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Church Government

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Church Government
LIBERTY UNIVERSITY BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY

Church Government in a Changing Environment

Submitted to Dr. Samuel Hoyt, in partial of fulfilment of the requirements for the course

Summer 201420 THEO 530-B05-LUO

Systematic Theology II

by

Marlinda M. House Rhodes

Lynchburg, Virginia May 29, 2014

Thesis Statement

This paper will support that trained leaders, upgrading organizational designs, functions, and services are essential to meeting the needs of membership and attracting new members. Research Question
What are the reasons why church governments outdated and membership and church growth is declining?

Introduction 1

Church Government 1
History 1

Defined 2

History 2

Ecumenical Council 3
First Church Structure 3 Separation East and West 3
Three Types of Polity 4 Denominational 5 Catholic



Bibliography: Perspectives on Church Government: Five Views of Church Polity. Edited by Chad Owen Brand and R. Stanton Norman. Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2004. Berkley, James D. Dynamics of Church Finances: The Ministry of a New Century. Grand Rapids: Bakers House, 2000. Kindle. Blackaby, Henry, and Richard Blackaby. Spiritual Leadership: Moving People on to God 's Agenda. Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2001. Clement, Ron K. Biblical Church Government. 3rd ed. Narrows: Metokos Press, 2013. Kindle. Ferguson, Everett. Church History, Volume 1: From Christ to Reformation: The Rise and Growth of the Church in its Cultural, Intellectual, and Political Context. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2005. Grudem, Wayne. Church Government. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1994. Kindle. Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2005. Hinings, C. R., L. Thibault, T. Slack, and L. Kikulis. Values and Organizational Structure. Sage Publication, Inc., 2012.Accessed May 19, 2014. http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/doview/231498402?accountid Malphurs, Aubrey. Leading Leaders: Empowering Church Boards for Ministry Boards. Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2005. Kindle. Packard, Josh, “Organizational structure, religious belief, and resistance: The Emerging Church.” View Profile. Vanderbilt University, ProQuest, UMI Dissertations Publishing, 2008. 3378203. Accessed May 19, 2014. http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/docview/304445246?accountid =12085. Robertson, James Craigie. Sketches of Church History: From AD 33 to the Reformation. Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2011. Saucy, Robert L. The Church in God 's Program. Chicago: The Moody Bible Institute, 1972. Stetzer, Ed, and Elmer L. Towns. Perimeters of Light: Biblical Boundaries for the Emerging Church Taylor, L. Roy, Peter Toon, Paige Patterson, and Samuel E. Waldron. Who Runs the Church: Four Views On Church Government? Edited by Peter E. Engle and Steven B. Cowan. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2014. Walker, Frank H. Biblical Church Government: The Church Fulfilling Its Calling. Frank H. Walker, 2010. Kindle. Nashville: B & H Publishing Group, 2011. Kindle. White, James Emery. Rethinking the Church: A Challenge to Creative Redesign in Age of Transition. Rev. ed. Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2004.

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