Timmis and Chester are calling the church to reconsider the definition and purpose of the church, and they have done much of the work for us. I cannot think of a church leader, pastor, or member who would not benefit from reading this book. Every pastor should be promoting this book to his floc

The other reviews nailed it on this book. It has been one of the best books on the church I have read! It is very challenging and thought provoking on how we do church in the USA. While I don't agree with everything in the same way as Tim and Steve... I found the book VERY helpful. I would encourage anyone in the body of Christ, and especially elders, pastors, and church planters to read this book.

Total Church is one of the best books I've read in a long time and may be THE best books I've read on church. As the subtitle suggests, the authors argue that church is to be radically reshaped around gospel and community. They argue for three things: "Christian practice must be (1) gospel-centered in the sense of being word-centered, (2) gospel-centered in the sense of being mission-centered, and (3) community-centered." (p. 16) The authors immediately nail their colors to the mast, distinguishing their perspective from both conservative evangelicals and the emerging church. With emerging church, they agree that conservatives are often bad at community. But with conservatives, they agree that the emerging church is sometimes soft on truth. This book proposes an alternative to both, churches that are both gospel-centered (with both a word-centered focus and a missional focus) and community-centered. "Rigorously applying these principles has the potential to lead to some fundamental and thoroughgoing changes in the way we do church," warn the authors (p. 18). This is no entrenched defense of traditional church structures or practices. I found the book stimulating, eye-opening, paradigm-shifting, and sometimes personally-threatening. Total Church is divided into two parts. I. Part one is on "Gospel and Community in Principle" and argues for each in turn. Chapter one, "Why Gospel?" discusses both word and mission. "Christianity must be word-centered," the authors argue, because "God rules through his gospel word" (p. 24) and "mission-centered because God extends his rule through his gospel word" (p. 28). These assertions are fleshed out with close, but non-technical, attention to the text of Scripture, and real-life stories that show how the principles work out in practice. In fact, two of the strengths of this book are the pervasive use of Scripture and the multiple stories and examples of application. Chapter 2, "Why Community?" argues that "The Christian community is central to Christian Identity" (p. 39) and "Christian mission" (p. 47). II. Part Two of the book focuses on "Gospel and Community in Practice," by applying the principles of part one (being word-centered, mission-centered, and community-centered) to the following areas: *Evangelism (chapter 3) *Social Involvement (4) *Church Planting (5) *World Mission (6) *Discipleship and Training (7) *Pastoral Care (8) *Spirituality (9) *Theology (10) *Apologetics (11) *Children and Young People (12) *Success (13) There are too many helpful insights from these chapters to share in a brief review. But here are some examples from the chapter on evangelism. The authors argue that there are "three strands of evangelism" (1) building relationships, (2) introducing people to community, and (3) sharing the gospel (p. 60-61). Their approach is holistic, relational, and driven by genuine concern for both the gospel and people. You won't find gimmicks or techniques here. In their words, "most go

There are many people today who are talking about the major shifts that are occurring in culture and in the church in the West. Many are speaking of the return to a mission-centered approach to the Christian life. The problem is that many (myself included) tend to get bogged down in the talking and thinking phase. Tim Chester and Steve Timmis live in the UK, which, culturally speaking, is further down the road of secularization than we are in America, but not by much. It's therefore very helpful to learn from them, as they have had more time to work out the implications of what this means for church life. What they've found is that we need to retool our conceptions of what it means to be the church, and once again learn to live deeply as the body of Christ in our local communities. In Total Church Chester and Timmis propose that the two core components of church life are the gospel and community. They winsomely and compellingly show that the major responsibilities of the church, i.e. evangelism, discipleship, mercy ministry, pastoral care, etc. are all meant to be accomplished in community, specifically communities of Christians that commit themselves to living under the gospel together. So, for example, in the case of pastoral care--when a person is struggling with fear or anxiety the first place they should go is not to a professional, but to their community, where they can be reminded of the truth that they are secure in Christ and can find their rest in him. Or in the case of evangelism--rather than formulaic, lone-ranger evangelism, the life of the community of Christ itself is to be a demonstration of the power of the gospel to change lives, in such a way that neighbors and friends a) wonder why we love each other so much, b) realize that Christianity may not be so freaky after all, and c) ask questions of us to which the only reasonable answer is "Christ." Chester and Timmis' articulation of how the gospel can and should shape our life together has changed me, for the good. That's why I strongly encourage you to read this book yourself. Let it change how you see your life and the life of the church. And then let it shape how you live...

Better than most of the emerging/emergent books out there on the missional church, this book is a challenging and readable argument for a return to a Church grounded in Grace, Community, and Mission. You may not agree with every assertion (and the authors assume that you won't), but you will definitely be challenged to re-think many of the presuppositions of American evangelicalism in more Biblical ways. These guys are clearly as well read as any author writing Christian books today, and more thoughtful than most. Not a perfect book, but thorough and biblical. If only more books like this were popular in the church, and less books telling us how God wants us to have our best life now, or the Cadiallac Life Today.