Description
Being a Christ Centred People in a Changing World
By John McGinley
The rates of decline in church attendance and the ticking demographic timebomb show that business as usual will lead to extinction. But out of these ashes there are countless reasons to hope. Signs and stories emerging from worshipping communities the world over can give us renewed confidence that, as always, God is doing a ‘new-old’ thing.
The Church that is emerging amid times of uncertainty is growing, alive and demonstrating the qualities of the early church recorded in the New Testament, one that is more diverse, more spirit-filled, more confident in the Gospel, calling, equipping and sending people to make disciples in all nations.
Written for ordained and lay leaders at all levels, this book will help you navigate these changing times in light of the immovable knowledge that God is always on the move.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR OF THE CHURCH OF TOMORROW
I love this book! It has made me praise God, weep and pray with new passion. It will give you fresh thinking, but also impart fresh hope, fresh faith and fresh courage. Jesus intended his Church to work with him – rewriting the history of individuals, communities and nations. But in the West the Church has become increasingly irrelevant. The burning question is, “How can we become what God originally intended us to be?” Scripture, church history, the current worldwide work of God and John’s long experience of church leadership contain vital answers. Everyone has a part to play. Here’s your chance to fully play yours.
– Revd Canon John Coles, former leader of New Wine England
As the age of Christendom closes, John McGinley doesn’t believe that further decline and cultural irrelevance are inevitable. Instead, he anticipates a new reformation, urging followers of Jesus and church leaders to recover a fresh vision of church. Laced with helpful quotes, all eight chapters of The Church of Tomorrow describe a key mark of the future Church, with each ending with a powerful “personal response”. This is a timely and prophetic book, and should be read by all concerned not just that God’s future Church has a mission, but also that God’s future mission has a Church.
– Revd Dr Matthew Porter, author and vicar of St Michael le Belfrey Church, York
This vital book is a clarion call in a time where we as individual followers of Jesus and the Church as a whole have a choice to make. It is hard to ignore the case John so powerfully makes to get ourselves ready for the pivotal season we are entering. Not only will this book sharpen your mind and stir your heart, it gives space for prayerful reflection and hugely practical steps to help us put what God is saying to us into action. Thank you, John!
– Sarah Belcher, leader of Kingdom Embassy Church
Are you ready for change? We have entered a new era and how we “do” church needs a radical overhaul if we are to see the nations transformed by the power of God. John writes in a way that equips the Church to “be” the Church through understanding the shifts that are happening and then challenging us to respond in a faithfilled, uncompromising way. I believe if we can take this to heart and get to our knees, we could be part of seeing a great global harvest in our lifetime.
– Anne Calver, author and overseer of Unleashed Church
There was a deep ache in my heart as I read The Church of Tomorrow, but it was a pain accompanied by a louder song of hope. The ache was a profound longing for the renewal we are desperate to see, but this book is far from a lament of the current situation. It is bursting with crystal clarity, inspirational hope, biblical wisdom and evocative storytelling, leaving me with no doubt that not only is change possible, but here is the encouragement we need to get there. John is the real deal. The Church of Tomorrow is soaked in the wisdom, lived-out experience and prophetic imagination of its author. I pray that it leads to explosive growth and creativity in the Church and many coming to faith in Jesus.
– Phil Knox, author and head of mission to young adults at the Evangelical Alliance
This is a book I wish I had written! John has done a superb job in bringing together biblical, historical, ecclesial and prophetic insights and voices to help us glimpse something of the heart and power of the Church of tomorrow. From the unshakeable startingpoint confession and framework for our lives that “Jesus is Lord”, to wonderful revelations about discipleship and the Church as a self-propagating, Spirit-led, planting community, John paints a hope-filled but challenging picture of this Church. The Church as a creative minority, no longer at the centre of culture, but on the margins of it is poised to have its greatest impact for 500 years. Read on and be inspired. Let’s be the Church of tomorrow!
– Dr Nic Harding, author, director of the Kairos Connexion and Together for the Harvest, and founding pastor of Frontline Church
Reading The Church of Tomorrow filled me with fresh vision and hope for the future of the bride of Christ. Drawing on teaching from Scripture, lessons from history and a prophetic sense of what the Spirit is saying to the Western Church today, John McGinley presents a compelling diagnosis of the Church’s current condition and gives an insightful, creative, much-needed prescription for renewed life and energy for the body of Christ.
– Becky Harcourt, part of the leadership team of All Saints Woodford Wells and New Wine
John describes this book as an invitation to hold the plumb line of Scripture, the Church in revival in history and the rapidly growing Church around the world up against the Church that you and I belong to in the West and to note the differences. And if that sounds as though it could only generate a troubling conclusion, then don’t worry: yes, this book is honest and real, but it’s also a hope-filled and inspiring read. This book is shot through with prayer and testimony. It will stretch your mind, warm your heart and feed your soul.
– Revd Canon John Dunnett, director of Strategy and Operations, The Church of England Evangelical Council
These truly are significant times of reforming both in and outside the Church. I am so encouraged by what John has written in The Church of Tomorrow. The message is prophetic, practical and filled with promise for a better future. The reader will understand “why” we must change but is also given the “how”. I highly recommend this book.
– Steve Uppal, senior leader, All Nations Church
I was on my knees in repentance and prayer within 15 minutes of reading this book. It is dynamite. John’s ability to express how we have lost our way as the people of God and the years of displacement from truth and demonstrations of the power of God struck me deeply. Yet, pages later, tears wiped, hope had arisen. Hope for the emergence and wildness of a vastly improved Church, hope for our moving in God-given momentum…Let this book transform you; come to it with your heart open to the possibilities of what you could be if God wrestled you into the heart of his will.
– Emma Stark, director of Global Prophetic Alliance
A masterful manifesto for missional church, simply identifying the “Signs of the Times” and exploring both the biblical means and methods already pointing to the breakthroughs we need. A must-read for anyone in church, lay and ordained, who recognizes the current challenges of moving into recently uncharted landscapes and is looking for a compass. John combines incisive honesty in analysing the radical challenges of our changed context with a disarming combination of loving sensitivity and merciful understanding. John has a proven track record of outstanding missional leadership in both Hinkley and multicultural Leicester. He brings all this experience to bear on the kingdom needs of our very challenging contexts. A must-read for lay and ordained leaders across the board. The best toolkit for this to become the “Church of Today”!
– Bob and Mary Hopkins, leaders of Anglican Church Planting Initiatives
The Church of Tomorrow is a prophetic acclamation, calling the body of Christ to dream again! John perfectly addresses the defaults and traditions that have kept our churches stuck in the twentyfirst century, inviting us into God’s heart for a “new thing”. John provides fresh revelation and practical insight into the cultural infrastructure needed to steward a new move of God in our churches, like multiplication and creativity. Those reading this book will experience fresh hope, faith and imagination for their church communities as the Holy Spirit reveals what’s possible for the Church.
– Revd Wole Agbaje, senior pastor, Imprint Church
In this book, John sets out a big vision of what church could and should look like. He challenges us about our priorities and our procedures. He encourages us with reminders of all the ways in which God is at work in our world. And perhaps most importantly he asks us big questions about what we might need to do in the present in order that we can step forward into the Church of tomorrow.
– Revd Kate Wharton, vicar of St Bartholomew’s Church, Roby, Liverpool
