A fresh look at the earliest Christian movement reveals what made the new faith so compelling...and what we need to change today to make it so again. Once upon a time there was a version of the Christian faith that was practically irresistible. After all, what could be more so than the gospel that Jesus ushered in? Why, then, isn't it the same with Christianity today? Author and pastor Andy Stanley is deeply concerned with the present-day church and its future. He believes that many of the solutions to our issues can be found by investigating our roots. In Irresistible, Andy chronicles what made the early Jesus Movement so compelling, resilient, and irresistible by answering these questions: What did first-century Christians know that we don't—about God's Word, about their lives, about love? What did they do that we're not doing? What makes Christianity so resistible in today's culture? What needs to change in order to repeat the growth our faith had at its beginning? Many people who leave or disparage the faith cite reasons that have less to do with Jesus than with the conduct of his followers. It's time to hit pause and consider the faith modeled by our first-century brothers and sisters who had no official Bible, no status, and little chance of survival. It's time to embrace the version of faith that initiated—against all human odds—a chain of events resulting in the most significant and extensive cultural transformation the world has ever seen. This is a version of Christianity we must remember and re-embrace if we want to be salt and light in an increasingly savorless and dark world.

Author and pastor Andy Stanley explains what made the earliest Christian movement so compelling and resilient...and what we need to change today to make it so again. Once upon a time there was a version of the Christian faith that was practically irresistible. After all, what could be more so than the gospel that Jesus ushered in? Why, then, isn't it the same with Christianity today? In this six-session video Bible study (DVD/video streaming not included), Pastor Andy answers questions like: What did first-century Christians know that we don't—about God's Word, about their lives, about love? What did they do that we're not doing? What makes Christianity so resistible in today's culture? What needs to change in order to repeat the growth our faith had at its beginning? Andy is deeply concerned with the present-day church and its future, and he believes that many of the solutions to our issues can be found by investigating our roots. It's time to hit pause and consider the faith modeled by our first-century brothers and sisters who had no official Bible, no status, and little chance of survival. It's time to embrace the version of faith that initiated—against all human odds—a chain of events resulting in the most significant and extensive cultural transformation the world has ever seen. This is a version of Christianity we must remember and re-embrace if we want to be salt and light in an increasingly savorless and dark world. Designed for use with the Irresistible Video Study (9780310100515) and the Irresistible core book (9780310536970), sold separately.

Once upon a time there was a version of our faith that was practically . . . irresistible. But that was then. Today we preach, teach, write, and communicate as if nothing has changed. As if "The Bible says it" still settles it. It's time to hit pause on much of what we're doing and consider the faith modeled by our first-century brothers and sisters who had no official Bible, no status, and humanly speaking, little chance of survival. What made their message so compelling, so defensible, so irresistible? What did they know that we don't? Buckle up . . . you're about to find out. In this six-session video study, Andy Stanley will invite you to embrace the version of faith that, against all odds, initiated a chain of events resulting in the most significant and extensive cultural transformation the world has ever seen. A version we must embrace if we are to be salt and light in an increasingly savorless and dark world. Sessions include: Simply Resistible Brand-New Agreement The Bible According to Jesus The Irresistible Ethic What Love Requires A New Approach This pack contains one DVD and one study guide.

Come Back from the Edge Overloaded? Maxed out? Our culture encourages us to live as if we have no limits. So we fill up our schedules and empty our bank accounts. We do as much as we can, spend as much as we can, and acquire as much as we can—all in an effort to get as much as we can out of life. This six-part DVD shows that the secret to getting more out of life is not by doing more, but by doing less. Its companion study guide is complete with a leader’s guide and six lessons, including conversation-starting exercises, discussion questions, and application steps. You’ll learn to create the margin you need to live the life God intends for you. Come Back from the Edge Overloaded? Maxed out? Our culture encourages us to live as if we have no limits. So we fill up our schedules and empty our bank accounts. We do as much as we can, spend as much as we can, and acquire as much as we can—all in an effort to get as much as we can out of life. In this six-session companion study guide to the Take It to the Limit DVD, Andy Stanley explains that the secret to getting more out of life is not doing more, but doing less. We must learn to create margin to live the life God intended for us. This study guide is complete with a leader’s guide and six lessons, including conversation-starting exercises, discussion questions, and application steps. Story Behind the Book Andy Stanley, senior pastor of three North Point Ministries campuses with a cumulative congregation of more than twenty thousand, sees firsthand the burned-out, frenzied life Christians are living. Some are just beginning to establish unhealthy patterns, while others have been living without margin for years, and their health is paying the price. This curriculum was designed to help people establish balance, so that the life God intends for them will become an achievable reality!

Using the well-known TULIP acronym, this primer on the five points of Calvinism is perfect for students and laypeople alike.

"I love everything that Scott Sauls writes." -- Christine Caine What if Christians became the best advertisement for Jesus? Jesus said his followers would be a light to the world and a city on a hill--a warmly inviting, neighbor-loving, grace- and truth-filled destination for all. He envisioned his followers as life-giving neighbors, bosses, employees, and friends, the kind of people who return insults with kindness and persecution with prayers. Rooted in biblical convictions, they would extend love, empathy, and care to one another as well as to those who don't share their beliefs. Over time their movement would become irresistible to every nation, tribe, and tongue. Irresistible Faith is a blueprint for pursuing this vision in our current moment, of redeemed individuals and a renewed community working for a restored world. This is a way of being that gives a tired, cynical world good reason to pause and reconsider Christianity--and to start wishing it was true. "I miss the kind of church Scott describes in this book, and I don’t think I am alone." -- Donald Miller, author of Blue Like Jazz and Building a StoryBrand "An important call to resist the urge to lobby and position ourselves, but rather to be driven by gospel-powered love." -- Raechel Myers, founder and CEO of She Reads Truth "An antidote to much that is wrong with our Western, American version of Christianity. " -- Gabe and Rebekah Lyons, authors and founders of Q

Bestselling church leadership author identifies 12 healthy traits of a growing church, showing how to develop a church that makes people want to come back.