Nine Marks of a Healthy Church

Rating:
Summary: Very helpful for pastors and church leaders
Review: Dever majors in the majors with this book by focusing on how pastors and other church leaders should approach preaching, theology, the gospel, conversion, evangelism, church membership, discipleship and leadership. It is a great read for those who don't just want to complain about the state of the church today, but who actually want some biblical, positive direction.

The first chapter on expositional preaching is especially helpful because he provides a biblical foundation to the idea that the preaching the Word is the most fundamental duty of the church pastor. His chapters on membership and leadership are also great because he marshals a biblical argument for having high expectations of members and for elders as a biblical office, respectively.

More than anything, after reading Nine Marks of a Healthy Church, I walked away understanding that God has given a lot more direction regarding the day to day operations of His church than I thought.

Rating:
Summary: Yet another book
Review: In the introduction Mr. Dever states, "There is dissatisfaction with the church on every hand. Bookstore shelves groan under the weight of books with prescriptions for what ails her." OK, so why is he adding yet another book? In Appendix Two he lists 19 other books that have preceded his own, with his being the last--the ultimate, final word on the subject, I suppose. (The funny thing is that George Barna has written at least 4 books on the subject, all different. I guess there is gold in them thar hills.)

The author goes on, "Conference speakers live off the congregational diseases that always seem to survive their remedies." Wow, he just nailed himself, because he's listed on the back cover as "a frequent conference speaker." Gee, I wonder what he speaks about?

I couldn't get through the rest of the book because of the elitist, high-brow, intellectual, and condescending tone.

Solomon said, "of making many books there is no end." What's happening is that anybody who fancies himself as a seer picks a few random symptoms of the sickness that is American Christianity, and writes a book about it, offering the "final cure". Then, if he's smart, he writes another book later on, and then another, and becomes a well-paid conference speaker. It goes on endlessly. Anybody can pick a sample of 5, 10, or 12 symptoms and write a book about it. It doesn't matter which symptoms you pick, because there is an endless supply.

But the church is made up of people, and that's the real problem, isn't it? American Christianity is in apostasy, and there is no cure. All we do is run to the the Bible Bookstore (oops, they don't call it that anymore, do they?) and buy the latest hot CD or feel-good book, worshipping the latest Christian Idol.

Even if you could make your church more biblical, you'd only lose all the fake Christians who are there, and who wants that? The bigger the better, right?

If you're looking for the perfect church, or even a biblical church, then you're looking in the wrong country and in the wrong century. American Christians have totally bought into their culture, and there is no difference. We're selfish fast-food consumers who fit church into our lives when it's convenient and "meets our felt needs." Small incremental improvements in church form or emphasis are not going to change the heart of the issue--the hearts of the people.

My final recommendation: Find a Calvary Chapel in your area. That's the best you can do. They are usually pretty good churches, although some have gone into hero worship with some of their charismatic pastors. But just remember that no church is perfect, especially if you are a member.

If you want entertainment, go to the movies. If you want a social club, go join one. But if you want to worship God, quit your whining and find a good, imperfect church in your area and make it better.

And stop buying the endless self-serving drivel that is pumped out by the so-called "Christian Stores" that are only interested in making the temple of God a den of thieves. Dust off your bible and read it, if you have one.

Rating:
Summary: The previous reviewer should have actually read the book
Review: This book was written to address problems in the Church. A topic such as this is difficult to approach without actually pointing out specific issues that are plaguing the Church. That is the whole point of the book! I have read several related titles and this is the simplest and most straight forward (while also being biblical) treatment of the subject that I have encountered.

Sure, I don't like the idea of setting aside nine marks as being important, but Dever is not writing a complete work on church polity. Rather he is addressing some of the most important issues that many modern churches do not practice. This is a very important book, enjoyable to read, and well worth your time.

Rating:
Summary: The previous reviewer should have actually read the book
Review: This incredible book focus your attention not on the pragmatic but the principled. It is a fresh look on what's really important in a church - namely, spiritual growth as seen in those growing in their love for God and for the the things that He loves. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is dissapointed in the way church seems to mirror much of what secular offer.

Rating:
Summary: You may want to borrow it before you buy...
Review: This is a prescriptive work aimed at helping church leaders focus on the right things. As with any prescriptive work, how helpful the book is depends on where YOU are coming from. If you are coming from the same place as the author (white suburban/rural America) then I think this is a helpful book with important insights!

If you come from an Urban area or a very multiethnic/multicultural city, then you should probably read critically, and with extra care. The author's use of the word "culture" is broad and, in some senses, a bit uninformed.

The chapters are a series of topical sermons (even the chapter on the importance of expositional sermons!). This is a format I don't particularly care for (unless the author is someone like D.M. Lloyd-Jones).

Toward the end of the book it becomes clear that what the author is advocating is not so much the antithesis to church growth theology, but more of a wholistic model for church growth (ala Orlando Costas).

