Many people think of church as a place and time where people gather, a way for ministry money to be given and spent, and a building in which people regularly meet on Sunday mornings. In this book, Jeremy Myers shows that church is more than bodies, bucks, and bricks. Church is the people of God who follow Jesus into the world, and we can be the church no matter how many people we are with, no matter the size of our church budget, and regardless of whether we have a church building or not. By abandoning our emphasis on more people, bigger budgets, and newer buildings, we may actually liberate the church to better follow Jesus into the world. This book is Volume 4 in the "Close Your Church for Good" series of books. Other volumes include: Preface: Skeleton Church Vol. 1: The Death and Resurrection of the Church Vol. 2: Put Service Back into the Church Service Vol. 3: Dying to Religion and Empire Vol. 4: Church is More than Bodies, Bucks, and Bricks Vol. 5: Cruciform Pastoral Leadership

Do you want to be the church? How can you, if you don't know what the church actually is? Only after you understand what the church is can you begin to properly live and function as God's church in this world. Thankfully, Skeleton Church simply and easily defines "church" for you, so that you can embark on the thrilling adventure of being the church and following Jesus wherever He leads. By reading this book, you will also discover answers the most basic questions all humans have about their own existence and identity. Understanding church is the first step to understanding everything! In Skeleton Church, Jeremy Myers provides a bare-bones basic definition of the church which then allows the reader to understand their role within human history and God's plan for the world. Furthermore, the basic definition of the church provided in this book helps create peace and unity within all types of churches around the world and throughout history. By understanding the biblical definition of church, we can fulfill the prayer of Jesus that we be one (John 17:21). Let us return to the skeleton church and grow in unity once again. And don't worry. This book does not push or emphasize any one denomination or style of church. The ideas in this book apply equally to mega-churches and house-churches, as well as to Episcopal and non-denominational churches (and everything in-between. Read this book today to begin functioning as God's people in this world.

What if true church growth begins by allowing the church to die? In The Death and Resurrection of the Church, Jeremy Myers proposes that most modern church growth practices are built on faulty premises. Some of these are even rooted in the false promises that Satan offered to Jesus in the wilderness temptations. If we want the church to grow and thrive, it first needs to die to these false promises. The church must stop striving after strength, power, fame, riches, and glory, and instead follow Jesus into death. Only then will we become the church that Jesus wants. Since there can be no resurrection without death, the church must die so that it can rise again. This revised and updated book now includes discussion questions, perfect for a small group setting. Books in the “Close Your Church for Good” series: Preface: Skeleton Church Volume 1: The Death and Resurrection of the Church Volume 2: Put Service Back into the Church Service Volume 3: Dying to Religion and Empire Volume 4: Church is More than Bodies, Bucks, & Bricks Volume 5: Cruciform Pastoral Leadership

Churches around the world are trying to revitalize their church services. There is almost nothing they will not try. Some embark on multi-million dollar building campaigns while others sell their buildings to plant home churches. Some hire celebrity pastors to attract crowds of people, while others hire no clergy so that there can be open sharing in the service. Yet despite everything churches have tried, few focus much time, money, or energy on the one thing that churches are supposed to be doing: loving and serving others like Jesus. Put Service Back into the Church Service challenges readers to follow a few simple principles and put a few ideas into practice which will help churches of all types and sizes make serving others the primary emphasis of a church service. This revised and updated book now includes discussion questions, perfect for a small group setting. Books in the “Close Your Church for Good” series: Preface: Skeleton Church Volume 1: The Death and Resurrection of the Church Volume 2: Put Service Back into the Church Service Volume 3: Dying to Religion and Empire Volume 4: Church is More than Bodies, Bucks, & Bricks Volume 5: Cruciform Pastoral Leadership

Can Christianity exist without religious rites or legal rights? Are baptism and communion required for the church to exist? What about the freedom of religion and the right to assemble? Building on what he has written in other volumes of the “Close Your Church for Good” series, Jeremy Myers argues that our traditions of baptism and the Lord’s Supper, and our dependence on the legal rights from the government, have actually hindered the growth and development of the church. Dying to Religion and Empire is a call to leave behind the comfortable religion we know and follow Jesus into the uncertain and wild ways of radical discipleship. To rise and live in the reality of God’s Kingdom, we must first die to religion and empire. This revised and updated book now includes discussion questions, perfect for a small group setting. Books in the “Close Your Church for Good” series: Preface: Skeleton Church Volume 1: The Death and Resurrection of the Church Volume 2: Put Service Back into the Church Service Volume 3: Dying to Religion and Empire Volume 4: Church is More than Bodies, Bucks, & Bricks Volume 5: Cruciform Pastoral Leadership

Let’s cut through all the nonsense about spiritual gifts. Here is a down-to-earth discussion about what the spiritual gifts are, how to discover your spiritual gifts, and how to use them in the real world. This book answers such questions as: -Why did God give spiritual gifts? -What are the spiritual gifts? -How can I know my spiritual gifts? -Are some spiritual gifts better than others? -What are the dangers of the spiritual gifts? -Have some spiritual gifts ceased? -What about the spiritual gift of tongues? -How can I embrace and use my spiritual gifts? This book also includes a 125-question Spiritual Gift Inventory test.

You might know what you believe … but do you know that you believe? While many Christians know that they are supposed to believe, they don’t know if they actually do believe. Stop wondering if you have false faith, spurious faith, temporary faith, intellectual faith, or head faith instead of heart faith. All such terms are unhelpful and unbiblical, and cause many Christians to wonder if they have truly believed. By reading this book, you will not only discover how faith works, but also how to know that you believe. This book also answers some of your most pressing questions about faith, such as the relationship between faith and works, whether or not God gives the gift of faith, and how it is possible to be certain about your faith. This book also provides explanations for several key Bible passages about faith.