Religious people don't necessarily make good neighbors! Believers tend to become like the God they revere. What kind of neighbors would a friendly God produce--a God who values nothing higher than freedom & individuality, a God who would rather treat his followers not as servants, but as friends? SERVANTS OR FRIENDS? takes another look at the evidence. Is the God of the Bible a friendly person--eager to restore people's dignity & self-respect? This book was based on 135 year-long trips through the Bible in company with thousands of people, young & old. Nothing was overlooked--including the "dark speech," "servant talk," & the most forbidding stories! An experienced man of the people, author Graham Maxwell (Ph.D. University of Chicago) has brought the Bible to life--with a good dose of humor--for his university students, for professionals, children & culturally diverse groups all over the world. SERVANTS OR FRIENDS? is a beautifully illustrated gift edition featuring California artist Susan Kelley. Both hardcover & paperback are on acid free patina matte paper with smyth-sewn binding. The audio-book, 4 cassettes, is read by the author.

The time has come, Edward C. Zaragoza argues, to lay a new foundation for how we understand ordained ministry. He begins by reminding us that, on the basis of the priesthood of all believers, clergy are ministers with, rather than servants of, the congregation. Building on the horizontal nature of this relationship, he suggests that we begin to think of a friendship model of ministry. In this model the authority of the ordained arises not from the quality of their service to the congregation (a service which can too easily lead to subjugation or superiority), but from the fact that the church has set them apart to minister with and among them, carrying on their own ministry of prayer, proclamation, and teaching, in ways that enhance and facilitate the ministry of the whole people of God. In this timely and constructive theological analysis, Zaragoza offers a new paradigm for understanding the function of ordained ministry in the life of the congregation. After presenting a critique of the "servant leadership model" and explaining the risks inherent in it, the author presents a "friendship model" of ordained ministry and explains how this model arises from and takes place within the context of the whole people of God.

The Blood of His Servants is a remarkable true story. In the whole range of Holocaust literature it stands apart, for it recounts the search by one survivor for the single Nazi murderer of his family—a man who had once been their friend. In prewar Poland, Bibi Krumholz, the nephew of prosperous Jewish landowners, is befriended by the wealthy Dutchman Pieter Menten. Largely due to Menten’s wordly influence, Bibi leaves for Palestine in 1935. In the years before the war, Menten establishes a business partnership with Bibi’s family; in a legal battle over timber rights, Menten is publicly embarrassed and swears retribution. It comes swiftly. In 1945, Bibi is desperate for news of his family. Wisps of rumor drift to Tel Aviv about the fate of his village. Then Bibi learns from survivors that Menten exacted a hideous revenge, that as an adviser to an SS killer squad, Menten directed the execution of all Jews in the village—including every member of Bibi’s family. Bibi vows vengeance and his hunt begins.

God made you for friendship. Friendship is one of the deepest pleasures of life. But in our busy, fast-paced, mobile world, we've lost this rich view of friendship and instead settled for shallow acquaintances based on little more than similar tastes or shared interests. Helping us recapture a vision of true friendship, pastor Drew Hunter explores God's design for friendship and what it really looks like in practice—giving us practical advice to cultivate the kinds of true friendships that lead to true and life-giving joy.

By the wonder of salvation in Jesus Christ God establishes a covenant with us his people and makes us his friends and servants. And in his mercy he also makes a promise to us: I will be your God, and I will never forsake you.God is always faithful to keep the promises he makes to us, even as he kept his promises to the patriarchs Abraham and Jacob. We may suffer terrible troubles in this world like Job or Joseph, but God rules all things for our sakes, and so his plan for us is always good.As his friends and servants we seek heaven and flee the temptations of the world. The God who delivered his servant Daniel from the lion's den also delivers us from the devil and keeps us safe until he brings us to heavenly glory.This second book in the Tell His Wonders Bible story book series includes stories about Job and the patriarchs, Joseph and his brothers, several judges, King David, Daniel and his friends, and more.

Sometimes people lose sight of the core of their ministry. They feel overwhelmed by the needs that surround them on a daily basis. Wise and beloved pastor Warren Wiersbe invites ministry leaders to listen in on thirty short "armchair chats" to encourage and strengthen them for service. He shares what he wishes he had known about ministering to others when he began his own Christian pilgrimage. "Ministry," he says, "takes place when divine resources meet human needs through loving channels to the glory of God." With this new edition of a classic book, which includes a foreword by Jim Cymbala, the next generation of ministry leaders can take advantage of Wiersbe's years of wisdom.