Rating:
Summary: All That It Claims To Be
Review: Truth be told, I was a little disappointed with 9 Marks of a Healthy Church. The problem is not that it is a poor book but more that I had unrealistic expectations of it. I was hoping this book would be everything the church growth manuals are not; that it would be a knockout punch against church growth. It is not all of this, but that does not mean it is without value. I suppose I expected it to be a rebuttal of the seeker-friendly/church growth movement, but this is not what it is inteded to be. In retrospect, this is far better, for the book begins and ends with the Bible and the wisdom of God rather than with a rebuttal of the the wisdom of men. This book represents an interesting contrast to other books on this topic that have emerged from the Southern Baptist Convention, most notably The Purpose Driven Church. Where Warren's book claims to be about church health it is clear that the true focus is on growth. In 9 Marks, Mark Dever is able to seperate health from growth, rules from results. The focus of this book is on "being" church rather than "doing" church - on accentuating biblical perspectives on personal holiness above numbers or cultural relevance.

The author, Mark Dever, is pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church, a Southern Baptist congregation in Washington, D.C., and also heads up IX Marks Ministries. Dever seems to be anything but typical as a Southern Baptist pastor, and with his thoroughly Reformed theology must represent a minority position within the Convention. In this book, as in IX Marks Ministries, he seeks to rediscover the pillars of the church as outlined in the Bible and practiced in traditional Protestant churches. Here is a brief overview of the 9 marks he identifies:

1. Expositional Preaching - Expositional preaching (otherwise known as expository preaching) is the investigation of a particular passage of Scripture whereby the pastor carefully explains the meaning of a passage and then applies it to the members of the congregation. The point of a sermon, then, takes the point of a particular passage. This is in opposition to the topical preaching showcased in the majority of evangelical churches, where Bible passages are woven together to support a pre-existing point.
2. Biblical Theology - This emphasizes not only how we are taught but also what we are taught. In a sense this should follow naturally from expository preaching because the careful exposition of a passage should lead to sound theology. The majority of poor theology arises from a lack of careful Biblical exposition. Where there is poor exposition, we should expect to eventually find poor theology.
3. Biblical Understanding of the Good News - There needs to be a proper understanding and necessary emphasis on the full gospel. Where many contemporary churches teach that Jesus wants to meet our felt needs and give us a healthier self-image, that is not the gospel. The gospel message is that we are sinners who have rebelled against our Creator. But Jesus took the curse that was rightfully ours and all that remains is for us to have faith in Him so God may credit Christ's righteousness to our account. When we de-emphasize sin and damnation to make the presentation more friendly and less offensive we cease declaring the full gospel.
4. Biblical Understanding of Conversion - When we have a Biblical understanding of the gospel, we must then also have a proper understanding of conversion. Conversion is a new birth from death to life and is a work of God. It is not merely a change of attitude or a change of affection, but a change of nature. Conversion does not need to be an exciting, emotional experience, but does need to produce fruit to be judged a true conversion.
5. Biblical Understanding of Evangelism - The way we evangelize speaks volumes about how we understand conversion (and further, what we understand about the good news). If we believe that people are essentially good and are seeking Jesus, we evangelize using half truths and tend to elicit false conversions. When we present a watered-down gospel, we end up with a watered-down church. We need to be faithful to present the full gospel, the good news with the bad, and leave the results to God.
6. Biblical Understanding of Membership - Church membership is a privilege and a responsibility and needs to be regarded as such. People should only be members if they are dedicated to the church - in attendance, prayer, service and giving. To allow people to become and remain members for sentimental or other unbiblical reasons makes light of membership and may even be dangerous.
7. Biblical Church Discipline - Discipline guides church membership. The church has the responsibility to judge the life and teaching of the membership since they can negatively impact the church's witness of the gospel. Leadership need to be firm in discipline as this is an expression of love to the congregation.
8. Promotion of Church Discipleship And Growth - We need to recover true discipleship - discipleship that causes Christians to live lives of increasing holiness. The emphasis on growth needs to be directed at holiness rather than membership. True discipleship producing strong, committed Christians will present a clear witness to the world.
9. Biblical Understand of Leadership - Until recent times, almost all Protestants agreed that in church government there should be a plurality of elders (which means that there should be an office of elder and not merely one or more pastors in positions of leadership). This is a Biblical and practical model that has fallen out of favor in modern times.

Dever presents a convincing argument that a return to each of these nine principles would do much to restore the church to what God intends her to be. He dedicates twenty or thirty pages to each of them, usually tracing how they were understood in church history and showing the effect they would have on today's church. Perhaps what I appreciated most about this book is that, while he is willing to share from his own ministry, this is not a "do as I have done" type of book. Never once does he tell us how many people attend his church, trying to woo us with human credentials. All we learn about the numbers in his church is that membership decreased, but attendance increased as a result of his pastorate. Very rarely does he portray himself as the model other church leaders are to emulate. Needless to say, this stands in stark contrast to other books written to address the same topic.

So while this book left me a little bit disappointed, I realize that it was my unrealistic expectations that made it so. This is a very well-written and thoroughly biblical book. Dever expounds God's wisdom on the church and in that way does exactly what he set out to do - he provides godly insight into what makes a healthy, vibrant church that pleases our Lord. I highly recommend it.