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.

How can a loving God send people to hell? Isn’t it arrogant to believe Jesus is the only way to God? What is up with holy war in the Old Testament? Many of us fear God has some skeletons in the closet. Hell, judgment, and holy war are hot topics for the Christian faith that have a way of igniting fierce debate far and wide. These hard questions leave many wondering whether God is really good and can truly be trusted. The Skeletons in God's Closet confronts our popular caricatures of these difficult topics with the beauty and power of the real thing. Josh Butler reveals that these subjects are consistent with, rather than contradictory to, the goodness of God. He explores Scripture to reveal the plotlines that make sense of these tough topics in light of God’s goodness. From fresh angles, Josh deals powerfully with such difficult passages as: The Lake of Fire Lazarus and the Rich Man The Slaughter of Canaanites in the Old Testament Ultimately, The Skeletons in God's Close uses our toughest questions to provoke paradigm shifts in how we understand our faith as a whole. It pulls the “skeletons out of God’s closet” to reveal they were never really skeletons at all.

R. Andrew Chesnut offers a fascinating portrayal of Santa Muerte, a skeleton saint whose cult has attracted millions of devotees over the past decade. Although condemned by mainstream churches, this folk saint's supernatural powers appeal to millions of Latin Americans and immigrants in the U.S. Devotees believe the Bony Lady (as she is affectionately called) to be the fastest and most effective miracle worker, and as such, her statuettes and paraphernalia now outsell those of the Virgin of Guadalupe and Saint Jude, two other giants of Mexican religiosity. In particular, Chesnut shows Santa Muerte has become the patron saint of drug traffickers, playing an important role as protector of peddlers of crystal meth and marijuana; DEA agents and Mexican police often find her altars in the safe houses of drug smugglers. Yet Saint Death plays other important roles: she is a supernatural healer, love doctor, money-maker, lawyer, and angel of death. She has become without doubt one of the most popular and powerful saints on both the Mexican and American religious landscapes.

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

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